Cambridge Bay, Nunavut - For over 60 years, the Northern Scientific Training Program (NSTP) has provided supplementary funding to help university students gain northern research experience. Polar Knowledge Canada (POLAR) has administered the NSTP since 2016.
For the 2023-2024 research season, Polar Knowledge Canada has awarded a total of $920,000 in funding to 340 students from 36 universities across Canada.
The program also offers four special awards for graduate students valued at $2,500 each. The students' project topics give a sense of the wide variety of research the program helps support:
Éric Dewailly Memorial Award (Health Sciences)
- Aimee Yurris, a Master's student in Public Health Science at the University of Waterloo, is assessing socio-economic dimensions and dynamics of community food security in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region.
George Hobson Memorial Award (Physical Sciences)
- Rachelle (Rae) Landriau, a Master of Science candidate in Geography and Environmental Studies at Carleton University, is analysing the stability of drilling waste disposal sites in the permafrost of the Mackenzie Delta, Northwest Territories.
Malcolm Ramsay Memorial Award (Life Sciences)
- Caitlyn Lyons, pursuing a Doctorate in Biological and Chemical Sciences at Wilfrid Laurier University, is studying the effects of thawing permafrost on the boreal forest of the Northwest Territories, especially whether the trees can use the nutrients released when permafrost thaws.
Robert McGhee Award (Human Sciences)
- Chloe Hamilton, a Doctoral candidate in Sociology and Anthropology at Carleton University, is studying the role of Inuit-led cultural programming in suicide prevention strategies in Nunavut.
Canada's next generation of northern researchers receive important training and support through the NSTP, one of the many ways POLAR is advancing Canada's knowledge of the Arctic and strengthening Canadian leadership in polar science and technology.
