The Cairns Esplanade over the mud flats at sunset
I’m belated posting about the International Association for Society and Natural Resources meeting in Cairns, at the end of June, because of the two weeks of family holiday in Queensland and New South Wales that followed it. It was an intense few days, including the hybrid panel-style book launch for Opening Windows, an excellent sequence of two paper sessions and a panel on Regenerative Agriculture (including content from Brooke’s postdoc work as well as a smattering of my grazing work in Australia), and a fun session on the state of the art in ecosystem services in which I presented the two in-review ResNet manuscripts building on surveys in the dykeland and tidal wetland context of the Minas Basin. I attended many excellent sessions, like the day-long series on Place. The conference was as stimulating as ever.
Brooke is awarded the 2024 IASNR Bridge Builder at the Business Lunch in Cairns.
My biggest delight, however, was seeing Brooke awarded the 2024 IASNR Bridge Builder Award at the Business Lunch session. I nominated Brooke for this important award for the leadership she has provided to the agricultural extension space in Canada, far beyond her official commitments to Farmers for Climate Solutions and Canadian Forage and Grassland Association. She has fueled a renaissance of rigorous ag social science among Agriculture and Agri-food Canada and their Living Labs programs across the country. Well deserved, and well-timed, as Brooke finishes her work at Dalhousie and heads off to the University of Nebraska to a dedicated research position in the extension space. Congratulations, Brooke, and thanks for your amazing work at Dalhousie!
The hybrid book launch for Opening Windows at IASNR 2024 with all editors and 7 authors attending.
