Climate change is driving significant alterations to water systems and associated habitats that are negatively affecting ecological and human communities all over the world. This research project will facilitate knowledge sharing and collaboration between two Atlantic Indigenous peoples (Mi’kmaq in Unama’ki, Atlantic Canada and Sámi in the Deatnu watershed valley (Deatnu is the Sámi term for the watershed bordering on Norway (in Norwegian: Tana) and Finland (in Finnish: Teno) to build a shared understanding of climate change risk perception based on Indigenous and scientific multiple knowledge systems. In this, we aim to identify community knowledge needs regarding climate change, and co-develop Indigenous-grounded risk assessment and action frameworks to address the five key risk themes central to this research: i) water security; ii) critical infrastructure and services (drinking water and wastewater assets and services); iii) human health (i.e., health impacts arising from the accessibility and quality of drinking water); iv) food security (i.e., water quality impacts on freshwater/estuarine fisheries); and v) coastal socio-ecological systems (i.e., sea level rise, river and coastal erosion). 

More details to follow on how to apply. 

 Dr. Chad Walker and his team are now seeking applications for a two-year Postdoctoral Fellowship in a research program called Advancing Water Stewardship Across Wabanaki. In partnership with the Atlantic First Nations Water Authority (AFNWA) and the Ulnooweg Education Centre (UEC), we are seeking to better understand pathways toward co-developed, and sustainable clean water systems in participating First Nations in Atlantic Canada.

The full job ad can be seen here.  Note the closing date for this position is May 15th, 2024. Reviews will begin on May 16th, 2024.

My name is Dr. Chad Walker (he/him) and I'm an Assistant Professor in Climate Change Planning at Dalhousie University. Here, I hold a faculty position in the School of Planning and am cross-appointed with the School for Resource and Environmental Studies. I am also a Research Associate in Geography at the University of Exeter (UK).

Professionally, I would describe myself as an interdisciplinary environmental social scientist with teaching and research interests around justice, equity, and public support for low-carbon transitions. Recent published research includes studying the impact of environmental justice in shaping support for wind energy, critically investigating the meaning of community energy, and using diverse methodologies to better understand reconciliation, autonomy, and pathways for improved health via Indigenous-led renewable energy development. I've been fortunate to publish in a variety of high-impact journals spanning several disciplinary boundaries, including: Energy Policy, Environment and Planning A, Environmental Policy and Planning, Energy Research and Social Science, Environmental Studies and Sciences, Environmental Reviews, The Canadian Geographer, and Social Science and Medicine.

In terms of my academic background, I earned a PhD (Geography) from Western University (2017) and worked as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at Queen’s University (2017-2019), the University of Exeter (2019-2021), the University of Saskatchewan (2021), and the University of Waterloo (2022). At Queen's I worked with Dr. Heather Castleden on the CIHR-funded Achieving Strength, Health and Autonomy, through Renewable Energy Development for the Future (A SHARED Future) program.  In Saskatchewan, I was part of the SSHRC-funded Community Appropriate Sustainable Energy Security (CASES) initiative with Dr. Greg Poelzer and Dr. Bram Noble. During my time in the United Kingdom, I worked with Dr. Patrick Devine-Wright (and a larger research program called EnergyREV) studying user engagement and public participation through the development of Smart Local Energy Systems.  At Waterloo, I was awarded an AMTD Global Talent Fellowship to work with Dr. Ian Rowlands and study issues of justice and equity through the development of Smart Grid projects in Canada.

Through all of this work, I have used a combination of qualitative and quantitative approaches, spurring a keen interest in the ways we think about and practice mixed methods.