Executive Committee

University of Ottawa - Canada

I am a PhD candidate at the University of Ottawa, Canada. My research interests are focused around determining how permafrost is responding to climate change in the Canadian Arctic. After completing my MSc (Geography) at Queen’s University, I joined the Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics at the University of Ottawa. At Queen’s, I worked in the Canadian High Arctic looking at features related to permafrost thaw, and during this time I fell in love with the North!

My current research is focused on determining the impacts of forest fires on discontinuous permafrost in the south-western Northwest Territories, Canada. Little work has been done to quantify the impacts of fire on permafrost in this region, even though the increasing frequency and magnitude of fires has the potential to accelerate permafrost loss.

Working on large multi-disciplinary projects in northern communities has made me realize that science communication is a vital part of conducting research, and I strive to make this an important part of my projects moving forward.

Gateway Antarctica, University of Canterbury - New Zealand

My name is Gabriela and I live in beautiful New Zealand! I'm a social scientist in the making, as I'm finishing my PhD this year. My research interests are in Antarctic geopolitics and Polar community identity, particularly in the gateway cities. I am also interested in the science-policy interaction and how to bridge these two working environments for the benefit of the Polar Regions. I am passionate about Antarctica and the Southern Ocean, and I have an extensive experience in Antarctic tourism, education and outreach. I have an Honours degree in Tourism Management from the University of Patagonia, Ushuaia Campus (Argentina) and a Postgraduate Certificate in Antarctic Studies from University of Canterbury (NZ). I have recently started a postdoctoral position as Gateway Antarctica (NZ) and I have been awarded the COMNAP Fellowship 2017.

Before getting involved in academia, I worked extensively in project management with an Antarctic focus, particularly implementing marketing strategies to develop the Antarctic tourism industry, developing curriculum-based Antarctic Education Programmes for children and Community Engagement programmes in Antarctic matters. In addition, I have collaborated with the Council of Managers of Antarctic National Programs (COMNAP) annual meetings, I have represented the regional government at the Reunion of Managers for Latin American Antarctic Programs (RAPAL) and currently, I am a member of the steering committee for SCAR Capacity Building, Education and Training Advisory group (SCAR-CBET). In addition, in my spare time, I work for a small non-profit foundation for ecological restoration in remote islands (www.subantarctic.com) and I travel frequently to Antarctica working as a naturalist for ecotourism expeditions.

University of Alaska Fairbanks - United States

I am a Master’s student in Marine Biology at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, where I research feeding ecologies of Pacific walruses in a changing Arctic using stable isotopes from growth layers of teeth. I received my first Master's from Scripps Institution of Oceanography, where I studied marine biodiversity and conservation of Earth's polar regions and completed analyses with NOAA’s SWFSC on how different mating strategies affect recovery rates of dolphins impacted by fisheries. Outside of school, I co-founded a SCAR EG-BAMM working group to investigate new, non-invasive field DNA sequence approaches and am training my shelter dog for wildlife detection. I am also currently one of APECS’ Executive Committee members and Representatives to SCAR’s CBET Committee.

In my lifetime, I hope to produce scientific content that positively influences dynamic ocean management and communicate the global value of polar science to a broad audience. I believe that STEAM fields are empowered by diversity and multi-disciplinary approaches, so am proud to work alongside early career scientists from around the world as we make strides towards meeting intersectional goals.

Dartmouth College, United States

APECS President 2016-2017

APECS Executive Committee Member 2015 - 2017

I am a Ph.D. student at the University of Colorado Boulder with the Aerospace Engineering department and the Remote Sensing, Earth and Space Sciences focus area. My research looks at how changes in sea ice cover lead to warming in the upper layers of the Arctic Ocean, how that heat delays freeze-up in the fall, and how the whole process manifests as thinner first-year ice cover the following spring. I also work on projects developing novel observational methods for Arctic research, including microbuoys and unmanned-aircraft based systems. Prior to coming to CU Boulder, I grew up in Alaska and went to Dartmouth College.

University of Cambridge, United Kingdom

APECS President 2015-2016

APECS Executive Committee Member 2014 - 2016

My research aims to understand biogeochemical processes in polar/alpine environments with the main focus on constraining how chemical weathering is affected by glaciation. The chemical weathering of silicate rocks is a key feedback mechanism for the stabilisation of Earth’s climate by regulating the carbon cycle. I work with isotope tracers (Ca, Sr, Li) in stream water, together with the analysis of rock samples and laboratory experiments in order to identify which chemical reactions are occurring, with a particular focus on seasonal variations.