Context

Lakes are vital resources for northern communities, utilised for winter travel, fishing, and drinking water supply. Ongoing climate changes are altering the hydrology and ecosystems of northern lakes. This includes thinning and weakening of ice cover, potentially compromising the safety of winter travel, and drying of lakes, which threatens fish habitats and connectivity between water bodies. Increasing carbon fluxes from permafrost into lakes and the accumulation of contaminants such as mercury and rare earth elements also threaten water quality and food security. The TASIIT project aims to study the impacts of recent climate change on local lake resources in collaboration with the community of Kangiqsualujjuaq. Each Master's project will include field campaigns with the Kangiqsualujjuaq community.

Three funded Master's projects are offered within this initiative

Project #1. Monitoring and Modelling Lake Ice Cover. This project aims to combine drone-mounted radar (GPR) measurements with community monitoring of ice conditions to improve a predictive model of lake ice thickness.

Project #2. Reconstruction and Historical Analysis of Hydrological Variability of Lakes. This project aims to couple in-situ water-level observations with satellite remote sensing data to reconstruct historical changes in lake hydrology.

Project #3. Analysis of spatio-temporal variability of lake water quality. This project seeks to better understand the spatiotemporal variability of water quality (turbidity, chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM), chlorophyll, mercury, and oxygen) through in-situ measurements and satellite remote sensing.

These projects will be supervised by professors Christophe Kinnard (UQTR), Alexandre Roy (UQTR), François Guillemette (UQTR), and Marc Amyot (Université de Montréal).

Profil recherché et application

Candidate Profile: Bachelor’s degree in geography or ecology with skills/interests/aptitude in geomatics/remote sensing.

Scholarship Offered: CAD 21,000 per year, for 2 years.

Start Date: Fall semester 2025.

Information/Application: christophe.kinnard@uqtr.ca

To apply, applicants should send a CV, a motivation letter, and contact information for two references.