More than 100 Acadia alumni and friends gathered on Sunday, September 7, 2014 at the Beaubassin Research Centre on the Tantramar Marshes in New Brunswick.  Co-hosted by Acadia President Ray Ivany and The Honourable David D. Smith ('66), Chief Justice, Court of Queen’s Bench of New Brunswick, the outdoor event was organized tocelebrate Acadia's 175^th anniversary.

Distinguished guests Chancellor Emeritus Dr. Arthur Irving (’52), his wife Sandra and their daughter Sarah, as well as recent Honorary Degree recipient Dr. Donald Savoie (’14), Peter Halpin from the Association of Atlantic Universities, and Geoff Harding of Ducks Unlimited Canada, toured the Centre to learn first-hand how Acadia faculty and students are involved with cutting-edge research projects.

Initiated by Dr. Irving as a basis for studying the rich landscape, the Centre, located on the New Brunswick side of the Nova Scotia border on the Tantramar Marshes, operates as a partnership between Acadia University, Ducks Unlimited and Irving Oil.

Introduced by Master of Ceremonies, Dr. Rod Morrison, Vice-President Advancement, Chief Justice Smith brought greetings and shared memories of his time at Acadia. Dr. Irving also delivered opening remarks, welcoming everyone and stating how proud he was to partner with Ducks Unlimited and Acadia University to create the Centre.

“The idea,” President Ivany said in his opening remarks, “was to create a research station where students could work across disciplines and be intimately and directly involved with their field of study.”

Dr. David Duke, Coordinator of the Environmental and Sustainability Studies program and Associate Professor in History and Classics at Acadia, presented some of the research being conducted at Beaubassin. He said it is truly trans-disciplinary, and can be divided into three categories: land, sea and sky.

“Not only is the Beaubassin region an ideal wetland, it is also a place of historical significance. History students study those diverse communities that have lived on the land, from First Nations to French and British settlers to the Planters and beyond. A central focus of this research is to examine the ways in which these communities altered their environments, successfully or unsuccessfully.”

Biology, earth science, environmental science and chemistry students look at the land itself. They study coastal wetlands, creating baselines for future research and exploring environmental contamination. In the sea, students examine the alewife herring to find solutions for declining fish populations. In the sky, they study the swallow population on the marshes.

Beaubassin hosts a radio telemetry tower that is used to track over 30 species of birds and their migratory patterns.

“The Beaubassin field station demonstrates the opportunities presented by trans-disciplinary research involving the humanities and applied sciences. Partnerships such as those with the Irving family and Ducks Unlimited place Acadia at the forefront of research that works to understand and explain our world,” said Duke.

“The Beaubassin Research Centre is a model not only for present activity, but for the future – for partnership between Acadia and organizations sharing a similar vision, and for undergraduate-centered research that investigates key questions about the natural environment and our place in it. The vision of its founders will therefore serve Acadia University through our next 175 years.”

 

Links:

http://www.ducks.ca/your-province/new-brunswick/programs-projects/beaubassin/

http://science.acadiau.ca/field-stations.3007.html

For more on the 175^th event, please see our photo gallery.

To learn more about the Beaubassin Research Centre, please visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CFzTpqQhsYs#t=14