This is not our Canada . . . Dismay and upset followed the Federal Government’s announcement to conditionally approve Enbridge’s Northern Gateway pipeline. How could a government claim it represents its people with any semblance of integrity, knowing that the 1,000 km proposed pipeline from the tar sands to the coast is opposed by 130 […]
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Completing the Loop, by Raegan Mallinson
by Heather Leschied on June 30, 2014
Looking out the microbus windows into a heavy, grey fog lingering over the massive Athabasca River, my mind wanders to memories of last year’s tar sands Healing Walk. A feeling of apprehension and nostalgia swirl around, creating an unexpected anxiety in returning to the land of intensive industry and rapid resource extraction. Having been born […]
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The Black Boreal Treasure, by Heather Leschied
by Heather Leschied on June 27, 2014
For me it started with Tom Thompson’s haunting, autumn depiction, so inextricably associated with Canada’s Boreal Forest. The black spruce is often overlooked. Not quite as radiant as its cousin, the Sitka, but my love affair sees it as utterly majestic in its own right. For a forest that stretches clear across the country, encompassing […]
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Rivers and Roads to the Athabasca Healing Walk, by Ryan van der Marel
by Heather Leschied on June 26, 2014
“I’ll have a triple-triple”, the man in line at the counter says. Considering the drive we’ve had, this doesn’t seem like a bad idea, although not one we’re used to hearing. Traversing the Rockies draws attention to the subtle and sometimes stark contrasts between the watershed in which we reside and the one we are […]
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Intro to My Watershed: Gulf of Mexico, by Tim Romanow
by Heather Leschied on March 21, 2014
When someone says the Gulf of Mexico or the Mississippi Watershed likely the last place in the world you think of is Southeastern Alberta or Southwestern Saskatchewan but the reality is we do have some of the northern most tributaries of this incredible Watershed right here in Canada! My name is Tim Romanow; I am […]
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New documentary shows importance of the Mackenzie River by Angele Cano, Canadian Geographic
by Heather Leschied on March 17, 2014
It’s the longest river in Canada covering around 1.8 million square kilometres in three provinces and territories, and many Canadians have never heard of it. The Mackenzie River is the central player in the new short documentary Cold Amazon, which will be released during Canada Water Week from March 17 to 23. The film highlights […]
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Intro to My Watershed: Pacific Ocean, by Katie Burles
by Heather Leschied on March 13, 2014
It all starts in the headwaters. The Canadian portion of the Columbia River Basin in British Columbia forms the “water tower” of the mighty international Columbia River, which plunges into the Pacific Ocean at Astoria, Oregon. That is, a vast amount of the water flowing through the Columbia River system comes through Canadian soil. Residents […]
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Intro to My Watershed: Atlantic Ocean, by Donald Killorn
by Heather Leschied on March 6, 2014
Water connects us. Our nation was built, like so many, on an idea. Canada would extend ‘from sea to sea’. Though no easy task, in time, ambitious men from east and west stood over ceremonial railway spikes on the Pacific coast. Today, I can travel from Vancouver Island to Bonavista without having to once show […]
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Intro to My Watershed: Hudson Bay, by Vicki Burns
by Heather Leschied on February 21, 2014
Lake Winnipeg, our spectacular lake, is almost like an inland ocean, right in the heart of Manitoba. It’s huge in size, almost 25,000 sq.km. and from many points you cannot see across to land on the other side. When the big storms hit, you can imagine you’re on the ocean, with the powerful waves pounding […]
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“White Water, Black Gold” featured for Canada Water Week by David Lavallee, Producer/Director
by Heather Leschied on February 13, 2014
It’s been 2 years since I completed “White Water, Black Gold” and I continue to be inspired by the ongoing movement to hold the Tarsands industry accountable for its actions. From “Idle no More”, to the Tarsands Healing Walk, direct actions and pipeline protests in Vancouver with thousands attending, people are finding ways to have […]
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Carol Maas is the Innovation and Technology Director at the POLIS Water Sustainability Project and has spent the last decade researching and designing sustainable solutions for water and wastewater. She’s currently interested in finding creative ways for communities to keep their lakes and rivers clean and flowing, which translates to studying applications of the Soft Path for Water and the Water-Energy Nexus. She spends most of her summers trying to find ways to be on or around water while keeping her 4 year old, very eager, little swimmer from drowning himself, his cousins or his father.
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