Miriam McDonald was born on July 26 1987 in Oakville Ontario She is a Canadian actress known for playing the role of Emma Nelson the main character on Degrassi The Next Generation 2001 In August 2007 Miriam appeared alongside Amanda Stepto and Stefan Brogren on the Canadian edition of Readers Digest She has also appeared on the cover of TV guide and Fashion 18 magazine Miriam was close friends with Degrassi costar Ryan Cooley who played JT Yorke She is friends with Nina Dobrev Cassie Steele and Shenae GrimesBeech She is also an accomplished dancer as well as a professional yoga instructor she also did voiceover work for 13 episodes each of the series The Ripping Friends 2001 Cyberchase 2002 and Pecola 2001 She also voiced the lead in the animated series Englebert 2000 IMDb