The following collaborative research projects include those selected as part of the Arctic and Northern Challenge program's first call for proposals in 2022, which are currently ongoing, and those completed under the Canada-Inuit Nunangat-United Kingdom Arctic Research Programme (CINUK) in 2025. Guided by Northerners, these research and development projects are using technology and innovation to solve pressing issues identified by those living in the North and Arctic regions.
These projects benefit from grants and contributions awarded through the Collaborative Science, Technology and Innovation Program administered by the NRC's National Program Office.
Figure of the projects funded by the Arctic and Northern Challenge program by location
On this page
ArcVR: Connecting culture and land-based healing using virtual reality to support Inuvialuit mental health and well-being
Location: Inuvialuit Settlement Region
Description: The NRC's Medical Devices Research Centre is partnering with the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation to offer an alternative to land connection through virtual reality immersion in nature as an after-care support to existing clients who have participated in land-based wellness program, and those with limited access to the land.
The virtual reality environment will incorporate traditional knowledge and replicate culturally and historically relevant sites in the hopes to provide the user with a sense of connection to the land, for improvements in their mental state and well-being.
As a result, the acceptability and feasibility of virtual reality technologies and software as a potential mental health and wellness tool in the North will be assessed.
Collaborators
The NRC's Medical Devices researchers introduced youth and staff at the Inuvialuit Regional Corporation to virtual reality demonstration of various nature videos, as part of the inaugural steering committee meeting in Inuvik.
DehchoCyano: Cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins in freshwater resources of the Dehcho region
Location: Northwest Territories
Description: This project will focus on understanding and monitoring cyanobacteria and cyanotoxins in 15 lakes throughout the Dehcho Region, located in the Northwest Territories.
The Dehcho Aboriginal Aquatic Resources and Oceans Management (AAROM) team will lead the field sampling program and work with the NRC, Wilfrid Laurier University and Dalhousie University to develop new approaches to monitoring that can be implemented in existing environmental monitoring programs.
The project team will develop a long-term monitoring strategy for the region and share findings with other Northern groups interested in setting up similar monitoring programs.
Collaborators
Freshwater sampling is being carried out in the Dehcho region, NT.
Winter Trails: Radio frequency sensor technology for community monitoring of winter trails
Location: Northwest Territories
Description: In partnership with Indigenous communities, the NRC will develop new radio frequency instrumentation to monitor the components of their traditional winter trails that pass over frozen lakes and rivers.
This project will integrate Indigenous knowledge of ice dynamics and travel safety into the design and testing processes. Together team members will co-create a training curriculum for community members to operate and deploy the instrumentation, create ice condition travel maps and share the ice information products within and between communities.
Collaborators
SmartICE-trained community ice monitors prepare to carry out an ice profile survey of Taber Lake, south of Gamètì. The ice profiler instrument is towed behind a snowmobile and measures ice thickness in real time. Following the ice survey, ice thickness data are converted into colour-coded tracks displayed on maps for community ice users.
Rapid Retrofits, Healthy Homes: Partially fabricated rapid retrofits
Location: Yukon
Description: The need to improve the energy performance of homes in the North and to decarbonize the building sector is high, yet progress has been slow due to cost, disruptions and limited capacity in many Northern communities.
Earthrise Building Services Inc. and the NRC are working together to employ a community-focused and data-driven approach to implementing residential deep-energy retrofits at scale that will also provide adequate ventilation and superior indoor environment quality.
Collaborators
Homes received deep energy retrofits that will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions by over 80%.
AGWA: Groundwater vulnerability to metal and metalloid contamination in Whitehorse
Location: Yukon
Description: Groundwater is the main source of drinking water in the greater Whitehorse area. However, preliminary data show a high proportion of local untreated groundwater samples have metal and metalloid concentrations that exceed safe drinking water limits.
This project will support training, generate information, translate knowledge and build capacity to improve water security for the area and other subarctic regions susceptible to geogenic metal and metalloid contamination.
The NRC and the University of Saskatchewan will conduct sampling, analysis, modelling and use Indigenous Knowledge to better understand how the metals and metalloids are distributed and the underlying processes driving this groundwater contamination.
Collaborators
View of Whitehorse and its mountains behind the Yukon River.
ArcticChar: Enabling better management and monitoring of a critical food fish in Kugluktuk
Location: Nunavut
Description: Arctic char from the Coppermine River is a critical food source for the community of Kugluktuk, Nunavut. This project builds on existing relationships and aims to answer questions from Inuit about movements of fish in the Coppermine River and Coronation Gulf.
In a collaboration led by the Kugluktuk Hunters and Trappers Organization and with researchers from the University of Waterloo, Fisheries and Oceans Canada and the NRC, existing infrastructure for acoustic telemetry is being used to answer questions about fish migrations and habitat use.
Inuit fishers and managers will use the results to advance community-based fishery management practices and understand how climate can affect fisheries.
Collaborators
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada
- Kugluktuk Hunters and Trappers Organization
- Ocean, Coastal and River Engineering Research Centre, NRC
- University of Waterloo
The team uses augers to bore holes through the ice on the Coppermine River, NT.
PangWAS: Planning the future of water supply in Pangnirtung
Location: Nunavut
Description: Developing and maintaining the availability of water supplies is challenging and costly in the Far North. Many communities, including the Inuit Hamlet of Pangnirtung, collect water from rivers and store it in natural and constructed reservoirs that hold most or all of the water supplied by municipalities.
While these rivers and other surface bodies of water are vital, communities are subject to regulations limiting the amount of water that can be drawn from the reservoirs in order to ensure adequate streamflow, or volume, to support the local ecology and aquatic species.
This project to study the Duval River is being led by the Hamlet of Pangnirtung with support from the NRC. It will develop an approach that could be adopted by other Nunavut communities wanting to gain insight on the future viability of their traditional surface water sources.
Collaborators:
Data acquisition systems are used to collect water quality and flow data from the Duval River in Pangnirtung.
NunavikWater: Inclusive design of pilot water equipment for innovative water strategies in Nunavik
Location: Nunavik
Description: Access to drinking water for Northern Indigenous populations is limited in terms of quantity and quality. The very small amount of information on water quality in household water tanks makes it difficult to assess the health risk associated with the potential degradation of water quality in stored drinking water.
This project aims to develop and evaluate water treatment strategies (including operational and monitoring strategies) for water tanks in Northern households. The project team will design, build and set up pilot-scale tanks in universities and communities as part of their evaluation.
These strategies will be developed in close collaboration with community members and other stakeholders to meet the specific needs of targeted communities such as operational capacity, community capacity, local resources and cultural acceptability.
Collaborators
A tank filled with water in Tasiujaq, Nunavik, QC.
Digital Mental Health: Digital interventions to enhance mental health of Northern communities in Labrador
Location: Labrador
Description: This pilot project uses digital tools to reduce the health gap and enhance mental health care for Inuit communities in Labrador. The project team is working with Indigenous community members and other collaborators to improve mental health diagnoses using learning tools that cover common issues like depression, anxiety and insomnia.
These tools are expected to help nurse and general practitioners, and will complement existing ones from the Digital Interventions & Intelligence Group that support remote patient mental health monitoring.
This project will explore how effective digital interventions can be in reducing the need for specialists. It will also help with early detection of mental illness, remote health monitoring, timely medical training, point-of-care diagnostics and as a clinical decision support system for communities in Labrador.
Collaborators
Landscape view of a colourful Fall tundra.
NGPlastics: Plastics and heavy metals in Nunatsiavut food ways and environments
Location: Newfoundland and Labrador
Description: Co-led by Inuk researcher Liz Pijogge of the Nunatsiavut Government, with Dr. Max Liboiron of Memorial University of Newfoundland and Dr. Alex Bond of the UK's Natural History Museum, this project aimed to monitor levels of plastic and metals in animals and the environment to provide input on meaningful intervention in plastic mitigation.
Researchers found relatively few plastics in Nunatsiavut shorelines or animals, and do not have any concerns about plastics' impacts on wild food or harvesting practices.
This initiative was built on a capacity-sharing model, prioritizing community-based research methodologies such as on-the-land workshops, community identification of plastics sources, and participatory statistics.
The NRC's Metrology Research Centre provided its expertise in high-precision measurement and analysis, creating protocols for toxicity assessment and supporting plastic pollution studies in the Arctic.
Collaborators
Elizabeth Tuglavina is collecting plastic samples on the shore of Hopedale, Newfoundland and Labrador, June 30, 2024.
Photo credit: Max Liboiron
A plastics identification table set up in the Nanuk Centre allows community members to help identify the sources, brands and uses of plastics found on shorelines around Hopedale, Newfoundland and Labrador, June 28, 2024.
Photo credit: Paul McCarney
REMIROCaN: Renewable Energy Microgrid Integration for Remote, Off-grid Cabins in Nunavut
Location: Nunavut
Description: This project aimed to find innovative and locally viable solutions to integrate renewable energy into remote off-grid cabins in Iqaluit, Nunavut, to reduce carbon emissions and energy costs, and to increase resiliency in Northern communities heavily reliant on petrochemicals.
Researchers evaluated 3 hydrokinetic energy converters, finding them effective in certain river conditions. Photovoltaic and thermal solar systems (BIPV-T) performed best in spring and fall while inclined roof-mounted systems were more effective in summer. The project also analyzed Arctic wind resources, identified suitable turbines and examined challenges such as ice formation on blades. In addition, researchers found that by using Passive House building standards—energy-efficient building principles—cabins could reduce their energy use by up to 90%.
This project integrated Inuit knowledge and values with renewable energy technology evaluations and deployment. This included community engagement, workshops and collaboration with the Qikiqtani Inuit Association's Inuit Qaujimajatuqangit department, the Nunavut Climate Change Secretariat and the Nunavut Nukkiksautiit Corporation.
Collaborators
Field equipment being transported for river hydrokinetic energy resource assessment.
Nuna: effective mitigation and adaptation to changing ground conditions for resilient coastal futures
Location: Inuvialuit Settlement Region
Description: Coastal erosion and permafrost thaw are increasing ground instability and threatening Arctic communities' housing, infrastructure and livelihoods. Working with the communities of Tuktoyaktuk, Paulatuk, Sachs Harbour, Ulukhaktok, and Aklavik, in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region, this project co-developed new tools and solutions to predict future ground changes and inform key decisions related to community planning and mitigation measures.
Achievements include:
- Erosion models that underpinned the case for new sea defences
- Low-cost monitoring systems now used and maintained by local researchers
- Innovative permafrost survey and degradation tracking techniques used to plan new developments and heritage site protection
- Regulatory modeling for storm susceptibility and emergency response planning
- Community-based air quality and water contaminant monitoring
Tuktoyaktuk Hamlet Council played a vital role in supporting and enabling the co-creation of new ways of working, combining local and Indigenous knowledge with appropriate and focused environmental monitoring. Efforts were sustained by trained local researchers through community-based Tuktoyaktuk Community Climate Resiliency Program and youth volunteers from Mangilaluk School. Continued consultation, outreach and youth engagement were coordinated by a local community engagement officer, ensuring that research outcomes remained relevant and inclusive.
Findings and datasets were owned by and accessible to the climate-impacted communities and could serve as a blueprint for diverse community needs. The project fostered strong and continuing partnerships and underpinned significant investments in coastal defence and new developments, showcasing its direct impact and success.
Collaborators
Photo 1: Northumbria University's Professor Michael Lim trains local researchers from the Tuktoyaktuk Community Climate Resiliency Program in coastal monitoring and protection.
Photo 2: Professor James Martin (Northumbria University) works with Deva-lynn Pokiak (Hamlet of Tuktoyaktuk) to download ground temperature and condition data at critical sites.
Photo 3: National Research Council of Canada's Igor Egorov and partners are assessing various permafrost mitigation techniques and their effectiveness in combating permafrost thaw.
Monitoring the coasts is an important part of improving climate change resilience.
Photo credit: Michael Lim.
Sikuttiaq: Empowering communities to map rough ice and slush for safer sea ice travel in Inuit Nunangat
Location: Nunavut
Description: Led by SmartICE, a community-based social enterprise, Sikuttiaq combined Inuit knowledge with satellite and drone technology to create new data on sea ice conditions and to co-develop tools for mapping hazards such as rough ice and slush zones. This information will contribute to sea ice travel safety maps, which are used to keep communities informed in real-time about sea ice conditions and areas to avoid.
The Inuit-led project team studied ice roughness and slush in Qikiqtarjuaq and Mittimatalik, Nunavut, and combined expertise in sea ice remote sensing, drone development, geophysical sampling and AI processing of satellite data. They established new scientific protocols for measuring slush, as there were no existing standards.
This collaborative initiative empowered Inuit communities by providing tools and training to community members to operate drones and process data for monitoring and mapping hazardous sea ice conditions.
Collaborators
Travel over rough ice is damaging to snowmobiles, costly in time and fuel, and more dangerous than smooth ice.
Photo credit: Eric Guth.
In spring, unexpected pockets of slush can stall snowmobiles, potentially leaving Inuit wet, cold and stranded many hours from safety.
Photo credit: Marzena Marosz-Wantuch.
NNSAR: Nunavut and Nunavik Search and Rescue
Location: Nunavut and Nunavik
Description: NNSAR aimed to strengthen the search and rescue (SAR) preparedness and response in Nunavut and Nunavik through knowledge sharing, training and the development of tools and resources based on Inuit knowledge. This work supports community responders and decision-making for SAR planning and infrastructure development.
SAR roundtables brought together representatives from every community in Nunavut and Nunavik, along with federal and territorial practitioners. Participants exchanged community-based knowledge, lessons learned and best practices to improve Arctic SAR operations and address challenges. These sessions, along with research and community engagement, improved collaboration between partners and led to the co-development of training materials and operational tools to support responders in Nunavik and Nunavut.
Modelling activities produced decision-support tools that help assess response times and the effectiveness of aircraft and crews working alongside Inuit SAR teams.
A comprehensive report on the state of SAR in Nunavut documented current challenges, shared suggestions for improvement from community responders and provided recommendations for immediate action by the territorial and federal governments.
Through roundtables, collaborative research, training programs and SAR exercises, the project strengthened community-based SAR operations, increased capacity and efficiency and improved coordination between jurisdictions.
Collaborators
Gjoa Haven's new Coast Guard Auxiliary vessel increase search and rescue capacity.
Photo credit: Winnie Hatkaittuq.
Anirniq: Resilient responses to protect lung health in Nunavik
Location: Nunavik
Description: Nunavik experiences significantly higher rates of respiratory illness than the rest of Canada, driven by multiple factors. These include mould exposure linked to climate change and structural housing inequities, poor indoor air quality caused by underventilation, overcrowding and forest fires, and limited access to culturally appropriate respiratory health care.
In partnership with, and under guidance of, the Inuit-led Kativik Municipal Housing Bureau and Ungava Tulattavik Health Centre in Kuujjuaq, this initiative brought together researchers, health-care professionals and Nunavik Inuit community members to address lung health through a holistic approach that integrates both social and biological perspectives. Researchers applied community-based participatory research and science methods to design a Community Lung Health Program with community members.
The research combined engineering, microbiology and epidemiology methods to develop a protocol for measuring housing-related determinants of lung health and identifying homes that may pose risks. Key activities included the co-development of tools and protocols for mould detection and mitigation, rapid indoor air quality assessments, and evaluation of emerging technologies for diagnosis and monitoring of respiratory diseases with their potential relevance in Nunavik. Building performance models were developed to examine the expected changes in the indoor environmental quality indicators and predict mould risk under future climate scenarios for different types of housing. These collective efforts and outcomes contribute to Nunavik's resilient response in protecting lung health.
Collaborators
Part of the Ungave Tulattavik Health Center in Kuujjuaq.
Photo credit: Faiz Ahmad Khan.
Kuujjuaq Neighborhood, January 2023.
Photo credit: Faiz Ahmad Khan.