Students on Ice Antarctic University Expedition:
February, 12 - 28, 2011
On expedition, several different learning formats are used. These learning formats include: lectures, seminars, workshops, participatory presentations and hands-on research activities that will be shore, Zodiac, and ship-based in setting. We also incorporate time for small group discussion and reflection opportunities into our days. Each participating student will have enrolled in one of the credit-courses being offered in conjunction with the Students on Ice Antarctic University Expedition 2011. Each of these courses will come with their own specific pre-expedition, expedition, and post-expedition requirements and activities. See information on Credit Courses below.
Students on Ice believes in providing University student participants with a unique educational experience that will challenge the way in which they perceive the world. Our aim is not to simply provide students with a trip to a unique destination, but rather to give students an opportunity to have an aesthetic experience in some of the most wild and awe-inspiring ecosystems in the world. We do not want students to just pass through a place with camera in hand, but rather to listen to the land; to feel these natural places and in turn, explore how humans feel when immersed in such places. Ultimately, our goal is for students to experience a transformative connection with Nature – a connection that changes the way they understand and act in the world.
EXPERIENCE | UNDERSTANDING | TRANSFORMATION | ACTION | CHANGE
Our approach to education weaves together elements of experiential,
expeditionary, and problem-based learning. In starting with a very ‘hands-on’ approach,
active participation and critical thinking are important elements in
the SOI learning process. Through posing questions, experimenting and
constructing meaning, the learning becomes personal, relational and exploratory
in nature. Our expedition will become a symbolic learning journey from
the initial development of ideas, to addressing problems and possible
solutions, to final reflections. We recognize that the journey will be
unique for each student, as will the manner in which each student effects
positive change in his/her individual life following the expedition.
In addition to the credit-courses being offered in conjunction with the expedition, there will be a general education program for all participating students. The following are some examples of the lectures, workshops, participatory presentations, hands-on activities and topics that will take place on the expedition:
i) Lectures:
ii) Workshops and Hands-On Activities (on-ship, on-shore):
iii) Peer teaching seminars:
A combination of the above learning formats are used on each day throughout our expedition.
The educational benefits of the Students on Ice Antarctic University Expedition 2011 will be shared with thousands of youth and the general public around the world via live video-conferencing, the expedition website, presentations, media attention, conferences and research workshops. Partnerships with various Universities and other educational organizations will bring the expedition directly to classrooms around the world.
Woven into the expedition is an over arching theme: Environmental Leadership. The world is a global ecosystem in which all natural and human systems are interconnected. Humans are part of Nature and bound by the laws of the natural world. However, in today’s mechanistic, consumer-oriented world our lifestyles have led to a disconnection with Nature. We are often unaware or apathetic to where our most basic needs come from – food, clothing, shelter. Our over consumptive practices have led to resource depletion, atmospheric pollution, diminishing biodiversity, and most commonly discussed in the media, climate change. As an increasingly global society, we need to move towards living more sustainably. Today’s youth have the opportunity to lead the way.
From an environment perspective, we focus our expeditions’ lectures,
discussions, and activities on current environmental issues facing the
regions we are travelling through. Climate change is a particular focus
on all our expeditions.
From a leadership perspective, we will explore how youth are effective agents of change and how their efforts contribute to positive societal action. Youth have an opportunity to establish sustainable livelihoods and make informed ecological-based choices early in their lives. The choices they make have a ripple effect and the actions youth take make a difference. In developing the leadership component of our expedition’s theme we facilitate ongoing group discussions on ways to get involved in environmental initiatives upon returning home.
The theme of ‘Environmental Leadership’ weaves itself through our education program in conjunction with our ongoing exploration of the history, culture, polar sciences, and politics of our place of travel.
Current partner Universities and courses offered include:
McGill University:
Department of Earth System Science (course code pending) - Antarctica and the Earth System
Professor: Dr. Eric Galbraith - Antarctica occupies a unique position on the Earth. Lying over the south pole, and completely surrounded by a circumpolar ocean, it is more isolated and climatically extreme than any other continent. Yet, it's impact on the world is large. The Antarctic ice sheets contain a huge volume of seawater, sufficient to raise global sea level by more than 70 m. The cold temperatures of Antarctica are transmitted globally through the circulation of deep ocean waters. The southern ocean is of critical importance for global biogeochemical cycles, as it is the most important conduit linking the deep sea to the atmosphere, and supplies much of the surface ocean with nutrients.
Participants in this field-based course will cross the Southern Ocean from Ushuaia to the Antarctic peninsula, and visit multiple landing sites. Course projects will involve oceanographic sampling, and shore- based work. Prerequisite: permission of the instructor.
University of Alberta:
EAS429 - Practical Study in Earth and Atmospheric Science
Professor: Dr. Marianne Douglas - Intensive field or practical study in Earth and Atmospheric Science (EAS), typically as part of a team working off-campus. Details and areas of study may vary from year to year; consult the department about current offerings, fees and timing. In 2011, the field course will take place in and around the Antarctica Peninsula, focusing on high latitude environmental change and the associated biological and physical changes. Prerequisite: Any 300-level EAS course and permission of the instructor. Requires payment of additional student instructional support fees.
University of Northern British Columbia:
ORTM433 - Antarctic Tourism: Examining impacts and management in practice
Professor: Dr. Pat Maher - An in-depth examination of the environmental, social and economic impacts of Antarctic tourism, as well as the current strategies and future scenarios used to manage the industry. No prerequisites required.
University of Ottawa:
GEG4100 - Glaciology
Professor: Dr. Luke Copland - An introduction to Glaciology, with a particular focus on Antarctica. Includes discussion of ice dynamics, ice streams, snow pack processes, icebergs, sea ice, ice shelves and subglacial lakes. Prerequisite: see below.
Prerequisites:
In order for students to benefit the most from their Antarctic experience, all students enrolling in one of the University credit-courses being offered in conjunction with the expedition must take, or be currently enrolled in, a regular lecture course related to the polar regions prior to their joining the ship. For students who need to take such a class, options are:
1. University of Alberta EAS458: Cold Regions Geoscience (to be confirmed when offered)
Antarctica: A review of the unique environments of the only continent reserved exclusively for scientific exploration. Exploration; evolution and role of the Antarctic Treaty System; the evolution of Southern Ocean circulation and Antarctic climate; geology and tectonic evolution; climate and glacial history; the Antarctic Ice Sheet, subglacial lakes, ice shelves, and associated microbial systems and biogeochemistry. Opportunities to participate in field study in Antarctica may be available.
Prerequisite: EAS225 or 250 or permission of the instructors. [Faculty of Science]
Offered MWF 11:00 – 11:50 Fall Term. NB: This course will be taught in a smart classroom with video-conferencing capacity. Students based outside of Edmonton can therefore take this class via distance learning, provided that they arrange for an appropriate smart classroom at their home institution.
2. University of Ottawa GEG4103: Cold Regions Hydrology (to be confirmed when offered)
Role of hydrology in cold regions, with a particular focus on Northern Canada. Discussion of the hydrological processes and features associated with sea ice, river ice, lake ice, icebergs, glaciers, snow and permafrost.
3. University of Ottawa GEG4126: Applications of Remote Sensing in the Polar Regions (to be confirmed when offered) Discussion of the current impacts of climate change in the polar regions, with a focus on the practical applications of remote sensing to measure and determine these changes. Includes review of the results from optical, radar, gravity and altimetry satellites (i.e., ASTER, Radarsat, ERS, GRACE, MODIS, Landsat, IceSAT).
Enrolment:
Once your application to join the expedition has been approved, and you have paid the first deposit (see "Expedition Fees" below), please contact the following if you will enroll in a course:
1. McGill University:
Onboard course: Contact Dr. Eric Galbraith (eric.galbraith@mcgill.ca) for further information on how to enroll inAntarctica and the Earth System (course code pending).
2. University of Alberta:
Prerequisite course: If you are already enrolled as a student at UAlberta, you can enroll online for the EAS458. If you are NOT a University of Alberta student, then in order to enroll, you must enroll for the course(s) and make the appropriate payment. You'll have to do so via the on-line services at UAlberta: http://registrar.ualberta.ca and register for the course via the "Open studies" option (i.e. there won't be a particular faculty association). Once you open that web page, select the left-hand menu's third option from the bottom, i.e., "on line" and then select "application/reapplication for admission" option. From there you can continue through the process to register as an "Open Studies" student. Once you have successfully done that, then you need to notify Earth and Atmospheric Sciences' Undergraduate Program Administrator, Fran Metcalfe Fran.Metcalfe@ualberta.ca so as to complete the registration for the course. Refer to the Fees Payment Guide in the University Regulations and Information for Students section of the Calendar (Faculty of Science). More information: http://www.registrar.ualberta.ca/ro.cfm?id=1
Onboard course: Contact Dr. Marianne Douglas (marianne.douglas@ualberta.ca) for further information on how to enroll in EAS429, the onboard field course that will be offered for credit on the ship.
3. University of Northern British Columbia:
Onboard course: Contact Dr. Patrick Maher (maherp@unbc.ca) for further information on how to enroll in ORTM433.
4. University of Ottawa:
Prerequisite courses: If you are already enrolled as a student at the University of Ottawa, you can enroll online through Rabaska for either of the prerequisite classes. If you are not currently enrolled at uOttawa, please contact Sylvie Thériault, the academic assistant in the Department of Geography (stheriau@uottawa.ca).
Onboard course: You will be contacted by Sylvie Thériault directly to confirm your registration if you selected GEG4100 as the class that you would like to take onboard the ship. Any questions can also be directed to the professor in charge of the class, Dr. Luke Copland (luke.copland@uottawa.ca).
NB: students will be required to pay regular tuition fees to enroll in uOttawa courses (which may be higher for international students). More information:
http://www.uottawa.ca/academic/info/regist/fees/fees2007_en.htm
Geoff GreenCanadian adventurer, environmentalist and educator Geoff Green has been leading expeditions and adventures from pole to pole for the past fifteen years. Many notable organizations such as the Discovery Channel, World Wildlife Fund, National Audubon Society and the Smithsonian Institution enlist Geoff to lead their groups into the world’s most remote and exciting regions.
In 2005, he received a Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition from the U.S. Congress for his work with youth and the environment. He was also voted one of Canada’s “Top 40 under 40” – an annual national prize event saluting Canada’s top young leaders. In 2004, Outpost Magazine chose Geoff as one of the “Top 5 Canadian Explorers” to watch. In 2007, Geoff and the Students on Ice program received the prestigious Explorer’s Club Citation of Merit.
Geoff is the founder and Executive Director of Students on Ice Expeditions, an award-winning educational organization based in Gatineau, Québec, Canada. The program – now in its tenth year – has taken over 1,500 students, teachers and scientists from around the world on expeditions to both the Arctic and the Antarctic. The goal of this unique project is to give the world’s youth a heightened understanding and respect for the planet’s global ecosystem, and the inspiration to protect it.
As expedition leader, Geoff is a veteran of 76 Antarctic expeditions and 32 Arctic expeditions.
David Burgess, Ph.D.David Burgess joined the Canada Centre for Remote Sensing (CCRS) in 2006 as a Physical Scientist where he specializes in the use of airborne and satellite remote sensing technology to study the mass balance and dynamics of ice caps in the Canadian Arctic. Dr. Burgess obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Alberta during which time he spent 7 field seasons conducting glaciological studies on the Devon and Prince of Wales ice caps, Queen Elizabeth Islands. His research has focused primarily on quantifying recent changes in volume of the Devon ice cap, and studying the patterns of ice motion as measured from Satellite Radar Interferometry. Since 2004, David has coordinated efforts between the University of Alberta and the Geological Survey of Canada towards calibration and validation of the CryoSat radar altimeter over the Devon ice cap. CryoSat is a European Space Agency initiative (due for launch in 2009) with a primary objective of measuring thickness changes of all land ice on Earth. Currently, David is primarily responsible for monitoring the mass balance of 4 ice caps in the Canadian high Arctic — a responsibility held for the past 49 years by the late Dr. Roy Koerner of the Geological Survey of Canada. In December 2007, David was appointed the Canadian Representative to the International Arctic Science Committee’s Working Group on Arctic Glaciology.
Olle CarlssonOlle was born in Sweden and is currently living there. Formerly a teacher, he left the profession in order to write, photograph, play jazz and travel. He has travelled extensively in the Atlantic sector of the Arctic, including the Northwest Passage, Greenland and Svalbard.
Since 1991, he has spent the northern winter seasons in his favorite area, Antarctica, sharing the migration route of the Arctic Tern, always heading for summer, in the North as in the South. In Antarctica he has been an expedition leader, naturalist and lecturer for various organizations. Olle admits to being infected by the Polar bug, defined by the early explorers as “if you have ventured into the ice once, you will always long to come back.” Apart from the remote North and South, he has worked as a naturalist guide, lecturer and Zodiac driver along the coasts of Europe, around England and in the Baltic Sea. He has backpacked parts of Asia and participated in a tree planting project in Kenya.
Together with his friend Stefan Lundgren, Olle has published Antarctica - In the interest of all mankind (1990), currently only in Swedish and appointed the Panda Book of 1991 by the Swedish section of World Wildlife Fund. More recently, Olle and Stefan have completed Svalbard - The Land beyond the Northcape (in English). In 1998-99, they completed another book in English, Antarctica - A souvenir book from the 7th continent. He has written several articles for magazines and newspapers, and also lectured and given slide-show presentations on the Polar areas around Sweden, Denmark and in the US.
Luke Copland, Ph.D.Luke Copland’s research focuses on improving our understanding of glacier dynamics and recent changes of ice masses, and their links to climate variability. He uses both satellite image analysis and fieldwork to make these measurements, and in recent years he has undertaken fieldwork in the Canadian High Arctic, Karakoram Himalaya, Antarctic, and European Alps. He also leads an annual University of Ottawa, Department of Geography glaciological field trip to the Mt. St. Elias Icefield in Kluane National Park, Yukon.
Luke Copland was recently awarded a Canadian Foundation for Innovation award to develop a new ‘Laboratory for Cryospheric Research’ in the University of Ottawa’s Department of Geography. This lab will house a suite of new computers, GIS and satellite image analysis software, together with a range of field equipment such as differential GPS units and ground-penetrating radar systems.
Marianne Douglas, Ph.D.Marianne Douglas has spent the past two decades conducting research on global environmental change. A professor in the Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Alberta, she is also the director of the Canadian Circumpolar Institute. Although the focus of her research has been in the Canadian Arctic Islands, she also spends time in Antarctica and has completed field seasons in the Dry Valleys of Antarctica as well as on Livingston Island off the NW tip of the Antarctic Peninsula. She has also worked on board ship-based expeditions as a lecturer around the Antarctic Peninsula. She and her students use paleolimnology, i.e., the study of lake sediments, to reconstruct past environmental baseline conditions. Sediments are akin to an archive as they preserve a variety of microfossils and other proxy indicators of past environmental conditions. Only by understanding the natural variability of a region can one decipher the nature and degree of ongoing change. She and her research team have been documenting the effects of global warming in the Arctic as well as the effects human activities are having on the environment.
Marianne completed her University education at Queen’s University, followed by a research associate position at the University of Massachusetts in Amherst Massachusetts. Prior to joining the University of Alberta in September 2006, Marianne spent 10 years as a professor in the Geology Department at the University of Toronto. She strongly believes that knowledge gained first hand, such as by visiting the circumpolar regions, is the more useful and effective base for education.
Eric Galbraith, Ph.D. A native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Eric worked as a geologist in South America and the Canadian Arctic before becoming an oceanographer. His research looks at how global ocean circulation interacts with the rest of the climate system, what this means for marine life, and how the ocean will respond to future climate change. He has lectured aboard cruises throughout the North Atlantic, and in both the Arctic and the Antarctic. He recently completed a Postdoctoral Fellowship at Princeton University and is currently an Assistant Professor at McGill University.
Hans Gelter, Ph.D. Hans Gelter, PhD in Biology, holds a faculty position as Senior lecturer in Biology and education program coordinator for the Master Program in Professional Experience Production, at the Department of Music, Media and Experience Production, Luleå University of Technology, Sweden. He teaches various subjects within the Experience Production Study Program, such as Hospitality, Interpretation, Guiding, Environmental and Outdoor Education, Experience production, Creativity Management etc. He has previously been teaching Biology, Environmental and Outdoor Education at the Department of Teachers Education at Luleå University of Technology, and Genetics, Evolution and Ecology at Uppsala University. Gelter has personal experiences as Nature Interpreter and Guide through the Swedish company TEMA Resor with Safari in Tanzania and Nature Trekking in Greece, Madeira, Austrian Mountains and Safaris and Trekking in Nepal. Gelter has also a Nature Tourist Company, Guide Natura and is presently engaged in a validation/certification system for Nature Guides in Sweden. Gelter has participated in scientific expeditions on Greenland and along the Northern Russian Arctic coast as well as private nature tours in Northern Canada, USA, Europe, Central Russia, Australia and New Zealand and is a keen Mountaineer with climbing expeditions in the Alps, Alai and Himalayas. Gelter is also a member of the UArctic Network for Northern Tourism Researchers and the International Network on Polar Tourism Research.
Santiago ImbertiSantiago was born and raised in Patagonia, which meant that wilderness was only a short step from his front door. A long lasting love for nature was the logical consequence of the years lived there. He obtained a degree in tourism and ornithology, which allowed him to combine his love for nature and the outdoors with his work as a bird-watching, fly-fishing mountain guide. During the off-season Santiago continues his ornithology research focusing his attention on the birds of Patagonia and Bolivia. He also uses this time as an opportunity to travel around the world bush walking and birding, studying different bird communities and their surrounding environments. Santiago photographs and writes about the places he visits and his experiences as a guide, trying to convey in words and pictures some sense of the magic of nature. He has traveled to Antarctic many times. His articles and stories have been published in scientific journals and popular travel magazines.
Patrick Maher, Ph.D. Pat Maher's research focuses on the management of tourism and outdoor recreation in remote regions and the meanings visitors derive from those types of experiences. In recent years he has undertaken projects in the Yukon, Nunavut, Labrador, Norway, Iceland, Haida Gwaii, sub-Antarctic New Zealand, and the Antarctic (Peninsula and the Ross Sea region). Recent university field programs he has led include a month on the Athabasca River (as part of a four month personal expedition to the Arctic Ocean), a month on the Stikine River, and three weeks throughout northern/coastal BC.
Pat held a Commonwealth Scholarship and a New Zealand Post/Antarctica New Zealand Research Scholarship for his doctoral work in the Ross Sea region; he is an international fellow of the Explorers Club and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society; and recently received a UNBC Excellence in Teaching Award as a result of his 2007 field school on the Stikine River.
Lee Narraway Lee Narraway spent her childhood exploring the wetlands, forests and lakes of Eastern Canada with her father, an outstanding naturalist and environmentalist. This ignited a passion and curiosity for the outdoors that continues to this day.
Lee received her first camera at ten years of age and soon discovered the joy of sharing her view of the world with others. She uses natural light and her ability to communicate with people to create unique environmental portraits. Her professional career is now focused on travel and adventure photography.
In her quest for outstanding images, Lee has skied, hiked, canoed, backpacked, and traveled by dog team, horseback, snow machine, helicopter, hot air balloon and icebreaker to remote and isolated parts of the world.
When she visited Canada's High Arctic, Lee became fascinated with its diversity and haunting beauty. Now, she strives to capture its mystery and magic on film by documenting the dramatic scenery, the wildlife and the evolving lifestyle and culture of the Inuit.
Based in White Lake, Ontario, this professional adventure photographer continues to travel the world, discovering wildlife, landscapes and characters through the lens of her camera. Her popular photography workshops have been taught in such diverse areas as Australia, Canada, Chile and the Arctic.
Scobie Pye‘Scobie’ Pye is a research scientist with a Masters of Science degree from the University of Tasmania, Australia. Over the past 30 years much of his life has been spent in southern latitudes working with the British Antarctic Survey, and the Australian Antarctic Division and the University of Tasmania. He has spent four winters and seven summers on the island of South Georgia, two summers on the floating ice shelf station of Halley Bay in the Weddell Sea and two winters and nine summers on Australia’s Macquarie Island. Scobie’s main scientific interests are focused on the conservation and management of Polar Regions. He has worked and traveled extensively in the northern latitudes. In 1978, Scobie was awarded the Fuchs Medal for outstanding service to the British Antarctic Survey.
Belinda SawyerNew Zealander Belinda Sawyer has extensive experience planning, organizing and leading expeditions to the world’s far-flung outposts. Belinda is a certified ship’s master, dive master, and has led many expeditions to the Antarctic continent and to extreme depth sites such as the RMS Titanic and the German battleship Bismarck. She is one of world’s deepest diving females having completed a dive to 16,500 ft. in 2005.
Belinda has spent 11 seasons in Antarctica in a wide range of capacities including guide, naturalist, lecturer, environmental officer, logistics & safety specialist. She also promotes exploration and sustainable management of the world oceans through various education institutes.
Tim StrakaTim co-creates transformative learning experiences with students of all ages. Committed to environmental and civic education, he has taught at elementary, secondary and post-secondary levels across North America, in Central Europe, in the Arctic and Antarctica.
Tim’s interests range widely from philosophy, to eco-psychology, to bio-regionalism, and youth empowerment. He has worked with Outward Bound Canada, the YMCA of Greater Vancouver, the Kawartha Pine Ridge District School Board, the Kawartha Outdoor Education Centre, Ontario’s Ministry of Education and several Canadian Parliamentarians. Tim is a member of the Canadian Network for Environmental Education and Communication, the Ontario College of Teachers and the Council of Outdoor Educators of Ontario.
Tim lives an active lifestyle. He enjoys skiing, paddling, swimming, biking, hucking frisbees and back-country travel. Tim is currently building a home which will meet Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design/LEED™ for Homes Platinum Certification.
Tim earned a Master of Science degree in Environmental Studies from Lesley University, and undergraduate degrees in Outdoor and Experiential Education (Queen’s University) and Politics (Bishop’s University). He has worked full-time with Students on Ice since 2007.
Alex TaylorAlex Taylor’s Antarctic career kicked off in 1992 when he was hired by the British Antarctic Survey as a polar guide for a glaciology project in the shadow of Mt. Vinson. This led to dozens of other expeditions and soon to leading expeditions in the High Canadian Arctic. A love of the polar region’s incredible landscapes, wildlife, history and other-worldly experiences keeps him coming back to these remote locations year after year.
More than 10 seasons south in Antarctica have afforded Alex the privilege of visiting many parts of the continent working in support of science projects for the British Antarctic Survey and the United States Antarctic Program. He has also provided technical and safety support for television and films down south. Most notable were the two ship-based expeditions to film the award-winning feature “Shackleton’s Antarctic Adventure”.
Alex has a degree in Kinesiology from the University of Calgary, specializing in Outdoor Pursuits and Geography. He has climbed and traveled all over the world but the Canadian Rockies and the Canadian Arctic remain his favourite places on the planet.
Alex’s home base is in Canmore, Alberta. He has been working in the Rocky Mountain National Parks for over 23 years. His eclectic work life has always been focused on the wild outdoors and has included jobs as a wildland fire fighter, wildlife technician, weather station specialist, still photographer and videographer, to name a few. When not in Antarctica, Alex works as a back country project manager for Parks Canada in Lake Louise.
Niki TrudeauNiki holds a Bachelor of Science in Human Kinetics and is a graduate of the University of Ottawa's Bachelor of Education program. Her love for the outdoors began on paddling trips with her family in Algonquin Park. It was this passion for environmental awareness and outdoor adventures that brought Niki to Students on Ice.
As the SOI Participant Coordinator, Niki's ability to smoothly coordinate trip logistics and be the primary participant liaison is instrumental in making SOI expeditions successful. She manages the day-to-day operations of our field programs and provides support for expedition staff, educators, chaperones and student participants. As part of her work, Niki travels on Arctic and Antarctic expeditions. This immersion helps her understand the student and staff experience and provide support to all those hoping to participate in SOI expeditions.
Michel ValiquetteMichel Valiquette is an experienced and accomplished producer of adventure and travel documentaries. He is the founder and owner of Valiquette Productions which is an independent production company based in Montréal, Québec. He has worked with Geoff on various film projects in the polar regions for the past 4 years and has traveled and documented Students on Ice expeditions in both the Arctic and Antarctica. Michel is an avid sailor and has also participated in the production and filming of many other expeditions, notably, “Mission Antarctique” a Radio-Canada production documenting a year-long expedition in Antarctica with Jean Lemire aboard the Sedna IV.
If you are interested in joining the Students on Ice Antarctic University 2011 field staff team, please contact Tim Straka, Education Program Director (tim@studentsonice.com).