The normal way of doing science in the Arctic has been completely upended and led to researchers relying more on Indigenous partners to continue their work
This translation has been automatically generated and has not been verified for accuracy.Alex Borisenko is supposed to be in Nunavut this month overseeing three research crews in different locations as part of a multiyear endeavour to monitor the region’s biodiversity.
For some, the outcome is not just a delay in research work but an irrecoverable loss of data. Many Arctic research projects are aimed at tracking the effects of climate change, which is warming the region at a faster rate than more temperate latitudes. Without consistent measurements made at the right times, such effects become harder to detect and understand.
But the entire facility is currently unoccupied apart from a skeleton maintenance crew. The station’s permanent staff, including about 20 who conduct or support research activities, are on a work-from-home directive.Nunavut has managed to remain COVID-19 free, though two presumptive cases were reported at a mine site on Baffin Island earlier last week. Together, Yukon and Northwest Territories have had only 18 reported cases and no deaths.
“Because our core business is moving lots of people around the Arctic to isolated communities, we were getting concerned,” said David Mate, who directs the program. “We didn’t want to introduce COVID-19 into those places.” But there may be limits to how much science those northern communities can support. And establishing the relationships required to make projects run smoothly takes time, said Hannah James, who was meant to be working on community engagement with the Arctic Bioscan project this summer.
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