Goal 15 - Research Institutes, Centres & Projects

Research Institutes, Centres & Projects

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Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute

The Alberta Biodiversity Monitoring Institute (ABMI) detects large changes in biodiversity in Alberta with the annually updated Biodiversity Intactness Index and Human Footprint Inventory. This research provides ongoing, relevant, scientifically credible information on Alberta's living resources to meet the information needs of government planners, industrial developers and local communities.

Bentley Lecture in Sustainable Agriculture

Each year the Faculty of ALES invites a speaker of international renown to present current research and updates in areas relating to soil science, agricultural production methods and sustainable agriculture. Previous lectures can be viewed online.

Mattheis Ranch

Adjacent to the Red Deer River, this 5,000-hectare research ranch is part of a large, contiguous tract of rangeland with diverse topography, vegetation and wildlife. 4,000 hectares is native grassland, including loamy mixedgrass and sandgrass-dominated prairie, river coulee breaks and riparian areas. Another 400 hectares comprises irrigation-fed wetlands, most of which were created by Ducks Unlimited in 1952.

The land was donated to the University of Alberta in 2010 by Edwin and Ruth Mattheis, and in 2015 a conservation agreement was signed with the Western Sky Land Trust to preserve the land in perpetuity. For half the year, 800 beef cattle graze the land. Researchers use the ranch to advance knowledge and understanding of rangeland ecology and management.

Resilient Forests

Productivity and sustainability of our forest ecosystems and operations are reliant on a healthy and resilient forest. However, forest health and local communities that depend on the forest industry are both under constant threat from changes in climate and climate-induced insect outbreaks. The pace of these changes is outstripping the ability for trees to adjust to these threats. Likewise, traditional tree improvement methodologies are too slow to provide well-adapted seedlings for reforestation and achieve healthy forests for the future. Thus, Resilient Forests proposes to integrate rapidly emerging technologies (genomics and metabolic profiling) and mathematical models into existing tree breeding programs to select pest resistant and drought tolerant trees.