Alexandria Pavelich is a suicidologist and PhD candidate in Interdisciplinary Studies at the University of Saskatchewan (USask) whose approach to suicide prevention and pain management bridges social sciences via human-animal connections. Her work is grounded in a “One Health” lens to emphasize the vital interconnection between humans and the natural world, where she utilizes the mechanism of “mattering” – the human need to feel significant in the eyes of others. She is an activist-scholar who has received national and provincial funding for her innovative studies, where she has also appeared as a TedXTalk Speaker and SSHRC Storyteller Finalist to promote anthrozoology. Her current role as a researcher in the PAWSitive Connections Lab situates her as an expert in implementing animal-assisted service programming, and she regularly presents at conferences to provide education and workshops on the value of interspecies relationships. Alexandria, alongside her certified therapy dog, Zola, have volunteered over 200 hours in community where they work to ensure clients know they “matter”. More of her service and therapy dog research can be found at her website.
