Three of the Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment’s own from the Northwest Territories Geological Survey (NTGS) division recently received national recognition for excellence in research and mentorship.
Last September, Dr. Steve Kokelj, Permafrost Scientist at the NTGS, was honoured as the first-ever presenter of the J. Ross Mackay keynote lecture at the Canadian National Permafrost Conference in Quebec City. This high-profile lecture outlined the work of Dr. Kokelj and collaborators in documenting landscape change caused by the thawing of ice-rich permafrost in northern Canada. This research was captured in recent media reports on the drainage of a small lake located 20 km northwest of Fort McPherson.
Valerie Jackson, Project Geologist, learned in March she was to receive the National EarthScience Mentorship Medal, presented annually by the Canadian Federation of Earth Sciences. Valerie’s long career as a bedrock mapping geologist has seen her mentor over 100 university students both in the field and in the classroom as they completed thesis work. The enthusiastic support of former students and colleagues played a vital role in her selection. Valerie’s students have excelled in the complex task of geological mapping in remote locations under her patient tutelage.
In early April, Luke Ootes and his co-authors were informed that their peer-reviewed research paper on the geology of a region south of Great Bear Lake had been awarded the Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences award for Best Paper for 2015. The award recognizes work that is likely to have immediate or long-term impact on geoscience research topics covered by the journal. Luke’s work as Mineral Deposits Geologist has focused in part on the many geological similarities between the eastern Great Bear Lake region and the East Arm of Great Slave Lake.
While Luke and Valerie have recently moved on from NTGS, we congratulate both them and Steve on these achievements and their contributions to Canada’s North.