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REMOTE SENSING FOR A RESILIENT FUTURE

MONITORING OUR DYNAMIC ENVIRONMENT

44th Canadian Symposium on Remote Sensing

Yellowknife • NWT • Canada | June 19-22, 2023

Important Dates

Deadline for Submission of Revised Extended Abstract April 28, 2023
Presenting Author Registration Deadline April 28. 2023
Last Day for Early Bird Registration May 5, 2023
Deadline for Uploading Recorded Presentation (Virtual presenters only) May 19, 2023
Deadline for Uploading (Optional) Interactive Poster Presentation May 26, 2023

Overview

For 2023, the 44th Canadian Symposium on Remote Sensing will be co-hosted by the University of Lethbridge and the Government of the Northwest Territories in Yellowknife from June 19th to 22nd. We will bring together academics, practitioners, vendors, and policymakers from the Remote Sensing community in an informative and productive four-day event titled Remote Sensing For A Resilient Future: Monitoring Our Dynamic Environment.

With workshops, keynote speakers, oral and poster sessions, exhibitions and panel discussions, attendees will enjoy cutting-edge technical content and networking opportunities. Originally planned for 2020, the symposium will be hosted primarily in-person at the Explorer Hotel in downtown Yellowknife, with an exciting social program that showcases local cultural and culinary highlights. For delegates that are unable to travel, some of the technical event content will be available online via video or live streaming.

Further information on the venue, accommodations, program content, abstract submission and registration process will be posted to this web site in coming weeks and months. For updates, as they happen you can monitor our CRSS-SCT social media pages:

On behalf of CRSS-SCT and the symposium organizing committee, we look forward to having you join us for a cross-disciplinary and cross-cultural sharing of knowledge during the summer solstice festival period in Yellowknife!

Melanie Desjardins, Chair
Director, NWT Centre for Geomatics

Please view the volunteer members of the Organizing Committee here:

Organizing Committee

Our co-host – Government of the Northwest Territories

Conference Chair

Melanie Desjardins, Government of the Northwest Territories

Conference Advisor

Chris Hopkinson, University of Lethbridge

Technical Program Co-Chairs

  • Tom Lukowski, Consultant
  • Craig Coburn, University of Lethbridge

Keynote Committee

  • Laura Chasmer, University Lethbridge
  • Koreen Millard, Carleton University

Workshop Committee

  • Guillermo Castilla, Natural Resources Canada
  • Melanie Desjardins, Government of the Northwest Territories

Student Committee

  • Linda Flade, Student Representative, University of Lethbridge
  • Hamdy Elsayed, Advisor, Toronto Metropolitan University

NWT/Yellowknife Committee

  • Melanie Desjardins, Government of the Northwest Territories
  • Bruce Hanna, Government of the Northwest Territories
  • Kyle Little, Government of the Northwest Territories

Finance Chair

Gordon Staples, MDA

Communications

  • Stacey Rothbard, Skyfall Blue
  • Ria van der Veen, CRSS-SCT
  • Desmond Power, Chair, CRSS-SCT Communications Working Group

– Graphics

  • Linda Flade, University of Lethbridge
  • Celeste Barnes, University of Lethbridge

– Website

  • Ria van der Veen, CRSS-SCT
  • Duane Kennedy, Pondstone Communications

Any questions or suggestions regarding the symposium can be addressed to CSRS2023@crss-sct.ca

Program & Special Events

Program & Guide for Delegates and Presenters

3MT Event - Tuesday June 20, 2023 (afternoon)

Three Minute Thesis Competition

Rules and judging criteria – please read here.

Sign up here by Monday June 12.

Social Program

Enjoy a cultural performance by the Yellowknives Dene Drummers at the Ice Breaker
Monday June 19, 2023

The Yellowknives Dene Drummers includes members of all ages from the communities of Ndilǫ and Dettah. The Drummers perform at Northern style festivities, event opening prayer and celebration songs, drum dances, and hand games demonstrations.

Take part in  the Art Market at the Ice Breaker
Monday June 19, 2023

The NWT is diverse in nature – and so are the artists that live here. Surrounded by the natural beauty of the land and rich culture and tradition of its people, artists of all kinds are inspired to create and share the story of their art. The NWT Arts Artist Showcase will provide delegates with an opportunity to shop for authentic artwork and to connect with local NWT artists.

Carey Bray
Amber Henry
Delia Cepoi
Violet Fodor
Corinne Dziuba
Diane Boudreau
Archie Beaverho
Nicole Tews

Come and listen to Canadian Metis Fiddle Champion Lee Mandeville and his band at the banquet

Wednesday June 21, 2023
Sign up by Monday June 5 for the Banquet and add a guest through Ex Ordo csrs2023.exordo.com/login .

Lee Mandeville is very well known in the north for entertaining crowds. He has been fiddling since the age of 9. His musical talents have given him the opportunity to travel to many places around the world and he has been awarded the Canadian Metis Fiddle Championship title. Lee has released his 3rd album titled, “My Favorites” – a traditional Metis compilation that reflects the North’s finest dance music, which dates back to the earliest days of the Metis. Lee is joined by his father George on guitar, and Ted Mildenberger on bass.

Win a door prize of a framed print from Visual Effects.  Only banquet attendees are eligible.

Registration

Symposium Registration

Only members of the Canadian Remote Sensing Society (CRSS-SCT) in good standing at the time of the symposium are entitled to the Member Rate. Do not hesitate to become a member in order to benefit from these reduced fees!

Students must have a valid student ID card to take advantage of the Student Rates. If requested, students must be able to provide proof of attendance at an educational institution.

Payment & Receipt

Registration and payment of fees are to be made through the Ex Ordo website:
csrs2023.exordo.com/login

Proof of payment will be forwarded to you by email. Please print and retain a copy of this proof should it be required in the future.

Taxes

All registration fees are in Canadian dollars and include the Goods & Services Sales Tax (GST) of 5%.

Registration Cancellation Policy

Registration cancellations received by email (admin@crss-sct.ca) no later than May 21, 2023 will be refunded, less a $50 CDN administrative fee. Cancellations received after May 21, 2023 will not be refunded; however, transfer of your registration to another person is permitted. Contact admin@crss-sct.ca to transfer your registration. No refunds will be made for non-attendance at the symposium.

Registration Fees

Registration for On-Site Delegates will include access to both on-site and online components.
Fees are inclusive of taxes.

– On-Site Registration Fee includes:

  • Welcome Reception
  • Access to all Plenary and Technical On-site sessions
  • Access to Exhibitor and Interactive Poster areas
  • Lunches and Health (coffee/tea) breaks
  • Opportunities for in-person networking
  • Access to recorded presentations
  • Access to the CSRS2023 Ex Ordo website for a limited time after the symposium

– Virtual Delegate Registration Fee includes:

  • Access to Plenary On-Site Sessions*
  • Access to Oral Presentation On-Site Sessions*
  • Access to Interactive Poster On-Site Presentation materials**
  • Access to all recorded presentations (including Virtual Oral)
  • Access to the CSRS2023 ExOrdo website for a limited time after the symposium

Note:
*In the unlikely event that we are unable to provide a “live-stream” we are planning to record the sessions and to make them available after the event.
**Interactive Posters presented On-Site will be available in virtual form only for those authors that choose this option and upload suitable materials.

Options Category Early Bird*** Standard Rate
On-site Delegate Member $577.50 $682.50
On-site Delegate Non-Member $682.50 $787.50
On-site Delegate – Student & Retired Member $262.50 $315.00
On-site Delegate – Student & Retired Non-Member $315.00 $367.50
Virtual Delegate Member $367.50 $420.00
Virtual Delegate Non-Member $472.50 $525.00
Virtual Delegate – Student & Retired Member $210.00 $262.50
Virtual Delegate – Student & Retired Non-Member $262.50 $315.00

***Early bird rates end May 5, 2023.

Register at csrs2023.exordo.com/login

Workshops – Monday June 19, 2023

You must register in advance.
Fees are inclusive of taxes.
Half-day – Member : $78.75
Half-day – Non-Member:  $105.00
Full day – Member:  $105.00
Full day – Non-Member:  $157.50
Register at csrs2023.exordo.com/login .

Banquet – Wednesday June 21, 2023

Fees are inclusive of taxes.
Regular: $52.50
Student & Retired:  $26.25
Register by Monday June 5 and add a guest at csrs2023.exordo.com/login .

Great Slave Lake Fish Fry Dinner Cruise – Thursday June 22, 2023

Price $150 per person, inclusive of GST and gratuity
Minimum 6 ppl, maximum 70 ppl
For more information about the Great Slave Lake Fish Fry Dinner Cruise, see below or email ykoadv@gmail.com
Register at csrs2023.exordo.com/login .

Inquiries regarding registration

For any inquiries regarding registration, please contact admin@crss-sct.ca.

Presentations / Q&A Sessions / Discussion with Authors

CSRS 2023 is a hybrid symposium.   The following provides the current plan for types of sessions and how delegates can engage in discussion with the authors of presentations.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR PRESENTATIONS ARE PROVIDED ON THE EX ORDO CSRS 2023 website at https://csrs2023.exordo.com/
These instructions were also sent to all authors in the “Acceptance of Submission for Presentation” email of March 29, 2023.

In-Person Oral Presentations

In-person Oral Presentations are to be made in the meeting rooms at the Explorer Hotel.

Slides and voices (as a minimum) will be provided  via Webex  in real time to virtual delegates and the presentations will be recorded by the symposium

Questions to the presenter from in-person delegates can be asked in the meeting room in the usual way.  Questions from the virtual delegates are to be asked using the Q & A function in Webex. The chairperson in the room will ensure that questions submitted in either form are directed to the presenter for response.

All delegates will have the option of using the functionality of the Ex Ordo software to send messages directly to the presenter and engage in one-on-one discussions.

In-Person Interactive Poster Presentations

In-person Interactive Posters are to be mounted on presentation boards in meeting rooms at the  Explorer Hotel.

To stimulate dialogue with virtual delegates, it is recommended that authors use the option to provide the posters in digital form along with an MP4 video (no longer than 3 minutes) showing the poster and summarizing the important points of the presentation.  It is currently planned that these  files will be made available to all registered delegates prior to the symposium.

Questions by in-person delegates are to be asked in the room at the Explorer Hotel as is usual for an interactive poster session.

All delegates will have the option of sending email messages directly to the presenter and may also engage in one-on-one discussions using the Ex Ordo software.  These will be the only ways for virtual delegates to pose questions to the presenters of In-Person Interactive posters.

Virtual Oral Presentations and Question and Answer Sessions

Virtual Oral Presentations are to be provided as 15 minute prerecorded videos (MP4).  It is currently planned that these will be released to all delegates prior to the start of the symposium.   Presenters will also provide a single summary slide of their presentations (pdf) which will be shared by the session host as they provide a 2 minute introduction of their presentation at the beginning of the Question and Answer session.

It is planned that there will be Question and Answer sessions  in Webex for discussions between presenters and interested symposium delegates who have registered for either virtual or in-person attendance.

All delegates will have the option of sending email messages directly to the presenter and may also engage in one-on-one discussions using the Ex Ordo software.

Virtual Poster Presentations

Virtual Poster Presentations are to be provided as a pdf file along with a 3 minute prerecorded video (MP4) showing the poster.  It is currently planned that these will be released to all delegates prior to the start of the symposium.

All delegates will have the option of sending messages directly to the presenter and engaging in one-on-one discussions using the Ex Ordo software.

Our Keynote Speakers

Dr. Andreas Fix - Tuesday June 20, 2023

Airborne remote sensing and in-situ measurements of greenhouse gases during the CoMet 2.0 Arctic field experiment in Canada

Abstract:  CoMet 2.0 Arctic (www.comet2arctic.de ) has successfully been conducted within a six-week intensive operation period from August 10th to September 16th, 2022 targeting greenhouse gas emissions from boreal wetlands and permafrost areas in the Canadian Arctic, from wildfires, and from oil, gas, and coal extraction sites. Using the German research aircraft HALO, a total of 135 flight hours have been performed. 16 scientific flights took place from Edmonton AB to various regions in Canada.

During the campaign, active airborne remote sensing measurements using lasers were combined with passive airborne remote sensing measurements using spectrometers and in-situ greenhouse gas concentration measurements, including also an extensive suite of meteorological parameters.

Thus, a valuable data set was acquired to help understanding the methane and carbon dioxide cycles in the Arctic and emissions from anthropogenic sources and wildfires which are responsible for accelerated climate warming, particularly at high latitudes.

CoMet is embedded into the transatlantic AMPAC (Arctic Methane and Permafrost Challenge) initiative of the US and European Space Agencies, NASA and ESA which promotes the co-operation of Canadian, US and European research institutes in this research area.

Dr. Andreas Fix (DLR)
Research scientist at German Aerospace Centre (DLR), Head of the LiDAR department at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics

Dr. Andreas Fix (DLR) is a research scientist at German Aerospace Centre (DLR) and since 2018 head of the LiDAR department at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics. He is physicist by background with a Ph.D. from University of Kaiserslautern, Germany with a thesis on laser physics and nonlinear optics. In 1995 Andreas Fix joined DLR and exploited since then the use of optical parametric oscillators for ground-based, airborne and spaceborne LiDAR systems to measure atmospheric trace gases such as ozone, water vapour, methane, and carbon dioxide. His main expertise is in nonlinear optics, solid-state laser development, LiDAR, and atmospheric physics. He led various national and international research projects as a. Andreas Fix participated in numerous airborne field campaigns, both national and international, and developed and operated various LiDAR systems for this purpose. Currently, he acts as the PI for the CoMet series of airborne missions using active and passive remote sensing and in-situ instruments for monitoring greenhouse gases onboard the German research aircraft HALO. Andreas Fix was co-author of the WALES mission proposal for a space-borne water vapour LiDAR to the European Space Agency (ESA) and key technology expert for the EXCALIBUR mission proposal. Currently he serves as a member for the scientific advisory group (SAG) of the joint French-German climate initiative (MERLIN) to measure methane from a small satellite platform using LiDAR techniques and leads the MERLIN validation activities. In 2015, Andreas Fix was elected member to the International Coordination-group for Laser Atmospheric Studies (ICLAS), a constituent Working Group of the International Radiation Commission (IRC). In the frame of a sabbatical award Andreas Fix spent six months as a visiting scientist at National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Boulder, Colorado. In 2006, together with colleagues he received the DLR Innovation Award for the development of a helicopter-borne LiDAR system to detect methane leakages. In 2008 he was awarded the DLR Research Prize for his co-authorship in a paper on a novel high-spectral-resolution-LiDAR system. Andreas Fix is author or co-author of ~ 90 peer reviewed publications and inventor of several patents. Since 2004 he is visiting lecturer at the Department of Atmospheric and Cryospheric Sciences (ACINN), Austria.

Janin Huard - Wednesday June 21, 2023

Photo Janin Huard

EO Data and Applications for a Resilient and Resourceful Canada
Innovations in space technologies provide Canadians with reliable and timely information to support science-based decision making, while supporting countless services across the country and driving our economy. Mr. Huard will outline the path forward that the CSA is working on, with its federal partners, to maximize the utility and impact of satellite-based EO technologies and to support the commercial, academic, and public organizations developing products and services that not only advance science and innovation, but also allow them to operate more efficiently in a highly competitive environment. Covering some of the current and planned missions, the satellite EO strategy, access to data and the development of applications, he will underline the potential, and the power, of bringing the EO data to the users, and to local communities, particularly in Canada’s North where the use of satellite information is becoming more important as we work to build resilience to climate  change.

Janin Huard
Director Planning, Engagement and Applications at the Canadian Space Agency

Janin Huard is Director, Planning, Engagement and Applications within the Space Utilization Sector at the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). He has held this position since April 2020 and leads the sector’s strategic planning efforts and the development of a long-term vision. He is responsible for maximizing the engagement and contribution of the various players in the space ecosystem to the sector’s missions, projects and initiatives, particularly in the area of Earth observation in Canada. He is also responsible for the smartEarth program, which aims to develop Earth observation applications and the intelligent use of satellite data to develop solutions to important challenges on Earth and in our daily lives.

Janin holds a master’s degree in sociology from the Université du Québec à Montréal and a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the Université de Montréal. He began his professional career in 1998 by starting his own management and communications company and, after a few years in the private sector, he decided to join the federal public service in 2004 as a senior policy analyst. Since then, he has assumed several roles and mandates at Transport Canada, Defence Research and Development Canada and now at the CSA, mainly as a manager in support of policy development, communications, services and programs related to science, technology and innovation.

Dr. Laura Bourgeau-Chavez - Thursday, June 22, 2023

Photo Laura Bourgeau-Chavez

Assessing Broadscale Vulnerability and Resiliency of boreal Peatlands to Wildfire during extreme drought in Northwest Territories

Laura L Bourgeau-Chavez1, Jeremy Graham1, Evan S Kane2, Dorthea J Vander Bilt1, Michael Battaglia1, Michael Billmire1, Lauren Cohen1 and Ellen Whitman3

1 Michigan Technological University, Michigan Tech Research Institute, Ann Arbor, Ml, 48105, United States, lchavez@mtu.edu

 2 Michigan Technological University, College of Forest Resources and Environmental Sciences, Houghton, Ml, United States, eskane@mtu.edu

3 Natural Resources Canada, Northern Forestry Centre, Canadian Forest Service, Edmonton, AB, Canada, ellen.whitman@canada.ca

Abstract:  Peatlands have provided rich reservoirs of stored Carbon for millennia. However, with climate change, warming and drying patterns across the boreal and Arctic combined with the ensuing increased wildfire are putting these systems at risk of changing successional trajectories and shifting from a C sink to a source.  More than 75% of southern Northwest Territories Canada is dominated by peatlands and extreme drought conditions of 2014-15 resulted in widespread wildfire occurrence. Field-based research linked to remote sensing was conducted over the past eight years to understand the effects of the extreme drought and widespread wildfire that occurred in the 14.6 million ha study area around the Great Slave Lake.  Wildfire affected both lowlands and uplands that traverse the Taiga shield and Taiga plain ecozones and gradients of ecosystem types, severity of burn and seasons of fire. To investigate the impacts and consequences of the 2014-15 wildfires, field observations collected in 2015-2019 were linked to remote sensing to answer three research questions: What are the controls on spatial and temporal variations in fire severity?; How do pre-fire conditions and fire severity influence patterns of vegetation succession after fire? and; Under what conditions do we see vegetation recovering to its pre-fire composition vs. shifting to a new state? Understanding the tipping point of drought conditions at which the landscape becomes connected, and peatlands are susceptible to wildfire with deep burning of the organic soil layers is important for understanding the potential future effects of climate change and projected increases in wildfire on peatlands.

Dr. Laura Bourgeau-Chavez

Senior Research Scientist at Michigan Tech Research Institute and Adjunct Associate Professor at Michigan Technological University’s College of Forest Resources and Environmental Sciences

Dr. Laura Bourgeau-Chavez is Senior Research Scientist and Lead of Environmental Applications at Michigan Tech Research Institute, Michigan Technological University in Ann Arbor, Michigan.  She has held this position since February 2007, but has worked in the field of remote sensing of landscape ecosystems since 1989.  Bourgeau-Chavez uses field data collection linked to remote sensing data in the study of temperate, boreal, and tropical forests and wetlands. Much of her research has been focused on developing methods of using Synthetic Aperture Radar, Lidar and optical remote sensing data alone or in combination to map peatlands and wetlands, measure forest biomass, to detect vernal pools, to map boreal fuel moisture, to study landscape effects of boreal fires, and to monitor hydrologic patterns in wetlands.  She has a particular passion for peatlands which she has been studying and mapping peatland typology and Carbon stocks in boreal Canada, the temperate Great Lakes, tropical Andes mountains, and the Peruvian Amazon.  She recently served as a coordinating lead author for the United Nations’ Global Peatland Assessment.

Bourgeau-Chavez holds a Bachelors of Science and Masters of Science from the University of Michigan in Natural Resources and Forest Ecology, respectively, and a PhD in Forest Ecology and Remote Sensing from the University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, N.B. Her dissertation was on using synthetic aperture radar satellite data to monitor fuel moisture in boreal ecosystems for fire danger assessment.  As an adjunct associate professor at Michigan Tech, Bourgeau-Chavez serves on PhD and MS committees and gives occasional lectures on remote sensing of wetlands.

Panel Discussion

Panel 1: Operationalizing Earth Observation Technology to Meet the Needs of Remote and Rural Communities - Tuesday June 20, 2023 (morning)

Panel Description:  With ever-growing web accessibility, cloud computing, abundant free geospatial and imaging data, as well as low-cost imaging technologies deployable on RPAS platforms, Earth Observation data products  are available to support policy, planning and management from local to global scales. There remain, however, barriers to exploiting the full range of these opportunities within many remote and rural Canadian communities. The panelists will discuss some of the application areas where EO data are crucially needed within these communities, some of the existing barriers to adoption, as well as potential solutions. This panel takes a more local and community-needs view of issues that may be touched upon in the other panel, which are much broader in scope, both nationally and disciplinarily.

Jennifer Waugh, P.Eng, MBA, Founder and Principal of Alietum Ltd – Chair of Panel
Jennifer is a lifelong resident of Yellowknife, NT and founded Alietum Ltd in 2016. Alietum is a remote sensing and geospatial mapping company endeavoring to use emerging technology and innovate new remote sensing methods to support the unique environment, industries and people who define Canada’s north. Jennifer has been a Transport Canada certified RPAS pilot for complex and advanced operations for 8 years, operating both multirotor and fixed wing aircraft across NT and Nunavut. Jennifer was one of Canada’s first cohort of Transport Canada Flight Reviewers upon release of Canadian Aviation Regulations Part IX, and has since provided RPAS advanced operation training courses and flight reviews for RPAS operators across the Northwest Territories. As owner of one of Canada’s first RPAS-specific service companies, Jennifer has presented at educational institutions and conferences, and has consulted for large engineering firms, government departments, NAV CANADA, film production companies, universities and mining and exploration companies on procedures for contracting and operating RPAS in Northwest Territories and across Canada.

Terrell Knapton-Pain, GIS Assistant, Tłı̨chǫ Government
Terrell is a Tłı̨chǫ citizen from Behchokǫ̀ NT.  He is the GIS Assistant for the Department of Culture and Land Protection within the Tłı̨chǫ Government.  He enjoys time outdoors and working with technology.  Geography sparked an interest in Terrell as a teen, using Google Earth to look at all the different cities around the world.   He is now still interested and more invested in the geography field as he gets to work on important projects for his people and government.

Sara Brown, Chief Executive Officer, NWT Association of Communities
Raised in Yellowknife, Sara started out in construction and consulting working with communities as clients. Sara took her first job as a Municipal Engineer and then Town Manager in Iqaluit over 25 years ago.  Sara has dealt with the varied issues facing communities as SAO, Manager of Engineering, Director of Public Works and By-law.

Sara is now Chief Executive Officer of the Northwest Territories Association of Communities and is enjoying focusing on the issues that are important to NWT communities and working to assist them as much as possible.  The Association has had a strong emphasis on Climate Change for over 10 years.  Sara has been Chair of the Technical Committee for the development of the Permafrost Guide and 8 Northern Infrastructure Standards as well as many other Climate Change committees.

Garfield Giff, Research Chair, Climate Change Adaptation, Aurora Research Institute (Inuvik)
Garfield has extensive research and consulting experience on socio-political, socio-economic and technical issues associated with the implementation and maintenance of Geographic Information Systems (GISs) and Spatial Data Infrastructures (SDIs).  His research over the years has made significant contributions to the GIS/SDI body of knowledge in the following areas: economic justification of GISs and SDIs (e.g. cost benefit and cost avoidance analysis); funding models for the implementation and maintenance of GISs and SDIs; access and pricing policies for geospatial information; business models, strategic plans, program designs, and implementation plans to support GIS and SDI implementation and maintenance; quantification of the social and qualitative benefits of GISs and SDIs; frameworks for assessing GIS and SDI performance; and data models to support interoperability.

His current research focuses whether GIS and remote sensing can be used to develop and implement more efficient and effective climate change adaptation strategies in the western Arctic. He has been investigating the use of UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones) to collect high volumes of data in a cost effective, timely, and reliable manner under the challenging conditions found in the western Canadian Arctic. If UAVs prove to be a reliable source of current, high-quality data, then this technology could be used to collect high volumes of information in a very reliable, consistent, and economical manner. This data would be more readily accessible and useful in developing climate change adaptation strategies in the western Arctic.

Paul Adlakha, Senior Business Development Executive, C-CORE
Paul Adlakha joined C-CORE in 2007 as a senior business development executive. Since 2011 he has led C-CORE’s LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence, which fosters remote sensing innovation and commercialization for the North and Canada’s SMEs.  Paul is an electrical engineer with over 30 years for experience in senior business development and operations management roles with technology leaders in the defence and aerospace, oil and gas, communications, and remote sensing sectors. He is based in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Panel 2: What is Remote Sensing? - Thursday June 22, 2023 (afternoon)

Panel Description:  This panel brings together a diverse group from the remote sensing community including international perspectives, government interests, and operational to leading-edge experiences in industry and academia. The discussion will focus on key questions, including what is included under the umbrella of “remote sensing” and how our understanding of remote sensing technologies and methods have changed over the many decades that remotely sensed data for Earth observation has been available. We will also look at shifting applications, from local to global monitoring, and how data have been incorporated into decision-making. Finally, we will discuss how remote sensing may be shifting with regards to new and upcoming technologies, methods and applications (e.g. artificial intelligence, drones, cloud computing, etc.).

Laura Chasmer, University of Lethbridge – Chair of Panel
Laura Chasmer is an associate professor in physical geography and remote sensing at the University of Lethbridge. Her research combines hydro-ecology with remote sensing primarily in anthropogenically and naturally disturbed montane and boreal peatlands and forests.

Koreen Millard, Carleton University – Chair of Panel
Koreen Millard is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at Carleton University.  Her research focuses on multi-sensor data fusion for improved understanding of hydrology/vegetation change and interactions in wetlands and coupling time-series remote sensing with field-measurements.  Koreen has been using GEE for several years, and uses both the Javascript and Python API for analysis of both multi-spectral and SAR imagery

Yunyue Yu, NOAA
Yunyue Yu received the Ph.D. degree in Aerospace Engineering Sciences from the University of Colorado (CU) in 1996. Since 2006, Dr. Yu serves as a physical scientist at NOAA/NESDIS Center for Satellite Applications and Research (STAR). He is science team lead for satellite land product development, including land surface temperature, surface albedo, vegetation indices, green vegetation fraction, and leaf area index.

Mathieu Turgeon-Pelchat – NRCan
Mathieu has a bachelor degree in applied geomatics and a master degree in remote sensing from the Université de Sherbrooke. He has been with the Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation (CCMEO) at Natural Resources Canada since 2016. Since 2018, he’s mainly focused on applying machine/deep learning methods to remote sensing data, for the automation of geospatial data creation and enhancement.

Chris Hopkinson – University of Lethbridge
Chris Hopkinson is a professor and research chair in remote sensing of ecosystem change at the University of Lethbridge. Chris has been involved in the Canadian Remote Sensing Society for more than 20 years and has been on the executive more recently. Chris started his career in survey, has innovated in lidar, and now integrates across multiple remote sensing technologies for understanding hydrology and ecosystem change

Mike Sitar, Riegl Canada
Michael Sitar holds a Master’s of Environmental Studies (Geography) from the University of Waterloo, a BSc in Environmental Science from Nipissing University, and a Technologist Diploma in Environmental Biology from Canadore College. He has over twenty years of experience in the product and business management of survey sensors and solutions for leading lidar manufacturers. His focus is the development and implementation of strategic growth plans in existing and future lidar market verticals to increase RIEGL market share and brand recognition within North America.

Linda Flade – University of Lethbridge
Linda Flade is a PhD candidate at the University of Lethbridge in Canada, Alberta. Linda is a member of the Canada Wildfire NSERC Strategic Network and currently serves as student representative on the CSRS planning committee. Having always been fascinated by remote northern ecosystems, Linda moved to Canada to study the combined impacts of permafrost thaw and wildland fire on unmanaged boreal forests and peatlands in the Northwest Territories. For her thesis she is integrating field data, multispectral airborne lidar, and passive optical satellite imagery. Linda holds a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Science from the Ludwig-Maximilians University in Munich, Germany. Her master’s thesis was on developing a semi-automatic processing chain for modeling evapotranspiration from multispectral and thermal RPAS data in a tropical dry forest in Costa Rica.

Nanar Hakobyan – Government of the Northwest Territories & Wilfrid Laurier University
Nanar Hakobyan works for the Western Arctic Centre for Geomatics in Inuvik, NWT, Canada, which is part of the Northwest Territories (NWT) Centre for Geomatics, Government of Northwest Territories (GNWT). She is also a part-time PhD student at Wilfrid Laurier University, where she studies remote sensing methods that use high-resolution Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) to detect, monitor, and analyze permafrost thaw impacts in the Dehcho region and in the Northwest Territories.

Invited Sessions

Deep Learning for Land Use/Land Cover Mapping - Tuesday June 20 1:30 p.m.

Organizers:
Dr. Christopher Storie, University of Winnipeg
Mathieu Turgeon-Pelchat, Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation

Deep learning neural networks have made major advances since their breakthrough on ImageNet in 2012. Advances in GPU technology coupled with large volumes of data have resulted in an explosion of research and development in deep learning applications for remotely sensed image analysis. This session examines these advances in the areas of semantic segmentation and domain adaptation as they relate to land use/land cover mapping. The session will present a variety of topics including the development of neural network architectures for large region map production, knowledge transfer and domain adaptation techniques, and developing deep learning workflows for production level mapping.

The RADARSAT Constellation Mission - Wednesday June 21 8:45 a.m.

Organizer:  Emmanuelle Albrecht,  Canadian Space Agency

The RADARSAT Constellation Mission (RCM) consists of three identical satellites each carrying a C-Band Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR). It provides daily revisit of Canada’s vast territory and maritime approaches, including daily access to 90 % of Canada’s land surface. Over 250 000 images are generated per year. The solutions offered by RCM fall into three broad categories: marine monitoring (ice, wind, oil pollution and ship monitoring); disaster management (mitigation, warning, response and recovery) and ecosystem monitoring (agriculture, wetlands, forestry and coastal change monitoring). The aim of this invited session is to provide the opportunity to discover more about RCM through various presentations made by CSA as well as users of RCM data. Speakers from CSA will include presentation of an update on the Mission, details of the vetting process which makes possible enhanced access to data products an update on Image Quality and details of the RCM Standard Coverages. The final presentation will describe current plans for continuity of RCM products with RADARSAT+.

Advancing Wetland Mapping Through Earth Observation – In Memory of Dr. Brian Brisco - Thursday June 22 10:20 a.m.

Organizer:  Dr. Roger De Abreu, Canada Centre for Mapping and Earth Observation

In this session, colleagues and collaborators of the late Dr. Brian Brisco will present research that advances the mapping and monitoring of wetlands by space-based Earth Observation.  The session will focus on and move forward methods that Dr. Brisco helped pioneer and develop with the hope of improving our understanding, monitoring and preservation of these critical ecosystems.  Papers will present improved techniques for readying data, methods to leverage SAR data, new machine learning techniques for operational monitoring and research that seeks to accurately detect changes and trends in wetland health.

Workshops

Monday June 19, 2023

Deep Learning for Remote Sensing 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Instructor:  Maryam Jameela

Description:   Multiple areas of science have tried to understand or mimic human brain’s behavior to develop solutions to facilitate environment, military, and civil applications. Deep learning became one of the fastest-growing areas of machine learning which attempts to classify, detect, segment, and recognize objects and areas of interest through a neural network like neurons. Therefore, deep learning can be used for various autonomous navigation and remote sensing applications and had gained great success in the past decade. In the remote sensing community, deep learning has been applied to multiple data types (e.g., spectral, hyperspectral, LiDAR) for the applications of classification, anomaly detection, terrain surface classification, object detection, and many more.

Deep learning attempts to mimic the human brain to learn to understand the given information, called a training pool. The training pool is a large amount of labeled data that teaches deep learning model high- and low-level features. Subsequently, the trained model is used at the inference stage to predict unseen datasets. The deep learning model is also referred to as a backbox because it provides an end-to-end solution for tasks that traditionally require user supervision.

Our workshop will introduce deep learning approaches through theory and examples. It will include two sessions; the first will focus on image datasets (2D), and the second will focus on LiDAR datasets (3D).

The first session will overview deep learning, explaining important theories and terminologies in convolutional neural networks. Following this, we will review the latest 2D object detection network such as Oriented RCNN which will be the focus of this session’s demonstration for detecting pylon and span in utility corridor data. The second session will cover a lecture that discusses LiDAR point-cloud processing. We will be reviewing RandLA and SUNet to understand the demonstration of urban scene understanding and semantic segmentation of utility corridors.

Requirements:

  • Basic knowledge of programming is desirable (esp. Python)
  • Participants will need to bring their own laptop.

Pre requirements:

  • Github account is optional
Photo Maryam Jameela

Maryam Jameela is a Ph.D. student under the supervision of Dr. Gunho Sohn in the Department of Earth and Space Sciences and Engineering at Lassonde School of Engineering, York University. She also works as Research Scientist at Teledyne Optech, Canada. Her current research work is a collaboration between the Mobility Innovation Centre (MOVE) at the Lassonde School of Engineering, York University, and Teledyne Optech. The major research focus is developing a noise-filtering deep neural network and deep utility semantic neural network for the large-scale 3D point cloud. She has experience of 05 years in geomatics and deep learning and, overall, 09 years of experience in software development.

Google Earth Engine 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Instructor:  Koreen Millard

Description:  Google Earth Engine (GEE) is a free, cloud-based application that enables time series and big data analysis of remotely sensed imagery without specialized software or the requirement to download, store and process data locally.  Through either a Javascript or Python API, GEE enables programmatic access to the MODIS, Landsat 4,5,7 and 8 and Sentinel-1, 2, 3 and 5 archives, with continual updates, as well as many other imagery and ancillary datasets (e.g. land-use data, climate and soil data, etc.).  This course will introduce the basics of scripting in Earth Engine through the python API to enable wide-area and time series analysis of multi-spectral and SAR imagery.  Hands-on exercises will be accompanied by practical demonstrations and lectures on both technical and theoretical aspects. Thematic topics will include water extent/flood mapping, land-use classification and extraction of time series data.  This course would be most useful for students, scientists and analysts who have a background in GIS or remote sensing and who want to integrate cloud-based remote sensing into their workflows. Participants should be willing to learn some basic coding skills.  While no previous coding skills are required, knowledge of scripting in other languages would be helpful.

Pre-requisites: 

Participants will need their own laptop and a Google account (e.g., a Gmail account), and they should also have applied for and obtained access to the Google Earth Engine platform by filling out the form at https://signup.earthengine.google.com.

Koreen Millard is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Geography and Environmental Studies at Carleton University.  Her research focuses on multi-sensor data fusion for improved understanding of hydrology/vegetation change and interactions in wetlands and coupling time-series remote sensing with field-measurements.  Koreen has been using GEE for several years, and uses both the Javascript and Python API for analysis of both multi-spectral and SAR imagery.

Radar Remote Sensing 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.

Instructors:  Dr. Brigitte Leblon, Dr. Armand LaRocque

Description: The workshop will introduce the theory and analysis of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and polarimetric SAR data. The following topics will be included: (i) Introduction to radar (SAR) remote sensing; (ii) Geometric and dielectric considerations and radar backscatter; (iii) Imaging modes of spaceborne SAR systems (e.g., RADARSAT-2, Sentinel-1, ALOS-PALSAR); (iv) Applications of multi-polarized SAR images to agriculture, forestry, sea ice, geology, and the environment; (v) SAR polarimetry; (vi) Polarimetric variable;(vii) Incoherent Target Decomposition (Freeman-Durden, Cloude-Pottier); (viii) Unsupervised classification algorithms based on the H/A/alpha polarimetric decomposition; (ix) Wishart supervised classification; (x) Hybrid classification algorithms (e.g., unsupervised H/A/Alpha-Wishart classifier, Freeman-Lee classifier); (xi) Applications of polarimetric SAR images to agriculture, forestry, sea ice, geology, and the environment. The presentation will also include demonstrations of available SAR data analysis and visualization algorithms, including those in PCI Geomatica and SNAP.

Photo Brigitte Leblon

Dr. Brigitte Leblon is a professor of remote sensing and the Dean of the Faculty of Natural Resources Management at Lakehead University (Ontario, Canada). She holds an Agricultural Engineer degree from the Catholic University of Leuven (Belgium) and a Ph.D. in remote sensing of Sup-Agro Montpellier (France). She has engaged in geoinformatics and remote sensing research for more than twenty years and has published over 300 refereed publications and 100 other publications. Dr. Leblon pioneered the development of online courses in geoinformatics. Dr. Leblon’s online courses are offered not only in English but also in French and Spanish. The courses attract dozens of students from across Canada and around the world, from Japan to France and from the USA to Australia. Dr. Leblon was the director of TRANSFOR-M, a dual degree Master’s program in forestry and environment between Europe and Canada, which got in 2014 an international award for the most innovative graduate program. She also served as the interim director of the UNB Wood Science and Technology Centre and as the coordinator of the European strategy of UNB. She is a visiting professor at two universities in South Africa and five universities in Europe. She is currently the principal investigator in several international research projects. Finally, she is an Associate Editor of Remote Sensing and the Canadian Journal of Remote Sensing and served as guest editor for several international journals. She is heavily involved in the Canadian Remote Sensing Society, as one of the past presidents of the Society and a leader of several summer schools and student programs.

Photo Armand LaRocque

Dr. Armand LaRocque is a Geomorphologist and a specialist in Physical geography and Earth Sciences. He is a Research scientist in Remote sensing and GIS at the Faculty of Forestry and Environmental Management, University of New Brunswick (UNB), Canada, and a Part-time Professor in Geomatics, Geology and Physical geography at the Université de Moncton, Canada. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree (physical geography), a Master of Science degree from the Université de Sherbrooke, Canada, and a Ph.D. degree in geography from the Université de Montréal, Canada. In addition to his background, Dr. LaRocque is a specialist in air photo interpretation, remote sensing and GIS. He participated in one of the first research projects about the civil use of SAR images in Earth’s surface mapping in Canada as part of first Canada’s SAR satellite mission (RADARSAT-1). His most recent research focuses on using SAR images (RADARSAT-2, Sentinel-1, Alos-PalSAR) with optical images (Landsat-5 TM, Landsat-7 ETM  and Landsat-8 OLI) for land cover, surficial geology, permafrost, and wetland mapping in Canada. He had already published more than 90 refereed publications and conference presentations. Dr. LaRocque is also a good teacher, having taught 30 different courses more than 90 times in French and English. He also co-authored with Prof. Leblon several online courses in geomatics (airphoto interpretation, digital image processing, and geographic information systems). He also produced different online courses for the Royal Roads University (Victoria, BC), Université Sainte-Anne (Pointe-de-l’Église, NS) and the Collège communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick (CCNB, Dieppe, NB).

Introduction to LiDAR data with the LidR package in R 1:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Instructor:  Maxim Okhrimenko, University of Lethbridge

Description:

This workshop intends to introduce participants to LiDAR data and a free environment to work with the data:
R ecosystem and, specifically, the LidR package.

The focus will be on understanding the LiDAR data structure and typical processing routines. We will demonstrate examples of LiDAR Area-Based Approach modeling and the flexibility of incorporating the LidR package into the analysis. The workshop is aimed at a beginner level. It assumes several groups of participants – those familiar with the R environment but not familiar with LiDAR data and those already familiar with LiDAR data but not familiar with R and the LidR package. For the participants who are neither familiar with LiDAR nor R, familiarity with any programming languages should be helpful. The workshop does not aim to teach all the functionality of the LidR package but rather to introduce the package and build a strong foundation of understanding the structure of the LiDAR data for further independent work.

Requirements:
Basic notions of programing, preferably in R. Participants will have to bring their own laptop.

Photo Maxim Okhrimenko

Maxim Okhrimenko is a research associate at the Artemis lab in the Geography and Environment Department of the University of Lethbridge. Within the Artemis lab multi-spectral LiDAR program, he is responsible for the entire chain of activities, from aerial mission planning and execution to LiDAR data calibration and output, resulting in LAZ files being available to the lab colleagues and external agencies. Maxim received his B.Sc. in physics and applied mathematics from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology and his M.Sc. in Geography from the University of Lethbridge. He has twenty years of experience with LiDAR data acquisition and applied research. His scientific interest lies in spatial data analysis focused on LiDAR point cloud and its applications to forestry. Maxim is currently enrolled in the University of Lethbridge Ph.D. program.

RPAS Remote Sensing in a Northern Context 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Instructors:  Dr. Maria Belke Brea, Jennifer Waugh, Riley Cormier

Abstract:  For decades, researchers, scientists and Indigenous guardians have used satellite and aircraft remote sensing data to monitor northern infrastructure and environment. The recent introduction of drone technology, formally referred to as remotely piloted aircraft systems (RPAS), has provided northern communities with the opportunity to collect their own remote sensing data. This workshop is designed for northern organizations and Indigenous governments interested in establishing an internal RPAS program and learning how remote sensing data can address their unique needs. This workshop will be led by remote sensing operators, researchers and government representatives with extensive experience living and operating in Canada’s north. This workshop will provide an overview of RPAS technology, regulations, and applications for remote sensing data in a northern context. Topics will include selecting the appropriate type of remote sensing platform and sensors; process for becoming a Transport Canada certified RPAS pilot; considerations for operating in northern airspace; considerations for starting an RPAS program; considerations for data processing, management, and usage; and an introduction to geospatial mapping. Participants will be given the opportunity to collaborate and network with like minded individuals interested in remote sensing technology and its applications.

Keywords – Remotely piloted aircraft system, drone, regulations, remote sensing, north, geospatial data

Dr. Maria Belke Brea, PhD in Geography, Postdoctoral Fellow at Wilfrid Laurier University

Maria is an earth scientist and climatologist currently working at Wilfrid Laurier University, ON. During her Master and PhD programs she had the opportunity to work across the Arctic where she studied changes in the tundra and boreal biomes that are driven by climate warming. After finishing her PhD at the Université Laval in Quebec City, QC in 2021, she took on the lead in a lichen mapping project for the Northwest Territories initiated by Dr. Jennifer Baltzer. In the context of the lichen mapping project Maria spend 2 summers in the area around Yellowknife, NT and conducted a total of 48 RPAS missions spread around the Great Slave Lake. For the RPAS data collection she used a Mavic 2 Pro with an RGB camera. Through the lichen mapping project Maria gained experience in planning and executing RPAS operations in remote settings, as well as in processing and analysing high precision RGB data both with commercial and free software including geospatial packages written in the Python programming language. The lichen mapping project is carried out in collaboration with the NWT Centre for Geomatics.

Jennifer Waugh, P.Eng, MBA, Founder and Principal of Alietum Ltd

Jennifer is a lifelong resident of Yellowknife, NT and founded Alietum Ltd in 2016. Alietum is a remote sensing and geospatial mapping company endeavoring to use emerging technology and innovate new remote sensing methods to support the unique environment, industries and people who define Canada’s north. Jennifer has been a Transport Canada certified RPAS pilot for complex and advanced operations for 8 years, operating both multirotor and fixed wing aircraft across NT and Nunavut. Jennifer was one of Canada’s first cohort of Transport Canada Flight Reviewers upon release of Canadian Aviation Regulations Part IX, and has since provided RPAS advanced operation training courses and flight reviews for RPAS operators across the Northwest Territories. As owner of one of Canada’s first RPAS-specific service companies, Jennifer has presented at educational institutions and conferences, and has consulted for large engineering firms, government departments, NAV CANADA, film production companies, universities and mining and exploration companies on procedures for contracting and operating RPAS in Northwest Territories and across Canada.

Riley Cormier, BSc, MSc Candidate Riley, Manager of Remote Sensing Operations, Alietum Ltd

At Alietum, Riley manages remote sensing projects using both manned aircraft and unmanned aircraft platforms and produces geospatial mapping products tailored to the client’s needs. Riley’s geospatial processing and analytics includes RGB, NIR and multispectral photogrammetry, thermal imagery, LIDAR, as well as optical and radar satellite data. Riley has experience operating a variety of RPAS-based sensors such as RGB, multispectral, and thermal, on a multitude of platforms including Sensefly eBee, DJI Matrice 200, and Aeryon Scout. Riley’s research has resulted in the development of two manuscripts submitted for peer-review, and co-authorship on technical reports, a peer-reviewed journal article and has been included in an authored publication. Riley’s graduate research studies include the innovative application of RPAS photogrammetry in snow depth mapping on a high arctic watershed. Building on this, Riley is now managing a large scale, first of its kind snow depth mapping project on the Baker Creek watershed using Alietum’s manned aircraft photogrammetry platform and with support from the National Research Council Industrial Research Assistance Program.

Field Trip Options

Unless otherwise indicated, please book these events directly with the vendor at the contact provided. Refer to your attendance at this year’s Canadian Remote Sensing Symposium in order to obtain the preferred rates. Only the Great Slave Lake Fish Fry Dinner Cruise will be booked via the symposium registration portal.

Great Slave Lake Fish Fry Dinner Cruise (June 22)

Yellowknife Outdoor Adventures is owned and operated by Carlos Gonzalez, a 42-year resident of the Northwest Territories. Passionate about the outdoors, Carlos loves to share his knowledge of the seasons, the wildlife, the fish and the natural beauty of this spectacular part of the Canada.

An award-winning guide, teacher and restaurant owner, Carlos treasures what he calls “the outdoor moments”, the colours of the seasons, the habits of the wildlife and above all, the fantastic northern pike fishing on Great Slave Lake

Join Carlos and experience a Great Slave Lake harbour tour, house boats, sightseeing, and a superb Northern Gourmet shore dinner of fresh fish.

Boat Tour Includes:

  • Causeway
  • House Boats
  • Natural History
  • Dog Island
  • Inside passage of Mosher Island
  • Then to lodge

BBQ Fish Fry Includes:

  • Great Slave Lake whitefish fillet marinated in olive oil, basil and garlic finished in a lemon fusion.
  • German Potato salad
  • Coleslaw
  • Carrots
  • Crusty bun
  • Assorted Cakes
  • Wild Berry Tea
  • Option of bringing own alcohol or additional beverages
  • 25+ Big veg & Fruit tray

Price

$150* per person – Registration & Payment through the Symposium registration

Minimum 6 ppl, maximum 70 ppl

*Inclusive of tax and gratuity

For more information email us at ykoadv@gmail.com

Old Town Glassworks (June 18 and June 23)

Old Town Glassworks is a workers cooperative that has been creating beautiful recycled glassware from rescued bottles on the shores of Great Slave Lake since 1994. We use original northern patterns by local artists. Each piece is cut, polished, stencilled and sand-blasted by hand. Our gift shop is brimming with our famous northern glasses, mugs, lamps, magnets, soap pumps & much more. We also offer Custom Engraving for Logos, Awards, & Gifts. https://oldtownglassworks.com/

Workshops are 2 hours long and include a brief history of our space and organization, a demo of cutting, grinding and polishing a glass bottle and instruction on how to stencil and etch your own personal piece of glassware. Cost of the workshop includes one piece of OTG recycled glassware, and you are welcome to etch more or bring your own glassware from home (both for a fee).

Price

Adult Workshop – $70.00 + GST. Special Symposium rate is $60 + GST

Studio Time – $35/hour + cost of glassware etched + GST

Date: June 18 and June 23, 2023.

4 workshops available – 10:30 AM, 1:00 PM, 3:30 PM, & 6:00 PM

up to 8 people per workshop.

Booking deadline is June 15, 2023.

Bookings via email info@oldtownglassworks.com – Payment upon booking.

Jackpine Tours – Yellowknife Bay Paddle Tour (June 18)

Enjoy northern adventure on the beautiful Yellowknife Bay, under the midnight sun. Paddle your own canoe with help from an experienced guide and explore the historic Old Town from the water. Novice paddlers are welcome, experienced canoe guides and all paddling equipment included. A brief safety briefing and we’ll be on the water for a three hour paddle, followed by a “wilderness” reception with wine and local gourmet snacks on the shore of Great Slave Lake.  To learn more about paddling in the North with Jackpine Paddle, check out their website at jackpinepaddle.com

Where: Meet at Rotary Park
When: 5:00pm June 18, 2022.
How: Please email info@jackpinepaddle.com to book your spot! There is no deadline, but registration is on a first-come first-served basis, max number of participants is 30.

Price

 Special Symposium rate $135 + GST. This tour is regularly priced at $235 + GST

*Please come dressed appropriately for the weather and bring a water bottle.

Bluefish Outfitting

Bay Boat Tour (June 18)

Enjoy Great Slave Lake by boat with a short tour of Yellowknife Bay and Back Bay. Get a different perspective of the city from the waterfront. See fishing boats, float planes, bird life, floating homes and some historical sites.

To book please contact:
Bluefish Outfitting
bluefish.greg@gmail.com
867-445-8553
Deadline for booking – June 11, 2023

Price

1 Hour approx

Regular Price $60/person, Symposium Price $50/person

Minimum 2 ppl, maximum 10 ppl

Half Day Fishing Trip (June 23)

Travel up to 40 km (25 miles) from Yellowknife and fish for Northern Pike. Relax and enjoy a delicious shore dinner of fresh caught fish.

Meeting point is 8 Mitchell Dr. in the old town at 9:00am.

To book please contact:
Bluefish Outfitting
bluefish.greg@gmail.com
867-445-8553
Deadline for booking – June 16, 2023

Price

4.5 Hours

Regular Price $160/person, Symposium Price $150/person

Minimum 2 ppl, maximum 6 ppl

Bucket List Tours - Cameron Falls (June 18), City Tour (June 23)

Cameron Falls Tour

After a scenic drive down the Ingraham Trail that winds through Precambrian landscape, with vistas of lakes, forest and ancient rock we will go on a beautiful hike into the Cameron Falls. The is slightly challenging, as we are climbing on rock in parts of the trail. The hike is 30 minutes one way. We arrive at a spectacular display of waterfalls rushing over volcanic rock. Total duration of tour is 4 hours. We will enjoy a light snack at the falls.

Photo courtesy of J.F. Bergeron

Price

Regular Price $89/person, Symposium Price $75/person

Date: June 18, 2023

A minimum of 4 people is required.

Pick up at The Explorer Hotel at 10:00am, drop off at same.

City Tour

We begin with a guided tour of the NWT Legislative Assembly Building, where you will learn about our consensus-style, non-partisan government, one of only a few in Canada.

Following the Legislative Building, we will make our way to the site of Giant Mine. Rich in the history of Yellowknife’s gold mining days. There is an outdoor museum available to view. We will provide history on board. Then we make a quick stop at YKEA and look for local treasures.

Next, we make our way to Buffalo Airway’s home of the popular TV series, Ice Pilots. We will visit the hangar filled with vintage aircraft. Star of the show is Buffalo Joe McBryan, owner of the largest DC 3 ‘s and DC 4’s in North America. These are propeller operated WW2 legendary aircraft.

We will return to the downtown core and stop in at the NWT Diamond Center which purchases diamonds from two of our local mines.
We will the make our way to The Old Town / Latham Island and N’dilo. Travelling through suburban parts of the City and the downtown core.

We will first visit Ragged Ass Road, the same street immortalized by Tom Cochrane on his third album by the same name. We will spend time around Great Slave Lake which is the second largest lake in Canadian borders, the deepest lake in North America at 614 metres, and the tenth-largest lake in the world.

Next is N’dilo, a small Dene community is located on tip of Latham Island, which is actually an isthmus extending from Yellowknife into Great Slave Lake. The land was set aside for use by “status Indians” by the Government of Canada in 1947. The name was officially changed to N’dilo in 1991, which means “end of the island” in the local Dene dialect

Price

Regular price $79, Symposium price $65.00

Date: June 23, 2023

4 hour tour

Pick up at The Explorer Hotel at 10:00am, drop off at same.

Trail Blazer Tours

Spend the day on a Great Slave Lake fishing adventure in search of Monster Trout and Pike. Enjoy a delicious shore lunch as you take in the beauty of this pristine area. All fishing equipment and tackle provided.

To book please contact:
trailblazertours2019@gmail.com
867-446-5091

Price

All Day Fishing

Special Symposium Pricing – $325 per person

My Backyard Tours - City Tour (June 18)

See Yellowknife though the eyes of people who call our Yellowknife home, get local insights and enjoy the stories of life-long residents who will guide you on this 2½ hour tour. You will be able to stop and visit some of our favourite highlights, including Yellowknife’s Old Town and Pilots’ Monument. See local art and learn about the history and culture of the people that make this area unique. Continue to new town, to see the Legislative Assembly, Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre (Museum) and beyond. Northern tea and homemade cookies served along the way. Transportation is provided in either in a small tour van, bus or SUV, depending on the group size. Our professionally guided tours take into account your interests as much as possible. Small groups are our specialty, giving you an authentic and personalized experience. Solo bookings welcomed and matched up with other tour participants.

Extended Tour Option – Add on Nature’s North Wildlife Gallery

Nature’s North is a wildlife gallery that specializes in lifelike recreations of animals.  The gallery aims to provide you with a feeling like you are truly out on the Taiga.  Award winning craftsmanship, local knowledge and flare, Nature’s North offers a unique experience. See recreation of mammals and birds that will give you an intimate view into their life in the north.

Price

Price $89.00 + 5% GST per person

With Extended Tour Option – Nature’s North Wildlife Gallery*: $125.00 + 5% GST per person

*Price includes admission

Date: June 18, 2023

Pick up at The Explorer Hotel at 9:30am or 1:30pm, drop off at same.

A minimum of 3 people is required.

Solo bookings welcomed and matched up with other tour participants.

To book, please email:  info@mybackyardtours.com

Yellow Dog Lodge & Fabulous Fishing

Our Story

Gord and Kathy Gin are the owners/operators of Yellow Dog Lodge.  We purchased the lodge in 2006 and over the past 17 years have made vast improvements and expanded the original operations. Prior to purchasing the lodge Gord was a geomatics professional and surveyor for consulting and multi national pipeline companies based in Calgary, Denver and Houston.  His achievements and papers on remote sensing, GIS and offshore bathymetry mapping were well received in pipeline conferences across the globe.

We named Yellow Dog Lodge in honor of the Dogrib Band of the Yellowknives Dene Indigenous Peoples, but our first guests logically assumed it came from the original camp pup, our friendly yellow Labrador retriever named Casey whose favorite job was to greet arriving guests.

Yellow Dog Lodge is a family run business catering to our guests. Do a puzzle, play a game, go fishing and hiking, karaoke or just hang out around our camp fire or hot tub. We’ve set up our operation to offer our guests a variety of options and activities in a very relaxed atmosphere; and more importantly, to allow them to enjoy themselves on their own terms in their own time — without a lot of structure and scheduling. We serve our guests like we want to be served ourselves and we affectionately refer to our services as “Yellow Dog Style”.

The Lodge

Located near the channel between Duncan and Graham lakes, about 35 air miles north east of Yellowknife, our Lodge can accommodate up to 24 guests at a time — 12 guests in the four-bedroom main lodge, up to 4 people in each of the two private cabins, and up to 6 guests in the Executive Cabin, plus 6 more in our floating tent camps.

Unique to Yellow Dog Lodge are the 2 self-contained floating tent camps. Affectionately named the “Dog Houses,” these facilities are anything but. Each Dog House features a wall tent that sleeps up to 4 people and is equipped with a wood stove, propane grill, portable toilet, cooking utensils, coolers and a casting deck. Each unit is also powered by a small outboard that allows guests go and live where they please on the lake.

They’re the perfect choice for guests who prefer to get away from everything and do it all themselves. It is the best and safest way to get out there and really experience living in the wilderness, where the only sounds you’ll likely hear come from the loons, owls and eagles.

Fabulous Fishing

Canada’s beautiful Northwest Territories continues to serve up the world’s finest sport fishing. As a result, the North been a bucket list destination for a number of generations of anglers.

We welcome guests who have wide ranging interests, the fishing is simply outstanding. We also offer optional fly-out daytrips to a handful of other lakes for those who want to catch walleyes, as well as trout and grayling — or just get a change of scenery.

Our waters are known more for numbers of fish than for trophies, but anglers do see their share of trout approaching 40 pounds, and pike in the 40 to 50-inch class. Several regular guests book trips in every June just to target big pike in the shallows.  Shore lunch of fresh caught lake trout or pike is always a highlight amongst our guests.

Many of the lakes’ best fishing areas are within a stone throw of the lodge, including a spot 30 metres from the back door where in September anglers catch trout on nearly every other cast. This is the type of fishing is where everyone can be successful and have a lot of fun. For a change of pace, guests seeking even more solitude and scenery can travel up one of the rivers or make a short hike to one of the nearby lakes.

Award Winning

Catering to aurora adventurers as well as serious anglers transformed Yellow Dog Lodge into something more than the traditional fishing camp. And it’s this forward-thinking approach that helped our lodge earn high praise and recognition.

We received the prestigious 2017 Operator of the Year Award from “Spectacular Northwest Territories,” the NWT’s tourism agency.  In 2011, Destination Canada recognised Yellow Dog Lodge as one of Canada’s Signature experiences and to this day our lodge remains as part of this prestigious Collection.

When it comes time to choose this year’s adventure destination, start with Yellow Dog Lodge in Canada’s Spectacular Northwest Territories.  Just a bit different!

To book please go to
yellowdoglodge.ca/packages/sport-fishing/

15% off of listed prices for Symposium participants

Local Attractions

Yellowknife Visitors Centre

You can find the new Yellowknife Visitors Centre in the lower level of the Centre Square Mall, 50th Street entrance is the closest. Our phone number is 920-TOUR (8687) and you can e-mail us at info@extraordinaryyk.com. The address is Unit 78, Centre Square Mall, 5014 – 49th Street, Yellowknife, NT X1A 3R8.

We are open seven days a week, Monday to Sunday, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.

Visitors Guide - City of Yellowknife

Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre

Journey through the history and culture as well as the geology and wildlife of the Northwest Territories at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre. Varied museum exhibits tell stories about the land and its people including frontier aviation, mining and the Arctic. The Centre is more than a museum as it also houses the Government’s archives and they design and circulate exhibits interpreting the human and natural history of the Northwest Territories. The Centre is located near downtown Yellowknife on the shores of Frame Lake close to the Legislative Building.

Visit Site

The Legislative Building of the Northwest Territories

The Legislative Building of the Northwest Territories is one of the most unique legislatures in Canada, highlighting the consensus style of government and the traditional values of the people that sets the Northwest Territories apart from other Canadian provinces. The Legislative Assembly also houses one of the territory’s best art collections. Guided tours are available. In a natural setting on the shores of Frame Lake, the beautiful Legislative Assembly building is a short walk from the downtown Yellowknife.

Visit Site

Yellowknife’s Old Town

One of the most diverse, historic, offbeat neighborhoods in Canada, Old Town is the heart of Yellowknife. Here, where the Precambrian Shield blends into the Great Slave Lake, gold seekers approximately 80 years ago pioneered what was to become the North’s greatest settlement. Today the area is an intriguing mixture of log cabins, mansions, houseboats, float planes, art galleries, famous restaurants, monuments and more. Guides to Old Town’s historic sites are available from the Northern Frontier Visitor Center.

NWT Diamond Centre

At the NWT Diamond Centre enjoy a journey through the vast history of diamond mining in the Canadian North. Learn about the many complexities that bring this truly unique product to market. The centre also features and sells a variety of loose diamonds – mined, cut, and polished in the Northwest Territories as well as displays of jewellery.

Visit Site

The Bush Pilot’s Monument

The Bush Pilot’s Monument in the Old Townis a must do attraction when visiting Yellowknife. It is a local monument honoring the bush pilots of today and yesterday, who helped open up the north to the rest of Canada. The monument sits on “The Rock”, a six-storey-high hill in the centre of Yellowknife’s Old Town. From the top enjoy the 360 degree view of the city and watch floatplanes land and take off amongst the houseboats.

Yellowknife Farmers Market

The Yellowknife Farmers Market is coordinated by a group of community volunteers. The Farmers Market features: home-made, home-grown, locally harvested products, kids craft area, musical entertainment, and plenty of space for picnics.

When: June – mid-September, every Tuesday, 17:15–19:15.

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Dettah

Dettah, or “Burnt Point,” is Yellowknife’s Dene settlement of about 220. With a prime location on the rolling shield-rock at the mouth of Yellowknife Bay, Dettah was traditionally a seasonal fish camp which has turned into a permanent settlement in the 1930s. Here you’ll find many examples of traditional Dene lifestyle – whitefish drying on racks and moosehides being tanned. It is 27 km up the Ingraham Trail.

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The Old Town Glassworks

The Old Town Glassworks is a worker’s cooperative that has been creating beautiful recycled glassware from rescued bottles on the shores of Great Slave Lake since 1994. Choose ready-made gifts or express your creative side, and make your very own one-of-a-kind and eco-friendly souvenir, sandblasted with unique northern designs.

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Gallery of the Midnight Sun

Founded in 1989, the Gallery of the Midnight Sun is the largest and most comprehensive Northern Art gallery in the Canadian Arctic which includes Inuit and Dene art as well as other souvenirs. Located in historic Yellowknife’s Old Town on the shores of Great Slave Lake.

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Down to Earth Gallery

Operating in Yellowknife’s Old Town this artist-run Down to Earth Gallery specializes in an eclectic mix of Northern-made art and fine crafts. Located at the corner of Franklin Avenue and Bryson Drive this gallery is open year-round.

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Aurora Emporium Art Gallery

This locally run gallery features authentic indigenous products, Angus Beaulieu original paintings, stone carvings, birch barks baskets with quillwork and much more.

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Visual Effects Ltd

Visual Effects Ltd is located in the core of downtown Yellowknife and has occupied its present space for 17 years. The generous amount of natural light in the store due to a bank of floor to ceiling windows across the front adds greatly to the ambience of the space and helps properly showcase the Fine Art adorning the walls.

With the exception of the saw room and glass cutting areas which are isolated for both noise reduction and customer safety, the bulk of the framing shop has been integrated into the gallery space. As the customer browses the many prints and originals displayed they can also watch the framers at work who are readily available to answer any questions and facilitate them in any way.

The store owners have always been and continue to be very discriminating concerning the products they showcase and champion. All of the artists are well known and highly collectible. The handmade crafts are also carefully selected from an ever growing number of Artisans that frequent the business looking to showcase their work. The business has become a popular destination for many locals just wanting a break in their day, spending a bit of time in a soothing atmosphere.

***Visual Effects is donating a door prize for the symposium

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Buffalo Airways Hangar Tours

Note: The City Tour on June 23rd includes the Buffalo Airways Hangar.

Tours guide you around the northern airline Buffalo Airways Hangar and its fleet; a local icon with vintage and active aircraft in the hangar and outside (weather permitting). The airline was founded by Buffalo Joe (Joe McBryan) in 1970, who gained international fame by the History Channels docu-series “Ice Pilots NWT”. Bush planes and their pilots had a key role in the exploration for diamonds, especially in the Canadian North. Memorabilia can be purchased from the gift shop.

Tours are free and can be booked by calling 867-765-6023 or by emailing info.buffaloairwear@gmail.com by appointment only.

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Bullocks Bistro

World Famous Fish & Chips

Bullocks Bistro is an iconic Yellowknife fish restaurant that has been serving local wild caught fish from Great Slave Lake for 30 years. We are located in a historic Yellowknife log building on the shores of Great Slave Lake. Our food is fresh cooked from scratch in front of you. We make our own delicious bread and sauces.

Show your Symposium registration badge and get 10% discount.

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NWT Brewing Company

Nestled between the wonder of the Aurora Borealis and the rugged nature of the Northern Frontier, our little brewing outpost is one of a kind.

Owned and operated by Fletcher & Miranda Stevens, The NWT Brewing Company opened its doors in November of 2015 along with their brewpub The Woodyard Brewhouse & Eatery located under the same roof in the historic Old Town.

Show your Symposium registration badge and get 10% discount.

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Northern Sky 360° Dome Theater Yellowknife VR Arcade

Northern Sky Films is Yellowknife’s Newest Attraction. In our New 360° Dome Theatre and VR machines, we offer a New Way of watching movies and immersing into new realities. The 360° theatre provides a great immersive experience. Be in awe, as we explore different planets and galaxies or, learn about the majestic Aurora Borealis.Our newest attractions The Flying Wing, Super Car Racing Simulator, Flying Simulator,VR StormBattlefield and VR Theatre will dive you into different worlds. Experience the thrill of professional racing, fly a dragon, battle waves of zombies and many more.

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Spectacular NWT Things to Do

For other ideas for things to do in YK and the rest of the NWT:

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Sponsors

Canadian Northern Economic Development Agency

CanNor works with Northerners and Indigenous peoples, communities, businesses, organizations, other federal departments and other orders of government to help build diversified and dynamic economies that foster long-term sustainability and economic prosperity across the territories – Nunavut, Northwest Territories, and Yukon.

Wilfrid Laurier University

With a dedicated research office in Yellowknife, more than 50 research sites across Northern Canada and a longstanding partnership with the Government of the Northwest Territories, Wilfrid Laurier University (Laurier) faculty and students are on the ground, in remote communities and at the tables where decisions are made.  Researchers at Laurier embrace complex challenges. Together with northern governments, Indigenous knowledge-holders and international academic networks, Laurier researchers are connecting western science with land-based practices to solve urgent problems and enhance well-being in the North.

Government of the Northwest Territories – Environment and Climate Change & NWT Centre for Geomatics

The Department of Environment and Climate Change is responsible for ensuring that  the land, water, wildlife, and environment in the NWT are well-managed and sustainably used, and it is the territorial lead for climate action.  This includes promoting, planning and supporting the wise and sustainable use of land and natural resources, and protecting, restoring and stewarding the environment in a balanced manner for the social and economic benefit of all NWT residents.

The NWT Centre for Geomatics provides expertise on northern geospatial information, tools and services for the Government of the Northwest Territories, as well as associated boards and agencies.

Aurora College, Aurora Research Institute

ARI’s Mission: To develop our northern society through excellence in education, training and research that is culturally sensitive and responsive to the people we serve.

ARI’s Mandate:
As the research division of Aurora College, Aurora Research Institute (ARI)’s mandate is to improve the quality of life for NWT residents by applying scientific, technological and indigenous knowledge to solve northern problems and advance social and economic goals.

ARI’s research centers are located in:

Inuvik: The Western Arctic Research Centre;
Fort Smith: The South Slave Research Centre; and
Yellowknife: The North Slave Research Centre.

City of Yellowknife

Yellowknife is a city of opportunity and experiences where you can grow a career, build a business, raise a family, take time for yourself and connect to your community. Yellowknife is vibrant with arts and culture and has plenty of indoor and outdoor recreational opportunities for all ages.

Visual Effects

Visual Effects Ltd is located in the core of downtown Yellowknife and has occupied its present space for 17 years. The generous amount of natural light in the store due to a bank of floor to ceiling windows across the front adds greatly to the ambience of the space and helps properly showcase the Fine Art adorning the walls.  The store owners have always been and continue to be very discriminating concerning the products they showcase and champion. All of the artists are well known and highly collectible. The handmade crafts are also carefully selected from an ever growing number of Artisans that frequent the business looking to showcase their work.

Editors-in-Chief: Dominique Chabot, Ph.D.; Karen Anderson, Ph.D.

Article processing charges are being waived for all submissions received by January 1, 2024. There are no submission fees.

Drone Systems and Applications (formerly the Journal of Unmanned Vehicle Systems) is an electronic-only, gold open-access, peer-reviewed continuous publication journal published by Canadian Science Publishing. The journal features research related to the rapidly emerging international field of unoccupied or uncrewed vehicle systems; i.e., remotely controlled or autonomous mobile robots that operate in the air, on the ground, on or below the water surface, or in outer space. Submissions are welcomed from researchers and practitioners in academia, government, and industry from all over the world.

Since 1975 C-CORE has provided research-based advisory services and technology solutions to mitigate operational risk and help clients improve safety, efficiency and cost-effectiveness in remote or challenging environments worldwide. A unique self-funded not-for-profit, C-CORE also is contracted to addresses security, sustainability and safety issues for clients in the defence/aerospace, resource development, and transportation sectors. C-CORE’s LOOKNorth division focuses on research and commercialization of remote sensing innovations for the North with its network of over 300 partners in the North, across Canada and internationally.

RIEGL is an international leading provider of cutting-edge technology in airborne, mobile, terrestrial, industrial and unmanned laser scanning solutions for applications in surveying.

RIEGL’s core Smart-Waveform technologies provide pure digital LiDAR signal processing, unique methodologies for resolving range ambiguities, multiple targets per laser shots, optimum distribution of measurements, calibrated amplitudes and reflectance estimates, as well as the seamless integration and calibration of systems.

RIEGL’s Ultimate LiDARTM 3D scanners offer a wide array of performance characteristics and serve as a platform for continuing Innovation in 3D for the LiDAR industry.