She was trained in chemical engineering and applied chemistry at the University of Toronto, worked in energy research, and then returned to academia to complete doctoral research in biochemical engineering at McGill University. Dr. Sears s work with public science institutions includes: writing the Medical Perspective on Environmental Sensitivities for the Canadian Human Rights Commission, leading to a policy under the Canadian Human Rights Act; carrying out a scoping review on toxic elements (arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury) with Canadian Institutes for Health Research and Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council funding; and numerous collaborations with members of the Environmental Health Committee of the Ontario College of Family Physicians. One of her central interests is the conduct and interpretation of science in environmental health.