News

The AquaHacking 2017 semi-final competition unfolded last week at CIGI. By the end of the evening, five teams were chosen to move on to the final competition at Waterloo on September 13. It was a difficult decision for the five judges, as all 17 teams that competed offered innovative ideas that tackled the challenges and opportunities facing Lake Erie.  

The second International Conference on Amphibious Architecture, Design and Engineering – hosted by Water Institute member and associate professor Elizabeth English – took place June 25-28, and brought together academics, practitioners, professionals and policymakers to discuss amphibious architecture.

Climate change is significantly impacting Canada’s water resources. From melting permafrost, to more pervasive algal blooms, to increased flooding, these impacts are only expected to increase in the future. Three professors from the University of Waterloo’s Water Institute have been awarded significant grants to develop new, innovative technologies and to deliver new management approaches to enhance the resilience and adaptive capacity of Canada’s water resources in the face of climate change.

Today, University of Waterloo Earth scientists received a $1.9M grant from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada to examine greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural systems, and the impacts of alternative land-use practices and beneficial management practices (BMPs) on greenhouse gases.

Water reservoirs created by damming rivers could have significant impacts on the world’s carbon cycle and climate system that aren’t being accounted for, a new study concludes.

A team of researchers has discovered that many Canadian lakes can provide new insights into ancient oceans, and their findings could advance research about greenhouse gas emissions, harmful algal blooms, and early life forms.

Interdisciplinary approaches are key when investigating potential impacts from climate change on human, economic and environmental systems. Unexpected changes to the quantity and quality of water available to local communities and environments can have wide-ranging effects, including impacting public health, environmental resilience, and agricultural and food security. Four Water Institute researchers were recently awarded funding from the Canadian Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Advanced Scholars Program to build institutional capacity in select Commonwealth countries to address linkage

During World Water Day celebrations on March 22, the Water Institute and the de Gaspé Beaubien Foundation announced an exciting three-year partnership that will combine water expertise and technology to help mitigate the threats facing our Great Lakes.

Roy Brouwer, Executive Director, Water Institute; Claude Perras, Executive Director, de Gaspé Beaubien Foundation

Collaborative Water Program student, Danielle Lindamood, was accepted into the "Water Innovation Lab - India" program in the fall of 2016. It brought together 35 students and water practitioners from around the world for a two-week field experience in locations around India. She spent two weeks overseas exploring different water problems and contexts, and presenting innovative ideas for solutions.

Below she has written about her experience in India and her experience in being a part of the Water Institute’s Collaborative Water Program.