Nisitohtamowin askihk ohci: understanding from the land through application of biophysical tools to support First Nations land management

Dr. Melissa Arcand

January 16, 2019

Melissa Arcand is a soil biogeochemist with research interests focused on understanding biological indicators of soil health in agricultural and natural ecosystems. She received her PhD in Soil Science from the University of Saskatchewan. Melissa grew up on a farm on the Muskeg Lake Cree Nation in central Saskatchewan. She teaches and is the academic advisor for students in the Kanawayihetaytan Askiy program, designed to train Indigenous students to work in resource management and land governance in First Nations communities across Canada. Her emerging work uses biophysical tools to examine the effects of agriculture and tenure arrangements on ecosystem health on First Nations land.