Bio

Marilyn began showing a knack for telling stories in grade school – a time when she also blasted through schoolwork to grasp the coveted prize: the right to ‘read quietly’ at her desk while others caught up. One memorable day, this led to Mrs. Shaw snatching a Nancy Drew book from her hands and dropping it in the garbage can, to be retrieved at the end of the day. At a country school where most classmates bussed in, this meant digging through sandwich crusts, apple cores, banana skins and orange peels.

During an undergraduate degree in Interpersonal and Organisational Communications (University of Ottawa), Marilyn quickly realised that she loved the process of researching and writing. She went on to pursue an MA in Journalism at Western University (London, Ontario), becoming fascinated with visual storytelling and working with sound.

Professionally, Marilyn has always been keen to tell the stories of science, making basic information and recent advances both accessible and relevant to people and their daily lives. She had the tremendous luck to join the Creative Services Department at the National Research Council of Canada, where she was able to integrate words with the work of photographers, videographers, graphic designers and web developers.

At this time, Marilyn began taking photography classes (Algonquin College, Ottawa) in both composition and darkroom techniques, led by Harry Turner, Kurt Kammersgaard and Michael Tardioli. Subsequently, she sought individual mentorship with award-winning photojournalists including Nigel Dickinson, Walter Astrada and Eugene Richards.

As she trained her eye to read light, frame spaces and ‘watch’ for vital moments, Marilyn also began to capture the ‘art’ of everyday life. And, eventually, to carve out time for the meditative mindset required to produce photographic art.

Marilyn maintains a keen interest in visual storytelling to raise awareness of social issues, undertaking solo projects or leading/participating in larger group works.

A bit of a mixed bag, this website will let viewers wander through photos, writings, some audio pieces and whatever else Marilyn finds in her archives or creates in the future. A brief recap of professional projects and relevant links is provided below.

Canadian (Albertan) by birth, Marilyn has lived and worked in Paris, France since 2002. 

Professional projects and links

In recent years, Marilyn has spent most of her time as a writer/editor and communications consultant in the energy sector. Much of this work focuses on boosting access to clean, affordable energy as a means to improve the lives of marginalised communities. In 2014, she founded The Energy Action Project (EnAct), which reports on who is doing what to deliver a ‘just, clean energy transition’ in Europe and around the world. Other energy-related projects she is involved with include the following:

Marilyn has also participated in and/or led collective projects to raise awareness of other social issues.

Mostly notably, UNDER PRESSURE: Living with MS in Europe, which used photo and video to demonstrate how national health and social policies influence – for better or worse – daily life for people with Multiple Sclerosis (PwMS). A photo exhibition made available to national MS societies was shown in 15 EU countries and proved an effective means to lobby for better conditions.