Nunavut Arctic College

Worldwide Quest operates custom designed tours in natural history, culture and the arts on all seven continents. Their group tours, led by experienced and engaging leaders, scientists and educators, are designed to enrich and inform travelers about the world’s most fascinating regions.

The two-week expedition cruise will leave St. John’s on July 11, travelling up the coast of Labrador all the way to the deep fjords and tundra of Monumental Island off the southeast coast of Baffin Island. The journey will conclude with a visit to Frobisher Bay and Iqaluit.

Through the use of local resource contributors and subject matter experts, the expeditions are designed to provide an extra dimension of understanding through the incorporation of educational experiences.

It’s an incredible opportunity for students, staff and graduates of the College’s Environmental Technology Program.

“We’re very much looking forward to the experience of participating in such a world-class educational tourism opportunity like this,” said ETP Senior Instructor Jason Carpenter. Carpenter, along with fellow instructor Michelle McEwan will be delivering the program’s Marine Biology course.

Through a combination of classroom and hands-on field experience, the College’s Marine Biology course is designed to provide students with an introduction to the Arctic’s marine environment and ecology, as well as a stronger scientific understanding of the identification, classification and biology of arctic marine life.

Carpenter said the students will provide passengers with additional opportunities to learn about and experience Inuit culture, traditions and knowledge through presentations and workshops delivered by ETP students during the cruise.

Second-year ETP Diploma students Atuat Shouldice, Ted Inirq, Amos Kamookak, Joanna Panipak, Kerry Pottle, Daniel Qavik, Patricia Peyton, Jimi Davidee, Joseph Monteith and Emily Karpik will be participating in the cruise.

The students will exchange knowledge with passengers through a number of engaging cultural presentations and workshops. Topics the students will be presenting include throat singing, traditional Inuit clothing and tools, and the traditional uses of rocks and natural materials for survival.

“We will also be bringing a library of resources, books and DVDs on things like Inuit mythology and legends, art, culture, history and Arctic ecology, to share with the other passengers” said Carpenter.

“One of our goals is to enhance the experience, especially the cultural exchanges, that the other passengers have while on the expedition.”

Nunavut Arctic College, the Nunavut Research Institute and the Environmental Technology Program would like to thank Worldwide Quest for covering all cruise expenses for our participating ETP staff and students.

We’d also like to thank First Air for their generous support and Parks Canada for providing us with a Parks Pass that will allow us into all the parks we will be visiting.

We wish all of the expedition’s travelers an exciting and memorable voyage to Nunavut and look forward to welcoming you all to our beautiful capital city, Iqaluit, later this month.

Stay tuned! We’ll be following their adventures through daily blog posts and photos. For more information on the Environmental Technology Program and their adventures, follow their Facebook page at: www.facebook.com/environmentaltechnologyprogram

For more information on World Wide Quest Expeditions visit their web site at: http://worldwidequest.com/