The Future Is So Bright...CSEG DL @ Lakehead University

Nestled at the NW corner of Lake Superior, Ontario, Thunder Bay is home to the small but active geoscience department at Lakehead University . Often missed on the CSEG Distinguished Lecture (CDL) tour because of its location, I was able to stop easily as I drive from coast to coast for the 2022-2023 CDL tour.?

Being the first post-COVID tour, with COVID waves intermittently appearing across the country, flights suffering delays, airport drama making the news, and schedules prone to last minute changes, I felt that driving was the most secure option. It afforded me the opportunity to offer the lecture to almost all universities and geological surveys, and book 22 locations prior to departing early September, 2022. More would be added as I went.?

From my home in Crowsnest Pass, Alberta, it was a three day drive to Lakehead University, and I watched colourful crop turn to fields of hay later replaced by conifers as far as I could see. Sedimentary rocks were left behind as hard rock started to dominate the road cuts, and I was as fascinated by the metamorphic patterns as I was the changing landscape.?

With my recently retired partner Ian acting as chauffeur, I was able to think about the tour, plan, answer queries, modify the presentation and blog easily from the road. Twenty one hours driving after leaving home we pulled into Thunder Bay.?

Professor Mary Louise Hill welcomed me to Lakehead University on September 9th as a deluge opened up over the area. We toured the department and returned to set up in the laboratory as students arrived. Indicative of COVID’s impact, some students in the same class didn’t yet know each other. Like other locations that would follow, this was the first in-person seminar for much of the audience, that ultimately consisted of all levels of undergraduate, a few graduate students, some faculty, industry and retired professional geoscientists. I was delighted to be reacquainted with a fellow grad student from the University of Calgary.?The audience was engaged with their questions, targeting the opportunities in geophysics, specific sustainability goals, and travel. One of my favourite questions was regarding the difference between 2D and 3D seismic imaging - you have to ask the question to see the demo.?

Following the presentation of my treasured speaker gift, a Lakehead University camping style mug, both Ian and I joined Mary Louise, department chair Dr. Andrew Conly and graduate student Dan Barrett for lunch at Bight. Located down on the waterfront, beside the fountain that is drained in winter to form an ice rink, we enjoyed the food and the conversation. Andrew and I had met before through our association with the Canadian Federation of Earth Sciences, and it turns out that Ian and Andrew had many connections. Given that Mary Louise and I had spoken at length it was Dan that held our attention during lunch.?He regaled us with tales of gold mining, his home town and his many ideas for the future. And, for me, that is what this tour is all about. The vision, the hopes and dreams of students, and how they’ll contribute to a bright future.?

Next stop:?Laurentian University, 13th September, 2022.?