People
Dr. Karen Dunmall
Hello! I lead the Arctic Salmon and Arctic Coast team. Together, and with people from communities across the Canadian Arctic, we research fish biodiversity change and coastal ecosystems using community-led approaches. Originally from Winnipeg, I completed my BSc at Queen's University, my MSc at the University of Waterloo, my PhD at the University of Manitoba, and was a Liber Ero postdoctoral fellow at the University of Victoria. I have lived in the North and have researched fish, and especially salmon, in Norway, in the US (Washington, Oregon, and Alaska), and in northern Canada. I am currently a Research Scientist supporting the Arctic Region at Fisheries and Oceans Canada and an Adjunct Professor at the University of Victoria, Carleton University, and the University of Manitoba.
Find Karen on Research Gate or Google Scholar
DFO Staff:
Darcy McNicholl
Hi! I’m Darcy, a biologist with Fisheries and Oceans Canada, at the Freshwater Institute in Winnipeg, MB. I began working with Arctic fishes in 2013 as a component of my master’s thesis, and have continued to study coastal change among communities across the Canadian Arctic ever since. I specialize in investigating food web dynamics of co-occurring fishes, and using stable isotopes to determine the potential for competition among native and non-native species. The information collected by our programs allows for decisions to be made by Indigenous leaders and management in order to protect biological and culturally significant parts of the Canadian Arctic. Before becoming a biologist I worked with high Arctic plants, Namibian elephants, large cats in South Africa, and am a Students on Ice alumni for 2006/2007.
Laurissa Christie
Ullukkut! My name is Laurissa and I live in Winnipeg, but I grew up on a farm in Ontario. I have been a biologist with Arctic Coast/ Arctic Salmon since February 2020 where I coordinate coastal monitoring and local knowledge documentation programs in Hudson Bay using community-led approaches. I am especially interested in understanding food web dynamics and energy flow within the Arctic marine environment using a variety of approaches including: tracer analysis, local knowledge documentation, and ecosystem monitoring. I also created the Arctic Salmon cookbook. I love that my position combines two of my passions Arctic science and working with communities! It is a dream come true.
Kevin Gully
Hi! My name is Kevin Gully and I am from Sachs Harbour, NWT. I am the team technician, and I sample fish, lead the organization of our lab and freezer space, assist with logistics for all the projects, and do field work. I am also interested in sea ice change and am analyzing imagery and data about sea ice and making a tool for other people from the north to be able to do this too. I am also a student at the University of Manitoba, pursuing a BSc degree.
Allison Drake
Hello! My name is Allison Drake. I started as a Biologist with Arctic Coast in October 2022 with a focus on connecting Indigenous and scientific knowledges. I completed my MSc with the Arctic Coast team, co-supervised by Vivian Nguyen, where I studied the weaving of Inuit and Western scientific knowledge of coastal and marine ecosystems in the Canadian Arctic. I am passionate about my work because I care deeply about conserving the diversity of northern species and habitats, and about the wellbeing of Indigenous Peoples in the context of climate change and development. I am a settler ally committed to learning and unlearning about Indigenous realities, and recognize that this is a lifelong journey.
Students:
Miranda Bilous
Hi, I'm Miranda and I'm from Winnipeg! I started working with the Arctic Salmon team as a Co-op student and I am now a MSc student at the University of Manitoba, co-supervised by Margaret Docker. My MSc is focused on connecting coastal to offshore ecosystems using common methods and indicators, and is focused in the western Canadian Arctic. I have also written publications on changing biodiversity, all within a broader theme of the biological and environmental changes associated with climate warming. I've been with the Arctic Salmon team since 2019 and it's been a pleasure to contribute my research to important and ongoing conversations about the Arctic!
Kevin Wight
Hello! My name is Kevin Wight, and I am from Red Deer, Alberta. I am an MSc student at the University of Alberta co-supervised by Keith Tierney. My project examines the trophic ecology of Pacific salmon and endemic northern fishes in the Mackenzie River system and assesses the potential for diet overlap and competition between them, using stomach contents and stable isotopes. These analyses will allow us to better understand the impact Pacific salmon have in Arctic waterways and help address community concerns regarding competition for resources between salmon and endemic fishes. This project will allow me to harness both my lifelong obsession with fish and my desire to participate in community-led research in some of the world’s most vulnerable ecosystems.