Latest news with #UniversityOfSaskatchewan
CTV News
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Jim Cuddy joins surprise duet at U of S convocation
WATCH: Spring convocation at the University of Saskatchewan went off with an unexpected surprise — Blue Rodeo's Jim Cuddy performed a duet with the university president.
CTV News
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- CTV News
Canadian music icon Jim Cuddy performs surprise duet at U of S convocation
WATCH: Spring convocation at the University of Saskatchewan went off with an unexpected surprise — Blue Rodeo's Jim Cuddy performed a duet with the university president. Sorry, we're having trouble with this video. Please try again later. [5006/404] Nearly 4,000 University of Saskatchewan (U of S) students will receive their diplomas throughout the week, and those who convocated on Tuesday were treated to a musical surprise. Alongside honorary doctor of letters recipient and Blue Rodeo frontman, Jim Cuddy, the president took part in a musical performance for the graduates. 'I think it will be rather unusual for them to see the president get up and try to strum the guitar. So, I think it'll be kind of fun. It'll be a little historic moment at the University of Saskatchewan,' said Peter Stoicheff, U of S president. Stoicheff and Cuddy have been friends for many years, and while the musician has done countless performances throughout his career, this was something different. 'That makes it a bonus. I can't imagine just doing it cold, like, just having somebody say, come on over and do it ... the whole thing is very special,' Cuddy said. Cuddy is one of three recipients to receive this title thanks to the U of S. President Stoicheff described the honorary degree as the highest honour the U of S can bestow. 'Bestowing it on Jim Cuddy, who's had a fantastic career with Blue Rodeo and a fantastic career with his own band and is one of Canada's greatest songwriters of all time, was a real privilege,' Stoicheff said. Jim Cuddy U of S Iconic Canadian musician Jim Cuddy performed a surprise duet with the University of Saskatchewan president on Tuesday before receiving an honorary degree. (Hallee Mandryk / CTV News) While Cuddy initially graduated from Queens University, he shared that Saskatoon has a special place in his heart. 'It's a huge honor .... I think it's a beautiful university. It's funny that I probably came here for 20 years before I even saw the university. And when I first saw the university, I was shocked at how beautiful it was,' Cuddy said. 'It's sort of fun for me to just hear the names of the people embarking on the rest of their lives, having truly no idea what they're about to encounter,' Cuddy said. The musician, who some may remember for his show-stopping ascending falsetto in the 1987 Blue Rodeo single 'Try,' says that performing in Saskatoon over the years has always been something he looks forward to. 'I think that there's a shared feeling about Saskatoon among especially musicians that come through here because it's very cold ... but it's very sunny,' Cuddy said. It's a special day for many families. But for husband and wife, Debasish Chakroborti and Sristy Sumana Nath, the day is extra special. The duo both received their PhDs on Tuesday. 'It feels great to be graduated, but when you are doing it with your family members, like my wife, my Sristy, we're doing it together, so I'm feeling really great,' Chakroborti said. U of S convocation Husband and wife Debasish Chakroborti and Sristy Sumana Nath both received their PhDs together at the U of S on Tuesday. (Hallee Mandryk / CTV News) After originally joining the university as an international student in 2017, Nath says she is proud to be setting an example for her children. 'Education is very important and we're both graduating together. And [my daughter] she's looking at how we're both graduating together and she's very excited and wanting to do more studies and contribute here in Canada, and the world,' Nath said.
CBC
a day ago
- Health
- CBC
Plants have best friends too!
From helping each other defend against insects or diseases to improving the soil they share, plants help each other out. Jackie Bantle from the University of Saskatchewan talks to Saskatoon Morning about the importance of companion plants.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Climate
- Yahoo
'This is classic climate change': Sask. faces worst wildfire season in decades
Saskatchewan is battling the worst wildfire it's seen in decades — including the 300,000-hectare Shoe Fire in northern Saskatchewan — and experts say it's largely caused by climate change. "This is classic climate change," said Colin Laroque, head of soil science and professor at the University of Saskatchewan. Laroque said climatology is studied using 30-year timeframes of weather patterns, which "weren't that different" until recently. "If you're that 20, to 25, to 30 year [age], you're experiencing something that we've never really experienced before." Laroque said the question of whether this year is abnormal is relative. "It's in the more recent past, this is normal," Laroque said. "This is our new normal." He said if he were to ask someone his grandfather's age, or his father's age, they would find it "very unusual" to have forest fires this early. "These are things that we traditionally saw more in June, July and later summer, when everything dried out and then the fires took off," Laroque said. Saskatchewan is making its way out of a relatively dry period. Few places had snow for long periods of time over winter. In the past, "snowpacks" would take time to fully melt and trickle into the ground as it warmed up. This would recharge the moisture of the soil. "What's happening the last few years is that we go from a relatively cold period of time and one or two days later it's plus 22 [C]," Laroque explained. The extreme back-and-forth causes the snow to melt rapidly while the ground stays frozen, not allowing the snow to fully sink into the soil. Laroque said most of the snow ends up evaporating, causing "instant drought," similar to what the province experienced in spring 2024. "Then the trees rehydrated, sucked up a lot of the ground moisture and then everything is just ready to be burned," he said. He also noted Saskatchewan's forest and grasses were mainly brown from the dry weather and made great fuel for grass fires. Lori Daniels, professor and researcher at the University of British Columbia's department of forest and conservation sciences, said the emergency wildfire situation in the province is the result of an emergency global climate situation. "The further we are from the equator, we're seeing that those changes are amplified," Daniels said. "In Northern Canada and the northern parts of our provinces and up into the territories … we're experiencing more than three times what the global average is in terms of temperature change." Daniels said climate change is "the new reality" and it's unclear how long the province will be dealing with these fires. "We need substantial rain to wet down our ecosystems, dampen these fires, and make our ecosystems more resistant to fire for the rest of the summer," she said. "But there is a chance if we don't get the weather patterns that bring that rain, some of these fires may persist for a very long period of time." Not all is lost. Many ecosystems in Canada have adapted to large fires, Daniels said. "They are tremendously resilient natural systems," she said. "The seed banks that are sitting, you know, deep in the soil, the roots that kind of persist in the soil underneath, will re-sprout and begin to regrow even after fairly intense fires." There are also many shifts in tree species that surround the areas of a fire. Daniels said trees like broadleaf, conifer and needleleaf tend to grow in quickly. "Fire can also be a rejuvenating force," she said. Daniels said some Indigenous communities have used fire as a part of their land stewardship. "We are now learning in Western Canada from our Indigenous collaborators and Indigenous knowledge holders that there was tremendous value in using fire, 'low intensity fire' or 'good fire'," Daniels said. In the spring and fall, a specific type of fire would be used by some Indigenous communities to burn off fuels that have accumulated over a couple of seasons to stimulate understory plants and to remove the density of trees. "You're still maintaining a forest ecosystem around you, but you're changing the amount of fuel."
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Health
- Yahoo
'This is classic climate change': Sask. faces worst wildfire season in decades
Saskatchewan is battling the worst wildfire it's seen in decades — including the 300,000-hectare Shoe Fire in northern Saskatchewan — and experts say it's largely caused by climate change. "This is classic climate change," said Colin Laroque, head of soil science and professor at the University of Saskatchewan. Laroque said climatology is studied using 30-year timeframes of weather patterns, which "weren't that different" until recently. "If you're that 20, to 25, to 30 year [age], you're experiencing something that we've never really experienced before." Laroque said the question of whether this year is abnormal is relative. "It's in the more recent past, this is normal," Laroque said. "This is our new normal." He said if he were to ask someone his grandfather's age, or his father's age, they would find it "very unusual" to have forest fires this early. "These are things that we traditionally saw more in June, July and later summer, when everything dried out and then the fires took off," Laroque said. Saskatchewan is making its way out of a relatively dry period. Few places had snow for long periods of time over winter. In the past, "snowpacks" would take time to fully melt and trickle into the ground as it warmed up. This would recharge the moisture of the soil. "What's happening the last few years is that we go from a relatively cold period of time and one or two days later it's plus 22 [C]," Laroque explained. The extreme back-and-forth causes the snow to melt rapidly while the ground stays frozen, not allowing the snow to fully sink into the soil. Laroque said most of the snow ends up evaporating, causing "instant drought," similar to what the province experienced in spring 2024. "Then the trees rehydrated, sucked up a lot of the ground moisture and then everything is just ready to be burned," he said. He also noted Saskatchewan's forest and grasses were mainly brown from the dry weather and made great fuel for grass fires. Lori Daniels, professor and researcher at the University of British Columbia's department of forest and conservation sciences, said the emergency wildfire situation in the province is the result of an emergency global climate situation. "The further we are from the equator, we're seeing that those changes are amplified," Daniels said. "In Northern Canada and the northern parts of our provinces and up into the territories … we're experiencing more than three times what the global average is in terms of temperature change." Daniels said climate change is "the new reality" and it's unclear how long the province will be dealing with these fires. "We need substantial rain to wet down our ecosystems, dampen these fires, and make our ecosystems more resistant to fire for the rest of the summer," she said. "But there is a chance if we don't get the weather patterns that bring that rain, some of these fires may persist for a very long period of time." Not all is lost. Many ecosystems in Canada have adapted to large fires, Daniels said. "They are tremendously resilient natural systems," she said. "The seed banks that are sitting, you know, deep in the soil, the roots that kind of persist in the soil underneath, will re-sprout and begin to regrow even after fairly intense fires." There are also many shifts in tree species that surround the areas of a fire. Daniels said trees like broadleaf, conifer and needleleaf tend to grow in quickly. "Fire can also be a rejuvenating force," she said. Daniels said some Indigenous communities have used fire as a part of their land stewardship. "We are now learning in Western Canada from our Indigenous collaborators and Indigenous knowledge holders that there was tremendous value in using fire, 'low intensity fire' or 'good fire'," Daniels said. In the spring and fall, a specific type of fire would be used by some Indigenous communities to burn off fuels that have accumulated over a couple of seasons to stimulate understory plants and to remove the density of trees. "You're still maintaining a forest ecosystem around you, but you're changing the amount of fuel."
