Coverage

A $34‑million research and training centre opened in Pond Inlet on Sept. 24. Funding came from Baffinland (12.2 M), the Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency (10 M) and $7.8 M from Indigenous Services Canada, Natural Resources Canada and Nunavut Tunngavik Inc. The facility includes heavy‑equipment simulators, accommodation for 33 people, a 20‑seat classroom with videoconferencing, a cafeteria and a gym. Nunavut Arctic College will provide initial programming, with plans for university‑level courses and potential partnership with the University of Laval.

A UArctic and University of Iceland pre‑event seminar titled “Arctic Challenges: Navigating a Changing Arctic” preceded the 2026 Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavík. The day‑long agenda, held October 7, included welcome remarks by Pia Hansson (UNESCO‑Iceland), opening remarks by Dag Rune Olsen (UiT, UArctic Board Member), a key‑note by Karen Ellemann (Nordic Council of Ministers), and panels on geopolitics, indigenous rights, geo‑engineering, and global glacier links, hosted by UArctic Chairs and scholars from Iceland, Norway, Greenland, Sweden, Canada, and Pakistan.

A recent study by UC Davis scientists, published in AGU Advances, confirms that water draining from thawing permafrost in Alaska’s Brooks Range is highly acidic and contains metal concentrations up to 70 × higher than normal. The phenomenon, first noted in 2018 and traced to 2019‑2020, coincided with the state’s hottest summer and a snowy winter that insulated the soil. The study examined six watersheds and found that the metals can travel more than 90 km downstream, becoming more concentrated. Previous research has documented over 200 rivers worldwide affected by the same process, yet no d...

On Sept. 5, a fuel drum being carried by a helicopter fell from a sling at a Kivalliq exploration site roughly 100 km northwest of Arviat, spilling 205 litres of petroleum. Crown‑Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada (CIRNAC) reports the spill was cleaned up by the operator, 6106 Resources Ltd., and that a federal inspector has yet to visit the remote site to verify the work. No discharge into water has been reported.

Sergei Khabarov, 74, head of intensive‑care at Kotlas City Hospital in Arkhangelsk region, has left his post to join a volunteer medical unit for the “special military operation,” amid reported staff shortages in Northern Russia. The former hospital chief, Khizri Ilyasov, who stepped down as chief in April, posted a photo of the doctor and has been encouraging other volunteers.

University of Kentucky researchers, partnered with the Wildlife Conservation Society and Alaska Native communities in Utqiaġvik, deployed microfluidic chips for in‑field genomic sequencing of migratory birds, focusing on avian flu H5N1, and trained local hunters in sample collection and rapid testing.

Bill C‑39, the Building Canada Strong Act, adds a clause that allows the labour minister to end strikes that could "adversely affect the national interest." PSAC North, representing more than 14,000 members across the North, argues the provision undermines workers’ right to strike. The bill would also require a special mediator’s report before intervention, a point the union says still gives employers too much leverage.

The first Arctic trial by NATO’s Task Force X was held off Iceland in June and July 2026 aboard the Research Vessel Alliance to test all integrated components.