News

Albert Jiang, postdoctoral fellow in the School of Environment Enterprise and Development and Department of Systems Design Engineering, has won the prestigious Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship for his research helping small island states adapt to climate change.

Jiang will work alongside Water Institute members Dr. Simron Singh and Dr. Kumaraswamy Ponnambalam to understand the hydrology related climate change effects small island states are facing, like the rise of sea levels or heavy precipitation. These findings aim to prepare states for the consequences of climate change and their corresponding social impacts.

While Knowledge Mobilization (KM) is almost always part of funding proposals, it is still an evolving and relatively new area of practice. This was made clear at last week’s Canadian Knowledge Mobilization Forum in Montreal where more than half of the attendees indicated that they were in their positions for five years or less.

“As long as the sun shines, the grass grows, and the river flows.” When Treaties were signed in Canada, they were meant to last forever. At the time, it was inconceivable that water could stop flowing. Yet, in some places, that is now a potential reality. Fifty-three out of Canada’s 167 river basins are already in trouble because of water scarcity, pollution, and climate change.

On June 14, the Government of Canada announced more than $94.5 million will be invested in the Canada Research Chairs (CRC) Program to support 121 new and renewed chair holders at 39 postsecondary institutions across the country in a wide range of disciplines including health, sciences and engineering, social sciences and humanities.

On May 30, the Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) hosted a Lunch and Learn event with members of the Microplastics Fingerprinting project, a project supported by the Water Institute. Held at the GRCA headquarters in Cambridge, the event was attended by around 20 GRCA members, including staff focused on water infrastructure, source water protection, water quality, and conservation services. This event was organized by Nancy Goucher as part of the project’s knowledge mobilization strategy.

Just in time for World Ocean’s Day, Dr. Derek Armitage in the School of Environment, Resources and Sustainability (SERS) has co-edited a new book on creating a sustainable future for Canada’s oceans and coasts along with Rashid Sumaila and William Cheung from the University of British Columbia and Megan Bailey from Dalhousie University.

Flooding is a significant threat to low-lying socio-ecological systems, posing risks to housing, health, water security, critical infrastructure, and human mobility. Managed retreat (MR), defined as "the purposeful relocation of people, property, and critical infrastructure out of areas vulnerable to recurrent climatic hazards," is emerging as a potentially transformative adaptation approach that offers opportunities for both risk reduction and advancement of social justice. 

A top expert in biomonitoring and ecosystem assessment at the University of Waterloo is co-leading an International Joint Commission (IJC) work group to develop and propose coordinated frameworks for microplastics monitoring that have the potential to shape microplastics research in the Great Lakes region and beyond.

In early-May, Water Institute Managing Director Kevin Boehmer travelled to Indonesia to share Water Institute experience with the Bogor Agricultural University (IPB University) in Bogor, Indonesia. IPB is a lead University of Waterloo partner in the Flood Impacts, Carbon Pricing and Ecosystem Sustainability (FINCAPES) project. FINCAPES is a 5^1/2 year, $15M project funded by Global Affairs Canada to improve Indonesia’s economic and environmental resilience to the impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss in an inclusive, gender-responsive manner.

With Ontario’s eight species of turtles considered at risk, a new nest designed by researchers has the potential to significantly bolster their struggling populations.