Helen Baulch

Degrees

• BSc, University of Waterloo, 1999, Biology.
• MSc, University of Alberta, 2002, Biological Sciences.
• PhD, Trent University, 2010, Environmental and Life Sciences.

---

Appointments

Associate Professor, with tenure
School of Environment and Sustainability (SENS)

• Nov 1, 2011: start date as Assistant Professor without tenure.
• July 1, 2018: Tenure & promotion to Associate Professor

Assistant Director-Academic (shared position, 0.5 where I hold the role for 'internal')

• January 2024: appointment to interim position
• July 1, 2023: appointment to 3-year term position

---

Selected Recognitions

• Elected to join the Class of 2023 of the College of New Scholars (the Royal Society of Canada)
• Jim LaBounty Best Paper Award for Lake and Reservoir Management, 2021 with coauthors for the paper "Low sediment redox promotes cyanobacteria blooms across a trophic range: implications for management"
• Global Institute for Water Security Water Security Research Excellence Award, 2021
• Centennial Enhancement Chair renewal - April 2021
• University of Saskatchewan New Researcher Award, 2020
• Provost’s Outstanding Teaching Award, 2019
  Strategic theme of innovation, with strengths in themes of sustainability, inclusivity, interdisciplinary teaching, innovation and collaboration
• University of Saskatchewan Centennial Enhancement Chair in Aquatic Ecosystem Biogeochemistry, 2016
• Governor General’s Gold medal (Trent University, 2010)

---

I am a limnologist by training - and I work in a sustainability school, which creates some magic in terms of what I consider my career goal: helping ensure drinkable, swimmable waters alongside productive agricultural lands. My interest and love for waters aligns with my earliest memories – spending time on the shores of Lake Huron along, and often in, the water.

I received my Bachelor of Science (Honours co-op Biology) from University of Waterloo, a Master of Science (Biological Sciences) from University of Waterloo, and a PhD from Trent University (Environmental and Life Sciences). I have been in a faculty role for well over a decade but still benefit from the mentors I had through my training (Dave Schindler, Michael Turner, Peter Dillon, Bill Taylor, and many more), and the friends and colleagues I consider mentors and supporters to this day. I’m invested in being a good mentor, researcher, teacher and colleague, working with others on research, training and sustainability problem solving.

Throughout my life, I have observed rapid deterioration in water quality, watched firsthand the effects of invasive species, and observed deterioration in water security across broad regions in the world. These changes motivate my work – where I aim to contribute to efforts to enhance water quality and water security.

My research group focusses on issues of water quality: from basic research on understudied seasons and processes, to modelling water quality and characterizing options to manage current water-related stressors. We are increasingly working on the human dimensions of these problems, through a growing network of collaborators.

I have two medium-sized children, and I live on the west side of the river (familiar geography for those of you in Saskatoon!) and enjoy paddling and time on/in the water in summer, and enjoy a proper winter in Saskatchewan, with skis. I am an award-winning teacher, researcher, and 2023 inductee into the Royal Society of Canada’s College of New Scholars. I teach a few graduate courses at the University of Saskatchewan, including “Sustainability in Theory and Practice” and “Sustainable Water Resources” and always find my conversations with students fill me with energy and help me examine and expand my thinking.