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Adam Kirkwood

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I am a fourth year Ph.D. candidate in Geography here at Carleton, working under the supervision of Dr. Murray Richardson (Carleton) and Dr. Pascale Roy-Léveillée (Université Laval) on mercury biogeochemical cycling in the Hudson Bay Lowlands. I completed my B.Sc. in Environmental Science and Geography and my M.Sc. in Biology at Laurentian University, during which I was also working in the Hudson Bay Lowlands. I have completed 7 field trips to the Hudson Bay Lowlands, and really enjoy working out of Churchill, MB (the polar bear capital of the world), and also enjoyed working out of Peawanuck, ON, with community partners to study permafrost degradation and carbon cycling during my M.Sc.

Currently, I am working on mapping variability in mercury storage of soils in the Hudson Bay Lowlands, and understanding how thawing permafrost is creating environments that might cause changes in microbial community structure that convert mercury to a more highly neurotoxic form called methylmercury. Additionally, I am involved in several early career researcher volunteer organizations, including the Association of Polar Early Career Scientists in Canada (APECS Canada) and the Permafrost Young Researchers Network (PYRN). Outside of academia, I enjoy spending time hiking and camping, travelling, and flying general aviation aircraft.