Raised in Montreal, Quebec, she moved to Toronto in the year 2000. From a Tamil-Srilankan descent, Janani Sivarajah is an urban forest and plant photobiology researcher, educator and consultant. Her dissertation investigates tree shade benefits, including educational outcomes, mediation of ultraviolet exposure and skin cancer risks in urban environments, at the Thomas & Smith Lab, Faculty of forestry, University of Toronto.
Over the past several years, she has worked as an urban forest consultant and educator for the Toronto District School Board (TDSB), where she  assessed tree health, and worked on  earlier projects of Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) management plans. As an educator, she has given various workshops and lectures at TDSB schools and various organizations including Nature Academy and Canadian Institute of Forestry. In addition to her work experiences, Janani remains an active member of the Toronto Cancer Prevention Coalition, Shade Policy Steering Committee and various community groups.
Janani holds an Honours Bachelor of Science specializing in Integrative Biology and French major from the University of Toronto at Scarborough (UTSC). She also holds a Master of Forest Conservation (MFC) from the Faculty of forestry, University of Toronto.