News

On Thursday, September 25, 2025, Water Institute member Dr. Nandita Basu, Canada Research Chair in Global Water Sustainability and Ecohydrology, joined leading experts speaking at the FLOW x Massey Freshwater Symposium, Ensuring the FLOW: Water Security in Canada and the World. Hosted by the Forum for Leadership on Water (FLOW) and Massey College, the invite-only gathering brought together fewer than 80 high-level participants, including scientists, policymakers, and leaders from national and international water organizations. Water Institute member Dr. Dustin Garrick, University Research Chair in Water and Development Policy and Director of the Collaborative Water Program, also attended alongside Dr. Basu.

In September, the Water Institute’s Collaborative Water Program (CWP) once again took graduate students beyond the classroom and into the Grand River watershed for WATER 602: Integrated Water Management. Over three days, students travelled the length of the river from its headwaters near Luther Marsh, ON to Six Nations of the Grand River, to explore how water connects communities, ecosystems, and economies, and to grapple with the complex trade-offs inherent in water management.

We’re excited to announce the newly elected executive committee of the Society of the Water Institute Graduate Students (SWIGS) for 2025-26! After a successful election this summer, the SWIGS team is ready to bring fresh energy, creativity, and leadership to the year ahead.

The Water Institute is pleased to launch its Fall 2025 WaterTalks, a three-part speaker series showcasing fresh perspectives on some of today’s most pressing water challenges. This year’s talks will span topics from groundwater use and the water–energy–food–poverty nexus in South Asia to advancing environmental justice and strengthening resilience to hydroclimate extremes.

Dr. Bryan Grimwood, Professor in the Department of Recreation and Leisure Studies (RLS) in the Faculty of Health, has been awarded approximately $380,000 in funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) to lead a new research initiative entitled Tourism, ruination, and regenerative futures that rethinks tourism’s role in landscapes marked by environmental and cultural ruination.

When devastating floods swept through Pakistan in 2022, millions were displaced, and more than 1400 lives were lost. For Malak Kamal, a graduate architecture student from Quetta, Pakistan, it was a turning point.

Roy Brouwer, Professor in the Department of Economics, University Research Chair in Water Resources Economics, and Executive Director of the Water Institute, has been appointed to the Science Advisory Board – Science Priority Committee of the International Joint Commission (IJC), a binational partnership between Canada and the United States managing shared waters.

On March 22, the Water Institute marked World Water Day—an annual event bringing together students, researchers, and community members to reflect on our relationship with water. This year’s event aligned with the United Nations’ 2025 theme, Glacier Preservation, and featured insightful talks from distinguished speakers, a showcase of emerging research, and a special recognition of alumni driving change in water management.

The Water Institute is pleased to announce that Rachael Messenger-Lehmann has been awarded the 2025 John Parish Memorial Graduate Scholarship. This prestigious award recognizes outstanding research in fluvial geomorphology—the study of rivers, their processes, and how they influence the landscape.

Understanding ice dynamics in the Yukon’s St. Elias Mountains to prepare for sea level rise and protect water resources