Forestry Management Assistant; City of Mississauga
To me, co-op is about gaining new experiences, continuously learning, and making long-lasting connections with peers. At the City of Mississauga, I am able to do all of the above through different events and cross-training. I have been working as a Forestry Management Assistant (FMA) with the Forestry Planning and Permits team under the Forestry Department. My daily duties include from inspecting and approving dead tree permits, releasing tree security deposits, and conducting TPZ inspections for pools to ensure that both public and private trees are protected. Although my main focus is in by-law, all the FMAs have the opportunity for cross-training with other teams.
I was assigned to help with tree inventory for the Forestry Capital Delivery team, where I used ArcGIS Field Maps and Trimble to determine tree location with an accuracy of up to 2 cm. We were also invited to various training sessions and events, such as learning about soil cells with landscape architects, visiting goats grazing on invasive species, and chainsaw training for removing hazardous trees after major storms. Despite some minor challenges and unexpected events, it has been a very fulfilling work term, and I hope to do more things with the City of Mississauga for my next work term!