
BC kelp forests face new threat
A very small creature is threatening the health of BC’s giant kelp forests: bryozoans. They’re tiny white coral-like crustaceans that attach themselves to kelp, reducing reproduction and overall health of kelp beds.
A very small creature is threatening the health of BC’s giant kelp forests: bryozoans. They’re tiny white coral-like crustaceans that attach themselves to kelp, reducing reproduction and overall health of kelp beds.
Equipped to survive the weather conditions and the long days exploring glaciers in the backcountry, backcountry, students in one geography field school learn about scientific research in physical geography.
Geography grad student Kate Herchak is reclaiming her Inuk ways of knowing, being and doing in the world through cross-cultural research with Maasai youth.
Take a deep dive into six student stories for UN International Day of Women and Girls in Science, inspiring others to make a difference in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math.
Rural and Indigenous communities are poised to play a central role in Canada’s low-carbon energy future, according to one of Canada’s top energy transition researchers. UVic geographer and civil engineer Christina Hoicka explains that as the impacts of climate change grow, a massive upscaling of renewable energies will be required.
Early insights by Kitasoo Xai'xais Nation about mountain goats motivated the community to explore how to protect the culturally vital species and led to research with UVic scientists and others.
New research shows the digging activities of sea otters disturbs eelgrass beds leading to greater genetic diversity through sexual (instead of asexual) reproduction.
UVic students took to the streets and explored urban gardens as part of an experiential geography course, Food and the City.
Thinking of participating in a Geography field school program next year? Come find out about the three field schools that are being offered in 2020! October 9th @ 4:30pm in DTB room B215.
Dr. Maycira Costa and her research team have created the first historical digital map of BC’s coastal kelp forests to investigate the loss of kelp. The new reference map will help address questions related to the habitats of salmon, herring and many other species that rely on kelp for protection and food. Read more: New digital map of kelp forests
Since 2012, Dr. Sophia Carodenuto has been working with government agencies and cocoa farmers to identify options for improving the sustainability of cocoa in three West African countries where roughly three quarters of the world’s cocoa is produced by an estimated two million cocoa farmers.
Read more: Sophia Carodenuto in Victoria News: Future of Chocolate
Crystal Tremblay led a study that looked at the economic and social impact of the charity sector in Greater Victoria. The study found that the sector generated more than $4 billion in economic activity in the region in 2016 alone.
Read more: Crystal Tremblay in the TC: Economic & Social Impact of Charity Sector
Dr. Dave Duffus, founder and Director of UVic's Whale Research Lab, commented on the dire threats facing killer whales in a recent article featured in the New York Times. Duffus has been researching whales over a lengthy field-based and professorial career, looking at whale ecology in the Pacific Northwest, as well as the growing visibility of the consequences of whale-human interactions.
Read more: Duffus in NYT: PCB threat to whales is shocking, but not surprising
Chris Darimont, UVic Geography faculty member and Raincoast Research Chair in Applied Conservation Science, recently spoke to The Atlantic about human impact on salmon, citing selective killing as an example.
Read more: Chris Darimont in "The Atlantic" on human-induced evolution in salmon populations
A suburb near Montreal is looking to implement a seasonal ban on leaf blowers through the summer. Dr Eleanor Setton, co-director of the Spatial Sciences Research Lab here at UVic, spoke to the National Post about the health effects of these machines, including noise, fuel emissions, and airborne particles.
Read more: Eleanor Setton says Montreal's blower ban more than hot air
David Chuenyan Lai, C.M., Ph.D., was one of the Geography department's longest-serving faculty. Included in his numerous achievements and titles are his status as Professor Emeritus of Geography, Adjunct Professor of Pacific and Asian Studies Department, and Research Affiliate of the Centre on Aging at the University of Victoria. He was an Advisory Professor at East China Normal University, Shanghai, and Southeast Asian Research Institute of Hainan University, Haikou, China. Dr. Lai left an amazing scholarly legacy over his 35 years with UVic.
UVic Geography Alumnus and PhD, Nathan Bennett, has been recognized with a 2018 Early Career Conservationist award, presented by the Society for Conservation Biology. As stated by the Society, Bennet's research “had provided critical insights into the role of indigenous people in conservation in Canada, the relationship between small-scale fishers and marine protected areas in Thailand and the Mediterranean Sea, and the effective and equitable governance of marine protected areas globally”.
Read more: Nathan Bennett, PhD Alumnus, wins Conservation Award
Longtime Faculty member and former president of the Canadian Association of Geographers, Dan Smith, has released the final and 500th issue of Geog News, the news digest of the CAG. The Department would like to take this opportunity to recognize Dan for the outstanding role he has played for the CAG, and for geography in Canada generally. This is a remarkable accomplishment, and a fitting legacy.
UVic conservation scientist and geography associate professor, Chris Darimont, uses applied research to confront problems and opportunities in sustainability in the Great Bear Rainforest on BC’s central coast. On May 30, Darimont was named the Raincoast Research Chair in Applied Conservation Science at the University of Victoria.
Read more: Chris Darimont named Raincoast Research Chair in Applied Conservation Science
Geography PhD student Maleea Acker was awarded a REACH award in Teaching Excellence earlier this Spring, and is currently profiled on the UVic Geog home page along with other recipients.
The Canadian Press interviewed Geography's Lauren McWhinnie regarding a new study she co-led on the impacts of increased vessel traffic on marine mammals in the Arctic as a result of melting sea ice. The research, to be published in Ocean and Coastal Management next month, reviewed vessel management tools for viable use in an Arctic environment and recommends two tools: a voluntary exclusion zone and a voluntary speed reduction zone.
Read more: UVic study: Increased Arctic access could harm whales
Lauren McWhinnie was interviewed by the Times Colonist about the deployment of hydrophones along BC's coast to monitor the impact of human activity on the area's marine ecosystem. The project, known as the Salish Sea Acoustic Monitoring and Educational Outreach Project, is a partnership between Ocean Networks Canada and the Vancouver Aquarium.
In an op-ed for The Conversation Canada, Kyle Artelle wrote about his concerns with wildlife management practices in Canada and the US with regards to hunting.
Read more: Kyle Artelle in new National Post op-ed: on the hunt for Science
David Atkinson, associate professor of Geography, spoke to CBC North about new research on how detailed weather forecasts could be more useful for traditional ways of life. Dr. Atkinson and his team are trying to come up with a better way to predict weather in northern communities. Community knowledge is key to the research being conducted by Atkinson's team, since community members "have a culture of observing." The University of Victoria project is focusing on the NWT communities of Sachs Harbor, Tuktoyaktuk, and Ulukhaktok.
Read more: David Atkinson talks forecasting science and traditional lifeways
Uvic Geography PhD candidate Jackie Ziegler was recently interviewed by Hakai Magazine about a new study Ziegler led on the ethics of whale shark tourism in Oslob, Philippines. Ziegler notes that daily hand-feeding, conducted by tourism companies to sell whale-shark-watching experiences, could have serious implications for their natural mobility and migratory patterns.
Read more: Jackie Ziegler Talks Wildlife Tourism in Hakai Magazine
Geography's Dr. CindyAnn Rose-Redwood and Dr. Simon Springer both recently received Awards of Excellence for their work in the Social Sciences! Rose-Redwood received the Award for Teaching Excellence and Dr. Simon Springer was awarded the Early Career Research Excellence Award.
Read more: Geography Instructors win 2018 SOSC Awards of Excellence
Geography's Rosaline Canessa was interviwed by CTV-VI, CBC Radio and CFAX about an exciting funding announcement by the federal government. Fisheries and Oceans Canada Minister Dominic LeBlanc announced the funding recently in Vancouver as part of $3.1 million for research focused on the issue of underwater noise. The funding supports the work of three UVic researchers: Canessa, who will lead the vessel disturbance study; Francis Juanes the lead investigator for the chinook salmon research; and Stan Dosso, who will lead the echolocation research.
Read more: Rosaline Canessa interviewed about new federal support for whale research
UVic Geography's Chris Darimont and fellow authors make the case that the "hallmarks of science" are missing from North American wildlife management policy. Contrary to the claims of resource management companies who often defend controversial policies as adhering to science-based approaches, Darimont et al. found that less than half of the management systems in the US and Canada meet indicator criteria.
Read more: Darimont et al.'s new article: "Hallmarks of science" missing from wildlife management
For archive news older than September 2013, see the Geography News Archives.