From the Equator to the High Arctic: Remote Climate Change Fieldwork at Opposite Latitudes

Heather Summers and Elise Gallois are both physical geographers, studying the impacts of climate change on vulnerable ecosystems, and both pursued month-long fieldwork projects in remote locations in the summer of 2018. Heather spent time conducting coral reef research in the Republic of Kiribati, a low-lying island nation in the central equatorial Pacific Ocean. At 79 degrees North, Elise joined a long-term warming experiment in the Canadian High Arctic, at an abandoned mounted police base on Ellesmere Island. In this talk, Heather and Elise will share accounts of their experiences in their respective study sites, through stories, photographs, and insights on what it means to gather data in some of the world’s most rapidly changing and least understood environments.

Elise Gallois is a Leverhulme Trust Study Abroad Fellow pursuing an MSc in the Department of Geography. A member of the Tundra Ecology Lab, and associated with the International Tundra Experiment, Elise's main interest lies in the reconstruction of climate variability through natural proxies. When not counting leaf scars, Elise dabbles in photography, standup comedy and science communication.

Heather Summers is an Ocean Leaders Graduate Fellow in the Climate and Coastal Ecosystems Lab and is a second year MSc student in the Department of Geography. She is an experienced scuba diver, having conducted multiple field seasons in association with Operation Wallacea - an international marine conservation and research agency. When she isn't in the ocean scanning the reefs, Heather can be found hiking and kayaking. -Photos of yourselves for the website