INSTITUT NORDIQUE DU QUÉBEC (INQ) AT A GLANCE
We are pleased to send you the first issue of the INQ newsletter. The newsletter will be published three times a year and keep you up-to-date on the INQ's work and activities. For those of you who are not familiar with the institute, INQ is the result of an important collaboration between the University of Laval, McGill University, the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS), and numerous public, private, and academic partners. Its mission is to keep its partners at the forefront of knowledge acquisition and application with respect to northern and circumpolar development. We invite you to visit our website regularly for more information. Happy reading!
- the INQ team
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2015‒2016 Activity Report
This is the second activity report of the INQ highlighting progress and achievements in 2015-2016 (July 1 to June 30). It has been a busy year for INQ partners as they work together to strengthen the foundations of this major interdisciplinary initiative for the ethical and harmonious development of Northern Québec and the Canadian Arctic.
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Working groups
A number of working groups were established this year in an unprecedented effort to define our main priorities in Northern research.
Infrastructure Working group
The mandate of this working group is to coordinate and facilitate access to all INQ infrastructures, facilities, and services. The group aims to optimize management, use, and acquisition of infrastructure while at the same time respecting the various components of the INQ and its partners. One of the group's first activities is to compile an inventory of the existing infrastructures available to INQ members. An online inventory management tool is currently in development and should be ready by Spring 2017.
Working group for research axes
This group, in collaboration with our partners and based on existing programs, is responsible for defining INQ’s priority research areas. To define the themes and clarify INQ’s scientific programming, research leaders were identified and invited to organize workshops on the Institute's six priority areas. This involved hundreds of hours of preparation and discussion and numerous meetings with nearly 150 researchers and representatives of some 45 organizations—a major collaborative effort. Below is a list of the workshops that were held or will be held:
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Priority 1 – Societies and cultures
May 6 - 30 people
Priority 2 – Health
June 17 - 15 people
Priority 3 – Functioning of ecosystem and environmental protection
February 10, April 27, May 5, and May 26 (land and ocean track)
Total of 50 people |
Priority 4 – Infrastructure and technology
June 3 - 20 people
Priority 5 – Natural resources
May 26 - 40 people
Priority 6 – Knowledge mobilisation and technology
To come. |
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A summary report of the accomplishments achieved in these workshops will be drafted, and presented at a symposium proposed for the spring of 2017.
First nations Working group
This working group was established to identify common and specific research needs and priorities for Northern Aboriginal communities, establish a code for the responsible conduct of research in the North in accordance with the activities of First Nations people, and to define Aboriginal knowledge and identify its role within the INQ.
Working group on sustainable development
This group is tasked with identifying sustainable development objectives for Northern Québec based on those of the United Nations, as well as to develop suitable indicators and a sustainable development toolbox for INQ research in the North.
Working group on partnerships
This working group is in charge of defining the scope (conditions, type, etc.) of INQ partnerships, formulating the list of current INQ partners, determining the procedure for identifying partners, drawing up a partnership development strategy, suggesting a partnership financing model, and proposing an innovation plan.
Still to come.
A number of important announcements are pending at INQ. We started looking for a science and innovation director last spring and we will be announcing the new appointment shortly. INQ has also established several partnered research chairs. An internal competition to recruit chairholders was held at each of the three founding universities last winter. The recruiting process took place last spring and the chairholders and their research programs will be announced shortly. One of the exciting projects underway at INQ is a mapping exercise to create an online database of researchers with northern expertise. We hope to have this tool ready to launch in 2017.
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INQ SHINES AT THE ARCTIC CIRCLE ANNUAL ASSEMBLY
October 7 to 9, 2016, Reykjavik (Iceland)
At the fourth annual Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavik, INQ led a scientific workshop on the impact of climate change on northern ecosystems, economies, and communities. Participants heard from a panel of academics, scientists, indigenous representatives, and government officials that discussed the importance of both scientific and traditional knowledge, the sharing of expertise, and cooperation for sustainable development in the North. Québec premier Philippe Couillard spoke at the opening ceremony of the Assembly and delivered opening remarks at the workshop. The event was co-organized by the Québec government and INQ.
The following experts were invited to talk about their research:
- Alain Bourque, Executive Director, Ouranos
- Louis Fortier, Scientific Director, ArcticNet, Université Laval
- Adamie Delilse Alaku, Executive Vice President, Renewable Resources, Makivik Corporation
- Ari Kristinn Jonsson, Dean, University of Reykjavik
- Finn Danielsen, Director, Nordic Resource Management Project, Nordic Council of Ministers
- Paul Shrivastava, Executive Director, Future Earth
The panel program can be found here.
Press coverage of the event:
- L’Actualité – October 4, 2016 – Arctic Circle: pause parlementaire en Islande pour Philippe Couillard
- Le Soleil – October 8, 2016 – Le Québec à l'ère de la diplomatie climatique
- La Presse – October 8, 2016 – Le Nord au coeur de la prochaine politique internationale du Québec
- Le Fil – October 13, 2016 – Les grands acteurs du Nord réunis
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NORTHERN HEALTH FORUM
June 16, 2016, Université Laval
INQ held the first ever Northern Health Forum on June 16 at the University of Laval. The forum addressed major research issues in northern Aboriginal health at a time when a sharp increase has been observed in the use of the natural environment by a variety of stakeholders. More than 150 people, including researchers, Aboriginal community representatives, health and social services professionals, and federal and provincial representatives were in attendance. Presentations covered topics related to health, diet, and social and environmental determinants of health.
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Source : https://www.lefil.ulaval.ca/service-communautes-nordiques/
LAUNCH OF NASIVVIK RESEARCH CHAIR
June 16, 2016
In parallel with the Northern Health Forum, the University of Laval launched the Nasivvik Research Chair in Ecosystem-based Approaches to Northern Health. The creation of this new chair in the Faculty of Medicine was made possible through financial support from the ArcticNet Network of Centres of Excellence and Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada.
Pictured above is the Chairholder, Mélanie Lemire, (fourth from the left) at the launch with the following (left to right): Rénald Bergeron, Dean of the Faculty of Medicine; Ellen Avard, Director of the Nunavik Research Centre; Éric Bauce, Executive Vice Rector, Development, Université Laval; Sarah Kalhok Bourque, Acting Director of Research on Northern Sciences and Contaminants at Indigenous and Northern Affairs Canada; and Martin Fortier, outgoing Executive Director of ArcticNet.
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ADN PLAN NORD SYMPOSIUM: ACCOMPAGNER LE DÉVELOPPEMENT DU NORD
March 10, 2016, Centre des Arts Baie-Comeau
The Manicouagan Chamber of Commerce (CCM), the Manicouagan-Uapishka World Biosphere Reserve, the Centre for Experimentation and Development in the Boreal Forest (CEDFOB), and the Council of the Innu organized the first ever symposium on northern development and the Plan Nord to be held north of the 49th parallel. The symposium was an important event for socioeconomic stakeholders to learn how they may benefit from the Plan Nord and to explore ways to facilitate the integration of projects that bring economic benefit to Northern Québec. Some 200 people attended the event which included a presentation on the INQ by Louis Fortier.
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DECODE THE WORLD: NORDICITY AT MUSÉE DE LA CIVILISATION DE QUÉBEC
March 19-20, 2016
Scientists, artists, and communicators gathered at the Musée de la civilization for the second edition of Decode the World, which this year addressed the theme of “Nordicité”. Workshops, shows, music, cinema and northern cuisine were on the menu as well as an invitation to the public to participate in a "supper-chat with the Amundsen". The event was co-directed by the Musée de la civilization, Université Laval, Fonds de recherche du Québec, and the Cégep Garneau Physical Science Demonstration Center, in collaboration with Forêt Montmorency, Nordic Institute of Quebec, CCGS Amundsen, ArticNet, Canadian Coast Guard, CarpeDiem Film & TV, Seville Films, Pleau, Le Soleil and Fairmont Le Château Frontenac. INQ members invited to speak at the event included Michel Allard, Caroline Desbiens and Louis Fortier.
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LES AFFAIRES – OBJECTIF NORD: 9th EDITION
April 26, 2016
Les Événements Les Affaires brought together professionals and business people from across the province to the 9th Objectif Nord conference at the Québec City Convention Centre. The event focused on concrete development projects, short- and medium-term demand in various industrial sectors, as well as business opportunities for Québec companies that are either directly or indirectly associated with the natural resource sector. Local development issues, particularly on the North Shore and the Abitibi-Témiscamingue region, were also addressed. René Therrien, Chair of the implementation committee, presented on the INQ.
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MASSIVE OPEN ONLINE COURSE (MOOC) – LE QUÉBEC NORDIQUE: ENJEUX, ESPACES ET CULTURES
Course runs February 13 to April 10, 2017
MOOCs are non-credit, university level, distance learning courses offered free of charge. Le Québec Nordique : Enjeux, Espaces et Cultures—an INQ initiative – is a MOOC on the challenges, environment, and culture of Northern Québec. The course is designed for anyone with an interest in northern Québec who wishes to learn about the area and its history, communities, and challenges. It will introduce students to the social and political issues of Northern Québec, the ancestral homeland of a number of Aboriginal nations and offer a better understanding of northern cultures, the region’s role in the collective imagination, different visions of northern development, and the region’s social and political evolution. The MOOC will be available to an unlimited number of participants from around the world.
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UPCOMING EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES
- Launch of three INQ-funded research chairs and the announcement of INQ’s new director of science and innovation, November 1, 2016
- INQ implementation committee meeting, November 28, 2016
- Arctic Circle Forum, Québec City, Canada, December 11-13, 2016 http://plannord.gouv.qc.ca/en/forum-en/
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