HHL News & Updates

Ecological research ‘in a good way’ means ethical and equitable relationships with Indigenous Peoples and Lands

by Andrea Reid, Deb McGregor, Ally Menzies, Lauren Eckert, Catherine Febria & Jesse Popp

To aid scientists in conducting research ‘in a good way’, we offer key insights and guidance that are rooted in our own scientific training and communities of practice.

Connecting with community and cultivating connections is essential to our science. HHL has centered local farming perspectives through our Farm Advisory Board (FAB) and broader Farm + Freshwater Ecology Research Network (FERN) as we believe that conversations lead to impactful collaborations, which we have formalized into HHL’s knowledge co-production process. That's why we are extending a warm invitation to all those attending EFAO 2023 to come join us at our booth and connect! We are committed to creating a space where we can share ideas, experiences, and connections.

HHL, with our Ecosystem Approach Project (ECAP), has the honour to work with Dr. John Hartig, over the past two years. John brings a lot of leadership and expertise into our project and together we organize a series of “15 Ecosystem Approach Workshops” with user groups and stakeholders all across the Great Lakes.

In this post we talk about an idea that has resonated with him and motivated him along his 40-year career as a scientist, conservationist and a “good steward of the land“. Namely the difference between an “Ecosystem“ Vs an “Environment“ (exactly as in the difference between a “House“ and a “Home“).

November arrived at HHL with more workshops and discussions around the Ecosystem Approach. We are holding spaces of inclusive dialogues on how to “Re-energize the ecosystem Approach in the 21st Century“. This month we are collaborating with the American Association of Geologists, with the Bay Area Restoration Council and with the Ecological Farmers Association of Ontario.

The past year HHL has been taking its workshops and discussions around the Ecosystem Approach “on the road“, on a quest for solutions on “How to re-energize the Ecosystem Approach in the 21st Century“. The ECAP team has travelled across cities, states and countries and together with many invaluable partners has had the privilege to meet with a variety of professionals and practitioners of the ecosystem approach (or aspiring EA practitioners). For those of you who hadn’t had the chance to take part to any of our Ecosystem Approach workshops, there will be a last chance to do so this December!

The last week of October, HHL’s Ecosystem Approach Team took Ecosystem Approach Workshops “on the road” across the region. From Ontario, CA to Ohio, USA we met two communities, at the Faculty of Environmental and Urban Change (York University - 10/25) and at the Levin College of Public Affairs and Education (Cleveland State University - 10/27). There we held interesting conversations about re-energizing the Ecosystem Approach in the 21st Century across the Great Lakes and beyond.

19 July 2023: In collaboration with our UWindsor campus partners the new Science Indigenous Knowledge Keepers Table and the Centre for Cities, the Healthy Headwaters Lab is thrilled to announce the launch of the UWindsor National Urban Park Hub (UW-NUPH), supported by a $1.2 million, 2-year contribution agreement from Parks Canada.

On May 1st and 2nd, Dr. Catherine Febria headed to Ottawa to attend the 2023 Science Meets Parliament event making her the first Canada Research Chair (CRC) from the University of Windsor to do so!

On May 17th, 2023, as part of Asian Heritage Month, HHL’s Dr. Catherine Febria delivered an invited lecture exploring how diversity and inclusion are key pieces in accelerating inclusive and innovative solutions for global freshwater sustainability.