Students at Fleming College have scored a major coup by bringing science journalist and author Bob McDonald to their sustainability conference in Lindsay on Saturday, March 19, 2016.
The much-in-demand McDonald will deliver the keynote address at the 8th Annual EcoHealth Conference, entitled “Food Energy Water: Empowering People, Finding Solutions”. The conference takes place at Fleming College’s Frost Campus and also features a full day of workshop sessions, a panel discussion, and a reception and book signing.
It’s no coincidence that the EcoHealth conference coincides with Earth Hour 2016, and will recognize the passing of the hour beginning at 8:30 p.m. on Saturday night.
Fleming College presents
EcoHealth Conference 2016
Where: Fleming College, Frost Campus (200 Albert St. S., Lindsay)
How much: $15 – $25 ($10 – $20 for students with valid student card), $25 for dinner
The theme of the conference is “Food Energy Water: Empowering People, Finding Solutions”. Featuring workshops, a keynote by Bob McDonald, reception and book signing, student reunion, and observation of Earth Hour. Dinner is available for an additional $25.
For a full schedule of events and to register, visit the EcoHealth Conference website.
Organized by third-year students of Fleming College’s Ecosystem Management Technology program, the conference will address implications arising from the estimate that, by 2050, the Earth’s population will grow to nine billion.
The conference will explore solutions — such as reducing food waste, enhancing food security, and improving water and energy efficiency — that promote sustainability of food, energy, and water resources both locally within the Kawartha Lakes and beyond,
McDonald’s evening keynote, entitled “Perspectives on a Planet”, will bring into focus both the challenges humanity will face as the population grows and the opportunities that exist for building a sustainable future.
A science communicator, McDonald is best known for hosting CBC Radio’s science program Quirks & Quarks for the past 24 years — a broadcast heard each week by over half a million people in Canada and the United States.
McDonald is also a regular science reporter for CBC TV’s The National and hosted the Gemini award-winning TVOntario children’s series Head’s Up. He’s also the author of four bestselling science books, with his latest being Canadian Spacewalkers: Hadfield, MacLean and Williams Remember the Ultimate High Adventure.
Despite having no formal academic training (he dropped out of university after pursuing a degree in English and Philosophy), McDonald began his science communication career in 1972 as a demonstrator at the Ontario Science Centre. After travelling to California as one of only a handful of Canadians to watch the live action of NASA’s first space probes to Mars and Jupiter, he was soon in demand as a freelance journalist when he returned to Canada.
Over the years, McDonald’s enthusiasm for science and his skill in explaining often-complex topics to the general public solidified his career in science communication.
For his outstanding contributions to promoting science to Canadians, McDonald has received several high-profile science communication awards and was named an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2011. In July 2014, he even had an asteroid named after him.
Prior to McDonald’s keynote Saturday evening, the EcoHealth Conference will present various workshop sessions during the day. Led by local experts, the workshops include agroforestry and tree planting, water conservation, pollinators, composting, greenhouses, fungi, aquaculture, energy conservation, and indigenous teachings.
The cost for the conference ranges for $15 for the workshops only, to $20 for the evening only (including McDonald’s keynote and the panel discussion that follows), to $25 for the full day. For an additional $25, a “farm-to-table 100-mile dinner” featuring locally grown food will also be available to conference participants. Discounted rates are available for students with a valid student card.
Special room rates at Days Inn Lindsay (134 Angeline St. S., Lindsay, 705-328-0100) are also available for conference participants who require overnight accommodation.
For more information, visit ecoconference.wix.com/ecohealthconference or contact the conference registration committee at ecohealthconference2016@gmail.com.
