DurhamARCTIC announces winners of 2024 dissertation competition

Whelan’s dissertation used high-resolution satellite imagery to analyse the dynamics of terminus migration on 17 glaciers on Bylot Island in the Canadian Arctic. As Whelan noted when submitting his dissertation for consideration, ‘By tracking glacier terminus retreat, this study contributes to more accurate projections of future glacier meltwater input into the oceans, which is essential for predicting sea-level rise’.

The review panel praised Whelan for a thesis that ‘shows both scholarly originality and excellence, as well as contributing to a gap in the spatial glacial literature by providing longer-term information on the dynamics of glaciers in this part of the Canadian Arctic’.

Whelan intends to work with his supervisor, Dr Rachel Oien, in revising the dissertation for publication.

Second place: Francesca Milton-Jones

The second-place prize was awarded to Francesca Milton-Jones for her Geography BSc dissertation ‘An Updated Assessment of the Status of Mountain Glaciers across the Lyngen Peninsula: Response to 21^st-Century Proglacial Lake Expansion and Climatic Forcing’.

Researching a phenomenon that she first observed during a visit to Norway’s Lyngen Peninsula during her fieldtrip for the third-year Geography Arctic module, Milton-Jones calculated that the peninsula could anticipate deglaciation by 2080, approximately 45 years earlier than previously thought. As Milton-Jones noted when submitting her dissertation to the awards panel, although her study is, in one sense, highly localised, her findings ‘contribute to broader discussions regarding Arctic governance, resource management, and geopolitical stability…[because] a stronger understanding of glacier change among policymakers is paramount to heighten the importance of environmental protection in global politics, reconceptualising the Arctic as a space dedicated to peace and science’.

The review panel noted that, in addition to ‘challeng[ing] previous outcomes which linked precipitation and glacier mass balance [and] thus contributing to creating new knowledge in the field’, the research ‘also demonstrates a critical understanding of how scientific biases, data gaps and limitations, and developments in technology play a role in shaping knowledge of glacial change’.

Milton-Jones’ dissertation was supervised by Dr Nick Cox in the Department of Geography.

Third place: Lily Thompson

The third-place prize was awarded to Geography BSc graduate Lily Thompson for her dissertation ‘Navigating the Polar Frontier: Exploring the Effects of Sea-Ice Decline on Shipping and Sea Routes in the Arctic’.

Combining a physical geographic analysis of sea ice trends with an analysis of wider political and social conditions in the region, Thompson identifies a historic correlation between declining sea ice and increased Arctic shipping, although she notes that predictions about the future are complicated by economic and political factors. The review panel commended the dissertation for ‘demonstrat[ing] a thorough grasp of sea ice as a phenomenon, historical and recent changes in its aerial distribution, and potential future scenarios [as well as how] physical changes in sea ice are linked to technological, scientific, and socio-political developments and how these impact travel in and through the Arctic’.

Thompson’s dissertation was supervised by Prof David Bridgland in the Department of Geography.

The DurhamARCTIC Arctic Dissertation Award is an annual competition to promote and celebrate the rich diversity of Arctic-orientated research and teaching at Durham University. It is open to all Durham graduates who receive a 1:1 on an Arctic-themed dissertation and provides cash prizes of up to £600. The annual submission deadline is 1 July. More information can be found here.

DurhamARCTIC is grateful for the services of the 2024 review panel: DurhamARCTIC-supported PhD graduates Giuseppe Amatulli (Anthropology), Ilona Kater (Biosciences), and Laura Seddon (Geography).