Our work
Here, Inuit Research Coordinator Almuni Sydney Dicker is setting out a temperature logger. Temperature loggers are devices we use to measure water temperature over a period of time.
The Inuit Research Coordinators tied data loggers to rocks and submerged them in 2 creeks around Nain. The loggers help us recognize changes in water temperature through each season.
During the William Kennedy Cruise, plankton and water samples were collected and sampled for nutrient contents. Additional ocean drifters were also deployed and used for mapping ocean currents.
Here, Inuit Research Coordinator Almuni Sydney Dicker is setting out a temperature logger. Temperature loggers are devices we use to measure water temperature over a period of time.
One of our favourite parts of doing research is the ability to soak in the natural systems we are studying by conducting field work. Connecting with the outdoor world fuels our sense of wonder and curiosity about our surroundings, and makes us better scientists.
Have a look through the gallery to explore some of the work we get to do in the field, the cool instruments we get to use, and why collecting these measurements is important.
In the field...
.png)
.png)
.png)
In the lab...
Once we have collected our specimens for the field, there is more work to do! Check out some of the work going on in the laboratory after we retrieve our samples from the field.
Here, Caroline Nochasak, Sydney Dicker, and Joseph Onalik dissect Arctic char collected from Sagliik and Nain Bay.
Our Inuit Research Coordinator John Winters dissecting an Arctic char to retrieve the fish's otoliths, and subsampling for DNA and fatty acids.
Here, Inuit Research Coordinator John Winters and Katrina Anthony conduct water sampling techniques in order to measure nutrient contents.
Here, Caroline Nochasak, Sydney Dicker, and Joseph Onalik dissect Arctic char collected from Sagliik and Nain Bay.
This workshop was funded by Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) Climate Change Preparedness in the North (CCPN) program and offered great insights for Sustainable Nunatsiavut Futures around methods of knowledge mobilization, research communication, and effective models for community events. Photocredit: Eldred Allen, Bird's Eye Inc.
The On the Land Workshop also provided an opportunity for the Inuit Research Coordinators to undergo training surrounding workshop planning and facilitation. Here we see PhD student Emmanuelle Cook and Inuit Research Coordinator John Winters discussing under water and under ice noise after a hydrophone demonstration off the dock. Photocredit: Eldred Allen, Bird's Eye Inc.
Here, John Winters and Caroline Nochasak contribute to the map. At this event, elders, knowledge keepers, and community members take part in a mapping workshop by drawing travel routes to track changes
This workshop was funded by Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) Climate Change Preparedness in the North (CCPN) program and offered great insights for Sustainable Nunatsiavut Futures around methods of knowledge mobilization, research communication, and effective models for community events. Photocredit: Eldred Allen, Bird's Eye Inc.
In the community...
It is crucial to make our work accessible to community members, involving them in the conversation to receive their input and learn from their expertise.
Involving Nunatsiavummiut in our project is our priority, and keeping all lines of communication open at all stages of the research process is crucial.
Check out some of our outreach initiatives aimed at looping everyone in to take part in this work.
Around the globe...
Sharing our work with the rest of the world comes second to sharing it with Nunatsiavummiut.
Check out some opportunities we've had to communicate our work with the global public.
From left to right, PhD students Breanna Bishop & May Wang, John Winters (Inuit Research Coordinator), Dylan Seidler (Research Assistant), and Emma Harrison (Postdoctoral researcher) at the OFI conference, May 2022. The poster "Learning Together: Defining and applying values of a transdisciplinary early career research community" was about an exercise the student group, IlinniaKatigenniik ("Learning together") worked on to define shared values that guide the group's activities.
The IlinniaKatigenniik group identified and defined 6 values, and then collected data which included a budget allocation exercise and reflective writing to think about how they would spend the HQP budget for the project to uphold those values. The poster includes the research results and some reflections on the values and tensions of relationship-based research for early career researchers.
Caroline Nochasak (Nain Inuit Research Coordinator) concludes the session by stressing that "being on the land together, engaging in diverse and complex conversations, and building new and meaningful connections, helps ensure that Inuit and the land are respected when research is conducted and that Inuit are recognized as leaders.
From left to right, PhD students Breanna Bishop & May Wang, John Winters (Inuit Research Coordinator), Dylan Seidler (Research Assistant), and Emma Harrison (Postdoctoral researcher) at the OFI conference, May 2022. The poster "Learning Together: Defining and applying values of a transdisciplinary early career research community" was about an exercise the student group, IlinniaKatigenniik ("Learning together") worked on to define shared values that guide the group's activities.