“The answer to a world in which humans and nature are in sync starts with a transformative change that realigns the economic, political and societal.” – Dr. Kai Chan
CSFS Associate Dr. Kai Chan, research chair at the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability at the University of British Columbia, was quoted in the Toronto Star about the need for system change to address the climate crisis.
“If you can help farmers do this profit mapping, essentially, on their farm, they can see ‘Wow, I’m losing money on this bit of my field, it wouldn’t be so bad to put this into habitat'” – Dr. Claire Kremen
CSFS Associate and UBC Professor in the Department of Zoology and Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, Dr. Claire Kremen, discussed what can be done to render agriculture less hostile to biodiversity and the climate. Kremen suggests using global positioning to identify specific areas of low productivity within a farmer’s field. Kremen acknowledges that taking these small marginal areas out of production might actually increase the profitability of a farm and provide opportunities to restore habitat and increase agricultural biodiversity.
“Transformative social change really takes way more than those private actions … when you change social norms and put pressure on the system to change in particular ways. That’s when you have power.” – Dr. Kai Chan
A team led by CSFS Associate Dr. Kai Chan, a UBC professor at the Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries and the Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability, has launched CoSphere, a new social media hub where people can connect to take action for a sustainable future.
“Learn about fundamental concepts and strategies that are key to successful carrot breeding work”
CSFS Associate and CANOVI Project Lead, Solveig Hanson, recently visited Washington State to cohost a carrot breeding webinar with our collaborators at Organic Seed Alliance. The webinar titled “Breeding Carrots for Production, Resilience, Flavor and Fun in Organic Systems” covered basic genetics, colour expression, trait expression and selection, and demonstrated how to cut, evaluate, and select roots from a diverse array of orange and rainbow-coloured roots. Learn more about the CANOVI Project’s contributions to the resilience and growth of Canada’s organic vegetable sector.
“The prospect of hosting itself is an exciting one if it gets combined with the notion of reconciliation. Maybe the games are the antidote; the kind of event that can bring people together in a big nation.” – Dr. Robert VanWynsberghe
Dr. Robert VanWynsberghe, CSFS Associate and UBC Education Professor, joined CBC’s Matt Galloway to discuss the bid to bring the 2030 Winter Olympics back to Vancouver and what lessons there are to be learned from the 2010 Olympics. Dr. VanWynsberghe explains that while the 2010 Olympics championed major improvements in infrastructure, the #1 disappointment that has led people to be skeptical of future bids is unfulfilled commitments to improve social housing. VanWynsberghe believes that the International Olympics Committee is going to have to relinquish some control so things are “done properly not just timely” and that they will benefit greatly from a bid led by indigenous communities to become a more legitimate source for social change in the world.
“We’re seeing an increased pattern of impacts to production that are currently impacting the capacity of farmers to produce food and this will only get more challenging as we move forward.” – Dr. Sean Smukler
Dr. Sean Smukler, CSFS Associate and chair of agriculture and environment at UBC, spoke with CTV News about how the extreme weather conditions in 2021 impacted food production and subsequent inflation of food prices. Statistics Canada reported that food prices in Canada increased to a decade high, following record-breaking heat, severe drought and devastating floods last year. Dr. Smukler says we’re seeing what climate scientists have long predicted becoming reality, and as the food supply continues to be affected, the markets will react accordingly. Smukler goes on to state that this is just a “taste of what is to come” and advises the development of strategies to improve farmer resilience to weather volatility, reduction of greenhouse gases, and commitment to the Paris Agreement on climate change are crucial next steps.
Hannah Wittman
Véronik Campbell
The agricultural sector in British Columbia (BC) is facing a farm renewal crisis, and the long-term viability of the sector depends on attracting and retaining a new generation of farmers.
CSFS Associates Dr. Hannah Wittman and staff member Véronik Campbell conducted an evaluation of the BCLMP to determine how the outcomes of the BCLMP are aligning with the needs of new entrant farmers. The evaluation looked at the factors contributing to successful land matches and identified areas of potential growth for the future.
Amongst the key findings, land matching is identified as a key opportunity to link new farmers to arable land. The research team found it takes on average 6 to 7 months to create a successful land match, and 66 percent of land seekers and 63 percent of landholders indicated that their farming operation and the land were more stable after matching through the BCLMP. Essential aspects of an effective land match are a strong agricultural community network, availability of region-specific resources, aligned goals of land seeker and landholder, and business and legal literacy. It’s also recommended that the BCLMP continue to deliver education and business resources, track long-term outcomes, and develop programming to meet new entrants’ needs.
Dr. Loren Rieseberg
Dr. Marco Todesco
“It exemplifies the complexity and efficiency of adaptation — solving two problems with a single trait” – Dr Loren Rieseberg
CSFS Associates Dr. Marco Todesco and Dr. Loren Rieseberg, research associate and professor, respectively, at UBC’s biodiversity research centre and department of botany were interviewed about their recent study revealing how sunflowers’ UV patterns vary depending on climate. Floral UV patterns are already known to enhance pollination, but this study suggests that they also regulate water loss from flowers.
The researchers found that a single gene, HaMYB111, controls the production of UV-absorbing flavonol compounds, which help flowers survive under different environmental stresses. Larger floral UV patterns appear in drier environments reducing water loss, and smaller floral UV patterns in hot humid settings enhance evaporation and improve cooling. Dr. Todesco claims these findings are valuable in helping us “understand how sunflowers, and potentially other plants, better adapt to different areas or temperatures, which could be important in a warming climate”.
“We should be building the infrastructure for the next 30 years, starting yesterday” – Dr. Sean Smukler
Dr. Sean Smukler, CSFS Associate and UBC Chair of Agriculture and Environment, stresses the importance of strengthening the agricultural sector’s resilience to climate change following the extreme weather disasters B.C. encountered last year. He explains that B.C. is “ahead of the curve”, but funding stands in the way of more urgent adaptation efforts. Smukler advises that continuing in “reactionary mode” is much more costly than taking a proactive approach.
“If the city is to consider hosting another Olympics, it has to spread out the amenities across the city.” – Dr. Robert VanWynsberghe
Dr. Robert VanWynsberghe, CSFS Associate and UBC Education professor, shares his perspective on the possibility of another Olympics being hosted here. As social housing remains top of mind, he doesn’t think that citizens will be happy if Olympic amenities appear again in East Vancouver.