Bio

Dr. Vanessa Timmer is the Executive Director of OneEarth Living, a Vancouver, Canada-based nonprofit ‘think and do tank’ advancing sustainable everyday living around the world. OneEarth Living collaborates with partners to transform how people live their lives – what they need, what they consume and produce, and what they aspire to – enabling everyone to live good quality lives within their fair share of our planet’s resources. They partner with sustainable living leaders, policy-makers, artists, funders, researchers, youth, and practitioners, and support people taking action in their communities. Vanessa is also a Senior Research Fellow at Utrecht University with the Copernicus Institute of Sustainable Development, the Urban Futures Studio, and Pathways to Sustainability. She holds a Doctorate and studied at Queen’s University, Oxford, UBC and Harvard. She advises the UN’s 10YFP Sustainable Lifestyles and Education Programme, is a member of The Earthshot Prize Expert Advisory Panel and received the YWCA Women of Distinction Award in Environmental Sustainability. Vanessa presents internationally, and guides strategies for social change, sustainability, and systems thinking, promoting equity and well-being within Earth’s ecological means.

Last updated April 2026