8^th Conference on Natural Channel Systems

We are absolutely thrilled and deeply honored to be co-chairing the 2026 Natural Channels Conference! This event has always held a special place in our hearts. Over the years, attending this conference has not only significantly inspired and motivated our careers, but it’s also been instrumental in forging important networking connections.

Both of our journeys with the conference began as students; we were both completing master’s at the University of Waterloo. Cailey’s research then focused on the fascinating relationship between river processes and fish behaviors, and Christina was researching how sediment moves in rivers in urbanized settings. As time passed, we returned to the conference as professional engineers. Christina has previously worked as a consultant and is currently working at the Toronto Region Conservation Authority, and Cailey has spent the last decade working as a consultant. While we have taken different paths, we have stayed connected, and the conference has helped to facilitate that connection.

What truly sets this conference apart is its unique ability to bring together all river enthusiasts, fostering an environment where sharing and learning happen. We are so incredibly glad to help facilitate this invaluable opportunity for future generations of river enthusiasts and to help keep the flame burning bright for those of us already meandering down the road of river work.

For three decades now, the Natural Channels Conference has been a cornerstone for our community. Over these 30 years, we’ve witnessed remarkable shifts in scientific understanding, a surge in available data, and evolving policies and management approaches for our natural systems. The theme of the upcoming conference Resilient River Corridors: Navigating Challenges, Opportunities and Change will give us the opportunity to look back at past practices as we meander through new opportunities and challenges. While the upcoming conference will undoubtedly look different from the very first one, one thing has remained constant: our shared passion to protect and preserve these vital systems.

We are so excited to share two thoughts of encouragement with all of you as we look ahead to the conference: what we hope you’ll bring with you, and what we hope you’ll be able to take away from the conference. We hope that you bring your passion and experience. We ask you to start thinking about what you’d like to see presented at the conference and what you’d like to share with the community of practitioners. Our call for session ideas will be sent out in Fall this year and the call for abstracts will be sent out in Winter of 2026. We look forward to reading interesting abstracts, seeing the experiences presented, and taking part in exciting discussions about the science. We hope that you take away new insights and connections; meeting people from different industries, specializations, and places, and use these connections to add diversity to your own practice in the future.

Christina Bright & Cailey McCutcheon
Co-Chairs’ of the 8^th Conference on Natural Channel Systems