Guest post by M.Sc. student Gillian Thiel
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| Gillian baking muffins on a rare sunny day! |
What happens when you gather many of the world’s leading
Arctic researchers, northerners, enthusiastic graduate students, and government
officials in one building during a the biggest snowstorm of the year? A pretty
amazing conference!
During the week of Dec. 11 – 15th, a handful of
professors and students from the Cape Bounty research team braved the impending
snow to attend the international Arctic Change 2017 conference in Québec City.
It was possibly the final time that researchers from around the world would
have the opportunity to meet under the umbrella of the ArcticNet funding
program. It did not disappoint.
Student Day (Dec. 11th) was a fantastic day
planned by students for students and included an elevator-pitch competition, panel
discussions, and workshops on topics such as data management and bridging
northern and southern perspectives on arctic research priorities.
Over the week, I had the opportunity to attend a variety of
sessions on topics including ocean biogeochemistry, rapid changes in extreme
environments, and vulnerability, adaptation and resilience to climate change in
the Arctic.
One of the most memorable presentations was one by Ed
Zebedee about how the community of Pangnirtung, Nunavut dealt with a major
power plant failure in 2015. It highlighted some of the major barriers to
living in the north such as ill-equipped airports and the difficulties of
shipping large equipment to remote communities. However, Mr. Zebedee’s
presentation also highlighted the incredible resilience and adaptability of
Pangnirtung residents, the efficacy of the emergency management plans that were
in place, and the initiative of the Canadian Rangers. You can read more about
the power failure here.
I also had the opportunity to attend panel discussions
including one on the politics surrounding defense and development in the
Northwest Passage led by the Honourable Minister Laurence Cannon and featuring
Hannah Uniugsaraq (Director of Nunavut Tunngavik), Lindsay
Rodman, Suzanne
Lalonde, Tom
Lawson, and Michael
Byers. It was an impressive panel.
But, what made the whole week truly unforgettable were the
people I met. Arctic Change 2017 gave me the opportunity to interact with
researchers from around the world. They gave me insight into my own research,
and also exposed me to science I knew nothing about in regions of the Arctic I
had never even heard of! Overall, the Arctic Change 2017 was a fantastic, fun,
and educational experience.
