News

  • Community invited to Brock’s World Water Day celebration

    Monday, March 18, 2024 | By

    THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2024 | by  | From The Brock News

    Three women pose for a photo in front of tall yellow plants.

    Associate Professor Julia Baird (left), PhD in Sustainability Science student Hannah Marlen Lübker and Academic Advisor Samantha Morris have organized Brock’s first ever community event to celebrate World Water Day.

    Water — and all that it means to the world — will be celebrated at an upcoming community event hosted by Brock University.

    Brock’s Water Resilience Lab and Department of Geography and Tourism Studies will host the inaugural World Water Day Celebration on Friday, March 22 to showcase the many ways people study, appreciate and engage with water at the University and across the Niagara region.

    The free public event, funded in part by the Council for Research in the Social Sciences, brings to life a long-term goal of Julia Baird, Canada Research Chair in Human Dimensions of Water Resources and Water Resilience.

    “Water touches so many aspects of our lives — what we learn and the research that happens at Brock, as well as issues of water management, water conservation and the well-being of our community and ecosystems in the broader Niagara community,” says the Associate Professor in the Environmental Sustainability Research Centre and the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies.

    Baird has worked closely with Samantha Morris, Academic Advisor and Communications Co-ordinator in Geography and Tourism Studies, and graduate student volunteer Hannah Marlen Lübker to bring together the community to share the myriad of ways that water is important.

    The World Water Day Celebration will open at 10 a.m. in the Rankin Family Pavilion on Brock’s main campus. Students can learn about the many water-related courses on offer and the community can discover some of the dynamic water research being undertaken at Brock.

    Between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., attendees can peruse water-themed informational and research posters from graduate and undergraduate students, an array of artistic submissions, featured course highlights or displays that combine all of these features, such as a PhotoVoice exhibit from one of Baird’s courses and the VISA 2P90 exhibit currently on display in the Matheson Learning Commons and Thistle display cases on  “Women, Water, and Words: An Exploration of Visual Culture in Niagara.”

    The James A. Gibson Library has also curated a featured collection of print and e-books entitled “Exploring Deep Waters” to highlight ways to learn more about water.

    From 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., interactive booths will open featuring Brock researchers and community groups and organizations, including the following:

    • Niagara Region
    • Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority
    • Niagara Parks Commission
    • Niagara Geopark
    • Soaring Eagles Indigenous Elementary School
    • Brock’s Department of Geography and Tourism Studies
    • Water Resilience Lab

    Researchers will share their projects and community organizations will highlight their work as well as volunteer and student job opportunities that may be available. Visitors present during the interactive portion of the day can enter a prize draw, which includes a $50 gift card for Someday Books. The draw will take place at 1:30 p.m.

    All members of the Brock and wider communities are invited to drop in and enjoy this all-encompassing tribute to water.

    Reposted from The Brock News

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  • For the love of Pi

    Thursday, March 14, 2024 | By

    THURSDAY, MARCH 14, 2024 | by Colleen Patterson

    A woman hands a university student a mini box of pie while two other students are already eating pies nearby.

    As people around the world celebrated Pi Day on Thursday, March 14 (or 3/14) with a slice of pie — sweet, savoury or even pizza — Brock’s Map, Data and GIS Library (MDGL) provided a variety of fruit-filled mini pies and demonstrated its map services to 50 Brock community members. Mathematicians mark the day in recognition of pi, the irrational number 3.14159…, which is part of many formulas used in physics, astronomy, engineering and other fields. It is also used to calculate the circumference and area of a circle. From left are fourth-year Geography student Emily Owen, third-year Biology and Geography student Alyssa McInally, Brock’s Map Library Associate and Geospatial Data Co-ordinator Sharon Janzen and fourth-year Geography student Julia Gardner.

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  • New summer course to explore anime tourism

    Thursday, March 07, 2024 | By

    By | Reposted from the Brock News

    Colourful signs and billboards in Akihabara, Tokyo, Japan, show anime characters.

    Learn about how anime fans who flock to locations in Japan to celebrate their favourite films and characters are shaping a new form of tourism in TOUR 2P98 this summer.

    A new Brock course taking place this summer will dive into the phenomenon of tourism driven by anime fandom.

    “Anime Tourism,” offered asynchronously online by the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies as TOUR 2P98 in the Summer 2024 session, is open to students with five or more credits. No knowledge of Japanese language is required. Registration for the Spring and Summer Terms is now open.

    The course will examine anime culture, the development of anime tourism destinations and the impact of anime tourism. It will also explore the geography, history, culture and mythology of Japan.

    bronze statue of three Attack on Titan anime characters in Hita, Japan

    Professor of Geography and Tourism Studies Atsuko Hashimoto photographed this statue of characters from Attack on Titan in Hita, Japan.

    “I am interested in how anime tourism is contributing to the development or rejuvenation of communities,” says Professor of Geography and Tourism Studies Atsuko Hashimoto, who also plans to offer the course in the Fall/Winter session. “There are certain anime films which have specific towns or specific locations — the shrine, the forest or the part of the townscape — that are so precisely drawn that many people can actually identify the location and want to visit it.”

    Her research explores the trend of anime fans seeking out the physical locations of animated settings and travelling there to mimic favourite characters and take photos for social media, which she compares to similar pastimes like geocaching.

    Hashimoto says that when fans decide to travel to locations from their favourite anime, there can be both positive and negative social and economic effects, and the course will explore all of these dimensions.

    As an example, she points out that while much of the current anime tourism phenomenon is driven by Japanese fans, international visitors descending on a location that is unprepared to receive them with accommodation or translators can create problems.

    However, the economic benefits of anime tourism are motivating many local governments to devote resources — from new special divisions of government to YouTube channels showcasing towns — to attracting filmmakers and creating even more interest in their locations.

    “We can already see how the Japanese Government, local tourism marketing offices, businesses and even local people are taking advantage of this anime tourism phenomenon, even trying to be featured in anime films,” she says.

    Hashimoto says she is looking forward to discussing favourite anime examples with students and exploring how fans can help build a sustainable and responsible tourist industry around anime.

    Together with Professor of Geography and Tourism Studies David Telfer, Hashimoto recently presented a paper on anime tourism entitled “Fictive Places in the Real World: Anime Film Tourism and Regional Development in Japan” at the International Conference on Literary and Film Tourism in Barcelona, Spain. She will soon speak at an event hosted by the Department of East Asian Studies at the University of Toronto on the cultural significance of anime as a lead-in to a screening of the 2022 film Suzume (Suzume no Tojimari).

    Story reposted from the Brock News

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  • Seed exchange brings spring to campus

    Wednesday, February 28, 2024 | By

     By Colleen Patterson | From The Brock News

    A woman (left) and a man (right) stand on either side of a table full of small plants.

    Plant and gardening enthusiasts got a head start on spring at the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies’ third annual seed and plant exchange. Members of the Brock community perused a variety of fruit, vegetable, herb and flower seeds to take home on Wednesday, Feb. 28. Student Affairs Case Coordinator Keely Burger (left) and Associate Director of Student Affairs Darryl Veld (right) chose to brighten their office spaces with some of the household plants and cuttings available at the event. Five volunteers and representatives from the Brock University Seed Library were on site providing advice and additional resources during the exchange. More photos can be viewed on the Geography and Tourism Studies Facebook, X and Instagram accounts.

    Story reposted from The Brock News.

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  • Brock’s first World Water Day event seeks community submissions

    Wednesday, February 28, 2024 | By

    By | From the Brock News.

    Close-up photo of a hand trailing through water.

    Members of the Brock community are invited to submit research, informational posters, course highlights, artwork and interactive activities for University’s World Water Day event. The deadline for submissions is Thursday, March 7.

    Brock will celebrate World Water Day by inviting students, researchers, artists and community organizations to come together and share their work and interests related to water.

    Hosted by the Water Resilience Lab and the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies, Brock’s inaugural World Water Day Celebration on Friday, March 22 aims to help attendees learn about water and efforts to protect this essential resource.

    Members of the Brock community — including students, staff, faculty and alumni — are encouraged to submit research and informational posters, course highlights, artwork and interactive activities to be included in the event.

    Anyone interested in taking part can use the submission form to apply before the 11:59 p.m. on Thursday, March 7.

    Display materials will need to be delivered by Wednesday, March 20 to prepare for installation.

    Limited funding to support student posters, provided by the Council for Research in the Social Sciences, is available by application on the submission form.

    The World Water Day Celebration will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Rankin Family Pavilion, with interactive stations and community organization booths open from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

    All members of the Brock and wider community are invited to attend.

    Story reposted from the Brock News.

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  • Brock student research sheds light on local women-owned businesses

    Wednesday, February 21, 2024 | By

    Two women sit in a sunny atrium with an out-of-focus glass wall behind them.

    Fifth-year Concurrent Teacher Education student Daria Do (left) and Associate Professor of Geography and Tourism Studies Ebru Ustundag shared Do’s research on female entrepreneurs with local community organizations during a presentation on Wednesday, Feb. 14.

    After spending much of her fourth year examining the experiences of women who own small businesses in downtown St. Catharines, Brock student Daria Do is sharing her findings — and related recommendations — with the community.

    Do presented her undergraduate thesis research, completed under the supervision of Associate Professor Ebru Ustundag in the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies, to business leaders from the St. Catharines Downtown Association, the Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce and Innovate Niagara on Wednesday, Feb. 14.

    An entrepreneur herself, the fifth-year Concurrent Teacher Education student set out to look at social-spatial relationships and the gender dynamics that shape local female business owners’ experiences, as well as the personal and institutional support systems available to them.

    With support from Ustundag and her second reader, Professor of Geography and Tourism Studies Michael Ripmeester, Do interviewed six out of a possible 16 women business owners in the downtown core at the time of the research, which began in August 2022.

    Several themes emerged during these interviews, from financial barriers encountered when pursuing loans and grants to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    “A lot of the participants had to make some challenging decisions to lay off their team and work by themselves, taking on all of the business tasks — from labeling to producing to marketing to maintaining an online shop and making deliveries,” Do says.

    The role of support networks — whether it was family members helping out or official programming — proved to be crucial, particularly in identifying opportunities such government grants like those attached to the Digital Main Streets program.

    According to Do, the participants also showed a strong commitment to an inclusive downtown and diverse urban culture.

    “They don’t just care about their own store. They care about their customers and about their neighbouring business owners and that everyone’s successful, not just themselves,” says Do. “That cohesiveness and ability to be empathetic towards other people, I think, is something super special in downtown St. Catharines, something very unique.”

    During the presentation, Do and Ustundag offered recommendations based on the thesis interviews, including a networking program specific to women small business owners that caters to the needs and schedules of working caregivers and paid mentorship opportunities to help further strengthen local connections.

    “The presentation was a gratifying experience that allowed me to share my passions for the purpose of my research and illuminate the positive stories coming out of downtown St. Catharines,” says Do. “More importantly, it was a unique opportunity to be able to amplify the significance of having a geographical lens when trying to understand the changes in downtown St. Catharines and how female small business owners are active participants of this urban culture.”

    Ustundag says that Do’s work has particular significance because much of the existing research in Canadian urban economic geographies relates to large metropolitan centres.

    “I am continuously impressed by Daria’s dedication, curiosity and enthusiasm about conducting qualitative research as an undergraduate and as a first-generation student,” says Ustundag. “During her presentation, she made an excellent case about how critical geographical analysis is so vital in understanding the complex economic and social relationships in downtown St Catharines.”

    In all, Do says it was an honour to be able to learn from the experiences of her research participants, and that pursuing an undergraduate thesis created some great opportunities overall.

    “There are times that it is difficult, but it’s so rewarding in the end to be able to look at where I was, look at where I came from and what I learned from this experience,” says Do. “I learned about writing, about slowing down and paying close attention to detail, and I gained so many strong connections and relationships with my department and also my community. That’s something I will always appreciate.

    Story reposted from The Brock News.

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  • CRC Spotlight: Brock researcher examining ways to foster water resilience

    Wednesday, February 07, 2024 | By

     By | From The Brock News

    Head and shoulders shot of Julia Baird smiling, with trees and water blurred in the background.

    As Canada Research Chair in Human Dimensions of Water Resources and Water Resilience, Julia Baird investigates how decisions regarding water use or activities that have an impact on water are made at the government, community and individual levels.


    The federal government’s     Canada Research Chairs program invests up to $311 million per year to attract and retain some of the world’s most accomplished and promising minds. Chairholders are recognized to be national and international experts in the fields of engineering and the natural sciences, health sciences, humanities and social sciences. Brock University has 10 active Canada Research Chairs, with more to be announced. This monthly series profiles the work, and lives, of Brock’s Chairholders.

    When she wants to take a break in her busy schedule, Julia Baird heads out to a lake or river.

    “I’ve always found water to be a source of calm in my life,” says the Associate Professor in Brock’s Environmental Sustainability Research Centre (ESRC) and the Department of Geography and Tourism.

    “Water is critical to life; it’s inherent in us that we’re connected to water,” she says. “I think of the well-being of future generations and how important it is to support sustainability.”

    As Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Human Dimensions of Water Resources and Water Resilience, Baird investigates activities that have an impact on water. She studies how decisions regarding water use are made at the government, community and individual levels through her Water Resilience Lab.

    “The diversity of voices, and how those voices are included and connected, is critical for creating the right conditions for water sustainability,” she says.

    Central to her work is the concept of water resilience, which Baird says involves “being able to continue to support the well-being of the system despite whatever disturbances may arise.”

    Baird says there are three ways to respond to disturbances in the environment, such as floods or droughts brought about by climate change: persist where possible in spite of disturbances, adapt to situation or transform the way society operates to mitigate or avoid disastrous impacts.

    Ideally, decision-making processes related to water, as well as related areas such as land-use planning, agricultural operations, coastline protection and erosion control, are guided by water resilience principles and practices.

    Baird has long been fascinated by how people make decisions and how individuals influence decisions carried out at the political level. Her research looks at how psychological traits, such as empathy and self-efficacy at the individual level, can motivate the public to support decisions that lead to water sustainability.

    Empathy is associated with attitudes that reflect stronger support for resilience-based approaches for the environment.

    In a study led by Baird, participants in six countries who read three scenarios describing situations of flooding, drought and depleted fish stocks gave moderate to strong support for governance taking a resilience-based approach.

    “We know that empathy is malleable, it can change in people,” says Baird. “The question is, how can we build empathy broadly so that the public will influence changes that can have positive impacts down the line?”

    Baird earned her PhD in Environment and Sustainability from the University of Saskatchewan in 2012 and came to Brock as a post-doctoral fellow. She became Associate Professor in the ESRC and the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies in 2021.

    In that same year, Baird was granted her Canada Research Chair position, which was renewed in 2022.

    Baird has had a number of accomplishments during her terms, including:

    In her second term, Baird plans to test interventions to build empathy broadly in society and examine the long-term impacts of empathy interventions on behaviour.

    “Ultimately, our work is centered on finding solutions to some of today’s most pressing water issues,” says Baird. “I’m motivated by that every day.”

    Story reposted from The Brock News

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  • Brock displays sculpture by renowned Indigenous architect

    Wednesday, January 17, 2024 | By

    By | From The Brock News

    A bronze globe-like sculpture sits on a pedestal behind a window. A man and woman stand nearby.

    Friends of Laura Second President Caroline McCormick (left) and Brock Associate Professor of Geography and Tourism Studies David Brown stand beside the bronze Sunflame sculpture, which will be on display in Brock University Library’s Makerspace until spring.

    The Brock Library’s Makerspace is the temporary home of a bronze sculpture created by renowned Indigenous architect Douglas Cardinal. Sunflame will take its place as the centrepiece of the First Nations Peace Monument at Decew House Heritage Park in Thorold in the spring.

    A bronze globe sculpture sits at the centre of the two distinctive curvilinear walls that make up the First Nations Peace Monument.

    The Sunflame bronze sculpture as it will look when permanently installed as the centrepiece of the First Nations Peace Monument at Decew House Heritage Park in Thorold in the spring of 2024.

    The monument, located just minutes from Brock’s main campus, honours and acknowledges the significant contributions of First Nations people in the building of Canada.

    “Though the First Nations Peace Monument is small in size and tucked away in a secluded park setting in Thorold, it has enormous national significance,” says Associate Professor of Geography and Tourism Studies David Brown, who played a major role in the monument project.

    “It’s dedicated to the proposition that the commonalities and shared experiences that bind us together as allies today must become much stronger than our historic differences.”

    Brock partnered with the non-profit community group Friends of Laura Secord to display Sunflame so the community can enjoy the sculpture before it moves to its permanent location.

    The glass-walled Makerspace, located in the busy Rankin Family Pavilion, is an ideal venue to prominently display the sculpture.

    “The Makerspace is honoured to be the temporary home of the Sunflame sculpture,” says Makerspace Supervisor Derek Schneider. “We hope to educate the Brock community on all things pertaining to ‘making’ while paying homage to our rich Indigenous community and heritage.”

    Cardinal’s signature designs draw inspiration from the organic forms of the natural world, and he uses technology, similar to the 3D rendering and printing tools available in the Makerspace, to translate them into distinctive architectural and sculptural works.

    Some of his works include the Canadian Museum of History in Gatineau, Que., TELUS World of Science in Edmonton, Alta., and the National Museum of the American Indian on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

    For more information about the monument, scan the QR code at the Sunflame display, download the GuideTags digital interpretive app. Brock’s display includes information brochures and closed-captioned videos about Niagara history as well as points of interest along the Laura Secord Legacy Trail and the Niagara Indigenous Heritage Trail.

    To learn more about technology and workshops offered to the Brock and wider community, visit the Makerspace website.

    Story reposted from The Brock News.

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  • Geomatics minor helps students tackle environmental problems using tech

    Tuesday, November 14, 2023 | By

    By | From The Brock News

    Kevin Turner and students discuss the use of 3D survey and digital mapping tools behind the Schmon Tower.

    Associate Professor Kevin Turner in the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies (front left) demonstrated the use of several digital tools, including this differential global positioning system (DGPS), held by student Dallas MacArthur (front right), for his third-year Geographic Information Systems class on campus earlier this fall.

    With increasing demand for data-driven decision-making, including identifying the impacts of climate and environmental change, effective use of monitoring technologies such as remote sensing and geographic information systems (GIS) is a valuable skillset.

    As Geography Awareness Week continues, and Brock joins institutions from around the world in marking GIS Days, Professor Michael Pisaric hopes that students will explore the many opportunities to engage with GIS at Brock, from the resources in the Map, Data and GIS Library to the Geomatics minor offered in the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies.

    Pisaric says that demand for expertise in geomatics has increased in part due to technological advances, such as incorporating artificial intelligence to support analysis and modelling.

    He believes that the Geomatics minor offered by the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies supports students who want to “deploy their knowledge and skills in using geospatial technologies to address urgent problems related to climate and environmental change.”

    “The United Nations estimates that 1.2 billion jobs globally depend on a stable and healthy environment in sectors such as agriculture, fisheries, forestry and tourism,” says Pisaric. “Geomatics plays a key role in each of these sectors by providing a toolset to gather, process and analyze vast amounts of spatial data to model and predict how ecosystems will respond to pressing environmental issues.”

    Associate Professor of Earth Sciences Kevin Turner says that tracking spatial patterns using geomatics helps support decision-makers both locally and globally, whether the data collected pertains to environmental phenomena like deglaciation and sea level rise or to human systems like transportation networks.

    He notes that students in Brock’s geomatics courses have an opportunity to apply their learning to issues and regions that matter most to them.

    “Students can learn to utilize leading-edge software and geospatial data acquisition tools, including differential GPS, LiDAR and drones, to support their own research interests,” says Turner. “Students with this kind of training are highly sought after for employment in public and private sectors as well as academic institutions.”

    Anyone interested in learning more about the Geomatics minor can learn more on the web and contact the department for more details.

    Story reposted from The Brock News.

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  • Opportunities for study, work in growing field of geomatics

    Thursday, January 12, 2023 | By

    From The Brock News | THURSDAY, JANUARY 12, 2023 | by 

    A surveyor in a hard hat holds a satellite receiver on a hilltop near a body of water.

    Brock students have various opportunities to study in the growing field of geomatics, and next week they also have a chance to hear about employment potential from the Canadian Hydrographic Services, which produces maps of Canada’s waterways.

    The demand for skilled employees in geospatial technologies is growing — and so is Brock’s reputation for preparing students for employment in the field.

    With many students at the University training in geomatics, the outside world — including the Canadian Hydrographic Services (CHS) — is taking notice.

    Part of the Government of Canada, the CHS is responsible for ensuring the safe navigation of Canada’s waterways by surveying and making mapping products for use by commercial navigators and recreational boaters.

    Representatives from the organization will visit campus next week to speak with Geomatics students about potential employment opportunities.

    A portrait of Haley Lang against white background.

    Haley Lang was recently attracted to Brock’s minor in Geomatics because of her interest in the relationship between environmental restoration and geomatics.

    Geomatics involves geospatial technologies and the collection and study of data about the surface of Earth and other planets. The science and technology studied in geomatics relates to cartography, remote sensing and geographical information systems (GIS) and has a wide range of applications in the real world, according to Associate Professor Kevin Turner in the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies.

    “Innovative use of geospatial data enhances our ability to make more informed decisions across many fields, including natural resource management, ecology and conservation, Earth and atmospheric science, hazard and emergency response, urban planning, transportation, business and policy development,” he says. “Geomatics is useful for students across many departments and programs who are interested in incorporating spatial context and practical analytical tools into their skill sets.”

    Turner says graduates equipped with skills in geomatics are sought after by employers in government and private sectors and within academic research programs.

    “This is demonstrated by the effort the CHS is placing into their recruitment campaign, which we look forward to learning more about next week,” he says.

    Brock students in any program can minor in Geomatics through the Department of Geography and Tourism Studies or integrate courses in geomatics with their major to develop skills for future employment.

    Geography and Tourism Studies major Haley Lang says she is declaring a minor in Geomatics because she has long been taken by the old adage about a tree falling in the woods and making a sound — in other words, how the world changes whether or not it is being observed.

    “We can really only see what is happening in front of us, but with geomatics, we can understand landforms, surfaces and the Earth as a whole on a greater scale,” she says. “I am fascinated with how the broad discipline of geomatics helps to bridge gaps within research and provide a greater understanding of the world we’re in.”

    All students are welcome to attend the CHS information session, which takes place Wednesday, Jan. 18 at 9 a.m. in MCC-405 of the Mackenzie Chown Complex, but they are asked to RSVP via ExperienceBU in advance.

    REPOSTED FROM THE BROCK NEWS

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