Oceans play a key role in the planet’s biogeochemical cycles and in climate regulation. They are the reason the earth is inhabitable. Oceans help regulate the climate through heat transfer and by exchanging climate-active gases with the atmosphere. Research has enabled scientists to understand the global CO2 cycle and the role oceans play in it, but the roles of other gases involved in climate regulation, including dimethyl sulfide and nitrous oxide, are not as clear.

Modelling uses simplified representations (i.e., models) as substitutes for complex systems in order to facilitate comprehension and study. Digital modelling integrates conceptual models (schemas), mathematical models (equation systems), and computer models (programs/software) to study changes in a given system and make predictions. For example, it is possible to couple the biological and chemical features of an aquatic environment with its hydrodynamic and thermal features to study the effect of variables such as light, temperature, and nutrients on plankton and fish dynamics. Digital modelling must be calibrated and validated through observation in the field.

Climate change affects all living organisms in a given environment, but their responses vary from one ecosystem to another. Climate change can affect biodiversity by desynchronizing trophic levels, the rank of each living being in a food chain. These phenomena are even more pronounced in the North due to the small number of species and the presence of populations that migrate long distances. This pattern has been studied in herbivores, ungulates, and aquatic species using long-term population monitoring.

Oceanography is a one of the earth sciences and uses biology, chemistry, geology, and physics to study various aspects of oceans and seas. Oceanographers conduct research on plate tectonics, major biogeochemical cycles, ocean currents, marine ecosystems, and links between oceans and climate change.

Paleoecology is the study of the relationship between fossilized living beings and their environments using physicochemical and biological analyses. The aquatic paleoecology laboratory at the Centre for Northern Studies analyzes fossils preserved in sedimentary deposits in northern lakes, ponds, and peatlands to trace climate and environmental changes that occurred eons ago during the Pleistocene and Holocene eras. Dendroecology, which involves analyzing the widths of tree rings, transforms trees into environmental archives, making it possible to date certain disturbances.

This Centre for Northern Studies research priority brings together scientists who investigate the glacial and post-glacial history of northern systems to understand how they currently function. They study biodiversity, species interactions, and the consequences of disturbances on the structure and composition of northern environments.