Don Smith

When Australia introduced its world-first social media ban for children under 16, ACU Australian Centre for the Advancement of Literacy researcher Dr Signy Wegener found herself watching the rollout not just as an academic, but as the mother of a 13-year-old girl. “My daughter hasn’t been impacted at all at this point by the ban,” Dr Wegener said.

When it comes to contributing positively to the health of Muskoka’s environment, some of us take a long and winding route that meanders from one experience to another. Unlike those who are educated in the many sciences relevant to study of the watershed, I am a generalist. From my earliest memories, I can recall an appreciation of the watershed was naturally ingrained in my life.

Born on 16 October 1973 in Tagum City, Davao Del Norte, Philippines, Fr Loi Viovicente’s early years were shaped by hardship and hope. “I grew up in a very poor neighbourhood,” he recalled, likening it to the “Favelas in Brazil surrounded with poverty, drugs and crimes.” Yet amid the turmoil, his mother’s maternal hand was at work. “She was the main protagonist of my family’s spiritual life,” Fr Loi shared.