Camosun College will host an engaging presentation, 'Antarctica Uncovered: Canadian Science Expeditions to the Bottom of the World,' on June 3, 2026, from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. The event, part of Ocean Week 2026, will take place at the Camosun Interurban Campus, Liz Ashton Campus Centre, Room 124.
The presentation will delve into the experiences of Canadian scientists who have participated in Antarctic expeditions aboard the Royal Canadian Navy vessel HMCS Margaret Brooke in 2025 and the Chilean icebreaker AGB-46 Almirante Viel in 2026. These missions combined scientific research with international science diplomacy, fostering collaboration among experts from various countries to investigate the effects of climate change on Antarctica’s coastal waters.
Attendees will have the opportunity to hear firsthand stories from the field, learn about cutting-edge Antarctic research, and explore the revelations these expeditions offer regarding one of the planet’s most remote and rapidly changing environments.
The event will feature Dr. Sophia Johannessen from Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s Institute of Ocean Sciences, a geochemical oceanographer who studies the impacts of climate change and human activities on coastal oceans. Her recent work includes research on productivity changes in the Salish Sea, the fate of diluted bitumen spills in BC coastal waters, and the potential for 'blue carbon' storage in seagrass meadows for climate change mitigation. Dr. Johannessen has conducted research in the coastal waters of British Columbia, as well as the Atlantic, Arctic, and most recently, Antarctic Oceans.
Also presenting is Dr. Thomas James, a research scientist with the Geological Survey of Canada at Natural Resources Canada. Dr. James focuses on the sources of sea-level change, particularly the Antarctic Ice Sheet, and is dedicated to communicating sea-level science to the public and policymakers. He has been instrumental in developing a Canadian Antarctic Research Program and served as Chief Scientist, leading the planning and execution of Canadian Antarctic Research Expeditions to the South Shetland Islands and Antarctic Peninsula.