This year, two new MSc students join the Diabetes Prevention Research Group! We are thrilled to welcome Natalie Grieve and Blanca Gala to the team, and cannot wait to learn from their expertise.
Natalie Grieve joins the team from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where she completed her undergraduate degree at Cardinal Stritch University.
Natalie’s research interests are in health behaviour change, pain management and chronic disease. Between Natalie’s undergraduate and current masters degree, she has worked at two different pain clinics, one in Seattle and one in Kelowna!
Natalie is thrilled to join the DPRG team, and can’t wait to explore the ski mountains here in the Okanagan has to offer! She is also an avid tennis player and is certified to tennis coach and a member of the Tennis Professional Association in Canada. One of her favourite quotes is, “Always strive to be your best knowing that you will never get there.”
Blanca Gala joins the team from Mexico City where she completed a bachelors degree in economics (Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education) and a masters in public policy (Autonomous Technological Institute of Mexico). Her masters thesis, “Obesity and overweight, a health public problem derived from the socioeconomic inequality in Mexico”, analyzed how socioeconomic inequity affects overweight and obesity in Mexico, specifically in children.
Blanca’s research with the DPRG will focus on look at the most important psychological and emotional factors that impact the adherence to an exercise and a diet plan, and how these can be improved by continuously self-monitoring. She strongly believes that if researchers can work together with policymakers, chronic conditions such as diabetes can be prevented around the world, making people’s lives longer and happier.
Blanca is thrilled to join the DPRG team and can’t wait to take her dog, Coco, on walks around the Okanagan. She is looking forward to exploring wineries in the Okanagan and learning to ski. Blanca also enjoys running marathons, reading, and baking!
Welcome to the team, Natalie and Blanca!