For the Asiniskow Ithiniwak (Rocky Cree), the Missinipi (Churchill River) holds many traditional resource areas and cultural landscapes with oral histories that transfer knowledge through the generations (Linklater 1994; Castel and Westfall 2001; Brightman 1993). In recent decades, hydroelectric development in north central Manitoba has impacted Cree livelihood by altering resource use, limiting access to significant cultural landscapes and accelerating the erosion of campsites and ancestral burials into the water. Even with existing provincial heritage legislation, some of these heritage resources remain threatened by land-based developments because of the limitations related to their identification, documentation and presentation in the cultural resource management field. The tendency to focus on physical manifestations of heritage such as archaeological sites, heritage objects and built heritage overlooks other resources of heritage such as places known in the local language. I argue that these biases result from cultural divergences that exist in the understanding and definitions of heritage, particularly Indigenous heritage. In this dissertation, I articulate how underlying theoretical assumptions of reality influences our understandings of heritage. I present a postcolonial understanding of heritage as interpreted from the perspective of the Asiniskow Ithiniwak using an Indigenous research paradigm, methodologies and the nīhithow language, in conjunction with knowledge based on Western intellectual traditions. The use of a bicultural research model led to new ways in identifying heritage resources important to the Asiniskow Ithiniwak and meaningful interpretations of archaeological materials based on legal traditions. Further, this case study demonstrates that there is no singular or universal definition of heritage for Indigenous peoples. For successful heritage resources protection, I illustrate that understandings of heritage need to be contextualized locally through a community’s language, culture, customary laws and local landscape. This view, promoted by UNESCO, emphasizes that the values and practices of local communities, together with traditional management systems, must be fully understood, respected, encouraged and accommodated in management plans if their heritage resources are to be sustained in the future (Logan 2008; UNESCO 2004). This outcome demonstrates the need to reexamine the practices, policies, legislation and procedures concerned with Indigenous knowledge in cultural and natural resources management in Canada.

Influenza is a population health issue in Canada, with an annual infection rate of 10-25% of the population. The purpose of this thesis was to analyze influenza-like illnesses (ILI) from 2004-05 through to 2008-09, both spatially and temporally, throughout the province of Manitoba. The analysis used a framework specific to spatial analysis, and incorporated the principles of population health and ecological frameworks. The underlying objectives of the research were to better understand the patterns of ILI diagnoses as well as the characteristics of those diagnosed. Maps were created to show the results from various perspectives and negative binomial regression analysis was used to test which, if any, of the chosen variables were significant. Based on this research, one could conclude that although clusters of ILI do exist in Manitoba, a clear relationship does not exist between the determinants of health and ILI.

The first documented carbonatites in Manitoba occur as dykes and pods up to 15 meters in length and several meters in width at Eden Lake hosted in a post-orogenic syenitic complex within the Trans-Hudson Orogen. The carbonatites consist dominantly of calcite with lesser clinopyroxene, feldspar, apatite and titanite. Primary and xenocrystic clinopyroxene have distinct compositions, whereas xenocrystic feldspar has well-developed plagioclase and alanite rims. The whole-rock major- and trace-element composition of the carbonatite is consistent with global averages for calcio-carbonatites. Stable-isotope compositions of calcite indicate an igneous origin; the low δ13C ratios may reflect the influence of subducted sedimentary carbonate. A zircon age of 1815±8 Ma corresponds with the time of emplacement, whereas younger titanite ages reflect local thermal history. Although field relations suggest a genetic link to the host syenites, whole-rock geochemical data is incompatible with immiscibility or crystal fractionation models, suggesting a discrete mantle source for the carbonatite.

This thesis evaluates the waste management system in the province of Manitoba, Canada and other jurisdictions to identify best practices for, and barriers and opportunities to, improving its impact on the environment. Multiple methods were used. First, a survey of expert stakeholders in the waste management sector in Manitoba was conducted, which was followed by an expert stakeholder meeting that further refined the results of the survey. Second, waste management systems of Manitoba, Canada, Nova Scotia, Canada, New South Wales, Australia, and Denmark were compared to determine which of the options already in use by other jurisdictions might be useful in Manitoba. Finally, an estimation of the amount of organic waste entering landfills in Manitoba was conducted, along with an estimation of the resulting methane emissions from landfills to determine their greenhouse gas emissions.

Professional codes of ethics and international doctrinal texts recognize the world’s archaeological heritage as the common heritage of all humanity. As such, archaeologists are obligated to share research results, including collections, with the widest audience possible, and the Internet provides exciting ways in which this can be accomplished. As a community, Canadian universities are not at present providing adequate public access to the archaeological collections in their care, particularly via Web-based channels. In this thesis, I argue that Canadian universities should provide improved online collections access. I provided Web-based public access to a sample of the Grand Rapids (Manitoba) Survey collection, and solicited user feedback in the form of an online survey. The results show that a worldwide audience did access the collections, indicating vastly improved access. Survey results imply that a public audience does find archaeological collections interesting, and is capable of learning something from the style of Web presentation used here.

The thesis is an analysis of the birth of the Rhesus (Rh) Factor Research Programme in the Faculty of Medicine, University of Manitoba. Rh Factor is one of the blood groups which can lead a pregnant mother to react to her baby’s blood and destroy it. Research on this disorder yielded one of Manitoba’s most profound medical discoveries. The account reveals that three elements contributed to this research, namely the researcher, the circumstances and chance. The narrative identifies the researcher, Dr. Bruce Chown, as a major influence in the development of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Manitoba. The conditions nationally and locally that enabled him to succeed in his research are examined. The role of chance in his picking a research subject is considered. The story of Bruce Chown and the start of the Rh research illustrates the beginnings of medical research in Manitoba. The primary sources for the study were the Archives of the University of Manitoba, Archives Manitoba and the National Archives Ottawa.

Curling is an important part of the Canadian cultural landscape, and nowhere is this more evident than in Manitoba. However, the documentation of curling records within archival repositories in the province has occurred without a strategic plan. This thesis first explores the modern archival appraisal theories and then proposes an appraisal model that utilizes a combination of the documentation strategy and macroappraisal in order to develop a strategy for the documentation of curling in Manitoba. Using this model, this thesis first examines the historical and contemporary context of Canadian sport in order to determine curling’s place within it, and then identifies five key functions of curling in order to evaluate, using function-based appraisal methodologies, the quality of the records that have been collected in archival repositories. The functions, structures, and records of two urban curling clubs and one rural curling club in Manitoba are then examined as case studies, and an appraisal strategy is suggested in order to better ensure that the records documenting curling in Manitoba are preserved. This strategy can be used as a template not only for appraising the records of curling, but for all sports.

During the early evening of 22 June 2007, a violent tornado impacted the western edge of Elie, Manitoba. This was Canada’s first documented F5 tornado. Three primary research questions were posed: (1) What were the pre-storm environmental conditions on 22 June 2007? (2) How did the storm and associated tornado evolve? (3) How does this event compare to other major tornadic events in Canada and the U.S.? The tornado passed in close proximity to a fixed-location Environment Canada Doppler radar at Woodlands, Manitoba. This allowed for a detailed examination of local mesoscale boundaries that were present prior to and during the event. The Elie tornado was rare in the fact that it looped three times within the main track and it moved approximately 5 km during its 40 minute lifetime causing F5 damage to homes and structures when it was an estimated 50 m wide.

Gasterosteus aculeatus (threespine stickleback) is a well-known model for behavioral and evolutionary studies. Rapid evolutionary radiations in postglacial timeframes have promoted distinct local populations with remarkable variation in biological characteristics. This study examines genetic and morphological variation among populations from the Thlewiaza watershed, specifically an isolated freshwater population in Nueltin Lake. Statistically significant genetic differences were observed using 11 microsatellite loci; FST values ranged from 0.29 (within watershed) to 0.48 (between watersheds) in comparison with the Nueltin Lake population. Gene flow between populations was likely inhibited due to isostatic rebound following the recent deglaciation of North America, 8.5 kya. In comparison with similar freshwater populations, the retention of defensive structures in G. aculeatus from Nueltin Lake was unexpected, and may reflect strong piscivorous predation pressures. Levels of differentiation, both genetic and morphological, observed in the Nueltin Lake population are highly significant, and should be recognised as a Designatable Unit (DU).

In the last century, agricultural intensification on the Canadian prairies has resulted in increased pesticide use with the potential to expose non-target organisms to pesticides as a result of non-point source pollution. In order to minimize risk and implement programs and regulations that promote sustainable agricultural practices, information on the types of pesticides being used and their subsequent fate in soils is essential. In this study, pesticide use trends were summarized and Herbicide Risk Indicators (HRIs) were calculated for the 1996-2006 growing seasons; a time period in which genetically modified herbicide-tolerant (GMHT) crops were commercially adopted. This study also quantified the influence of soil moisture, temperature, slope position, and soil depth within the plough layer on 2,4-D [2,4-(dichlorophenoxy) acetic acid] fate in soil obtained from a cultivated undulating field in Southern Manitoba. Annual pesticide use varied slightly over the 11-year period, but overall, there were no significant increasing or decreasing temporal trends for herbicides, fungicides, or insecticides. Although the total mass of herbicides remained relatively consistent, there was a significant change in the types of herbicides applied associated with the increased adoption of GMHT-canola; the most significant trend being the increase of GLY, from 16% to 45% of the total herbicides used in 1996 to 2006, respectively. HRIs demonstrated that herbicides used in 2006, are on average, more soluble, but less persistent, less volatile, and less acutely toxic to mammals (inhalation and acceptable daily intake), aquatic invertebrates, fish and algae, than those applied in 1996. Although 2,4-D remains one of the top 10 herbicides applied to agricultural crops in Manitoba, there were no significant increasing or decreasing trends in 2,4-D use between 1996 and 2006. Results from the experimental studies revealed that 2,4-D mineralization half-lives (DT50) in soil varied from 3 days to 51 days with the total 2,4-D mineralization (MT) ranging from 5.8 to 50.9%, depending on soil moisture, temperature, slope position, and depth. Both DT50 and MT demonstrated a polynomial relationship with temperature, typical of a biological system with minimum, optimum, and maximum temperatures.