News and Events
WPGG at Collaborative Watershed Governance Gathering
The WPGG is pleased to co-host: A Water Gathering: Collaborative Watershed Governance in BC and Beyond. The Skills Workshop will run January 24-25th, 2012 and the Solutions Forum January 26-27th, 2012. The location is UBC Robson Square, Vancouver BC. The gathering offers you and your organization the opportunity to demonstrate support, build relationships and engage in dialogue on collaborative watershed governance. Join us in promoting leadership and innovation to launch successful collaborative watershed governance activities in BC and beyond.
WPGG at "Water as a Social Opportunity" Workshop
This past October, 15 leading water policy experts, joined by four graduate and post-doctoral students, came together for two days of dialogue and collaboration. The workshop, entitled "Water as a Social Opportunity", was hosted by the Queen's Institute of Energy and Environmental Policy, and led by WPGG PhD Candidate Seanna Davidson and Dr. Jamie Linton (Queen's University). The workshop focused on themes such as ethics, social innovation, reconciliation, economics and policy, and aimed to share and generate new opportunities for Canadian water policy. The outcomes from the workshop will be published in book format by the Queen's School of Policy Studies. Dr. Rob de Loe participated in the workshop and presented on "Reframing Water – and Governance for Water – in Canada".
Rob de Loë to deliver keynote address at 2011 A.D. Latornell Conservation Symposium
The theme of the 18th annual A.D. Latornell Conservation Symposium is Water: The Future of the Source. WPGG Director Rob de Loë will deliver a keynote address at this year's symposium.
The A.D. Latornell Conservation Symposium is one of Ontario’s premier annual environmental events. It provides a forum for practitioners, policy makers, nongovernment organizations, academics and businesses to network and discuss the challenges and opportunities in Ontario’s conservation field. For more information, visit the conference web site: www.latornell.ca
New Project Launched in Niagara
WPGG member Ryan Plummer, Brock University, launched a new project, entitled Climate Change Impacts and Implications for Niagara. His team, including postdoctoral researcher Julia Baird, will develop a Niagara-specific climate change background document, which will summarize present climate change knowledge and activities.
The project will help form a Climate Action Plan for Niagara. “This is not a one-off research project,” Plummer said. “It is an ongoing collaboration and partnership with the community which will benefit the region for years to come, and possibly for generations to come.” Read the full story in the Brock News.
The launch of the Brock Environmental Sustainability Research Unit
The Brock Environmental Sustainability Research Unit (BESRU) was launched in 2011 with the goal to pursue innovative and transdisciplinary research concerning the environment, sustainability, and social-ecological resilience. Initially launching with only 6 members, BESRU has more than tripled in size, and are continuously accepting applications for membership. One of BESRU's strongest features is that it is an interdisciplinary unit, involving associates from a wide variety of departments across campus, including Ryan Plummer, Director, Brock Environmental Sustainability Research Unit and WPGG Faculty Researcher.
For more information visit the BESRU website.
Water Challenges and Solutions for First Nations Communities Report Released
In December 2010 we released the report Water Challenges and Solutions for First Nations Communities, by Sue von der Porten and Rob de Loë. This report summarizes major findings from a two-day workshop entitled Sharing Water Challenges and Solutions: Experiences of First Nations Communities . The workshop, which took place on April 15-16, 2010 in Kitchener, Ontario, explored water governance experiences in First Nations across Canada. The purpose of the meeting was to bring together people familiar with both the challenges and solutions related to water governance in First Nations so that these could be shared with fellow First Nations communities and professionals.
Groundwater Stewardship Report Released
In December, 2010 Out of Sight, Out of Mind: Private Water Well Stewardship in Ontario was released. The report presents the findings of the Ontario household Water Well Owner Survey 2008. The survey was distributed in 2008 to 4,950 well owners in 10 municipalities across Ontario to address this information gap. The aims of this study were to describe Ontario well owners and their wells; to reveal their knowledge, attitudes, and behaviours regarding their wells; and to identify factors that influence these behaviours. With 1,567 respondents, the OHWWOS is one of the largest and most comprehensive surveys of private well owners ever conducted in Canada or elsewhere. Thus, it establishes a critical benchmark for well stewardship. This report details the findings of the OHWWOS and provides recommendations for improving the uptake of well stewardship by well owners.
The report is accompanied by a plain language Summary Report, which synthesizes main findings from the full report.
The study was completed as part of the Canadian Water Network projects Source Water Protection in Ontario and Governance for Watershed-Based Source Water Protection in Canada: A National Assessment .
Water Governance in Canada Report Released
In December 2010 we released the report Challenges for Water Protection in Canada: A Discussion Paper, by Georgia Simms and Rob de Loë. Threats to water quality and quantity in Canada are growing, and new problem solving strategies are needed to address them. Across Canada, recognition is growing that governments, acting on their own and using conventional command and control policy tools, will not be able to solve the complex water challenges we face. Therefore, alternative approaches to governance are being pursued. This report identifies and discusses water governance challenges that are common across many locations in Canada. These challenges are relevant to a variety of different water users and policy makers. They were identified through a detailed review of literature relating to water and environment of governance, and then confirmed through discussions and dialogues with people involved in management and governance in Canada.
This is the second report in the project series Governance for Source Water Protection in Canada.
Policy Tranfer Report Released
In December 2010 we released the report Exploring the Role of Policy Transfer in Water Governance, by Rebecca Swainson and Rob de Loë. This report examines challenges and opportunities in applying policies, approaches, knowledge and ideas from other locations to address Source Water Protection in new contexts, with a specific focus on Canada.
Source Water Protection Report Released
In May 2010 we released the report Tools and Approaches for Source Water Protection in Canada, by Georgia Simms, Deb Lightman and Rob de Loë. Source water protection (SWP) is a significant component
of effective water management. This report highlights the complexity that surrounds SWP activities. It demonstrates that decisions about SWP must involve careful consideration of the many pre-existing land and water management strategies that are likely to influence and affect SWP efforts. The report is not intended to be a comprehensive or exhaustive review of SWP in Canada. Instead, examples selected from all Canadian provinces and territories showcase approaches and demonstrate the wide range of tools being used in different jurisdictions.
This is the first report in the project series Governance for Source Water Protection in Canada.
