Katie Pita, a PhD candidate in SERS, has spent time the last two summers conducting research in the UK in the area of historical ecology with the objective of accessing how traditional woodland management strategies can sustainably benefit people today.
The Soil Ecosystems Dynamics Lab at SERS, under the leadership of Dr. Maren Oelbermann, is collaborating with the BioSoil North team at Memorial University of Newfoundland. Together, they are using a multidisciplinary approach to address the challenges of harnessing Happy Valley-Goose Bay's potential for sustainable commercial crop production. The research focuses on developing sustainable agricultural techniques to enhance soil fertility and crop yields in this northern boreal area while sequestering carbon and mitigating greenhouse gas emissions.
This blog entry dives into co-reclamation of oil sands-degraded homelands at Fort McKay First Nation and the truths and complementary reconciliation actions that emerged from the project.
Republishing an article published in The Conversation written by SERS professor Robert Gibson.
Amendments to Canada's Impact Assessment Act are being drafted in response to a Supreme Court ruling in October 2023 where a majority of justices concluded that some aspects of the federal Impact Assessment Act reached too far into provincial jurisdiction. Drafting amendments to Canada's Impact Assessment Act will be a difficult assignment. Officials need to respect Canada's Constitution and also apply new knowledge and act on new imperatives. Challenges include not only bringing the laws into constitutional compliance but also meeting 21st-century needs for assessments and decision-making in the lasting public interest.
Brendon Larson reflects on his approach to the redesign of the first year course, ERS 102 “Sustainability and the Really Long View”, for the winter 2024 term, including challenges that he faces.
Augustine Osei discusses his selection of the PhD program in Social and Ecological Sustainability and his research which he is conducting under the supervision of Dr. Maren Oelbermann. He is currently studying greenhouse gas emissions during growing and non-growing seasons and using spectroscopy techniques to measure carbon sequestration.
In December 2022 SERS 4th year student Emma Kirke attended the 15th meeting of the COP to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity as a youth delegate. Emma reflects on her experience at the COP, her opinion on the outcome and appreciation for the freedoms afforded Canadian activists.