Environmental Studies Association of Canada

Call for Participants
“Northern Nations, Northern Natures”
November 8-11, 2013
KTH Royal Institute for Technology, Stockholm, Sweden

We invite applications from graduate students attending Canadian universities to participate in the workshop “Northern Nations, Northern Natures,” which will be held at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm, Sweden between November 8-11, 2013. The primary goal of the workshop is to explore transnational and comparative approaches to northern environmental history, including the history of boreal, subarctic, arctic, and polar regions. By bringing together graduate and early-career scholars from Canada and Scandinavia, we aim to encourage the building of trans-Atlantic relationships which may lead to future exchanges or collaborations.

Graduate participants will present short individual papers, which will be complemented by presentations from senior scholars from Canada and Scandinavia and opportunities for formal and informal discussion and networking. They will also have the opportunity to write a short blog post prior to the workshop on a subject relevant to their research which links historical and contemporary events in the North. Outcomes of the workshop will include a special edition of a peer-reviewed journal. We encourage applications from students currently working on topics that pertain to the environmental history (broadly construed) or historical geography of the Canadian North in any time period.

Thanks to funding from the Network in Canadian History and Environment (NiCHE), four stipends of C$500 each are available to successful applicants to defray the cost of travel. Accommodation and other expenses in Stockholm will be covered by the organizers. To apply, please send a write-up of no more than 500 words outlining how your current research relates to the workshop theme and how you would benefit from participation to Peder Roberts (pwrobert[at]kth.se), Tina Adcock (tina.adcock[at]rutgers.edu), and Sverker Sörlin (sorlin[at]kth.se). Please include the name and contact information of one academic reference, along with a one-page CV. Applications must be received by June 7, and successful applicants will be notified by June 21.

For more information, please see the event website (http://niche-canada.org/node/10654) or contact tina.adcock[at]rutgers.edu.

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CALL FOR PARTICIPATION

Rising Voices of Indigenous People in Weather and Climate Science Workshop
The challenges of understanding and responding to a changing climate and extreme weather necessitate broad engagement with diverse communities. As climate science has matured, it has moved toward a more inclusive dialogue where scientists and policy makers work together with seasoned indigenous communities to define and carry out research programs that advance science and address community priorities. The National Center for Atmospheric Research is hosting a workshop on the growing engagement of Native American, Alaska Native, and Pacific Island communities in climate and weather science, research, policy, and community response conversations. The workshop will address the question: What are the elements of successful co-production of science and policy in the fields of extreme weather and climate change? The workshop will be conducted in collaboration with the Indigenous Peoples Climate Change Working Group (formerly the American Indian/Alaska Native Climate Change Working Group). Participants will be actively involved in cross-cultural scientific engagement with Native American, Alaska Native, and Pacific Island communities and will be from academic institutions, including tribal colleges and universities, as well as government agencies and non-governmental organizations. Travel support is available for a limited number of participants.
WORKSHOP VENUE: National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), Foothills Laboratory, 3450 Mitchel Lane, Boulder, CO 80307

WORKSHOP DATES: July 1-2, 2013

APPLICATION PROCESS: Applications are due May 10, 2013. If you are interested in participating in the Rising Voices workshop, please send the following information to Kris Marwitz (Email: kmarwitz[at]ucar.edu or Phone: 303-497-8198):

• Name, affiliation, email address, mailing address, phone number
• A paragraph explaining how you have been and are involved in work related to weather or climate issues that engages indigenous communities within the United States.
• If you require financial support to attend the workshop, please include whether you need full or partial support (i.e., if you would be able to pay airfare but not hotel accommodations).

WORKSHOP GOALS:
Identify lessons learned for, or barriers to, achieving successful co-production of science and policy by appraising the first-hand experiences of those involved in cross-cultural efforts to integrate indigenous knowledge and diverse understandings in climate and weather modeling and assessments;
Foster and support collaborations between experts on cross-cultural engagement and NCAR scientists; and
Promote student opportunities to work with NCAR scientists.

For further information, please contact Heather Lazrus (hlazrus[at]ucar.edu) or Bob Gough (gough.bob[at]gmail.com)

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LEED GREEN ASSOCIATE (GA) Training – June 8, 2013 – $200

When: June 8, 2013 – 11:00 AM to 5:00PM

Where: University of Toronto (Galbraith Building – Room 405)

Interested in getting involved in the Green Building Industry? Opportunities are plentiful in the field of sustainable design and LEED® is at its forefront. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is simply a green-rating point system, or a scorecard to certify sustainably designed and constructed buildings.

LeadingGREEN offers the most affordable live LEED Green Associate Training in the world, while still maintaining a 100% pass rate and helping hundreds of students pass their exams. The LEED Green Associate (GA) credential is a great way to enter any green industry and show employers that you are environmentally conscious and knowledgeable.

Cost: $250 ($200 for full time students, request student coupon code)

If you would like to register for the class please sign up at:  www.leadinggreen.ca/products-page   – or -
E-mail us your statement of intent (including contact info) to enroll at info[at]leadingGREEN.ca, including full name, phone number, address and student status.

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ECO-Gamification: Can We “Play” Our Way to a More Sustainable Future?

When: Friday, May 10 from 9-11 AM
Where: Sustainability Network, Ground Floor Boardroom, 215 Spadina Ave.,
Toronto

Explore how ‘eco-gamification’ can be a powerful tool for encouraging and
increasing participation in sustainable behaviours. Join us in an engaging
session with Paula Owen, recipient of the 2012 London (UK) Leaders for
Sustainability award for inspiring Londoners to lead more sustainable lives.
Paula will give a background to games, gamification and sustainability and
then go on to explain the research project she is undertaking to try to
ascertain whether ‘fun & games’ really can help save the planet. Paula will
demonstrate a number of the games in a fully interactive, hand-on games
session.

Tickets are $20 and must be pre-purchased at:
http://www.eventbrite.ca/event/5215419460#

Tickets will not be available at the door.

Presented by My Sustainable Canada and Sustainability Network

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Great Lakes Roundtable

We would like to invite those interested in the history of Great Lakes
transnational and transborder environmental issues to participate in the
Great Lakes Roundtable. This roundtable will be held on Friday, April 26,
2013 at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan.
The Great Lakes Roundtable will bring together Canadian and American
scholars, writers, and policymakers who are interested in the ways that
Canada and the U.S. have historically used and approached the Great Lakes.
Underlying this roundtable is the idea that understanding the Great Lakes
past is fundamental for comprehending the present and considering the
future. The central theme for this particular meeting will be the recent
renegotiation of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreements, which builds
upon the 1972 and 1978 agreements. In addition to addressing the water
quality, we plan to engage other Great Lakes issues such as: invasive
species; transboundary governance; demographic and industry trends; air
quality; water levels and diversions, infrastructure.
Scholars in all disciplines, graduate students, and other interested
observers are welcome. Participants will not have to pay a registration
fee. Those interested in participating should contact Daniel Macfarlane at
daniel_macfarlane[at]carleton.ca. This roundtable is put on by the Canadian
Studies Centre at Michigan State University and the MSU 2012-13 Fulbright
Visiting Research Chair in Canadian Studies.

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Urban Forests & Political Ecologies: Celebrating Transdisciplinarity

Toronto, Canada – April 18-20th, 2013

Location: Hart House Great Hall, 7 Hart House Circle, Toronto, Ontario

Registration is now open!

The first of its kind, this international three-day conference will cover a wide range of issues related to urban forests, trees and green spaces from political ecology perspectives.

Conference Themes:

Historical Narratives
Urban Tree Cultures and Identities
Social Inclusion
From Government to Governance
Urban Ecology Pedagogies
Adaptation and Vulnerability

Click here for more details.

For more information please visit: www.ufpe.ca

Hosted by:

Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University

Faculty of Forestry, University of Toronto
Humber Arboretum & Centre for Urban Ecology

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At home, school, work, and in our communities, game changers are redefining the way we learn about and address environmental issues.

Join Environmental Education Ontario (EEON) for a panel presentation followed by a knowledge building session on Thursday, April 11th from 5:30 – 8:00 pm.

HOME – What environmental initiatives are helping people live more sustainably in their own homes?

SCHOOL – Are EcoSchools able to make and sustain partnerships with organizations in the community that can further the goal of educating new generations in environmental education?

WORK – How are companies and organizations adopting sustainable business practices and how is it affecting their triple bottom line?

COMMUNITIES – What are neighbourhoods and communities doing to reduce their ecological footprint?

Guest speakers include:

Bob Willard: author of The Sustainability Advantage

Pam Miller: TDSB EcoSchools Coordinator

Sonya Meek: Manager of Watershed Planning TRCA

A representative from Toronto Hydro

Attendees will participate in a collaborative break out session to answer: How can these game changing strategies be shared and adapted for communities across Ontario?

When: Thursday, April 11, 2013

Time: 5:30 – 8:00pm (Mix and Mingle from 5:30-6:00 pm)

Where: Ontario Institute for Studies in Education (OISE), 252 Bloor St. West , Room 5-170.

Host: Environmental Education Ontario (EEON)

RSVP: admin[at]eeon.org by April 5, 2013 Space is limited!

*Light refreshments provided

*A minimum donation of $5 is recommended. Charitable donation receipts will be issued for any donations over $20.

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Northern Research Forum in cooperation with the ESPON-ENECON project:

CLIMATE CHANGE IN NORTHERN TERRITORIES

Sharing Experiences, Exploring New Methods and Assessing Socio-Economic Impacts

Conference in Akureyri, Iceland
22 – 23 August 2013

nrf[at]unak.is

Young researchers are requested to fill out the Young Researcher application form by the 1st of April

(pdf of call)

Background:

The global climate change is by scientists predicted to have great environmental and socio-economic impacts in the whole Arctic as well as in northern Europe. There will be direct and indirect impacts on nature and on communities as well as uncertainties. In addition, global warming is predicted to accelerate off-shore oil and gas drilling in the Northern icy seas and open a new (global) sailing route from the North Atlantic Ocean through the Arctic Ocean to the eastern parts of the globe. All this is expected on one hand, to have great impacts on the economic and social opportunities of the northerly regions in the Arctic including Northern European countries, and on the other hand, to create bigger risks to the fragile Arctic ecosystem. The impact of all this is going to be widespread in North Europe and the entire North. This has already and will in near future mean an increasing need for research in both natural and social sciences as well as for interdisciplinary approach.

The aim of the event is to turn our attention towards this aspect of territorial challenges for European regions by organizing a conference where the focus will be on existing evidence and the need for future research in the northernmost regions of Europe and the Arctic, and the challenge of translating scientific knowledge into action.

The idea is that this conference will bring together researchers which have similar background but have been focusing on different problems and situations and applied different methodological approaches. Regional and local stakeholders as well as state politicians and policymakers are also target groups for this conference.

Steering group:

The Icelandic member of the ENECON steering group and head local organizer on behalf of the project is Professor Grétar Thór Eythórsson, from Univeristy of Akureyri, Iceland together with his ENECON colleagues Mr. Olaf Foss from Norwegian Institute for Urban and Regional Research (NIBR) in Oslo, Norway and Professor Heikki Eskelinen from The University of Eastern Finland.

On behalf of the Northern Research Forum, the Executive Committee of the NRF chaired by Dr. Lassi Heininen, from the University of Lapland in Finland will be in charge of the major preparations of the conference.

Practical organizing is done by a local organizing committee which consists of Mr. Gretar Thór Eythórsson ( gretar@unak.is) from the ENECON project, Mr. Hjalti Jóhannesson director at University of Akureyri Research Centre ( hjalti@unak.is) and Ulrika Nordblom research assistant at University of Akureyri Research Centre and Northern Research Forum secretariat ( ulrikanord@unak.is).

The themes of the conference:

The central theme of the conference will be divided into three sub-themes:

Territorial socio – economic impacts of climate change
Methodologies for assessing socio-economic impact
Adaptation to climate change in regions and local communities – examining methods and sharing knowledge

Guidelines for articles and papers

Information on young researcher participation

Young researchers are required to submit their abstracts using the Young Researcher application form here

Dear Young Researchers,

The NRF secretariat answers to each received application by e-mail. To close out the possibility of missing applications due to technical errors, please make sure that you receive a confirmation from us within two working days after sending your application. If something does not seem to work, you are welcome to contact us at nrf[at]unak.is. You may receive the confirmation after the deadline in case your abstract arrives in the evening on 1st of April. This does not have an effect on the acceptance of applications.

Important dates!

24th January 2012: 2nd call for abstracts

28th February 2013: Deadline for abstracts

1st of April 2013: Deadline for young reasearcher´s applications

15th of April 2013: Deadline for young researcher´s papers

Mid April 2013: Registration opens

1st May 2013: Final program

10th July 2013: Deadline for final registration

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Invitation to Innovation: Environmental learning and connections among nature(s), culture(s), and well-being(s)

When: Welcome in evening June 26th, Opening June 27-30th 2013
Where: Victoria and University of Victoria
What: Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communications
Whom: You! Educators, ENGOs, Researchers, Communicators

EECOM is pleased to invite you to participate in this annual conference at the University of Victoria, BC. EECOM is Canada’s only national, bilingual, charitable network for environmental learning. EECOM works strategically and collaboratively to advance environmental learning to ensure Canadians are environmentally literate, engaged in environmental stewardship and contributing to a healthy, sustainable future.

This year we commemorate those 20 years with another fabulous gathering of Canada’s environmental education and communication community in Victoria, British Columbia. We’ll gather in the territories of the Coast and Straits Salish People at the University of Victoria Faculty of Education and explore other local settings for three days of learning and experiences. We have confirmed two inspiring wisdom-keepers to be keynotes this year: Jeannette Armstrong and Thom Henley. More information on speakers to come.

Practitioners and researchers working in fields of formal, non-formal, and higher education doing work in such topics as integrated and place-based learning, curriculum theory, leadership, environmental health, ecopsychology, ecophilosophy, green business, communication, sustainability, social justice, and climate change are invited to submit proposals for this twentieth anniversary conference.

We encourage high quality, collaborative proposals which acknowledge the diversity in perspectives, methods and/or cultural contexts for the 2013 conference. Proposal submissions are now available online.

Deadline April 15th, 2013, 8pm PST/ 11pm EST.

For more information on how to participate and/or submit a proposal to
present at this conference follow this link:
http://conferences.uvic.ca/index.php/EECOM/EECOM2013

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NAVIGATING “A WASTING WORLD”:
PERSPECTIVES ON ENVIRONMENTALISM AND SUSTAINABILITY IN CANADA

LECTURE 1: March 7

TAKING BEARINGS:
THE IMPERFECT ARC OF CANADIAN ENVIRONMENTALISM

LECTURE 2: March 14

UNDER PILOTAGE:
STORIES WE TELL OF FRONTIERS, HOMELANDS, AND WILD PLACES

LECTURE 3: March 21

BY DEAD RECKONING:
FIXING A COURSE FOR THE FUTURE

The three lectures in this series respond to contemporary anxieties, in Canada and elsewhere, about the despoliation of the earth. This is an old concern, given a new twist and a new urgency in the new millennium. Reflecting a conviction that the past, and the humanities, have something worthwhile to contribute to thinking about these matters, these lectures follow a traditional narrative pattern: exposition; rising action; resolution.  In sketching, albeit broadly, the history of environmentalism in Canada since the 1960s, lecture one identifies elements of a distinctive Canadian story, allows us to realize that we are neither alone nor helpless in the face of environmental anxieties, and lays out information that underpins the unfolding argument of the series. Lecture two emerges from its predecessor and introduces complications, by focusing on some of the most important stories Canadians have told in recent times about themselves and the environment, about the past and the future of the country, and about nature and nation. Lecture three draws upon the preceding discussions to reflect upon some of the challenges ahead. Rather than resolving them, it brings past and present into conversation in an effort to find a north star, or at least a few ideas, that might help us steer toward a future less bleak than that we are daily forced to contemplate by actions that hasten our progress toward and rhetoric that fears our arrival in a “wasted world.”

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