Connie Van der Byl, PhD, MBA
Associate Vice-President, Research, Scholarship and Community Engagement
Dr. Connie Van der Byl was appointed as Associate Vice-President, Research, Scholarship and Community Engagement in February 2023 after holding the position in an interim capacity. She leads the office of research, scholarship and community engagement as well as Mount Royal University Institutes under the Provost.
Connie was the Academic Director of Mount Royal University’s Institute for Environmental Sustainability for eight years and has been a faculty member in the Bissett School of Business since 2012 teaching courses in business strategy and sustainability. She has a PhD in Energy Management and Sustainable Development and had an early career in Alberta’s energy sector. Her research interests focus on energy organizations and their strategic responses to environmental issues. Dr. Van der Byl’s recent research work has been on the role of collaboration in achieving environmental performance, the evolution of entrepreneurial firms in sustainable industries, energy firm best practices in ESG disclosure, hydraulic fracturing water impacts, and the challenges, both environmental and economic, of corporate reconfiguration.
When she is not engaged in academic activities, you can find Connie in the mountains engaged in kayaking, trail running, biking, hiking and skiing.