About the Innovator

Internationally recognized for her visionary scholarship and commitment to science that supports diversity, culture and resilient societies, Dr. Jackie Dawson leads the Arctic Corridors and Northern Voices project (ACNV). She is Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Environment, Society and Policy at the University of Ottawa and is the Co-Scientific Director of the Network of Centres of Excellence ArcticNet where she leads a revolutionary new research program called North by North. Her ground-breaking research on the human dimensions of environmental change in Arctic Canada has earned her numerous accolades including membership in the College of the Royal Society of Canada and the Global Young Academy. She led the drafting of a 2018 G7 Science statement on Arctic oceans and resilient communities and has contributed to several UN initiatives as an invited author for special reports by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, World Meteorological Organization, and Arctic Council. Her ambitious leadership brings together Federal agencies, Inuit organizations, local communities, scholars, and the shipping industry, to position Canada as a world leader on Arctic shipping governance. Dr. Natalie Carter is a Research Associate and Community Research Lead at the University of Ottawa, where she has worked with 59 Inuit and northern researchers and over 130 Inuit knowledge holders (local experts including Elders) that were part of the ACNV project. Ms. Natasha Simonee is an Inuit hunter, mother, and teacher by profession in the community of Mittimatalik (Pond Inlet), Nunavut. Ms. Shirley Tagalik serves as a volunteer director of the Arviat Aqqiumavvik Society, a community group dedicated to addressing concerns through community-driven research.