Join us for a field excursion co-presented with the Kingston Field Naturalists focusing on native bees. We will visit the sites of artist Sarah Peebles’s Agnes-commissioned artworks at No.9 Gardens with biologist Jessica Forrest (University of Ottawa). Dr. Forrest will discuss the biology and nesting needs of native bees and lead a pollinator walk on the grounds. Bring suitable footwear for uneven and possibly wet pathways. Please feel free to stick around at No.9 Gardens and complete a self-guided tour of Agnes's current land-based exhibit, Landing, on until 29 September, 2024. https://agnes.queensu.ca/exhibition/landing-no-9-gardens-exhibition/

About Jessica Forrest
Dr. Jessica Forrest is an Associate Professor in the Biology Department at the University of Ottawa, where her lab, Forest Lab, conducts research on the ecology and evolution of wild pollinators, especially native bees, and their interactions with plants. Jessica also teaches upper-level ecology courses, including courses on plant–animal interactions, in French and English. She and her students (and her dog, Oscar) do field work in the Colorado Rocky Mountains and in the many green spaces—agricultural, urban, and natural—around Ottawa.

As we approach National Day for Truth and Reconciliation let us take this opportunity to reflect on our individual and collective responsibilities to fulfill the TRC’s recommendations as educators and to support the struggle for Indigenous sovereignty and self-determination.

This workshop touches on forms of pedagogy that prioritize a no-border approach to teaching, how that extends into centering diasporic experiences and community relations in moving beyond predetermined structures/cannons. How does imagining a world without prisons, police, and military help us to think of what we value as educators; how does this approach inform cross-cultural solidarities; how do we put that into practice by centring relationships, building trust, focusing on care, and hospitality?

Facilitated by Nasrin Himada, Associate Curator of Academic Outreach and Community Engagement, with special guest speakers Juliane Okot Bitek, Vanessa Thompson, and Melissa Houghtaling