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Plants in a changing environment

Noémie Boulanger-Lapointe, assistant professor of geography, has received $150,000 to establish the Socio-Ecological Landscapes Lab. A collaborative interdisciplinary group based in Geography with partnerships in the School of Environmental Studies and UVic Libraries will assess changes in vegetation composition and growth at and above the tree line in British Columbia, Nunavut and Iceland.

They’ll focus on three inter-related research objectives: recent changes in plant community composition; the relative impact of local and global environmental drivers on plant fitness; and the impact of environmental changes on Indigenous cultural and stewardship practices.

The Socio-Ecological Landscapes Lab will contribute to the development of an emerging consortium of research in arctic and alpine terrestrial ecosystems in western Canada, supporting UVic’s membership in the Association of Canadian Universities for Northern Studies and its commitment to promote research in the field of arctic research.

“By developing novel integrative methodologies that braid Indigenous and western scientific knowledges,” Boulanger-Lapointe says, “we’ll be able to propose innovative solutions and develop tools for ecosystem conservation that can be directly implemented by local and Indigenous managers.”

In-depth cell imaging

Chronic and infectious diseases are responsible for almost 57 million deaths - more than half the deaths in the world – every year. Three researchers at the ӣ��Ӱ�� (Caroline Cameron, professor of microbiology; Stephanie Willerth, professor of biomedical engineering; and Mariya Goncheva, Canada Research Chair in Virology have been awarded $300,000 to acquire a live cell imager with confocal capability to advance research into diseases and conditions that represent a public health priority to Canada and the rest of the world.

The instrument provides a choice of simultaneous fluorescence or confocal imaging and real-time assessment of the physical properties and viability of cell populations. It allows in-depth investigations of cell functions, imaging of tissue at different points in a plane, and a detailed view of host-pathogen interactions. As well, the scientists can image bioprinted tissues such as healthy and diseased neural models.

The equipment is essential to advance the quest to develop prophylaxis to microbiological diseases, understand host-bacterial/viral cell interactions, and to reconstruct tissue structures. In turn, this will help prevent and treat medically significant diseases and will improve the health of Canadians and individuals around the world.

Climate-sensitive plankton

Two groups of single-celled marine organisms, planktic foraminifera and calcareous nannoplankton, produce calcium carbonate shells. Their evolution 150 million years ago shifted the burial of marine carbonates from shallow shelves to the deep sea, sequestering many gigatons of carbon dioxide and stabilizing our climate.

Andrew Fraass, assistant professor of earth and ocean sciences, has received $125,000 for microscopy equipment to explore the unique vulnerabilities of the pelagic ecosystem to climate change.

“While plankton are generally resilient, they possess climate-linked vulnerabilities with recovery times far longer than human timescales,” he says. “With these new instruments, we can expand our research into the connections between marine carbonate producers, their evolution, ocean circulation and the climate system.”

The research will also advance the training of highly qualified personnel, developing their skills with three-dimensional imaging, data processing and programming, and has implications for marine fisheries and coastal food security.

Indigenous knowledge systems advance health

Emily Haigh, Chief Mungo Martin Research Chair in Indigenous Mental Health, has received $210,000 to support the Indigenous Mental Health and Wellness Lab. Haigh’s goal is to increase expertise in applying Indigenous knowledge systems to the study of psychological health and well-being. This award, she says, will enhance Indigenous Peoples’ ability to better benefit from and contribute to the field of clinical psychology.

The funds make possible a culturally safe research space that is designed to centre Indigenous ways of knowing and doing into Indigenous-led research projects, including:

• Centering Indigenous voices and cultural strengths to promote healthy aging and reduce risk for dementia among Indigenous Peoples
• Leveraging Indigenous knowledge to increase the acceptability and effectiveness of cognitive behavioural therapy for Indigenous clients
• Piloting a community-led healing pathway to address colonial harms and revitalize cultural-relational strategies for promoting physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual wellness.

"By privileging indigenous worldviews in clinical psychology,” says Haigh, “we have a critical opportunity to advance knowledge and improve the mental wellness of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous Canadians.”

More efficient chemistry

Innovations in medicines, materials and even cosmetics are driven by organic chemistry. Despite their prevalence in and importance to society, the way we make these chemicals is still time consuming and wasteful.

Nelson Lam, assistant professor of chemistry, has received $225,000 for equipment and instruments to develop a portfolio of chemical tools that can edit molecules precisely and efficiently. The project, “Radical manifolds for selective catalysis: a comprehensive platform for discovery and development,” will allow scientists to precisely and quickly rearrange or edit the functional sections of molecules, saving time and labour. These new tools have the potential to vastly reduce the amount of fossil-fuel based feedstock and solvents needed for complex molecule synthesis.

“Innovations from this research program,” says Lam, “will dramatically accelerate the discovery and development of new therapeutics and materials, as well as train the next generation of scientists working in this globally important field.”

Community-engaged planning

Loren McClenachan, Canada Research Chair in Ocean History and Sustainability, and Gerald Singh, Ocean Nexus Chair of Global Change and Sustainable Development, have been awarded $120,000 for their project “Learning from the past to adapt to an uncertain future in BC's coastal communities.”

Their goal is to collaborate with communities to develop locally appropriate plans for adapting to environmental stressors such as declining fisheries and climate-induced changes.

"Learning what local people have tried in the past can generate options that might be contextually relevant and tied to local identity," says Singh. "Through trialing these options in simulations of projected future change, we can evaluate them against a range of possibilities, essentially 'future-proofing' them."

With remote field work and video meetings, they’ll integrate oral history, local ecological knowledge, modern community priorities and historical adaptations to environmental change.

Then, using an innovative combination of video conferencing, computing and interactive simulations– where real people can make decisions in simulated environments and see the potential consequences – the researchers will stress-test adaptation options against uncertain environmental changes.

“We hope that by collaborating with communities and looking for solutions over long time scales,” says McClenachan, “we’ll produce evidence-based, relevant results to guide policies that impact coastal ecosystem health and food security.”

Rachel Goldsworthy