John
Downing, Iowa State University
John Downing is a professor of
Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, and the Department of
Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering at Iowa State University. His
research interests include limnology, aquatic ecology, terrestrial
ecology, microbial ecology, biogeochemistry, population conservation, and
whole ecosystem restoration and management. John is a member of the Board
of Directors of the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography, an
invited member of the North American Nitrogen Center, and has advised many
policy-makers and citizens groups concerning water quality management. He
received his BS from Hamline University (St. Paul, MN), his MS from NDSU
(Fargo, ND) and his PhD from McGill University (Montreal, Canada). He was
formerly a professor at McGill University and the University of Montreal
where he was Director of the Laurentian Biological Station. He has been at
ISU since 1995 and runs the Iowa State University Limnology Lab and has
surveyed water quality in Iowa’s lakes since 2000.
Peter
Leavitt, University of Regina
Dr. Leavitt is Professor of Biology
at University of Regina (Canada), holds the Tier I Canada Research Chair
in Environmental Change and Society, and is subject matter Editor
(limnology) for the Ecological Society of America (Ecology, Ecological
Monographs). His background includes a PhD from the University of Notre
Dame, as well as post-doctoral appointments at the Fisheries and Oceans’
Freshwater Institute in Winnipeg, University of Alberta, and Center for
Limnology at University of Wisconsin-Madison. Leavitt’s research uses
whole-lake experiments, paleoecology, monitoring, and modeling to
determine how environmental variability and human activities interact to
regulate the structure, function, productivity, and health of lakes. His
present projects quantify the history and effects of droughts in central
North America, measure the unique role of nitrogen in degrading the water
quality of lakes, and evaluate the effects of climate and fisheries on
salmon stocks along the Pacific Rim. In 2007, Leavitt was awarded the
Frank H. Rigler Memorial Award for outstanding contributions to limnology
in Canada from the Society of Canadian Limnologists. Since 1990, Peter has
been a DJ on community radio stations, broadcasting a weekly show on
obscure rock music from Europe, Australia and points beyond.
Bruce
Mitchell, University of Waterloo
Bruce Mitchell was born in Prince
Rupert, B.C., and studied at the University of British Columbia and the
University of Liverpool. He is Professor of Geography and Associate
Professor, Academic and Student Affairs at the University of Waterloo in
Ontario. His research focuses on integrated water resource management,
with particular attention to policy, institutions and governance. He has
participated in field research in Canada, China, Indonesia and Nigeria. He
is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, a Fellow of the International
Water Resources Association and an Honourary Professor of Dalian
University of Technology, China.
Bob
Sandford, A Life Shaped by Water
After authoring some 20 books on
the natural and human history of the Canadian West, Bob Sandford began his
work with UN-linked initiatives as Chair of the United Nations
International Year of Mountains in 2002. Bob was also chair of the United
Nations International Year of Fresh Water and Wonder of Water Initiative
in Canada in 2003 - 2004. These celebrations focused on the growing
importance of water to ecological and cultural heritage in Canada.
Bob is presently the Canadian Chair of the United Nations
International Decade “Water for Life” Decade, a national partnership
initiative that aims to advance long-term water quality and availability
issues in response to climate change in this country and abroad. In this
capacity, Bob is the only Canadian to sit on the Advisory Committee for
the prestigious Rosenberg International Forum on Water Policy. Bob is the
Director of the Western Watersheds Climate Research Collaborative, a
research and public policy arm of the University of Lethbridge that
promotes understanding of climate impacts on river systems originating in
the Rocky Mountains. Bob also sits on the Executive Committee for the
Alberta Water Research Institute.
Bob’s second book on water issues
in Canada, Water Weather & the Mountain West, was published by Rocky
Mountain Books in the fall of 2007.