My research
orientation originated during training and work as a medical doctor in New
Zealand and subsequently in public health, human ecology, and the emerging
field of ecohealth, or ecosystem approaches to health. My interest in
water-related determinants of health began with a focus on watershed
management and public health in rural river catchments in New Zealand and has
developed through work in Europe, Hawaii, Ecuador and Canada.
My current research
focuses on impacts of ecosystem change on social determinants of health
especially in the context of watersheds in rural, remote and Indigenous
communities. Another focus includes
the design of education, research and governance options to address the
converging objectives of health, social equity and ecosystem sustainability.
Informed by the intersectoral, interdisciplinary and boundary-crossing nature
of this work, I have specific interests in the collaborative and
multi-stakeholder processes required to address complex issues at the
interface of health and sustainability.
My ongoing commitment to developing and expanding the emerging
field of ecohealth is reflected in my involvement as founding board member and current
President of the International Association for Ecology & Health, as a
co-founder of the Canadian Community of Practice in Ecosystem Approaches to
Health (CoPEH-Canada) and as founding Managing Editor (2003-2007) of the international
peer-reviewed journal EcoHealth published by Springer.
News & Updates
Upcoming June 16-June 27, 2012
Moncton,
New Brunswick
Ecohealth Short Course 2012
CoPEH-Canada will be hosting an 11-day short
course entitled Ecosystem Approaches to Health (Ecohealth) in conjunction with l’Université de Moncton
(U de M) and University of Northern BC (UNBC).The 2012
short-course will include a combined 3 ½ day
workshop and 11-day field school. The event will attract graduate students,
professionals and professors/instructors from across Canada.
UpcomingJune 11-14, 2012
Edmonton,
AB
CoPEH-Canada/ Ecohealth activities at the
Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA) Conference
There are several
upcoming CoPEH-Canada/ Ecohealth activities which will be held
during the Canadian Public Health
Association (CPHA) Conference in Edmonton this summer:
Monday, June 11 (1:00 pm - 4:00 pm) CoPEH-Canada Pre-Conference
Workshop: “Strengthening Capacity and
Valuing Career Pathways that Link Health, Ecosystems and Equity”
Tuesday, June 12 (11:00 am - 12:30 pm) COPEH-Canada Workshop Session: “Navigating the interface
between social and environmental determinants of health through ecosystem
approaches to health”
Tuesday, June 12 (2:30 pm - 4:00pm) Panel Presentation Session: “Ecosystem and Human Health: From CPHA’s 1992 Report to Rio+20 and
Beyond”
Wednesday, June 13 (7:00am
- 8:15 am) Breakfast Session:
“Canadian Community of Practice in Ecohealth: Building Capacity for Ecohealth
Research”
Wednesday, June 13 (10:30 pm - 12:00 pm) Oral Abstract
Presentation: “Getting our hands wet and
dirty: Engaging with watersheds as
‘settings’ for intersectoral health actions in Northern BC
Duration of the conference, Information Booth: UNBC School of Health Science Department / CoPEH-Canada / International
Association for Ecology & Health (IAEH)
March 20, 2012
Vanderhoof, BC
World Water Day Community
Gathering
An event entitled"
Watersheds & Health: Working together to support health, environment, and
community" was co-hosted by the UNBC-Northern Health Ecohealth &
Watersheds in Northern BC Knowledge to Action project and the District of
Vanderhoof.
Read a great article about
the event from a Vanderhoof local news website: Omineca Online.
February 3, 2012
Prince George, BC
Dr. Margot Parkes presented about
“Ecohealth, OneHealth Global Health: Why Diversity,
Emergence and Resilience are Key to Responding to Wicked Problems” at the University of Northern BC Natural Resources &
Environmental Studies Institute Colloquium Series.
March 20-21
Vanderhoof,
BC
Health, environment, and
community information in watersheds: Making the connections through maps and
spatial tools
The ‘Ecohealth
& Watersheds in Northern BC Project’, hosted
a two-day 'knowledge-to-action' workshop designed in
response to the ongoing 'knowledge to action' challenge faced by many
organizations as they try to keep up with rapidly expanding bodies of knowledge
and information about health, environment, and community issues, along with
rapid advances in the tools and techniques to collect, organize, integrate, and
share this information in order to take action.
It
attracted practitioners, academics, professionals, and students from across BC.
The workshop was co-designed by Scott Emmons (UNBC), Martin Bunch (York
University), and Margot Parkes (UNBC), with input from the project
Steering Committee.
November 30, 2011
CAHR Researcher of the Month- Dr. Margot Parkes
Dr. Margot Parkes is the Centre for Aboriginal Health Research (CAHR) researcher of the month! See http://cahr.uvic.ca/ for details. Margot’s recent work with CAHR includes a presentation on “Watersheds as settings to link equity, ecosystems and indigenous health” during CAHR’s “Consensus Conference on Small Water Systems Management for the Promotion of Indigenous Health” in March 2010 and can also be seen in the recently released documentary “Crisis on Tap: First Nations Water for Life”, a film which takes a critical look at the reality of this environmental public health challenge, as expressed by First Nations people living in Canada.
November 28, 2011
Richmond, BC
Public Health
Association of BC 2011: Conference and
Annual General Meeting
Dr. Margot Parkes co-presented with Dr. Ronald Chapman
in the
Ottawa
Charter Action Areas for Health Promotionsession: "Reducing
Inequities in Health Through Creating Supportive Environments".Their presentation was entitled:
"Getting our hands wet and
dirty: Engaging with watersheds as ‘settings’ for intersectoral health
actions in Northern BC".
Dr. Margot Parkes co-presentated with Dr. Ronald Chapman, CMOH Northern Health at the Fraser Basin Council. They shared insights from the formative period of a CIHR-funded
‘Knowledge to Action’ project in Northern BC focused on
intersectoral water governance as a vehicle to improve social and
environmental determinants of health.
November 15, 2011
Climate Change Task Group of the Joint Council of the Canadian
Chief Medical Officers of Health- Chief Veterinary Officers of Health
Dr. Margot Parkes was invited to present to the Climate Change Task Group of the Joint Council of the Canadian Chief Medical Officers of Health- Chief Veterinary Officers of Health (CCMOH-CCVO). Her presentation was entitled: "Climate Change as a ‘Wicked Problem’: Ecohealth, One Health and a next generation of knowledge to action".
November 4-6, 2011
Montréal, Québec Ecohealth Teaching Workshop Dr. Margot Parkes was a participant at a successful three day Ecohealth Teaching workshop, supported by Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR), International Development Research Centre and the COPEH-Canada. Participants convened from all over the globe to: 1) strengthen ecohealth teaching capacity 2) foster dialogue across communities of practice and knowledge networks, 3) engage in a peer-review process of some Canadian ecohealth teaching materials and 4) discuss various approaches to ecohealth teaching across regions.
November 5, 2011
Montréal, Québec COPEH-Canada Breakfast Session: Inter-Regional CoPEH & Ecohealth interactions
A breakfast gathering, convened by Dr.Margot Parkes and hosted by COPEH-Canada was an opportunity to share and exchange among colleagues involved with inter-regional CoPEH/Ecohealth interactions across the globe. The aim of the breakfast discussion was to build on existing efforts and to discuss ideas and opportunities for collective activities in the future - including planning ahead for future activities and initiatives such as the EcoHealth 2012 Conference in China and EcoHealth 2014 Conference in Montréal.
November 3, 2011
Montréal, Québec COPEH-Canada National General Meeting
Dr. Margot Parkes attended the COPEH-Canada National General Meeting held in Montréal.
November 1, 2011
Prince George, BC
Research Days 2011: Showcasing Healthcare and Research Partnerships
Dr. Margot Parkes was a panelist on a discussion entitled
"Getting our hands wet and
dirty: Engaging with watersheds as
settings for intersectoral health action".
The
panel discussion shared insights from the start-up phase of the ‘Knowledge to Action’ project in Northern BC, focused on intersectoral water
governance as a vehicle to improve social and environmental determinants of
health.
October 27, 2011
Prince George, BC Interactive Lunchtime Conversation with Dr. Jean Lebel Dr. Jean Lebel met with students and faculty over lunch to discuss the joys and challenges of integration, participation & collaboration in the field of Ecohealth. The conversation was hosted by Dr. Parkes. Dr. Lebel is a pioneering environmental health expert and Director of Environment & Agriculture, International Development Research Centre (IDRC).
October 26, 2011
Prince George, BC
Regional Directors’ Health Protection Council
Dr. Margot Parkes was invited to do a presentation entitled "Ecohealth: linking health, ecosystems & society" at the Regional Directors’ Health Protection Council.
October 20, 2011
Merritt, BC
Eco Health, Ecosystems and Watersheds Workshop
Dr. Margot Parkes was an invited presenter at the Eco Health, Ecosystems and Watersheds Workshop, initiated by the Coldwater Indian Band,
and supported by Health Canada, Southern Interior Beetle Action Coalition, Stuwix Resources Ltd., and Upper Nicola Band. Margot discussed "linking health, ecosystems and society in Northern BC watersheds". The two day workshop was attended by members of Coldwater and Upper Nicola Indian
Bands, foresters, elected officials, academia, engineers, concerned citizens, students, and
civil servants. In total, nearly 50 people were registered for the workshop representing a
variety of interests in eco-health and watershed management.
October 3-5, 2011
Vancouver BC, and Squamish First Nation, BC Healthy Land, Healthy People: Forging International Connections
Convened by the National Collaborating Centre for Aboriginal Health (NCCAH). Dr. Margot Parkes worked closely with Dr. Margo Greenwood (NCCAH Director) and the rest of the NCCAH team to convene participants from across Canada and Aotearoa, New Zealand. This event builds of the earlier NCCAH publication 'EcoHealth & Aboriginal Health: Exploring Common ground: Full details at the NCCAH website.
In a session called "Health and Parks: A Conversation with Dr. Margot Parkes & Dr. Pam Wright", Dr. Margot Parkes and Dr. Pam Wright explored links between health and parks, drawing on a combination of personal, professional and place-based learning. Their conversation was guided by combined curiousity and concern for the ecological and human health that parks support, and informed by their expertise in protected areas conservation, public health and ecohealth. In a direct reflection of recent shared experiences, the conversation focused on the particular role of Parks as repositories for protecting and valuing nature, and as settings for health and wellbeing for present and future generations.
July 21, 2011
Williams Lake, BC The Stakeholder Workshop Series: Water
Margot Parkes presented on “watershed governance as a vehicle for fostering social,
ecological, and community health and wellbeing”. She explored an integrative approach to governance of
water that focuses on watersheds for the basis for fostering community health, sustainability
and social ecological resilience. She asks the question, how can research/policy be linked within an integrative
approach to governance?
The Workshop on "Water", one of a three-part workshop series created a safe space to exchange knowledge about local land and water management, local policy development, and local research needs. Stakeholders benefited from learning about how others understand patterns of ecological, social, and economic processes. Participants worked to identify barriers to collaboration and knowledge exchange, and considered innovative ways to overcome these barriers.
June 21, 2011
Montréal,
Québec
COPEH-Canada Ecohealth Breakfast Session
An Ecohealth
breakfast session presented by the Canadian Community of Practice in Ecosystem
Approaches to Health (CoPEH-Canada) preceded the daily Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA) conference sessions: “Public
Health in Canada: Innovative Partnerships for Action”. This session was an
important networking event, which provided an opportunity for professionals and
students across Canada to learn more about Ecohealth and share their
experiences.
June 21, 2011
Montréal,
Québec
Panel: Building Capacity for Public Health Action
Dr. Margot
Parkes moderated a panel discussion entitled Building Capacity for Public Health Action, as part of theCanadian
Public Health Association (CPHA) conference: “Public Health in Canada:
Innovative Partnerships for Action”.
June 5-16
Prince George,
BC
Ecohealth Short Course 2011
This year
COPEH Canada’s Ecohealth Short course was run at UNBC as a combined 3 ½ day
workshop and 11-day field school. The event attracted over 30 graduate
students, professionals and professors/instructors from across Canada.
June 1-3, 2011
Prince George,
BC
Improving social and
environmental determinants of health through integrated water governance
An official
launch was held at the Two Rivers Gallery to launch the new project
entitled: "Improving social and
environmental determinants of health through integrated water governance"
(project funded by: CIHR Knowledge to Action Operating Grant). Local, regional
and national stakeholders gathered in Prince George for the first meeting on
June 2-3 (funded by a CIHR Meetings, Planning and Dissemination Grant).
April 26, 2011
Ecohealth & Aboriginal Health
"Ecohealth & Aboriginal Health: A Review of Common Ground", written by Dr. Parkes, was published by the National Collaborating Centre for Aboriginal Health. See publications for more details.
March 8, 2011
Ecohealth Short Course 2011 -Call for Applications
The Canadian Community of Practice in Ecosystem Approaches to Health is pleased to announce the Call for Applications for the 2011 Ecohealth Short Course to be hosted by the University of Northern British Columbia, Prince George, BC from June 5-June 16.
UNBC Lead instructor: Dr. Margot Parkes with pan-Canadian teaching team.
Opportunity for graduate awards!
Panelists (from left to right): Margot Parkes, Canada Research Chair in Health, Ecosystems and Society, University of Northern British Columbia. Kate Mulligan, Vanier Canada Graduate Scholar, Water-Health Challenges and Environmental Change, McMaster University. Barbara Sherwood Lollar, Canada Research Chair in Isotope Geochemistry of the Earth and the Environment, University of Toronto, and Director, Stable Isotope Laboratory. Geoff Munro, Assistant Deputy Minister of the Innovation and Energy Technology Sector & Natural Resources Canada's Chief Scientist. Alain Rousseau, Professor and Researcher, INRS, Water, Earth and Environment Centre.
Ecohealth Considered a Milestone in Public Health On the occasion of the Canadian Public Health Association (CPHA) 100th anniversary, the CIHR-IPPH and CPHA launched a call for Milestones in Population and Public Health Research that have significantly contributed to the public’s health in Canada and globally. A collaborative manuscript from CoPEH-Canada members, including Margot Parkes was submitted entitled, “Tools for Thoughtful Action: the role of ecosystem approaches to health in enhancing public health”. The manuscript was selected and published in a special insert in November/December 2010 issue of the Canadian Journal of Public Health. See publications and the CPHA, CoPEH-Canada website for more details.
January 14, 15, 2011
University of Guelph
COPEH-Canada National Meeting
January 13, 2011
Government Conference Centre, Ottawa
Public Health Agency of Canada & COPEH-Canada Joint Meeting Margot Parkes helped co-convene a meeting on "Ecohealth in Canada: Next steps to address Public Health, Ecosystem
Sustainability and Social Equity".
November 24, 2010 UNBC, Prince George, BC
Dr. Margot Parkes hosted a group viewing of Web-cast Conversation with Dr. David Waltner-Toews:
Dr. Margot Parkes hosted a lunchtime Discussion along with Dr. Pierre Horwitz on the "Joys & Challenges of Integration, Participation & Collaboration in the field of Ecohealth".
Presentation along with Steve Litke (Fraser Basin Council) and
Lucy Beck (Northern Health): “New opportunities to link watersheds,
sustainability and wellbeing in Northern BC communities”.
Dr. Parkes presented on: “Watersheds as Settings for Health & Sustainability”.
October 5, 2010
Vanderhoof, BC
Dr. Margot Parkes hosted a research
meeting for the “Linking Land, Waterways and Healthy Living” collaborative
research project with Murray Creek Stream Restoration Project.
The
BC Water Symposium announces the ‘Writing Water’ contest winner:
Leanne Tonkin
for her creative thesis entitled “AQUEDUCT".
Leanne Tonkin is a writer and PhD candidate in Curriculum, Teaching and Learning at the Ontario Institute for Studies in Education of the University of Toronto. "AQUEDUCT" is Leanne's MA in English Literature creative thesis that consists of different types of text — poetry, prose, scientific facts, journal articles, journal entries — all around the theme of water. “AQUEDUCT” includes the culture, history and politics of water.
Speakers (in order): Margot Parkes (Canada Research Chair in Health,Ecosystems and Society at UNBC), Gillian Wigmore (author of Soft Geography, winner of the 2008 ReLit Award) and Gail Fondahl (UNBC Vice President Research).
Get the Writing Water call for applications here (Deadline August 15, 2010)
*Jurors include: writer Gillian Wigmore (author of Soft Geography, winner of the 2008 ReLit Award),
Sarah de Leeuw (author of Unmarked: Landscapes Along Highway 16 and
two-time winner of the CBC Literary Award for Creative Non-Fiction), and
Margot Parkes (Canada Research Chair in Health, Ecosystems and Society
at UNBC).
