Holistic Nutrition

Angeli Chitale is a Queen’s University Graduate in Molecular Biology and Genetics. During her final year of post-grad level work in genetic research at the Department of Pathology, she treated her chronic knee injury with natural medicine – nutrition, herbs and supplements. The impact was so life-changing, it inspired her to pursue formal studies and training in Naturopathic Medicine.

While a student at The Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (CCNM), Angeli pursued further hands-on training in botanical medicine with the Ontario Herbalists Association. Upon graduation, she obtained further qualification in Restorative Medicine for the treatment of Thyroid, Adrenal and other endocrine/metabolic conditions.

Angeli believes in contributing to the profession and has served as an Executive Board Member, Medical Editor for the LAND (Ontario Association of Naturopathic Doctors), Chair of the Naturopathic Legacy Committee and has worked overseas with NGOs such as Naturopathic Doctors International who provides natural medical care to patients in remote and isolated areas of Central America. Here, Angeli supervised clinical care in Women’s Clinics, taught Global Health, Botanical Medicine and Clinical skills to prospective ND candidates from all over North America. Angeli is a professional member of the AARM (Association for the Advancement of Restorative Medicine) and continues to remain politically active in enabling access to natural health for the Canadian public.

Angeli views health as maintaining balance within all aspects of a person: emotional, mental, spiritual, environmental, social, physical – and that healing happens on all levels. When not consulting, Angeli enjoys learning, teaching, writing articles for publication, growing food, hiking, kayaking and landscape painting.

Dr. Carrie Watkins has been a licensed and registered Naturopathic Doctor for more than 15 years. She is a passionate educator and has extensive experience in both teaching and clinical practice. Dr. Watkins graduated from McGill University with Bachelor of Science with focus on Wildlife and Plant Biology and received her Naturopathic medical training from the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine in Toronto. She was the owner and operator of a busy clinical practice in Toronto for several years before fulfilling a dream to live closer to the ocean. For over a decade now, Dr. Watkins has lived and practiced on beautiful Vancouver Island.

Dr. Watkins loves to learn and explore how psychology intersects with health, access to resources and how we experience our lives. She has spent many years leading health education and wellness programs in hospital, community and corporate settings. For over 10 years, they has held a faculty position at Pacific Rim College teaching many core classes in biomedical sciences, anatomy and nutrition.

In addition to being a Naturopathic Doctor, Dr. Watkins is an instructor in the movement and yoga community with many years of experience and advanced training. She believes in offering practices that support more agency, knowledge and personal growth. This has led to the development of her passion projects: Conversations with the Nervous System, Conversations with the Breath, the Science of Embodied Yoga and Experiential Anatomy.

When she is not teaching, you can find Dr. Watkins outside. Her deepest pleasure is spending time in the wildness of Vancouver Island and the never-ending process of growing and learning in her garden.

Peter Conway trained as a Medical Herbalist in the UK, where he ran a clinical practice for over 20 years. In addition to seeing patients, Peter has taught herbal courses at several UK universities and other academic institutions, been involved in herbal politics as a committee member of the European Herbal and Traditional Medicine Practitioners Association, and written several books about herbalism. He was involved in writing the National Professional Standards in Herbal Medicine in the UK and worked with the UK Department of Health in developing professional regulatory standards for herbal practice. Peter was the President of the College of Practitioners of Phytotherapy for 12 years. In recognition of his services to the herbal profession, Peter was made a Fellow of both the College of Practitioners of phytotherapy and the National Institute of Medical Herbalists.

Peter now lives on the west coast of Canada, and he is a member of the Canadian Herbalists Association of British Columbia. He is currently teaching at Pacific Rim College, working on the revised second edition of his textbook, ‘The Consultation in Phytotherapy,’ and developing an online project that aims to share his herbal insights more widely.

Hillary Krupa is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist who has been practicing holistic nutrition since 2004 after graduating from The Canadian School of Natural Nutrition with a Diploma in Holistic Nutrition. Her professional experience has spanned from clinical settings in supportive cancer care and private practice to nutrition programming for people living with HIV.

Alongside clinical practice, Hillary is a freelance writer, educator and cook. She has continued education in journalism and creative non-fiction writing as well as teaching-training for English as a second language and course facilitation. She has contributed to various health and wellness publications, developed content for nutraceutical companies and curriculum for post secondary education. 

Hillary has taught cooking classes and developed content for community health programs and initiatives and is passionate about making food and nutrition an inclusive experience that’s accessible to all. A large part of her career has revolved around not-for-profit and social justice applications of food security and nutrition. 

She has been a faculty member at Pacific Rim College since 2018 where she plays an active role as a nutrition clinic supervisor.

Through healing and supporting her own relationship with food, she has gained an understanding and respect for the depth of this relationship.  A passion for travel and a draw toward working within diverse communities has led her to develop a special interest in cultural practices around food and the various ways in which we nourish ourselves both individually and collectively.

Sarada is an Ayurvedic wellness practitioner, a counselling psychologist, and a certified yoga teacher. She has 17 years of experience teaching yoga and Ayurveda wellness in India, the USA, and Canada. 

She grew up in India and has been drawn to yoga and Ayurveda since her childhood as she was inspired by her grandfather, an Ayurvedic doctor. This physical and spiritual practice has been woven in throughout her life ever since. She has learned many different styles from multiple teachers. She believes yoga and Ayurveda are great instruments of union, balance, and joy and her passion is to teach Ayurveda as a way of life.

Gillian Marsollier has been a Registered Acupuncturist in British Columbia since 2001, and an instructor of acupuncture for more than 15 years. After completing a 4-year Masters Program in Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture, she began her teaching career in Newfoundland. There she wrote the bulk of the curriculum for a 3-year acupuncture program and served as the Acupuncture Program Director. Gillian was then transferred to Halifax, where she successfully gained approval by the Board of Education in Nova Scotia for an acupuncture program. In addition to teaching, she practiced at a very successful multi-faceted alternative treatment centre while residing on the East Coast. In 2008 Gillian went to Nepal to teach acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine modalities at a medical facility. They are still using the modalities to this day to treat the locals from the Himalayan hills. For the last 5 years, Gillian has been pursuing the media side of acupuncture and natural healing through the creation of LIFT Education Academy. Through this online education platform, she has created many popular courses including bootcamps that have become the national gold standard for preparation for TCM registration exams.

Hilary Brent is a Certified Holistic Nutritionist, Personal Chef and Food Stylist living in Vancouver, BC. Her passion for holistic wellness was ignited when a close family member was diagnosed with breast cancer. This newfound curiosity led her to fly across the country to British Columbia to study Holistic Nutrition. Having always worked in restaurants, Hilary decided to complete her co-op with a Private Chef in Vancouver. It was this experience that opened her eyes to the possibility of a dream career and an opportunity to have a tangible impact on the health of her clients and community.

Hilary now owns and operates The Rooted Table – a bespoke holistic personal cheffing company where she and her team of chefs nourish clients across Vancouver and surrounding areas. She also works as a food stylist and recipe consultant for brands.
Her hunger for continual learning and development led her to enroll at the University of British Columbia for a course in Food Writing. Her desire to have people gathered around a table to share a meal led her to launch Friends and Fare and Secret Handshake – two pop-up long table dinner series in Vancouver both with a focus on the celebration of seasonal eating. She has been the head chef for multiple retreats on Bowen Island and in Whistler. Her love of community led her to publish the PNW Eats Cookbook – a collection of community recipes contributed by chefs, herbalists and gardeners with 100% of proceeds being donated to two organizations. She has also worked as a holistic cooking educator – appearing annually on the BC Home and Garden Cooking Stage, as well as being an instructor for an online chef certification program and teaching cooking classes to corporate groups and in private residences.

For Hilary, it always comes back to food. She believes what we eat is at the root of our health and ultimately, our happiness. She feels that food is the great connector – a catalyst for laughter, storytelling and love and she feels privileged to be able to work in a field that brings her so much joy.

Mercy Southam is a Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine and the Founder and Owner of Eir Mobile Medicine, Canada’s first mobile acupuncture and natural medicine studio. Her entrepreneurial journey started at the age of 10, when she founded her community’s first Dog Walking-Private Detective Agency. Seeing the potential of combining these two lucrative industries, Mercy successfully spent the summer of 1996 with her eyes, ears, and (dogs’) nose on the neighbourhood.

Since then, Mercy has explored a variety of industries and professions. She competed throughout Europe and North America as a Rhythmic Gymnast, lived alongside indigenous communities in the Kalahari Desert as a Medical Anthropologist, was a Professional Pillow Fighter with Toronto’s former Pillow Fight League, and has worked throughout North America and Uganda as an international non-profit Programs Coordinator. It was through these varied professions that Mercy discovered the single thread that links us all together: When our communities feel their best, everybody wins.

With this ethos in mind, Mercy has devoted the decade to studying Acupuncture + Traditional Chinese Medicine. Having studied in both the USA and Canada, Mercy has immersed herself in a variety of healthcare systems, identifying ways to improve on existing structures. Her studies led her to residencies at Rady’s Children’s Hospital (San Diego, CA) and the MHS Family Recovery Centre (Oceanside, CA), where she witnessed first hand the power of collaboration between Eastern and Western medicine, and the importance of providing Acupuncture + Natural Medicine to the community.