Kristen Villebrun and Wendy Bush hoped they wouldn't have to pray for Chedoke Creek, but four years after they first raised alarm about the water's condition, they were part of an Indigenous full moon ceremony to do just that. About 50 people showed up near Princess Point on the dark and frigid Monday evening for the monthly ceremony, which was particularly special as it focused on Chedoke Creek. The body of water that runs into Cootes Paradise had about 24 billion litres of sewage and storm water runoff leak into it due to a gate being left open.
Southern Alberta has seen some of the most exceptional drought in the country over the last few months — so it's no surprise that these conditions can possibly lead to dry and sensitive skin. This is especially so for newcomers to the province, like University of Calgary graduate Elisha Banerjee. "I was used to the cold, that was the part that was easy, it was the dry that I was not prepared for," she said.
With the global push to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in half by 2030, many communities across Southern Alberta are already leading the way in implementing innovative and equitable climate solutions. The new Mobilizing Alberta Climate Action Grant program out of the University of Calgary’s Office of Sustainability aims to help strengthen capacity for advancing climate action across Southern Alberta.
Science, art, and the great outdoors. Megan Leung describes these three things as her greatest passions in life. Growing up in Mohkinstsis — on the traditional territories of the Treaty 7 region, located in the Canadian Rockies of Southern Alberta — the hydrologist, artist, and MSc geography student at the University of Calgary has always been in awe of her surroundings. It’s a love that inspired both her art and her academic path. For years though, Leung felt those passions were completely divergent parts of her life.
“The river is very important to the Piikani Nation,” Piikani Nation Councilor, Riel Houle said. “We understand the downstream impacts of farmers and other people who need access to the water but (we also) get very protective of our river. It’s sacred to us.” Houle says the act of defiance was carefully considered. Twenty years after a water rights agreement was signed between the Piikani and the federal and provincial governments, Houle says a lot has changed. For one, the diversion weir on Piikani land is aging and planning for new infrastructure is underway.
