Because of this, scientists are always looking for new technologies to help them monitor ocean water quality and changes in pollution levels.  One way to determine water quality is by analyzing the distribution of light through the water, also known as ocean radiance.  It is this light that provides the basic energy for photosynthesis which supports aquatic life.

However, an accurate measurement of ocean radiance is difficult to achieve.

Native trees are known to support local ecosystems much more effectively, providing a home and food source for local insects and wildlife.  But the exact benefit of using native trees has never been studied in Canada.

With Mitacs taking care of all of the housing costs and stipends for the students, hosting the students is made easy. Dr. Ni has hosted three Mitacs Globalink students in previous years who were from India, who worked side-by-side his Mitacs-Accelerate interns and other graduate students. He is looking forward to accepting a fourth student this upcoming summer from Brazil.

The networking workshop has helped boost his confidence in sharing his research outcomes.  “I am a social person naturally, but I lacked the formal training in how to act in a proper networking event.  Learning the little things, like carrying business cards, building a LinkedIn profile and simply how to approach a stranger and make small talk were all very beneficial, and the instructors were excellent.   Since I took the workshop, I have found that when I go to large events, I am better prepared to make meaningful connections with people in a natural way.”

The five possible projects for Mitacs internships are still going through a final review by Blackbox management before being submitted to Mitacs for approval, Gedamu says, but will likely be offered fairly soon for interns through the Mitacs Accelerate internship program. A little further down the road, Gedamu says, there may even be a few more internship projects in the field of Electrical engineering, although those plans have yet to be finalized.

Her research project, which saw her elaborate a portrait of the preindustrial forest in the Mauricie region which helped AbitibiBowater gain a desired environmental certification, fitted very well with her wider research interest as a modeler. “Accelerate provides something relatively few other internship programs offer: its short, four to six month time frame, gives you a lot of flexibility to pursue a very defined project within a larger research context,” Dr. Tittler explains.