Peachland Creek Community Watershed (145km2)

UBC Cluster of Research Excellence in Watershed Ecosystem Science presents:

An Ecosystem Approach: Finding shared solutions in a changing world

At this year’s annual Community Water Forum, you’ll hear from UBC’s Cluster of Research Excellence on Watershed Ecosystems – an interdisciplinary team of researchers and community partners assessing critical linkages and interactions in one of our local community watersheds.

Project leads will share their knowledge and expertise and introduce a collaborative, community-engaged research project in the Peachland Creek Community Watershed.

The Watershed Ecosystem Approach

Moderator

CANDICE LORING

Director, Business Development Indigenous Community Engagement (Mitacs); UBCO Faculty of Management Alumna (2016)

Candice is a proud member of the Gitwangak Band from the Gitxsan Nation and is passionate about economic development in Indigenous communities. In her role with Mitacs, Candice supports Indigenous students and communities across BC and the Yukon.

Presenters

Corrie Allen

PhD Candidate (UBC Okanagan); Environmental Consultant

Integrated modelling on interactions in a changing environment.

DR. JEANNETTE ARMSTRONG

Associate Professor, Indigenous Studies (UBC Okanagan); Canada Research Chair in Okanagan Indigenous Knowledge and Philosophy; Royal Society of Canada Scholar

Risk assessment of the cumulative effects and other stressors on Indigenous Okanagan Syilx values.

Dr. Rehan Sadiq

Professor, Civil Engineering and Distinguished University Scholar; Executive Associate Dean, School of Engineering (UBC Okanagan)

Risk assessment of the cumulative effects and other stressors to the downstream community (water supply and environmental hazards).

DR. SHEENA SPENCER

Research Hydrologist, B.C. Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations; Project Lead, Upper Penticton Creek Study

Risk assessment of the cumulative effects and other stressors to fish habitat/population.

John Wagner

Professor, Anthropology (UBC Okanagan)

Building an inclusive water governance model.

Dr. Adam Wei

Professor, Earth, Environmental and Geographic Sciences (UBC Okanagan); Cluster Lead, Watershed Ecosystem Science; Research Chair, Watershed Management

Cumulative effects of forest disturbance/land use and climate change on water quantity and quality.

Syilx Okanagan Perspective

tmixw – that which gives us life – is the Nsyilxcn word that most closely translates as “ecology.” tmixw includes everything that is alive: the land, water, insects, people, animals, plants and medicines.

“Water is life. Water is our relation. Water bonds us to our ancestry, our descendants and our land.”
Excerpt from the Syilx Nation Siwɬkʷ (Water) Declaration, July 31, 2014

Syilx Water Declaration

On July 31, 2014, the Okanagan Nation Alliance endorsed the Syilx Water Declaration that was put forth by the Natural Resources Council.  The Syilx Water Declaration serves as a living document on the Syilx/Okanagan relations and values to water, and communicates the importance of water and the responsibilities of the Syilx/Okanagan people.

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