RESEARCH THAT HAS IMPACT

PHILANTHROPY MATTERS

RESEARCH THAT HAS IMPACT

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A letter from Deborah (Debbie) Jenkins ’00

Trent University Ph.D. Candidate, Environmental and Life Sciences

For seven years I lived and worked in the Arctic. A remote and majestic place of rugged landscapes and seemingly endless sea ice. It inspired a strong connection to the north, and the people and wildlife that are so deeply entwined.

But the fabric of the north is quickly unravelling. Wildlife is declining … the climate on a path of unparalleled warming.

My Ph.D. research at Trent University is aimed squarely at both these issues. I am studying two legendary creatures of Canada’s north —caribou and muskoxen—focusing on their ecology and the influence of climate change.

The Arctic is truly a crucible of change. It is warming at twice the rate of the rest of the world and the sea ice is thinning and retreating.

Critical to Arctic conservation, sea ice acts as a platform for wildlife to breed, raise their young, to hunt, and to rest. For caribou and muskoxen, it is a bridge between islands, allowing movement to calving grounds, food, and escape from severe weather. The loss of sea ice could impede these movements and initiate a cascade of unprecedented effects.

For my Ph.D. I have reached into a technical toolbox, using some of the most innovative tools at our disposal—satellite telemetry, remote sensing, genetics, habitat and species distribution models, and climate models—to better understand the ecology of these species and their future in this changing environment.

It is the support of many agencies and sponsors that allows me to use these powerful tools and to realize my research goals.

The list is big! It includes:

• the National Sciences and Engineering Research Council Scholarship;

• the Queen Elizabeth II Graduate Scholarship in Science and Technology;

• the Edwin William and Irene Elizabeth Curtin Scholarship;

• the Symons Trust Fund for Canadian Studies;

• the French American Charitable Trust;

• Dean’s Ph.D. Scholarships; and

• the Northern Scientific Training Program.

In combination, they have allowed me to travel north for field work, to analyze the hundreds of samples I use for genetic and dietary analysis, to participate in multiple courses here and abroad, and to advance my research, my collaborations and my knowledge.

As a northern scientist, I am intent on making a difference. Thank you for helping me do that. Sincerely, Debbie