Makivik Magazine Issue 102

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Measuring the diameter with a special tape.
Kuujjuaraapik Students,
Science with the Centre
d’études nordiques (CEN)
and Youth Fusion
By Alexandre Truchon-Savard
On June 15, 2013 eight of Kuujjuaraapik’s Asimauttaq
students were eagerly loading tents, sleeping bags, air
mattresses, stoves and coolers on the flatbed of the
CEN’s truck. Along with the camping gear were GPS’s,
Presler tree corers, compasses, cameras, diameter tapes,
and notepads.
Thanks to a partnership between Youth Fusion, the
Laval University’s Centre d’études nordiques (Centre
for Northern Studies) and Asimauttaq School, the class
studied dendro-ecology — the science of trees and
their environment — and tried out field sampling techniques,
while spending time on the land, and enjoying
an overnight field trip with their friends. Youth Fusion is
a charitable organization that aims to engage youth in
learning and to develop activities that motivate them
to stay in school.
For some students, it was the first time camping,
but for all it was their first time measuring the age
of a tree. Teachers Geneviève-Clhéo Hotte-Vaudry
and Darren Luck, Youth Fusion science coordinator
Alexandre Truchon-Savard, and biology technician
Geneviève Degré-Timmons accompanied the group.
At the campsite everyone helped to set up the tents
and prepare a quick lunch. Then they hiked through
the hills following GPS coordinates. After a few kilometres,
they paused to observe the willows and flowers growing on the hilltops. Walking
through a tamarack forest, the students noticed the difference in the soil’s moisture.
Finally the party reaches its destination: a mature spruce stand. The team set up a
100-m 2 plot. Each living tree was cored, which means drilling a small hole and extracting
a sample of the tree where the growth rings can be counted and measured. The
students then measured the diameter of each mature tree and the height of the saplings.
Lastly, four sub-plots of 400 cm 2 were used to estimate the ground cover of the
forest plants. After carefully recording all the data in notebooks, it was time to find the
way back to camp using the GPS.
Back at camp, everyone gathered to play a game of capture-the-flag on the sand
dunes, prepare dinner and head to Second Point. The sunset over Hudson Bay was gorgeous,
but the cold air called for a bonfire. Around the fire, the group debriefed about
the day’s experience, told stories and did some stargazing. “That was my favourite part!”
said Yasmine, one of the youth.
The following morning, the group packed up the campsite and headed back to the
village. After the tree samples were dried and finely sanded, it was possible to count
the rings to discover the age of the trees. Although the trees are only 12.6 cm in diameter,
their average age is 141 years old!
Science project coordinator Truchon-Savard, who completed
his master’s research in ecology at the CEN, explained to the
students that the relationship between the age of these trees
and their size can be expressed using a simple equation: tree
diameter = 0.15 x (age) — 8.8.
Each year, the CEN welcomes hundreds of scientists and
science students, specializing in biology, ecology, geology,
microbiology and environmental science. Youth Fusion’s Science
project coordinator builds bridges between this scientific community
and the two local schools.
Through these activities, students discover science careers
and the hands-on, real-world science that is going on right in
their own community. These activities are possible thanks to the
support of Ungaluk and the Rogers Youth Fund.
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Collecting a tree core.
Throughout the school year, Truchon-Savard works at the schools
on a daily basis, planning and leading hands-on science activities,
both inside and outside the classroom. Youth are also invited
to visit the CEN’s Community Science Centre and weather station.
MAKIVIK mag a zine
75