News

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. By Jovana Radosavljevic, Jiangyue Ju and Water Institute members David L Rudolph, Fereidoun Rezanezhad, Nancy Goucher and Philippe Van Cappellen.

As winter approaches, many communities in Canada and around the world arm themselves against icy roads and sidewalks with a time-honoured ally: road salt. For decades, applying road salt has been regarded as a simple but vital tool in countering the dangers of slippery road conditions, but the downsides of its use are apparent with implications that extend beyond the cold months.

Congratulations to four Water Institute members who have been named on the annual Highly Cited Researchers™ 2023 list from Clarivate.

Highly Cited Researchers™ are influential researchers at universities, research institutes and commercial organizations around the world who have demonstrated significant and broad influence in their field(s) of research.

The evaluation and selection process draws on data from the Web of Science™ citation index, together with analysis performed by bibliometric experts and data scientists at the ISI at Clarivate™.

The University of Waterloo Department of Economics celebrated Professor Margaret Insley’s 21 years of service this month with a retirement celebration at the Huether Hotel in Waterloo. A Water Institute member and Professor of natural resource economics, Margaret also served as Chair of the Department of Economics from 2011 to 2019.

Dr. Bruce MacVicar, Director Emeritus, Collaborative Water Program, and professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, introducing the keynote speaker at the 10th Anniversary celebration of the Collaborative Water Program.

On November 3, 2023, the Water Institute celebrated a special milestone marking the 10th Anniversary of the University of Waterloo’s Collaborative Water Program (CWP)!

By Jenna Braun. This article was originally published on Waterloo News.

Foodborne viruses are a worldwide health concern, with types, severity and impacts of illness changing over time and across communities and countries.

Water Institute member Dr. Shannon Majowicz, associate professor in the School of Public Health Sciences, joined  the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Health Organization (WHO) in Rome, Italy last month for a Joint FAO/WHO Expert meeting on Microbiological Risk Assessment (JEMRA) of viruses in foods.

A University of Waterloo press release

A team of University of Waterloo researchers has created smart, advanced materials that will be the building blocks for a future generation of soft medical microrobots. 

These tiny robots have the potential to conduct medical procedures, such as biopsy, and cell and tissue transport, in a minimally invasive fashion. They can move through confined and flooded environments, like the human body, and deliver delicate and light cargo, such as cells or tissues, to a target position.

From statistics to science policy, public health and climate change, new PhD graduates are tackling some of society’s biggest challenges 

By University Relations

Obtaining a PhD can sometimes be considered a daunting task because the voyage often seems endless. The path is not straight. The process is never quick. In fact, one can expect to encounter many challenges and setbacks. Challenges that push the boundaries of your imagination and intellect. 

The goal is to find opportunities in those challenging moments because the result is massively rewarding. Upon completion of the dissertation defence — the culmination of years of hard work and research — candidates are congratulated for bringing new knowledge to our world.

One of those candidates is Dr. Dilruba Fatima Sharmin who worked closley with the Water Institute during her PhD journey.

The Water Institute is pleased to announce it is accepting applications for 2023-24 John Parish Memorial Graduate Scholarship.The John Parish Memorial Scholarship was established by friends and family in memory of John Parish. John Parish (BES’85) was a pioneer in the field of fluvial geomorphology – studying rivers and river processes, and how they influence the lands around them. He proudly founded PARISH Geomorphic Ltd. in 1997, and merged his company with Matrix Solutions Inc. in 2015. John was instrumental in the development of policies and implementation guidelines for managing watersheds in Southern Ontario, and was a champion for natural river restoration across Canada.

The Water Institute is excited to host its inaugural event showcasing the research of early career faculty. Covering topics such as climate smart agriculture, remote sensing of freshwater lakes, GHG dynamics in waterbodies and interconnections in water-energy-food systems, eight faculty members from across four faculties and six departments/schools will share a glimpse into their research on October 31st.

Be part of the change for a secure water future

WaterLeadership is a professional skills development program offered by the Water Institute to support the advancement of emerging global water leaders. Through the program, participants will develop the skills and networks needed to move their research into action to support informed decision-making.