Climate change is affecting coastal zones profoundly, intensifying the convergence of local and global pressures on very diverse communities, including Indigenous communities. These pressures are experienced as mutually interacting challenges, simultaneously ecological and societal. New insights and creative and pragmatic approaches are necessary to advance transformative adaptation solutions for communities experiencing these challenges. This project will explore the kind of adaptations that can be transformative for the resilience and sustainability of Canadian coastal communities in the face of complex climate-related challenges, and how academic research can be a productive and transformative part of such adaptations.

• Integrate diverse knowledge systems to understand saltwater intrusion and pollution, as well as community land uses and values, to facilitate longer term monitoring and awareness of groundwater-seawater connections;
• Pilot new, just, and resilient models of resource management, learning from Indigenous leadership, and taking an ecological and societal approach by thinking about the larger systems of places and practices;
• Transform approaches to conservation by moving beyond static ‘fortress’ approaches toward dynamic solutions developed with affected communities;
• Engage with community leaders to develop resilient, adaptive, and risk managed approaches that build on local resources and assets;
• Address cross-cutting governance and transdisciplinary knowledge integration challenges to improve collaboration and maximize societal impact.

Line Bourdages, MSc
TranSECT Project Coordinator
Email: line_bourdages@uqar.ca

Dr. Mélanie Lemire
Professor, Université Laval
Email: melanie.lemire@crchudequebec.ulaval.ca

Dr. Fanny Noisette
Professor, Université du Québec à Rimouski
Email: fanny_noisette@uqar.ca
Phone: (418) 723-1986 (ext. 1031)

Dr. Kate Sherren
Professor, Dalhousie University
Email: kate.sherren@dal.ca
Phone: (902) 494-1359

Dr. Ian Stewart
Associate Professor, University of Kings College/Dalhousie University
Email: ian.stewart@ukings.ca
Phone: (902) 422-1271 (ext. 134)

‍