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Planning, Geography, and Environmental Studies

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John Bosco Acharibasam

John Bosco Acharibasam, PhD

Assistant Professor

Planning, Geography, and Environmental Studies

Abbotsford campus, A406h

email John

Biography

Before joining the Department of Planning, Geography and Environmental Studies as an Assistant Professor, Dr. John Bosco Acharibasam served as a SSHRC Postdoctoral Fellow at Mount Royal University in Calgary. He was born and raised in a rural, land-based community in Northern Ghana, where he witnessed firsthand the environmental challenges that continue to shape his scholarly work. As an immigrant, he is honoured to live, work, teach, and learn on traditional Indigenous territories, including treaty lands, unceded lands, and Métis homelands. Dr. Acharibasam respectfully acknowledges and honours the First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Elders—past, present, and emerging.  Dr. Acharibasam is a community-based researcher who addresses environmental and social justice issues affecting Black, Indigenous, and other marginalized communities in Canada and globally. His research is grounded in Indigenous-led, decolonial, and anti-racist frameworks, with areas of interest including climate justice, Indigenous-led water governance, environmental health disparities, Black geographies, and decolonizing research methodologies.

Education

Ph.D.  in Educational Foundations, University of Saskatchewan, Canada.          

MA in Geography and Planning, University of Saskatchewan, Canada.                  

BA in Geography and Resource Development, University of Ghana Legon, Ghana.

Teaching Philosophy

As an educator committed to the transformative power of education, my teaching philosophy centers on anti-racist, decolonial, and social justice principles that empower students to become agents of change. Inspired by John Dewey’s emphasis on practical learning, I create experiential learning environments that connect classroom content to real-world issues, particularly those affecting marginalized communities in Canada. My pedagogy integrates the voices of Knowledge Holders and Indigenous Elders, grounding learning in lived experiences and cultural wisdom. I strive to cultivate a safe, inclusive, and respectful space where all students feel valued, supported, and capable of thriving. Adopting a strength-based approach, I highlight the resilience and potential of marginalized communities while mentoring students through research opportunities, career development, and personalized guidance. My student-centred classroom prioritizes collaboration, hands-on learning, and creative assessment practices that go beyond traditional evaluation, with ongoing reflection to enhance my teaching effectiveness.

Teaching Interests

GEOG 325 (Health and Place)

GEOG 256 (Knowledge and Ethics in Geographic and Environmental Research)

GEOG 318 (Water Resources Management)

Research Interests

Climate Justice and Environmental Health, Indigenous-led Water Governance and Energy,

Environmental Education and Land-Based Learning, Black Geographies and Environmental Racism, Environmental Health and Planning, Decolonizing Education and Health through Geography.

Presentations

  1. Acharibasam, J.B. (2025, May). University of Calgary, Cumming School of Medicine- Black child and youth wellbeing conference. Climate Disasters, Health, and Black Youth in Western Canada: Insights from Community-Based Research in Saskatchewan.
  2. Acharibasam, J.B. & Starr, R. (2024, October) AGE-WELL- Annual Conference: October 23-24th, 2024: Health programming to support remote Indigenous older adults with technology use. Edmonton, Canada.
  3. Acharibasam, J.B. (2024, May) University of Carleton, Institute of African Studies-Emerging Scholar Conference. Meaningful engagement of youth from black communities in climate disaster education within western Canada.
  4. Acharibasam, J.B. & Starr, R. (2024, May) AGE-WELL- EPIC Conference: May 28 –2024: Health programming to support remote Indigenous older adults with technology use.
  5. Cari Mcilduff & J.B. Acharibasam. (2023, October) Indigenous Community Responsive Research: Unlimited Horizons. Faculty and Associates Research Day. The Department of Community Health & Epidemiology, University of Saskatchewan.
  6. Acharibasam, J.B. & Starr, R. (2023, May) AGE-WELL- EPIC Conference: May 23 – June 2, 2023: Introducing new technology to monitor the health data of older adults with multi-morbidities related to dementia in Indigenous communities (2021-2023).
  7. Acharibasam, J.B. & Starr, V. (2022, October): Introducing new technology to monitor the health data of older adults with multi-morbidities related to dementia in Indigenous communities (2021-2023). Canadian Association of Gerontology (CAG) 2022: 51st Annual Scientific and Educational Conference. Closing the Research-Practice Gap: Knowledge Mobilization & Implementation Science-October 20-22, 2022, Delta Hotels Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada October 20 – 22, 2022 at Regina, Canada.
  8. Acharibasam, J.B. & Starr, V. (2022, October): Introducing new technology to monitor the health data of older adults with multi-morbidities related to dementia in Indigenous communities (2021-2023). AGE-WELL Annual Conference: October 18 – 20, 2022 at Regina, Canada.
  9. Acharibasam, J.B. & Starr, V. (2022, June) AGE-WELL- EPIC Conference: May 30 – June 10, 2022: Introducing new technology to monitor the health data of older adults with multi-morbidities related to dementia in Indigenous communities (2021-2023).
  10. Acharibasam, J.B. & Starr, V. (2021, June) AGE-WELL- EPIC Conference, 2021: Introducing New Technology to Monitor the Health Data of Older Adults with Multi-Morbidities Related to Dementia in Indigenous Communities (2021-2023).
  11. Patrick Sullivan, Acharibasam, J.B. Danette Starblanket, Peter Hutchinson, Shayla Desjarlais, Marlin Lagare, Mackenzie Jardine, Meghan Chapados (2021, June) Indigenous Community Engagement During COVID-19. CanCOVID Workshop on COVID-19 and Indigenous health.
  12. Acharibasam J.B. (2019, June). Decolonizing environmental education for different contexts and nations. CSSE Conference at the University of British Columbia
  13. Acharibasam J.B. (2019, May). Environmental education for early childhood learning. EECOM University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon Canada.

 

Publications

  1. Acharibasam J. B.,Datta, R., Hurlbert, M., Strongarm, S., Starblanket, E., Mckenzie, D., Favel, V., Starr, R. & Starr, V. (2024). Community-led water governance: Meanings of drinking water governance within remote First Nations and Métis communities in Saskatchewan. Environmental Science and Policy, 157, 103790.1-10.DOI: 10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103790.
  2. Mcilduff, C., LaRocque, K., Hagel, M. & Acharibasam J. B.(2024). Engaging in self-determined, ethical research with Indigenous communities: Impact of food security projects with three unique communities. DOI: 10.4135/9781529692365.
  3. Acharibasam J. B., Riley, K. Datta R., McKenzie D. & Favel, V. (2024). Rethinking water governance in the Saskatchewan River Delta through Indigenous relational worldviews. Australian Journal of Environmental Education, 1–16. doi:10.1017/aee.2024.19
  4. Acharibasam, J.B., Hurlbert, M. Datta, R. & Lewis, K. (2024). Meanings of Indigenous land-based healing and the implications for water governance. Explore. DOI: 10.1016/j.explore.2024.04.002.
  5. Hurlbert, M., Acharibasam J.B., Datta, R. Strongarm, S. & Starblanket, E. (2024). decolonizing Indigenous drinking water challenges and implications: Focusing on Indigenous water governance and sovereignty. Water, 16(5),2-19. DOI: 10.3390/w16050748.
  6. Hutchinson, P. J., McIlduff, C.D., Legare, M., Keewatin, M., Hagel, M., Chapados, M. & Acharibasam, J. B. (2023). Indigenous knowledge mobilization: reflection on context, content, and relationship. AlterNative, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1177/11771801231198082.
  7. Acharibasam, J. B., & Datta, R. (2023). Enhancing community resilience to climate change disasters: Learning experience within and from sub-Saharan black immigrant communities in western Canada. Sustainable Development, 1–11. https://doi.org/10.1002/sd.267.
  8. Sullivan, P., Starr, V., Dubois, E., Starr, A., Acharibasam, J. B., & McIlduff, C. (2023). Where past meets present: Indigenous vaccine hesitancy in Saskatchewan. Med Humanit, 0:1 (11),1-11. doi:10.1136/medhum-2022-012501.
  9. Acharibasam, J. B. (2022). Decolonizing climate change education: Evidence from an empirical study in Ghana. Journal of Education and Practice, 13(32), 54-63.
  10. Acharibasam, J.B., & McVittie, J. (2022). Connecting children to nature through the integration of Indigenous Ecological Knowledge into Early Childhood Environmental Education. Australian Journal of Environmental Education, 1–13.doi:10.1017/aee.2022.37.
  11. Chireh, B., Gyan, C. & Acharibasam, J.B. (2022). Sense of community belonging and self-rated general and mental health status among immigrants in Canada. International Journal of Migration, Health and Social Care, 18 (3), 207-221. doi.org/10.1108/IJMHSC-05-2021-0044.
  12. McIlduff, C.D., Acharibasam, J.B., Starr, V. & Chapados, M. (2022). Engaging Indigenous older adults with technology use to respond to health and well-being concerns and needs. Healthcare Management Forum, 0(0), 1–9.
  13. Acharibasam J. B., Chapados, M., Langan J., Starblanket, D. & Hagel, M. (2022). Exploring health and wellness with First Nations communities at the knowing your health symposium. HMF-21-0117.R2. doi: 10.1177/08404704221084042/.
  14. Jardine, M., Bourassa, C., Piyesis, M.K., Hutchinson, P., Acharibasam, J.B. & Mcilduff C. (2021). Digging deep: Barriers to HIV care among Indigenous Women. Turtle Island Journal of Indigenous Health, 1(2). 60-70. doi: 10.33137/tijih.v1i2.36041.
  15. Acharibasam, J.B. & McVittie, J. (2021). The use of a two-eyed seeing approach to include Indigenous Knowledge in early childhood care and development in Ghana. International Education Journal: Comparative Perspectives, 20(1), 81-98.
  16. Acharibasam, J.B. & McVittie, J. (2020). Tensions between western ECCD and the Indigenous African educational system and what this means for ECCD practice. Journal of Education and Practice, 11(24), 103-118. doi: 10.7176/JEP/11-24-13.
  17. Acharibasam J.B. & Noble B.F. (2014). Assessing the direct and indirect impacts of strategic environmental assessment. Impact Assessment and Project Appraisal, 32(3).
  18. Acharibasam J.B. & Apatinga G.A. (2014). Domestic cooking energy and Ghana's liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) dilemma: Critical analysis of Ghana's LPG Policy. International Journal of Energy and Environmental Research, 2(2), 1-8. 

    PEER-REVIEWED BOOK CHAPTER PUBLICATION

    1. Atanga R.A., Acahribasam, J.B., Jachan, S.K., Gafli, M. K., & Poku, G.A. (2024). Land-based learning and its implications for preserving traditional ecological knowledge in Ghana. In D. Ranjan, J. Chapola, & J. B. Acharibasam (Eds.), Indigenous Land-based Knowledge and Sustainability: Settler Colonialism and the Environmental Crises (pp.61-72). Routledge.
    2. Acahribasam, J.B., Datta, R., Hurlbert, M., & Weenie, A. (2024). Land-based learning as a methodology for understanding water governance. In D. Ranjan, J. Chapola, & J. B. Acharibasam (Eds.), Indigenous Land-based Knowledge and Sustainability: Settler Colonialism and the Environmental Crises (pp.73-83). Routledge.
    3. Acharibasam, J.B., Datta, R. Atanga, R.A. & Achonga, P. (2024). Community-based participatory research design relevance for decolonizing postgraduate education. In M. Gumbo, M. Gaotlhobogwe, C. Pedzisai, Z. Jojo, & C. Knaus (Eds.), Global perspectives on decolonizing postgraduate education (pp.16-26). IGI Global. DOI: 10.4018/979-8-3693-1289-6.
    4. Acharibasam, J.B. & Datta, R. (2024). Decolonization of postgraduate education through

    Indigenous two-eyed seeing methodology. In M. Gumbo, M. Gaotlhobogwe, C. Pedzisai, Z. Jojo, & C. Knaus (Eds.), Global perspectives on decolonizing postgraduate education (pp.27-41.). IGI Global. DOI: 10.4018/979-8-3693-1289-6.ch003.

    1. Acharibasam, J.B., & Datta, R. (2023). Decolonizing Meanings of Climate Risks: A Learning Experience from and within Sub-Saharan African Immigrant Communities’ Perspectives in Western Canada. R. Datta (Ed.), Decolonization in Practice Reflective Learning from Cross-Cultural Perspectives (pp-225-240). Canadian Scholar Press.
    2. Acharibasam, J.B. (2022). Decolonizing environmental education in Ghana. In J. McVittie, K. Riley & M.G. Borges (Eds.), Decolonizing environmental education for different contexts and nations (pp.145-162). Peter Lang Publishing Inc.

     

    BOOKS

    Datta, R., Chapola, J. & Acharibasam, J. B. (2024). Indigenous Land-based knowledge and practice as environmental sustainability. DOI: 10.4324/9781003471486. Routledge.

     

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