Climate action in Niagara was the focus of enthusiastic gathering of scientists, Indigenous Knowledge keepers, artists and community members co-hosted by Brock’s Environmental Sustainability Research Centre as part of the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre’s Arts in Action: Climate festival, which runs until Sunday, Feb. 8.
published Monday, February 02, 2026 | Brock News | by Amanda Bishop
Professor Julia Baird has long recognized the value of engaging with community about sustainability science and action.
So, when the opportunity arose to co-lead a daylong climate symposium at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre (PAC) with community leader Jennifer Dockstader, the Director of Brock’s Environmental Sustainability Research Centre (ESRC) says it was “an easy yes.”
The took place Saturday, Jan. 31 as part of a 10-day Arts in Action: Climate festival at the PAC. The symposium welcomed the Niagara community for a series of panel discussions featuring a wide variety of Indigenous, scientific and artistic voices.
Colleen Smith, CEO of the PAC and Executive Producer of the festival, says the event built on the PAC’s history of “convening community to explore and further enhance public dialogue pertaining to local, national and global topics and concerns.”
“When designing an art and climate festival, the notion of also hosting a climate symposium, reflecting both Indigenous and western science perspectives, was a natural progression,” says Smith. “Finding two such passionate and complementary leaders as Jennifer Dockstader and Dr. Julia Baird willing to co-lead this symposium meant that Art in Action: Climate could be a festival that could truly embrace and engage a diverse community on a subject that would complement and expand on our artistic presentations.”
Dockstader says one of her goals as co-lead was to bring brilliant Indigenous scholars, artists and community members to a wider Niagara audience, which she says should be pushing for more Indigenous voices in public conversations.
“We have some great minds already doing this work, so it’s wonderful to bring to the stage all of these great innovators, thinkers, creators, artists and scientists,” she says. “We really shouldn’t be doing this work without Indigenous people, so it’s been an honour to bring the people I know to this symposium.”
Several Brock faculty members, many of whom are ESRC affiliates, also participated, including:
- Associate Professor of Chemistry Jianbo Gao
- Dramatic Arts Instructor Shannon Hughes
- Assistant Professor of Physics and Engineering Jasneet Kaur
- Associate Professor of Computer Science and Biological Sciences and Canada Research Chair in Machine Learning for Biomedical Data Yifeng Li
- Biological Sciences and Psychology Professor Gary Pickering
- ESRC Adjunct Professor Kerrie Pickering
- Assistant Professor of Women’s and Gender Studies and Sociology Lyn Trudeau
- Professor of Biological Sciences and UNESCO Chair on Community Sustainability: From Local to Global Liette Vasseur
For Vasseur, who has placed a strong emphasis on art and poetry in her work as UNESCO Chair, the symposium was a natural fit.
“It’s a chance to open the eyes of people to realize that we all have a role to play in this — it’s the art in action, but it’s also people in action,” she says.
Vasseur also says sharing the stage with Rick Hill Sr. was particularly meaningful.
“It was an honour to be able to have this conversation with Dr. Rick Hill, a conversation between the settler white scientist and the Indigenous scientist about how we can have the fertility of these two knowledges connect, to be able to advance the challenge that we have with climate change,” she says.
In addition to the one-day symposium, Brock students minoring in Environmental Sustainability are acting as Youth Ambassadors throughout the festival and will share their perspectives at Youth in Action: Next Gen Speaks on Saturday, Feb. 7.
Baird and ESRC Research Associate Gillian Dale are also conducting a research project on how participating in the festival may build empathy and climate action. Any festival attendee can take part.
Overall, Dockstader says the symposium shone a light on the importance of breaking down divisions in order to tackle challenges like climate change.
“Moving forward in Niagara, we need to be walking side by side, together, all communities walking side by side,” says Dockstader. “We all have a stake in what is going to happen with the environment in Niagara, and we leave no one out of the conversation. We are all going to be focused on solutions.”
Baird says the chance to partner with Dockstader and the PAC to create space for sharing knowledge was a wonderful opportunity, and one that typifies the community-driven research prioritized by the ESRC.
“I’m just thrilled about how it has come together,” she says.
