The Youth for EcoAction (YEA) Program is a project of the Boys and Girls Clubs of Winnipeg involving youth at risk in after-school programming. The program focuses on urban agriculture and gardening projects and was developed using the circle of courage model of youth empowerment. This research used participatory methods, including participatory video to analyze the program and its benefits. The YEA program creates positive change in the lives of participants and at a community-wide level. These benefits include skill building and job training, improved self esteem, nutrition and food security, increased environmental awareness and behaviour, and greater community strength. Youth serving agencies, community development organizations and government policy makers should look to the YEA program as a model for youth empowerment and community revitalization. This thesis also explores benefits of participatory research, specifically participatory video, and documents the personal learnings and journey of the author from researcher to practitioner.

Lake Winnipeg has been subject to intense eutrophication and invasive species such as Rainbow Smelt and Eubosmina coregoni for the last 40 years. This study demonstrated significant increases in total phosphorus, total nitrogen, chlorophyll-a, overall zooplankton abundance, and specifically Cladocera, between 1969 and the first decade of the 21st century. There were specific basin differences in the long-term changes of the Cladocera community, with the species Chydorus sphaericus and Ceriodaphnia quadrangula negatively affected by high levels of phosphorus, nitrogen and chlorophyll-a. Moreover, long-term change in the Cladocera community composition and abundance throughout the years (1969-2011) during summer was correlated with intensifying eutrophication. Additionally, weak diel vertical migration in the zooplankton community was observed for the first time in Lake Winnipeg.

Project Thesis (D. Min.)--Denver Conservative Baptist Seminary, 1993. / This is an electronic reproduction of TREN, #090-0158. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 173-178).

The Mennonites are a religious, social and ethnic group with origins in the time of the sixteenth century Reformation. The group was named after a Dutch Anabaptist leader, Menno Simons, who provided the members with substantial theological leadership. Throughout the last four centuries, the Mennonites have migrated around the world and divided into over a hundred different sub-groups. In 1989, Canada was home to over 100,000 Mennonite members who belonged to 735 church congregations that were part of 30 separate groups. The two largest Mennonite groups in Canada are the Conference of Mennonite Brethren Churches (MB) and the Conference of Mennonites in Canada (CMC). These two groups, and the Colleges they own and operate, are the focus of this thesis topic - Mennonites and Higher Education in the 1960s. By 1960, the Mennonite Brethren Bible College (MBBC) and the Canadian Mennonite Bible College (CMBC) had become involved in the process of opening their communities to the professional and vocational opportunities available in Canada while selectively closing the community to secular influences. The Colleges made institutional decisions which allowed them to offer a university standard education in a parochial setting. These decisions created an active discussion within the two sponsoring Mennonite constituencies. Some members, within each group, were less inclined to embrace the influences of a growing urban, modern worldview because involvement in modern Canadian society would require the adaptation of their traditional, rural identity. The Colleges, on the other hand, encouraged changes while attempting to maintain continuity with essential community ideals. This process of change is the focus of this thesis. / Arts, Faculty of / Classical, Near Eastern and Religious Studies, Department of / Graduate

This project explores a reinterpretation process of a deindustrial site through landscape architecture. By using the industrial process to guide the formation of the landscape, spaces, and experiences, a semi-abandoned industrial site is transformed into a cultural park. The purpose of the project is to articulate the intriguing qualities of a deindustrial site and respond to them through a design process that is sensitive to the history and character of the site, while allowing contemporary uses and experiences to evolve. / February 2008

The creative class, creative economy and creative cities are all heralds of current North American planning directions. My research seeks to understand how the Art Factory, a multi-tenant and multi-purpose artist space, contributes to the lives of artists and the general creative potential of a city. This research is a case study of cre8ery, an art factory located in Winnipeg’s Exchange District, the gentrifying cultural quarter of the city. I interviewed ten artists, exploring how cre8ery affected their social, professional and economic lives. cre8ery serves as a gateway into the art world for emerging artists by providing stability and opportunities to them. In general, Art Factories are centres of cultural entrepreneurship, an activity essential to the health of artists and the city. I also explore the shift of the artist populations in Winnipeg due to gentrification, offering several policy initiatives that would either stem or support this shift. / February 2009

A shortage of academic literature exists on North American backyard chicken (BYC) keeping. This is particularly apparent when we ask why people keep backyard chickens in North American cities. This thesis examines individuals’ motivations and lived experiences with raising non-permitted BYC within the City of Winnipeg, using a phenomenological approach and Hanisch’s (2006) the Personal is Political theoretical perspective. Participants were motivated to keep BYC for food production, learning opportunities, leisure and companionship. Motivations were personal and often partly political. Sources of satisfaction derived from keeping BYC included food products, by-products and production, increased sense of connection, enjoyment, leisure, entertainment and companionship, learning opportunities, and doing what felt right. Fear of being found out, isolation and negative stereotypes were challenges experienced. Should the existing bylaw change, permitting BYC on residential Winnipeg properties, participants recommended imposing BYC-specific regulations and public education as a way of addressing concerns and mitigating potential issues. / October 2015

The creative class, creative economy and creative cities are all heralds of current North American planning directions. My research seeks to understand how the Art Factory, a multi-tenant and multi-purpose artist space, contributes to the lives of artists and the general creative potential of a city. This research is a case study of cre8ery, an art factory located in Winnipeg’s Exchange District, the gentrifying cultural quarter of the city. I interviewed ten artists, exploring how cre8ery affected their social, professional and economic lives. cre8ery serves as a gateway into the art world for emerging artists by providing stability and opportunities to them. In general, Art Factories are centres of cultural entrepreneurship, an activity essential to the health of artists and the city. I also explore the shift of the artist populations in Winnipeg due to gentrification, offering several policy initiatives that would either stem or support this shift.

This project explores a reinterpretation process of a deindustrial site through landscape architecture. By using the industrial process to guide the formation of the landscape, spaces, and experiences, a semi-abandoned industrial site is transformed into a cultural park. The purpose of the project is to articulate the intriguing qualities of a deindustrial site and respond to them through a design process that is sensitive to the history and character of the site, while allowing contemporary uses and experiences to evolve.

This practicum investigates the application of ecological literacy theory to the practice of landscape architecture. Ecological literacy can be defined as the ability to comprehend the complex relationships of one’s surrounding environment and live life with greater environmental sensitivity. The Lake Winnipeg watershed is home to over 5 million people, and draws its water from four Canadian provinces and four American states. With the anthropogenic manipulation of the landscape, native watershed functions like water retention and filtration have been compromised. Each year, increasing amounts of phosphorus enter the lake from agricultural and urban fertilisers and effluents. This nutrient loading creates algal blooms toxic to humans and other species that rely on the lake for survival. The proposed programmatic framework and design interventions are intended to address these impacts by fostering watershed sustainability and ecological literacy, while engaging citizens in the processes associated with increasing local ecological integrity.