Please join us in welcoming our new Watershed Assessment Program Manager, Lauren Thompson!

Banner image: Visiting Mbecho (Bistcho Lake, Alberta) with Dene drummers and knowledge keepers.

I am thrilled to join the Oldman Watershed Council (OWC) as the Watershed Assessment Program Manager. I will work alongside many collaborators to weave together threads of data, stories, and experiences to understand the health and function of landscapes, wetlands, lakes, rivers, and groundwater that comprise the Oldman watershed, providing a comprehensive update to the 2010 assessment. This will be an exciting challenge, and I bring a love for data synthesis and scientific storytelling to OWC.

I grew up in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, where I spent my summers canoeing, hiking, and camping, and my winters skiing the rolling prairie hills. I moved to Montreal to pursue a Bachelor of Science in Environmental Science with a specialization in Geographic Information Science (GIS). I had my first research experience with the McGill Arctic Field Study cohort, spending a summer in Nunavut. After this, I joined a peatland science lab as a research assistant for studies on Mer Bleue Bog, located outside of Ottawa.

I had the opportunity to blend my Arctic and peatland research interests during my PhD at the University of Alberta. At sites across the Boreal Plains and Taiga Plains in Alberta and the Northwest Territories, I investigated how the thawing of permafrost impacts the chemistry of lakes, rivers, and wetlands within peatland-dominated watersheds. My research focused on the biogeochemical cycling of mercury, identifying thawing peatlands as hotspots for the production of the neurotoxin methylmercury. The research sites spanned from Slave Lake, Alberta to Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories; the landscapes were stunning, and the mosquitoes were absolutely enormous.

a person kayaking in a marshy area with coniferous trees and mountains in the background — Water sampling near Pehdzeh Ki (Wrigley, Northwest Territories).

While in graduate school, I had some cool opportunities to build connections and partnerships. I collaborated with Dene communities and territorial scientists to initiate a community-based water sampling program in the Dehcho region of the Northwest Territories. With the Engage North program and UAlberta North’s support, I worked as an intern for Dene Tha’ First Nation to advance an Indigenous Protected and Conserved Area stewarded by the Nation. I had the chance to co-lead a technical report detailing the hydrological and water quality impacts of permafrost thaws in transboundary watersheds of the Mackenzie River Basin for the governments of Alberta and the Northwest Territories. Near the end of my program, I spent a summer at Stockholm University as a visiting researcher.

a woman sampling soil in a field with mountains in the background — Soil sampling near Abikso, Sweden.

While I will always have a soft spot for peatlands and the northern boreal region, my recent work has focused on the Montane Cordillera and Prairie ecozones. Upon completing graduate school, I moved to Calgary to work as an environmental consultant, gaining a deeper understanding of the impacts on lands and waterways from industrial activities such as mining and forestry. I also joined the Bow River Basin Council’s water quality technical committee to contribute to their recently completed State of the Watershed Assessment.

a woman holding a dog on a hiking trail — Exploring the Oldman watershed.

The Oldman River and its tributaries are lifelines for southern Alberta, and I can’t wait to get better acquainted with the watershed. When I am not crunching data, writing reports, or attending meetings, I enjoy spending time in the Eastern Slopes and across the Saskatchewan River Basin with my husband, Evan, and our miniature schnauzer, Wrigley.