Our people are CARING The new forest Bioeconomy


Caring and compassion are two essential elements that inspire scholarly activity. They create a supportive and stimulating learning environment in which students are able to realize their full potential. The foundation of research and inquiry is based on a desire to help; to make the world better. The scholars on this page put it all together. They care about their students and about protecting the Earth’s resources. Through their research and in-class work, they are helping to solve many current ecological challenges.


We live in a land that is rich in promise and potential. Forests in Canada represent tremendous wealth, typically accounting for 2.5% to 3% of the Gross Domestic Product over the last 20 years. Although Canada is a global leader in export of forest products, we have often left it to others to contribute the “value- added”, and of course gain the profits, of converting these raw materials into products for the marketplace. Tere remain hundreds of untapped bioproducts that can be derived from the boreal forest of northern Canada. Today, a new generation of forest products exist that expand on the traditional list of pulp, paper and lumber. Tese new products form part of the new forest bioeconomy.


Dr. Jeff Dech, Forest Bioproducts Research Chair and Dr. Bharat Pokharel are motivated to ensure that we sustain healthy forests for future generations. Teir work at Nipissing is developing ecologically-based inventory and supply management tools for the bioresources of the Boreal forest of northeastern Ontario. Ultimately, the project will lead to the production of predictive spatial models that depict the quantity and/or quality of specific forest bioproducts in a given forest region based on landscape-level indicators. It will enable industry to proceed with the development of new products knowing their decisions are based on sound ecological principles, and are conducted in a sustainable manner.


Unlocking the secrets of watersheds


Dr. April James, Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Watershed Analysis & Modelling is helping to secure the future of Canada’s water resources. As the world develops at an accelerating pace, changes in the human and physical environment can be seen all around us; hydroelectric dams, changing weather patterns, melting glaciers, and urban development are just a few examples. Nipissing’s environmental scientists are paying attention, and building a better understanding of how our headwater watersheds operate. Te movement and storage of water in the landscape affects a vast number of water systems that


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Right: Dr. April James, Below: Duchesnay Falls, on the North Bay campus, Bottom: Dr. Jeff Dech, right, and Dr. Bharat Pokharel, left


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