Healthy Great Lakes for Future Generations

On December 1st, 2022, Water Allies, in partnership with Environmental Defence, ran a panel with Michelle Woodhouse and Deborah McGregor, two Indigenous women who are working to protect the Great Lakes from environmental degradation and to ensure healthy freshwater and riverine systems in Ontario. The panel brought an Indigenous perspective of water protection, relationship to freshwater, and the importance for healthy water for future generations. These perspectives add to the humanities, to the social sciences, and to research related to environmental health and contamination.

The panel was recorded and is available on YouTube.

Our panelists:

Michelle Woodhouse is the Manager of Great Lakes Water Protection at Environmental Defence and has passionately worked to support Anishinaabe water protectors on Line 5.

Deborah McGregor is the Canada Research Chair in Indigenous Environmental Justice and has held multiple roles in the government related to water and Indigenous justice.

Miranda Black is the Project Manager and Former Events Coordinator of Water Allies. She holds a BA (Honors) in Urban and Environmental Sustainability and a Master’s in Environmental Applied Science and Management from Toronto Metropolitan University. Her lineage stems from Tyendinaga Mohawk (Bay of Quinte) Territory. As an Indigenous scholar Miranda’s research has focused on Indigenous-led environmental management in Toronto and Lake Ontario, specifically Toronto Island. Miranda has worked with several NGOs as an organizer and coordinator of special projects including Shift: Action for Pension Wealth and Planet Health, and Corporate Knights Magazine. Currently, she is working as Project Lead of Indigenous Climate Action in the Environment and Climate Division at the City of Toronto.

You can watch the full event recording here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2oC627FsLtc