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Nunavik’s residents experience significant social and environmental disruptions due to climate change. These disruptions add to the widespread changes that the Inuit have encountered over the last century—changes that have left this community totally dependent on fossil fuels for heat and power. Over time, Nunavik’s residents have taken control of petroleum resources and their distribution, transforming this energy source into a major regional economic asset. Recently, there has been a transition towards renewable energy technologies (RETs) in Nunavik. However, are these alternative sources of energy appealing to local residents? This article explores the potential of RETs through the lens of procedural and substantive equity in the context of Inuit interests and integrated sustainability. Based on informal discussions with Inuit residents, interviews with stakeholders of the energy transition in Nunavik, and a literature analysis, this article presents two main results: (1) The level of substantive equity depends mainly on the type of RET and on idiosyncrasies between communities, and (2) local governance and procedural equity need to be asserted so that RETs can become true catalysts for equity.

The conformational space of diallylamine (DAA) was investigated using rotational spectroscopy from 7–19 GHz aided by quantum chemical calculations. Extensive conformational searches using density functional theory B3LYP-D3(BJ) and the ab initio MP2 method with the aug-cc-pVTZ basis set identified a total of 42 minima for DAA within ~22 kJ mol-1. This reveals a strikingly rich conformational landscape for this secondary amine with two equivalent substituents. Experimentally, transitions belonging to four low energy conformers (I, II, III and IV) were unequivocally assigned in the rotational spectrum and their patterns were confirmed by the presence of the hyperfine structure owing to the 14N quadrupolar nucleus. The relative intensities of the observed transitions suggest a conformational energy ordering of I < II < III < IV. Natural bond orbital and non-covalent interaction calculations reveal that the geometric preferences for the observed conformers are governed by an interplay of subtle attractive interactions (including hyperconjugation involving the lone pair at nitrogen) and repulsive effects.

As the Province of Manitoba engages with Manitobans on a Water Management Strategy, we must keep in mind that our freshwater is not an endless resource. We have to live with our finite water resources and understand that we are all responsible to keep water healthy and accessible to everyone. Access to clean water is a basic human right, mandated by many countries, including the United Nations. Freshwater should not be thought of as a separate (or self-contained) issue from the rest of the hydrosphere and cryospheric systems of our planet. The impact of hemispheric and especially Arctic climate on freshwater in the mid and lower latitudes in Canada is integral to understanding how to manage freshwater resources. While we understand this is a Manitoba strategy as acknowledged in the Guiding Principles in the Water Management Strategy document, water is a transboundary issue, both provincially and nationally.

This filter is designed to retrieve studies related to climate change from the OVID Medline database. It is an outdated version of the filter, stored here for the convenience of researchers who have used it and may wish to revisit it for search updates. The current version of the filter is available at https://docs.google.com/document/d/11s673QzBiO4uqX2TwxukFgPzRYa6sT5Jt47BsFN2yyU/edit.

A critical factor in permafrost degradation is the hydrological processes' changes, which result from free-flowing water, such as soil water or groundwater, and their associated flow paths. Hydrological models calibrated under current climate conditions are less likely to accurately predict the water budget of a catchment under permafrost degradation under future climate conditions. However, such models are used to help manage large watersheds in northern Canada, which are used for hydropower generation, and are essential for strategic planning on the future supply of energy. This research was conducted to understand and identify the potential impact of permafrost thawing on the hydrological regime within the Nelson-Churchill River Basin (NCRB) due to climate change. Numerical models were developed using HYDRUS-1D and Hansson’s module to analyze potential changes in ground temperature resulting from climate change to establish a detailed physical-based understanding of the changes in the active layer. The calibration process was carried out using soil temperature data for 2014-2015 and validated by 2011-2012 data. Data from two Global Circulation Models (GCMs), namely, CanESM2 (Canadian Center for Climate Modelling Second Generation Earth System Model) and MIROC5 (Model for Interdisciplinary Research on Climate), were used to analyze potential future changes in active layer thickness due to climate change under two emission scenarios (RCP8.5 and RCP4.5). The investigation showed that permafrost remained stable in sites with peat layers. The lower emission scenario forcing predicted up to 1 m increase in active layer thickness whereas up to 5 meters increase of the active layer thickness was observed for both GCMs under high emission scenarios by 2080.

In this analysis, we examine relative contributions from climate change and river discharge regulation to changes in marine conditions in the Hudson Bay Complex using a subset of five atmospheric forcing scenarios from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5), river discharge data from the Hydrological Predictions for the Environment (HYPE) model, both naturalized (without anthropogenic intervention) and regulated (anthropogenically controlled through diversions, dams, reservoirs), and output from the Nucleus for European Modeling of the Ocean Ice-Ocean model for the 1981-2070 time frame. Investigated in particular are spatiotemporal changes in sea surface temperature, sea ice concentration and thickness, and zonal and meridional sea ice drift in response to (i) climate change through comparison of historical (1981-2010) and future (2021-2050 and 2041-2070) simulations, (ii) regulation through comparison of historical (1981-2010) naturalized and regulated simulations, and (iii) climate change and regulation combined through comparison of future (2021-2050 and 2041-2070) naturalized and regulated simulations. Also investigated is use of the diagnostic known as e-folding time spatial distribution to monitor changes in persistence in these variables in response to changing climate and regulation impacts in the Hudson Bay Complex. Results from this analysis highlight bay-wide and regional reductions in sea ice concentration and thickness in southwest and northeast Hudson Bay in response to a changing climate, and east-west asymmetry in sea ice drift response in support of past studies. Regulation is also shown to amplify or suppress the climate change signal. Specifically, regulation amplifies sea surface temperatures from April to August, suppresses sea ice loss by approximately 30% in March, contributes to enhanced sea ice drift speed by approximately 30%, and reduces meridional circulation by approximately 20% in January due to enhanced zonal drift. Results further suggest that the offshore impacts of regulation are amplified in a changing climate.

Research for this thesis was carried out between 2016 and 2020, a period which was exceptionally politically and ecologically volatile for the small-scale commercial fishery on Lake Winnipeg. Politically, the Province of Manitoba initiated major policy changes, including quota buy-backs and the rescinding of provincial endorsement of the Freshwater Fish Marketing Act. Ecologically, a major flood in 2011 and detrimental impacts following from the consequent construction of the emergency channel between Lake Manitoba and Lake Winnipeg had a major impact on the lake’s habitat and fisheries. In hindsight, the period was a unique opportunity to witness the negotiation of values and the shape of governance among Lake Winnipeg’s fishers and between them and government representatives of the Province of Manitoba. The research included interviews with over 40 fishers and other Lake Winnipeg stakeholders and hundreds of informal conversations with commercial fishers from Fisher River Cree Nation, Gimli, Riverton, and Winnipeg. I engaged in participant observation in meetings between commercial fishers and the province of Manitoba and Freshwater Fisher Marketing Corporation, and in-depth analysis of Hansard records from the House of Commons and the Manitoba Legislative Assembly. I conclude that: (1) analytical tools such as Sen’s capabilities approach and Interactive Governance (IG) Theory are insufficient alone to analyze and understand the complexity of critical debates and negotiations in fisheries and environmental governance. Both approaches leave limited space for critical environmental politics since both approaches still rely heavily on the division between society and Nature. Additionally, both approaches are insufficiently sensitive of disparities of power and do not pay enough attention to arbitrary power of ministers who can circumvent critical debates with fishers in the determination of policies. (2) Recent years on Lake Winnipeg illustrate a serious deficit in democratic decision-making in Manitoba. The space for fishers to disseminate their knowledge is highly circumscribed and their views on fisheries and the environment as a whole were ignored. Decisions were made without proper consultation, which undermined communities’ and fishers’ ability to protect their livelihoods. These, instead, were sacrificed for what the Province of Manitoba deemed to be a sustainable fishery or broader provincial interests. Overall, I argue that decision-making processes need to be more power-sensitive and receptive to fishers’ knowledge. The only way to do this is to allow fishers to participate from the beginning, when facts are created by scientists and bureaucrats. Instead of discussing ethical issues after facts are created, they need to be discussed simultaneously. Before such an idea can be realized, hierarchical politics need to be abandoned in favor of more decentralized politics. This more truly democratic approach might be comparatively difficult and messy from a governance point of view, but would be more inclusive, legitimate, and, likely, effective in matching the interests of the fishers of Manitoba with those of the province as a whole.

Alternative low-carbon transportation fuels, such as biofuels, are needed to replace or supplement fossil fuels in order to lower global greenhouse gas emissions and combat climate change. Lignocellulosic biofuels have relatively low carbon emissions and are created using the non-food parts of crops and other plants, such as the leaves and stems, which are comprised mostly of a tough material called lignocellulose, composed of cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. One of the best lignocellulose degraders found in nature that is also capable of fermenting the released sugars to ethanol is Clostridium thermocellum, although improvements in both lignocellulose hydrolysis extent and ethanol yields are needed for commercial viability. C. thermocellum, considered a cellulose-degrading specialist, was co-cultured with two different hemicellulose-specialists, C. stercorarium and Thermoanaerobacter thermohydrosulfuricus. The hypothesis was that the co-cultures might degrade more lignocellulose owing to the additional hydrolytic enzymes supplied by the partners and their ability to uptake the inhibitory hemicellulose sugars. All co-culture combinations were found to solubilize more wheat straw, among other lignocellulose materials, and produce more end-products, including ethanol, than C. thermocellum alone. These co-cultures were stable over multiple serial passages, on either wheat straw or pure cellulose, although some evidence of carbon competition was observed. The tri-culture was successfully used to screen the digestibility of various lignocellulose materials, revealing substantial difference between cattail harvested in different seasons. Cross-feeding of vital growth factors was observed between the various co-culture members in a defined medium. The metabolism of C. thermocellum is atypical compared to many organisms, including the absence of a pyruvate kinase, and its substitution with both a malate shunt and a putative pyruvate phosphate dikinase (PPDK), which may act to increase net ATP yields from glycolysis. The PPDK was cloned into E. coli, expressed, purified, and characterized, confirming its function as a PPDK for glycolysis and revealing strong activation by ammonium. The kinetic characterization of the PPDK will help inform future studies that measure and model levels of important intracellular metabolites, such as pyrophosphate and ammonium, to better understand the metabolism of C. thermocellum and allow further metabolic engineering to increase ethanol yields.

Brazilian ecotourism industry is often connected with conservation and sustainability discussions. Though the web-based tourism providers are significant in promoting the tourism network of the country, one of the challenges pertained in the industry focuses on sustainable development practices. The purpose of the study is to highlight the role of certification, conservation goals and sustainable practices amongst the service providers. The study considered 110 web-based ecotourism operators in the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil. The content analysis approach is used in the service provider’s website to maintain texts as units. Factor analysis is used to identify the underlying factors that nurture the ecotourism goals and a logistic regression model is applied to ascertain the certification criteria of the ecotourism operator’s. The study proves that the sustainability of the ecotourism activities offered by service providers is affected by certification. Preserving the environment is the leading goal of the service providers, followed by socio-cultural impacts, conduct and ethics, economic contributions, and education. The study designed a model for certification criteria that gives more importance to the sustainability of ecotourism rather than profit from the industry. The paper unveils the sustainable ecotourism development practices of the service providers and the importance of ecotourism certification.

Energy is the dominant climate change contributor accounting for around 60% of total global gas emissions. Given the growing concerns and complexities associated with climate change, most countries worldwide have committed to delivering clean energy. One way to attain this is to invest in energy-efficient technologies such as efficient light bulb technologies. This study’s question was; what determines households’ energy efficiency light bulb adoption in Kiwatule? The main objective of this study was to investigate the behaviour and attitudes of households adopting energy-efficient light bulbs in Kiwatule. The research findings indicated financial motivation as the major determinant of efficient light bulb adoption. To facilitate this, the study suggested that the Ugandan government enacts the current energy light bulb bill and also extends efficient light bulb subsidies to all households. Keywords: Energy efficiency, efficient light bulbs, determinants, adoption, household