News and Events

Master's graduate Alyssa Roth is the new Community Engagement Coordinator for the South East Alberta Watershed Alliance, based out of Medicine Hat, Alberta. This position builds perfectly on the experiences Alyssa' gained through her research on collaborative planning for low water response in Ontario. A refereed journal article in Ecological Economics is in press and should be out soon.

PhD graduate Marie Claire Brisbois is now in Ottawa, where she has a Mitacs-funded posting as a anadian Science Policy Fellow in the Office of the Chief Scientist, Natural Resources Canada, through the Institute for Science, Society and Policy at the University of Ottawa. This work is taking her well beyond the water field, and building her expertise in a host of other environmental policy domains.

Finally, our newest alum is Michelle Morris, who successfully defended her PhD thesis in September, 2016.

Are you interested in challenging the ways in which we approach governance for water in Canada. I am recruiting a new member for a team that will help me undertake my project: Rethinking water governance: towards a new agenda for research and practice.

The premise behind this project is that the water community has been slow to recognize that actors, institutions and drivers external to the water sector can determine the ability to achieve desired water governance outcomes. How best to respond is an open question. Specific objectives for the project as a whole include (1) evaluating current understanding in the literature of external considerations that affect water governance; (2) identifying and assessing external considerations that are relevant to Canadian water governance; and, (3) charting an agenda for a more systemic approach to research and practice that accounts for external considerations relevant to specific Canadian water governance contexts.

Rethinking water governance: towards a new agenda for research and practice technically is a "water" project, but the ideal applicant is not necessarily already a water expert. I am also seeking people with backgrounds in areas that intersect somehow with water. If you don't have a strong background in water, you'll have a chance to add that expertise during your studies. However, a strong background in and aptitude for working within the broad domain of "environmental governance" is essential. I'm also interested in people who have backgrounds in areas as diverse as climate change, international relations, trade, finance, energy policy, etc. These are all domains that intersect in important ways with water. Contact Rob de Loë to discuss your fit, and for a copy of the project summary.

As a PhD student member of the team, you'll have the chance to carve out a project within the umbrella of my larger project. The proposal does not define the topics PhD students will address! Instead, I am counting on new PhD students to identify theoretical problems and empirical studies that (a) reflect their interests and expertise, and (b) support the project and help advance its objectives.

Funding is guaranteed for four years.

PhD students working with me will enroll in the PhD in Social and Ecological Sustainability (which is operated by the Department of Environment and Resource Studies). This is one of several vibrant PhD programs in the Faculty of Environment. You can expect to be part of a large group of outstanding graduate students, faculty and post-doctoral researchers.

For more information:

Rob de Loë

ERS PhD program

Water Policy and Governance Group:

Faculty of Environment Doctoral Initiative

We've just published a major report from a project that explored the role of collaboration in drought management. This report, co-authored by Alyssa Roth and Rob de Loë, with assistance from our project partners, surveys Canadian and international experiences in using collaboration as part of drought planning process. The report is the final product from our project funded through the Water Economics, Policy and Governance Network.

We compared eleven drought management processes from Canada, the United States, Europe and Australia using a conceptual framework that investigated how decisions are made and by whom, the role of state actors, manifestations of authority and program evaluation practices. Data were collected from documents and key informant interviews. We found that collaboration played multiple roles in drought management and planning, including addressing impacts of drought and determining drought conditions. Drawing on insights from this research, the report synthesizes implications for Ontario’s approach to drought management.

A copy of the report is available for free download.

 

Are you interested in challenging the ways in which we approach governance for water in Canada. I am recruiting new members for a team that will help me undertake a new five year project: Rethinking water governance: towards a new agenda for research and practice.

The premise behind this project is that the water community has been slow to recognize that actors, institutions and drivers external to the water sector can determine the ability to achieve desired water governance outcomes. How best to respond is an open question. Specific objectives for the project as a whole include (1) evaluating current understanding in the literature of external considerations that affect water governance; (2) identifying and assessing external considerations that are relevant to Canadian water governance; and, (3) charting an agenda for a more systemic approach to research and practice that accounts for external considerations relevant to specific Canadian water governance contexts.

While this is a "water" project, I am recruiting students with a wide range of relevant backgrounds that intersect somehow with water. If you don't have a strong background in water, you'll have a chance to add that expertise during your studies. However, a strong background in and aptitude for working within the broad domain of "environmental governance" is essential. I'm also interested in people who have backgrounds in areas as diverse as climate change, international relations, trade, finance, energy policy, etc. These are all domains that intersect in important ways with water. Contact Rob de Loë to discuss your fit.

As a PhD student member of the team, you'll have the chance to carve out a project within the umbrella of my larger project. The proposal does not define the topics PhD students will address! Instead, I am counting on new PhD students to identify theoretical problems and empirical studies that (a) reflect their interests and expertise, and (b) support the project and help advance its objectives.

Funding is guaranteed for four years.

PhD students working with me will join the Environment and Resource Studies PhD program. This is one of several vibrant PhD programs in the Faculty of Environment. You can expect to be part of a large group of outstanding graduate students, faculty and post-doctoral researchers.

For more information:

Rob de Loë

ERS PhD program

Water Policy and Governance Group:

Faculty of Environment Doctoral Initiative