From the Macdonald E-newsletter: August 2020
I hope you have all had a nice summer, enjoying the beautiful weather and spending time with loved ones. It is hard to believe that September is on our doorstep and classes are beginning this week! The Fall term is certainly going to look quite different, with students learning remotely both in Montreal and across the world – but I know without a doubt that no matter where our students are, they will receive the quality education they deserve.
Plus de 450 personnes ont officiellement contracté la bactérie salmonelle de souche Newport au Canada cet été, dont 23 au Québec. Selon l’Agence canadienne d’inspection des aliments (ACIA), une personne en est possiblement morte, tandis que 66 personnes ont dû être hospitalisées.
...Qu’est-ce que la salmonellose ?
While the world has been locked down for much of the spring and summer, airplanes have been grounded, fishing fleets have sat mostly idle and cars have stayed parked in their driveway as people worked from home. What kind of impact has this had on the environment? And what lessons have we learned from the relatively quick pivot governments and citizens have made to combat the spread of COVID-19? Can we apply the same commitment and speed of mobilization to pressing issues like climate change? Â
Urban beekeeping has been touted as a way to boost pollination and improve sustainability, food security and biodiversity in cities. Many people and businesses who've added beehives to their backyards and rooftops (including CBC) say they're doing it to help fight declines in bee populations.
But researchers say urban beekeepers are likely doing just the opposite when it comes to wild bee species.
OpEd by Tom Mulcair, former the leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada (2012-2017).Â
Fifty years ago, Canada became a major, credible player in the world of environmental protection with the creation of our first department of the environment by former prime minister Pierre Trudeau. That move was accompanied by a progressive vision that was critical of the unbridled growth which showed no regard to the consequences for life on our planet.Â
Phragmite, panais sauvage, herbe à poux, nerprun, renoué du Japon : ce sont toutes des plantes envahissantes, nuisibles à un certain degré, qui prennent de plus en plus de place sur les terres agricoles et parfois même dans nos forêts. Plusieurs sont inconnues de la population générale, mais causent de sérieux maux de tête aux agriculteurs.
Parmi celles-ci, la plus problématique semble être le phragmite, aussi appelé « roseau commun ». On le qualifie parfois de « véritable menace à la biodiversité des lieux humides ».
Congratulations to the Macdonald Teams who are competing in the 2020 Dobson Cup Finals, taking place online from July 27-30.
BioFem: is aimed at addressing the problem of organic waste management and disposal in Cameroon by using the waste to produce compost and biogas. Bioresource Engineering U3 student Maeve Che and teammates from the Faculty of Science.
Originaire du Nigeria, Jacob Tizhe Liberty a toujours cherché à développer des solutions aux problèmes locaux qu’il observait. C’est ce qui l’a amené, dans le cadre de ses études doctorales, à mettre au point de nouvelles techniques pour mieux évaluer la qualité des aliments et ainsi diminuer le gaspillage.
Congratulations to Professor Jan Adamowski (Bioresource Engineering) for receiving a $198,569 SSHRC Partnership Development Grant: #CitiSciWater – Exploring the potential of scalable, user-centric citizen science platforms and tools to co-create actionable knowledge and transform water governance. .
During the 2020 edition of the Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) annual conference, held virtually on July 13-15, two Macdonald Campus Food Science teams representing McGill competed as finalists in the prestigious 2020 Smart Snacks for Kids Product Development Competition and the 2020 Developing Solutions for Developing Countries Competition.
I hope this finds you well and enjoying our first month of summer. Although things are much quieter than usual on Macdonald campus and things are still far from “normal,” I am very proud of all the great work being accomplished in our Faculty and the plans developing for the upcoming Fall semester. I am pleased to share some highlights with you.
˛Ńł¦łŇľ±±ô±ô’s Elena Bennett wants you to imagine a radical, inspiring, and realistic future for our planet
When you think of the Earth 50 years from now, what do you see? Do you imagine desolate cities, scorched forests, dead oceans, lost biodiversity? Elena Bennett wants you to know the future doesn’t have to be bleak.
« Les éleveurs produisent pour nourrir les gens et des normes sont mises en place pour s’assurer que cette production est adéquate, explique l’agronome et professeur à la Faculté des sciences de l’agriculture et de l’environnement de l’Université McGill, Pascal Thériault. Cependant, à partir du moment où on instaure une norme, cela crée un stress. »
Depuis toujours, ils servent à bâtir autant qu’à rêver... Dans cette série estivale, Le Devoir tente de cerner de quel bois sont faits les arbres qui nous entourent. Aujourd’hui : le châtaignier américain.
L’entrevue est pratiquement terminée. Christie Lovat parle depuis une bonne heure du châtaignier d’Amérique auquel elle a récemment consacré sa thèse de doctorat en sciences des plantes à l’Université McGill.
The rapid evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic has caused sudden and widespread changes for Agricultural & Environmental Sciences (AES) students, many of whom are now struggling to make ends meet.
