Thiago Nunes, ©UWinnipeg
Originally from Brazil, Thiago Nunes came to Canada to further his education.With a background in industrial maintenance, Nunes wanted to combine his work experience with a Project Management Certification (PMP). He also wanted to expand his knowledge and learn about the best practices in project management.
Nunes chose the program offered through UWinnipeg’s Professional, Applied and Continuing Education. He liked that it was a condensed program that could be completed in one year.
“I liked the PACE program,” shared Nunes. “I had the opportunity to learn from instructors who have years of experience working with big projects in Winnipeg. The instructors become a good reference for the future. PACE also had an internship program which opened an opportunity for me to practice what I had learned during the program. And, for me, coming from a different culture, it was an excellent opportunity to get into the Canadian work environment.”
He served his one-month internship with UWinnipeg’s Campus Sustainability Office (CSO), synthesizing large amounts of data on energy use, water consumption, waste collection, and greenhouse gas emissions into usable information.
Nunes also developed new databases and user-friendly spreadsheets for all of UWinnipeg’s main sustainability indicators, and cleaned up discrepancies found in historical data. He was so successful, they hired him on a three-month contract to continue his important work.
“During the few short months he spent working in the CSO, Thiago made some really big contributions,” said Joseph Wasylycia-Leis, Campus Sustainability Coordinator. “His main project was to help improve our data management and reporting systems, making it easier for us to measure UWinnipeg’s environmental performance on an ongoing basis. Now, we’re able to update information and generate new graphs with a few mouse clicks — it’s awesome!”
Nunes has since been hired with UWinnipeg’s Facilities Department as the sustainability and special projects assistant.
“Thiago has demonstrated a strong desire to help our team and implement a number of positive changes,” said Kyle McDonald, Executive Director, Facilities. “The application of knowledge and skills learned through his PACE program is an asset to the University. Thiago has been a pleasure to work with and we congratulate him on his success.”
Nunes work focuses on improvements within UWinnipeg facilities management such as assisting with maintenance and operational procedure development. Many of these procedures are related to UWinnipeg’s campus sustainability initiatives. He is also working closely with the Campus Sustainability Office, harvesting the data required to meet UWinnipeg’s green building program requirements.
“UWinnipeg has given me the opportunity to grow as a professional and as a person. The working environment is fantastic. Since the beginning as an intern in the Sustainability Office, I feel like I’m part of the team.”
