Nicole Hancock
Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony ...

Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.

Indigenous community hosts full moon ceremony to heal Chedoke Creek

USask

Theatre, art, and water security central in international USask exhibition

Theatre, art, and water security central in international USask exhibition

The theme of the exhibition chosen through conversations and interviews with students across Canada is water security. Titled Troubled Water / Eaux Troubles, the project being brought to Prague is a multidisciplinary piece including aspects of sculpture, painting, music, theatre, and more. In addition, Dr. Graham Strickert (PhD) with USask’s School of Environment and Sustainability, and the Global Institute for Water Security, spoke to the students involved with the project about being mindful and thoughtful about the topic their artwork is focusing on.

Closing gaps in water access to ‘leave no one behind’

Closing gaps in water access to ‘leave no one behind’

Beyond the obvious implications, such as having less water for drinking, cooking and cleaning, and less time for other activities due to needing to fetch water, there are other consequences affecting the health and well-being of individuals, families, communities and society. The extent to which gaps in water access can disrupt lives and livelihoods is the subject of inquiry for Gervin Ane Apatinga, researcher and PhD candidate, Department of Geography and Planning, University of Saskatchewan (USask).

USask-led Global Water Futures marks the end of an era and looks to the future

USask-led Global Water Futures marks the end of an era and looks to the future

The research coming out of Global Water Futures (GWF) is being presented at an open science meeting over three days from May 15–17, and will highlight some of the best science and knowledge addressing solutions for Canada’s water futures, including advancements in the forecasting and modelling of snow, glaciers, water quality, soil moisture, floods and droughts, in monitoring of water quality, in detection of the COVID-19 virus in community wastewater, in Indigenous co-creation of knowledge, and in how national and international policies could achieve water sustainability.

Groundwater warning in California a wake-up call for Canada: Famiglietti

Groundwater warning in California a wake-up call for Canada: Famiglietti

Renowned water scientist Dr. Jay Famiglietti (PhD), lead researcher of a scientific team that in late December published a paper in the prestigious Nature Communications journal detailing what their analysis indicates, has a blunt message: “All around the world, we have been kicking the can down the road for a long time on effectively managing groundwater. Now we are at the end of the road, and it’s a dead end.”  

USask hydrologist passionate about teaching and research

USask hydrologist passionate about teaching and research

Dr. Jeffrey McDonnell (PhD) says he is “bursting with gratitude” after being awarded the title of distinguished professor. McDonnell—the associate director of the Global Institute for Water Security (GIWS) and a professor in the School of Environment and Sustainability (SENS) at the University of Saskatchewan (USask)—was one of seven USask faculty members to be named a distinguished professor in 2022.

USask chemist wins national institute’s early career research award

USask chemist wins national institute’s early career research award

“I’m still processing. Getting this award is really exciting,” said Kahan. “People who have won this award in the past are people whom I greatly admire. Being put in the same category as them is validating and really important recognition by my peers.” As the winner, she will present a keynote lecture at CIC’s Canadian Chemistry Conference and Exhibition (CSC 2023) in Vancouver in early June. 

USask hydrologists, beamline scientists named highly cited researchers

USask hydrologists, beamline scientists named highly cited researchers

Researchers recognized in this list have published multiple academic papers that rank in the top one per cent of citations in their fields for the year, as analyzed by the global Web of Science—a database of bibliographic citations that covers the various journals of medical, scientific and social sciences. Dr. Jay Famiglietti (PhD), executive director of GIWS and Canada 150 Research Chair in Hydrology and Remote Sensing, is a leading hydrologist and has previously served as a senior water scientist in the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Global Water Futures Observatories a critical step towards water security for Canadians

Global Water Futures Observatories a critical step towards water security for Canadians

Now six years on, GWF is the largest and most published university-led freshwater research program in the world and includes 213 faculty investigators, 531 end-users, 1,826 new researchers, and a network of 23 Canadian universities working on 65 projects and core teams. The program has also established or operates 76 water observation sites, 27 deployable measurement systems, and 31 state-of-the-art university-based environmental and aquatic analysis facilities.

Funding for USask-led water monitoring network will help understand, manage floods, drought: director

Funding for USask-led water monitoring network will help understand, manage floods, drought: director

Four research centres at the University of Saskatchewan are getting nearly $170 million in funding, and the work done at one centre is necessary for understanding and addressing a water crisis in Canada, its director says. "Water problems we are facing in Canada seems to be getting more severe. Costs of droughts and floods have reached about $40 billion since the turn of the century. It was just one or two billion before that in Canadian history," John Pomeroy, director at Global Water Futures Observatories, said in an interview.

USask major scientific centres awarded $170M of MSI funding

USask major scientific centres awarded $170M of MSI funding

$15.25 million is for GWFO: GWFO is an integrated network of 76 instrumented basins, rivers, lakes and wetlands, 27 deployable observation systems, and 31 state-of-the-art water laboratories. Together they provide data to quickly address flood, drought and water quality issues, GFWO operates across seven provinces and territories, including the Great Lakes Basin. USask leads the nine-university collaboration that operates the network to monitor and help support the development of solutions for the impending water crisis that faces Canadians due to climate change, poor water management, the proliferation of toxic contaminants, and environmental degradation.

USask among top 100 globally in water, veterinary and environmental engineering sciences

USask among top 100 globally in water, veterinary and environmental engineering sciences

USask ranked 23rd worldwide and first in Canada in water resources, from 51-75 globally and fourth in Canada in veterinary sciences, and 76-100 globally and sixth in the country in environmental science and engineering. “We are proud that USask continues to lead Canada and is among the top performers globally in water science,” said USask Vice-President Research Baljit Singh.

USask research aims to improve water management with better streamflow forecasts

USask research aims to improve water management with better streamflow forecasts

Given the huge challenges climate change is posing, with unprecedented floods devastating communities across Canada and prolonged droughts contributing to increased wildfire damage and economic losses in agriculture and other economic sectors, reliable forecasts are increasingly important. “This research helps us manage our precious freshwater resources,” said Clark, professor in the Department of Geography and Planning in USask’s College of Arts and Science. “Our streamflow forecasts will help in guiding water use decisions for irrigation and water supplies, optimizing hydropower production, and anticipating flood events.”

USask experts collaborate on international project to transform water predictions

USask experts collaborate on international project to transform water predictions

Unprecedented flooding over the past decade that has devastated hundreds of millions of people across the globe and caused billion of dollars in damage—including last year’s massive floods in British Columbia and the 2013 flood that hit Calgary—underlines the pressing need for this research. Dr. Martyn Clark (PhD), professor in the Department of Geography and Planning in the College of Arts and Science, is the team lead for USask. He will be joined by departmental colleague and Distinguished Professor Dr. John Pomeroy (PhD), along with Prof. Dr. Alain Pietroniro (PhD) of UCalgary’s Schulich School of Engineering.

USask wastewater testing for COVID-19 sets the standard

USask wastewater testing for COVID-19 sets the standard

Just ask University of Saskatchewan (USask) researchers Drs. Markus Brinkmann (PhD), John Giesy (PhD) and Kerry McPhedran (PhD), who have been analyzing wastewater and stormwater flows in Saskatoon, Prince Albert, North Battleford, and five First Nations communities, to uncover many of those stories. Their findings encompass everything from infectious diseases to biomarkers for such conditions as diabetes and heart disease, to the consumption of recreational drugs in a community. The analyses can even provide information on such things as how much red meat a community consumes or pinpoint a city block where a crack house is located.

USask research takes aim at improving water security, gender equity, and international co-operation

USask research takes aim at improving water security, gender equity, and international co-operation

A multidisciplinary research team from the University of Saskatchewan (USask) has been awarded $289,000 for a project to develop water security solutions that contribute to enhanced gender equity in the West African nations of Ghana and Senegal, where women and girls are hit hardest by impacts of climate change. Funding from the Queen Elizabeth Scholars Advanced Scholar (QES—AS) program will help the team to mentor and develop leadership, professional and research skills of advanced scholars (PhD students, post-doctoral fellows and early career researchers)—eight from West Africa and two from Canada—under an exchange program geared to enhancing research capacity on the nexus of hydrology, health and gender studies, and socioeconomics.

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