Now you’ll know where to go when you gotta go

caroline.zentner — Wed, 23 Apr 2025 15:52:14 +0000

A team of ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge researchers have created a digital interactive map of publicly available washrooms in the city called GottaGoYQL.

Dr. Julia Brassolotto

Known as the Lavatory Laboratory, the research team, including Drs. Julia Brassolotto, a public health professor, Philip Bonnaventure, a geography professor, along with geography master’s student Zeeshan Hamayun and public health master’s student Brianna Rogers, travelled around town mapping public toilet locations and documenting their features.

“Public washroom access is important for public health, equity and dignity,” says Brassolotto. “It is also a critical part of an age-friendly and accessible community. We all need to use the washroom throughout the day, each with different needs and varying degrees of urgency.”

“As a geographer, I am always looking for ways to communicate information spatially and through mapping,” says Bonnaventure. “When the opportunity to work with public health was proposed, I saw this as a way to blend our disciplines while aiding our community. Everyone feels more comfortable knowing where you can go when you are on the go.”

Public toilets create cleaner and more sanitary spaces, which reduces deaths and improves health. They also create greater social participation. One study done in the UK found that 20 per cent of people don’t go out as much as they’d like to because of limited bathroom access. About a third of people lose some bladder control as they get older, and having public washrooms available enables them to participate more. People with medical conditions such as Crohn’s and colitis may be especially impacted because they may need to access a washroom quickly.

The GottaGoYQL map indicates the location of public washrooms around the city and the amenities each one offers. Public washrooms are those that members of the public can use without needing to be paying customers. In addition to the location pins, the map also provides information on whether the washrooms are gendered, their accessibility features, if a changing table is available and more.

“Maybe you’re a new parent who wants to find a washroom with a change table,” says Brassolotto. “Or maybe you have a health condition that requires frequent bathroom visits or you’re out walking the dog when nature calls. Whatever the situation, the map shows you where to go when you’ve gotta go.”

Residence Assistants garner recognition at annual student conference

trevor.kenney — Wed, 07 Nov 2018 21:18:17 +0000

��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Residence Assistants once again made their mark at the annual Residence Life Professional Association LEAD (learn, educate, act, dare) conference by winning two of the three awards up for grabs.

The 2018 U of L LEAD Team (left to right, top row) RA Jeremy Haack, Residence Life and Education Coordinators Jesara Nichol and Brian Erixon, (middle row) RA Ryan Winter, RA Brianna Rogers, RA Shae-Lynn Dauncey (bottom row) RA Jordan Stawinski and RA Sarah-Jean Sormaz.

The student leadership conference, held at the Gull Lake Centre just north of Red Deer, featured more than 130 RAs and professional staff from 15 post-secondary institutions across Alberta and British Columbia. Designed to assist students with their leadership skills through a series of peer-to-peer presentations on issues relevant to today’s residence life, the U of L sent six RAs to the event.

Of the three major awards handed out at the event, ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ Hall RA Brianna Rogers led the way with the Best of the West award, while the U of L claimed Institution Citizenship honours.

Rogers’ presentation, Sex, Identity, Contraceptives & Consent: Getting Down and Dirty to Create a Sex Positive Residence, was the most outstanding programming session delivered by a student staff member, as voted by her peers. It garnered the Best of the West prize. The U of L then captured the LEAD Cup as winners of the Institution Citizenship award for best representing the values of LEAD. It was the sixth consecutive year the U of L has brought this prize home.

UNews - Brianna Rogers

Now you’ll know where to go when you gotta go

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Residence Assistants garner recognition at annual student conference

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