Groundwater comprises only 1% of the available water on the planet, but supports much of the world’s drinking water, agriculture, industry, and ecosystems.
At this webinar, we screen the award-winning short film "26 Years," which calls attention to the lack of safe drinking water on Indigenous reserves in Canada, as well as "Finding Balance Below" and an excerpt from "Pumped Dry," which illuminate the layers of complexity and the obstacles that California is experiencing with depleting groundwater sources. The moderated conversation turns to the B.C. context, where we feature insightful conversations with three change-makers working to protect groundwater. The focus is hydrology, groundwater law and policy, and Indigenous health and well-being.
SPEAKERS
Honourable Minister Josie Osborne, B.C. Ministry of Land, Water and Resource Stewardship.
Melissa Rohde, Groundwater Scientist at the Nature Conservancy’s California Chapter.
Dr. Shannon Waters, Medical Health Officer for the Cowichan Valley Region at Island Health, Vancouver Island Health Authority; member of Stz’uminus First Nation; and member of the Cowichan Watershed Board
Mike Wei, Senior Consultant for Western Water Associates Ltd. As the former Head of Aquifer and Watershed Science with the B.C. Government
The event is moderated by Sherry Da, Water Leaders & Special Projects Coordinator at the POLIS Water Sustainability Project, based at the University of Victoria’s Centre for Global Studies and Tom Gleeson, Associate Professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at the University of Victoria.
This webinar was hosted in collaboration between the POLIS Water Sustainability Project, University of Victoria’s Centre for Global Studies, and University of Victoria’s Groundwater Science and Sustainability Research Group.
Recorded: March 22nd, 2022.
