Cultivating collaborative soil health research with First Nations for sustainable agricultural management on reserve lands

The next presentation in the NRS Environmental Biology Seminar Series features Dr Melissa Arcand, Assistant Professor, Department of Soil Science, University of Sasktchewan

The seminar will take place online on Thursday November 5th from 11h30-12h30, followed by a discussion from 14h00-15h00
Join us on Zoom: https://mcgill.zoom.us/j/94800804662

First Nations in the Prairies hold millions of acres of reserve land under agricultural production. The vast majority of this land is farmed by non-Indigenous producers. First Nations have expressed concerns about degraded soil quality on land leased to non-Indigenous farmers that could reduce land productivity and undermine cultural ties to the land. While the soils on First Nations reserve lands in Saskatchewan were surveyed in the 1960s, data on the effects of long-term agricultural leasing on soil health are lacking. We are working with two First Nations in Saskatchewan to assess agricultural land use and current soil health based on conventional soil survey methods—but interpreted through Nêhiyawin (Cree world view) on land. The objectives of this work are to begin filling the gap in knowledge of the impacts of agriculture on reserve lands, to provide updated soil information to communities for future land use planning, and to increase within-community capacity in soil management.

ABOUT THE SPEAKER:

Dr. Melissa Arcand is a soil biogeochemist whose research program investigates root-microbe-soil interactions to understand how agricultural systems can cycle nutrients more efficiently and store more carbon in their soils. Her lab employs stable isotope techniques with microbiological and biochemical analyses to characterize nutrient and carbon cycling. Alongside this work, she has developed a new area of nationally recognized applied and interdisciplinary research in Indigenous agricultural land management.