Our annual capstone event showcases the best emerging scholar presentations from across Canada. All laureates are nominated by CDSN co-directors and partners and selected by committee based on diversity of research and scholars.
This year’s Capstone will be hosted in partnership with the team at the University of New Brunswick’s Gregg Centre for the Study of War and Society and the Faculty of Arts
CDSN Advisory Board member Dr. Lynne Gouliquer in collaboration with Dr. Cindy Brown, Dr. Carmen Poulin and Dr. Lee Windsor are happy to host the CDSN emerging scholars for this years east coast edition edition of the annual Capstone in Fredericton, New Brunswick with an engagement at the 5th Canadian Division Support Base (5CDSB) Gagetown planned as well.
RSVPs are required to attend this in person event. Refreshments and lunch will be provided:
2025 Capstone Laureates and Agenda
For information on past Capstone events, with videos in French and English, visit our Laureates page HERE
Panel 1: LAureates and Bios
Trent E. Kane, CD
“Protecting Non-Combatants on Peacekeeping Operations: Shortcomings and Solutions”
Trent is currently a student in the Master of Strategic Studies program in the Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies at the University of Calgary. Trent has been accepted into the PhD program in Military & Strategic Studies at the University of Calgary starting in the fall of 2025.
Trent has a Bachelor of Military Arts & Sciences from the Royal Military College of Canada (2013), a Bachelor of Arts in Criminology (1988) and a Master of Arts in Sociology (1993) both from the University of Manitoba.
Trent has almost 33 years of service in the Public Service of Canada and served over 12 years in the Canadian Armed Forces as a Cadet Instructor Cadre Officer finishing at the rank of Captain. Trent was deployed to Kosovo as part of Canadian’s contribution to the rebuilding the correctional system in Kosovo in 2001.
Trent has been awarded a number of medals from the Canadian honours system including the Canadian Peacekeeping Service Medal, the NATO medal for Kosovo, the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal, the Canadian Forces Decoration, the Corrections Exemplary Service Medal (with Bar), and the Alberta Centennial Medal. Trent has been awarded two Commissioner’s Commendations from the Correctional Service of Canada as well as a Director’s Commendation from the Ontario Police College. Trent was also awarded the Alberta Emergency Services Medal (with Bronze Bar) by the Government of Alberta.
Trent’s research interests include the law of armed conflict, military peacekeeping as well as police and law enforcement participation in peacekeeping.
Emelia Connolly
“Conflict, Commerce, and Intervention: Reimagining the Geostrategic Significance of the Horn of Africa”
Emelia Connolly is a second-year thesis-based Strategic Studies Master’s student at the University of Calgary’s Centre for Military, Security and Strategic Studies. She has won two of Alberta’s Graduate Excellence Scholarships. Her research focuses on understanding the tactics, strategies, and objectives of insurgent movements and terrorist groups in Africa, particularly the Horn of Africa. She is working on a SSHRC CGS-M funded project called “Inside the Barrel of an Insurgent’s Gun: Tactics, Strategy, and the Way of War of Al-Shabaab in Somalia.” Drawing from her thesis research, Connolly’s CDSN Capstone presentation thoroughly examines the security implications for regions and states deemed “geostrategic” and the impact of subsequent efforts to securitize regions considered “strategically significant.” This project features an extensive literature review of the geostrategic importance of the Horn of Africa since the opening of the Suez Canal, as well as a case study of Somalia. This state has an extensive coastline bordering the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden, making it a key location for the transportation of international goods, piracy, illicit trade, and a target of the Global War on Terror.
Panel 2: LAureates and Bios
Jillian Sunderland
“From 'Culture' to Complicity: The RCMP, Sexual Violence, and the Rhetoric of Institutional Reform”
Jillian Sunderland is a Sociology PhD Candidate at the University of Toronto, specializing in gender violence in state institutions. Her research examines governmental and institutional reforms addressing sexual harassment in the RCMP over a 20-year period, analyzing stalled efforts and opportunities for change.
She holds a Master of Arts in Sociology from McMaster University, where she produced a report on countering violent extremism, funded by Public Safety Canada’s Community Resilience Fund. Her work has been published in Men and Masculinities, Social Politics, and Sociological Forum. A recognized expert on gender, violence, and masculinities, she has been featured in CBC Gem documentaries, CBC National News, CTV Radio News, The Varsity, and other media outlets.
Jillian has received numerous academic and research awards, including the SSHRC Joseph-Armand Bombardier Doctoral Scholarship, the Ontario Graduate Scholarship (2023–2025), and the National Endowment Fund Scholarship.
Beyond academia, Jillian serves as a board member of Women of Color Advancing Peace, Security, and Conflict Transformation (WCAPS) Canada, where she contributes to initiatives on gender and security.
Caleigh Wong
“Cycles of Reform, Failures of Data: Military Sexual Violence and the Crisis of Analytics in the Canadian Armed Forces”
Caleigh Wong is a soon-to-be graduate of a Master’s in Political Science from McGill University, which she has pursued on a full-ride McCall MacBain Scholarship. She is also a Transforming Military Cultures (TMC) Network Scholar and a Centre for International Governance Innovation (CIGI) Digital Policy Hub Fellow. Currently, Caleigh is researching data governance in the Canadian Armed Forces’ sexual misconduct reporting, tracking and monitoring systems, and investigating how analytics shape and skew organizational responses to military sexual violence scandals.
Caleigh spent 5 years in the Primary Army Reserves, and deployed to Latvia on Operation REASSURANCE in 2020. As a soldier, she has spearheaded ethics training at reserve units across Atlantic Canada and testified as a witness on the Standing Committee for Veterans Affairs’ Study on Women Veterans’ Experiences. Throughout her work, she aims to bridge grassroots efforts and system-level mechanisms for change.
Sophia Konermann
“Lived experiences of 2SLGBTQIA+ Canadian Armed Forces’ members: Socio-cultural Change and Policy Development”
Sophia Konermann is currently a PhD student at the University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, under the supervision of Drs. Carmen Poulin and Lynne Gouliquer. She works primarily in qualitative research with marginalised populations using the Psychosocial Ethnography of the Commonplace methodology and is training to become a Certified Mental Performance Consultant.
During her first year as an MA/PhD student, she completed a research apprenticeship taking part in Carmen and Lynne’s pan-Canadian study on the experiences of currently serving 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals of the Canadian Armed Forces. She focussed on the trans experience, in particular. She has since worked on projects regarding policies concerned with trans individuals in the Canadian Armed Forces. Currently, her second research apprenticeship consists of the planning and execution of a knowledge mobilisation event involving participants of the 2SLGBTQIA+ in the military study. She is writing a report about the most salient themes for this group and preparing a presentation to be presented to all previous participants to seek feedback.
Sophia is also preparing for her dissertation project, concerned with marginalised communities in rock climbing. She wishes to further her knowledge about interdisciplinary research, the reality of women, and people living in the margins, with the hope of bringing about positive social change.
In addition to her qualitative research, Sophia completed her comprehensive project on the association of heartrate variability and breathing exercises among university athletes under the supervision of Dr. Ryan Hamilton. Sophia continues to work with Ryan on various projects and involving clients with various professions in the realm of mental performance consulting.
Alongside her studies, Sophia is actively engaged in bringing about positive changes to the sport of rock-climbing in New Brunswick. She lends her skills and volunteers to develop inclusive policies for the climbing organisation Ascent New Brunswick and provides coaching to young climbing athletes in an indoor environment.
Panel 3: LAureates and Bios
Aly Tkachenko
Aly Tkachenko is a PhD student in International Relations and Canadian Politics at the University of Victoria. Her research focuses on climate security, Arctic politics, and civil disobedience. Aly is interested in questions regarding the intersection of environmental politics and security, climate protest and resistance, and current issues affecting Canada’s Pacific coast. Aly is a research fellow with the North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (NAADSN), as well as a 2024 fellowship recipient with the Climate Security Association of Canada (CSAC). Her work at UVic is supervised by Dr. Will Greaves.
Aly’s recently published work includes “Envisioning ecological security through local direct action: Community resistance with global resonance” Critical Studies on Security (2024).
In her spare time, Aly enjoys volunteering with the Cetus Research and Conservation Society.
Justin Nakao
"The Militarization of the Arctic: Russia's Arctic Strategy and its Security Implications"
Justin Nakao is a Master of Arts in Security and Defence Studies candidate at the University of Ottawa. His research focuses on the potential implications of Russian militarization in the Arctic, specifically the geostrategic pressures for Canada created by direct Russian control over the North Sea Route (NSR) and soft control over the Transpolar Sea Route (TSR). Looking at the specific composition and deployment of Russian military capabilities and other activities in the Arctic, he finds that Russia aims to control the NSR and project power into the TSR. Critically he highlights that while China is building artificial islands to contest the status of the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea as international straits, Russian militarization allows Russia to stake its claim before the routes become fully navigable. He highlights that in the near future, this will create sovereignty and military challenges for Canada.
Panel 4: Laureates and Bios
Emma Limane
“Norm Entrepreneurs in Turmoil: Feminist Foreign Policies and the Crisis of the International Liberal Order”
Emma Limane is a PhD candidate and lecturer in the Department of Political Studies at the Université de Montréal.
Her research focuses on the evolution of normative foreign policies in the face of upheavals in the rules-based international order. Focusing on the case of Canada’s Women, Peace and Security programs, her thesis assesses how the individuals responsible for these programs adapt their normative frameworks to the rise of illiberalism.
Sara Rubenfeld
“Culture Crisis in the Canadian Military: Perspectives of Executive Leaders”
Sara Rubenfeld is a Defence Scientist with Director General Military Personnel Research and Analysis (DGMPRA) with the Department of National Defence. She is Section Head for Director Research Operational and Organizational Dynamic’s Leadership, Culture and Ethics Section. She is a recipient of a 2020 Public Service Award of Excellence for Excellence in Profession and a 2023 Deputy Minister/Chief of the Defence Staff Organizational Culture award. Her research focuses on sexual misconduct in the military. Her research interests in this domain examine various aspects of leadership, bystander intervention and professional conduct training. Sara leads DGMPRA’s sexual misconduct research program and co-leads the Gender and the Military working group for the European Research Group on Military and Society. She received a PhD in psychology from the University of Ottawa.
