PhD Researcher Fridah Silas Explores Pathways to Scale Nature-Based Solutions at the CWRA Conference

From May 25-29, 2025, the Canadian Water Resources Association held its Annual National Conference in Penticton, British Columbia.

Fridah Silas, PhD researcher at the University of Waterloo and member of the Solutionscapes Cross-Cutting Themes Team, presented a poster titled Scaling the Adoption Of Nature-based Solutions For Agricultural Water Management, by Fridah Silas, Dustin Garrick, and Graham Epstein. Fridah’s research integrates network analysis, financial perspectives, and participatory approaches to trace the social, institutional, and governance dynamics shaping the adoption and implementation of nature-based solutions in agriculture. Her poster highlighted barriers to uptake among farmers, the importance of cross-sector coordination, and strategies to better align funding incentives with watershed management goals.

The conference theme, Living Between Waters - Connecting Water & Resilience, focused on collaboration across jurisdictions, upholding Indigenous rights and leadership, and the shared responsibilities of municipalities, governments, and industry in advancing water security.