About the Event
Every year, March 22nd is recognized by the United Nations as World Water Day. This day aims to shed light on the global issue of water security, while focusing attention on the importance of freshwater and advocating for the sustainable management of freshwater resources.
This year, The Pacific Water Research Centre and Ban the Bottle SFU teamed up to host 2019's World Water Day event. This event included a photo contest, poster competition, a short documentary screening and a panel compiled of industry professionals, focusing on their theme "water for all."
About the Panelists
Sonia Furstenau
House Leader for the BC Green Party, and currently sits on six parliamentary committees. Her constituency work is focused on protecting the Cowichan Valley watersheds, facilitating conversation between government and community groups about child wellness, advocating for updated infrastructure in health and education, and supporting First Nations' leadership.
Lina Azeez
As Wastershed Watch's Connected Waters Campaign Manager, Lisa is working to reconnect and restore salmon habitat in the Lower Fraser watershed and engage with people on issues that affect salmon and salmon habitat. She spent 25 days canoeing and rafting down the Fraser River meeting with and learning from communities facing challenged along the river.
Rhiannon Moore
Researcher at the Ocean Wise Plastics Lab and is completing her Master's of Science at Simon Fraser University. Her research focuses on plastic pollution in Canada's Arctic, where she is evaluating the amount microplastic contamination in the beluga food web. In 2018 she was the recipient of the Garfield Weston Award for Northern Research and was recently named one of Canada's Top 30 Under 30 sustainability leaders.
Marina Melandis
Outside of advocating for youth, Marina is interested in how to pursue biodiversity conservation in the wake of climate change. She has worked on conservation and climate change at home with the provincial and federal government, abroad as a research fellow in India, and with the United Nations as an intern with the UN Environment Programme.