ArcticNet Scientific Director Wins 2015 Northern Science Award
Dr. Louis Fortier, scientific director of ArcticNet, was awarded the 2015 Northern Science Award on Nov. 18, Polar Knowledge Canada announced.
Dr. Louis Fortier, scientific director of ArcticNet, a Canadian Network of Centres of Excellence that brings together specialists from 30 universities to study climate change in the coastal Canadian Arctic, was awarded the 2015 Northern Science Award on Nov. 18, Polar Knowledge Canada announced. The presentation ceremony took place prior to the annual dinner of the Fellows of the Royal Canadian Geographical Society in Ottawa.
Launched in June 2015, Polar Knowledge Canada is a government agency that is intended to make Canada a leader in polar science and technology and promotes the development and distribution of knowledge of other circumpolar regions, including Antarctica. It has a hub for science and technology research in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut called the Canadian High Arctic Research Station and, as part of Canada's Northern Strategy, will improve economic opportunities, environmental stewardship, and quality of life for northerners and other Canadians, according to the government.
Fortier is a marine biologist at Laval University.
The Northern Science Award consists of the Centenary Medal, which commemorates the hundredth anniversary of first International Polar Year (1882-1883), and a $10,000 cash prize. It is presented annually to an individual or a group who has made a significant contribution to meritorious knowledge and understanding of the Canadian North and, in the spirit of the last International Polar Year (2007-2008), recognizes the transformation of knowledge into action.