From the Tropic of Cancer to the Arctic Circle – Meet Ningning Sun, intern at the Arctic Centre

Originally from Xiamen, China, Ningning is a sophomore
at Dartmouth College, in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States double majoring in
Economics and Environmental Studies. Already in high school, she developed a
specific interest in cold places and polar environmental issues through
documentaries, and started to seek opportunities to go to the Arctic and eventually
contribute to research and relevant projects there.

Opportunity to come to the Arctic Circle finally came across when her professor Ross
Virginia connected her with research professor Bruce Forbes, who leads the CHARTER
project. At the Arctic Centre, Ningning mainly helped with Work Package 6 of CHARTER
and focused on researching policy options related to building resilience in the
Arctic when it comes to climate change, biodiversity, local communities, extractive
industries, and other environmental issues.

– Working on
this project is amazing because I feel that even though I am still an undergrad, my
ideas are really being valued and I get a lot of helpful feedback from my
supervisors, Ningning says.

Ningning is interested in
several topics including sustainable development, the effects of climate change on
Indigenous communities, cleantech, renewable energy and corporate social
responsibility, and finds working with CHARTER and other projects that promote
sustainability meaningful to her.

– It’s very meaningful
and I learn a lot during the process. I feel very happy every day because I feel my
contribution is helping create a positive impact, and I learn many new things with
each task that I work on.

The conversations with
researchers and other co-workers during coffee breaks at the common coffee room were
an important part of her experience. She found herself amazed how natural knowledge
exchange could be through informal chats when people just shared and talked about
their work and experiences at the coffee table.

–
Environment here in the Arctic Centre is great. Sometimes I ask researchers
questions that I am curious about and I get very inspired by their experiences and
research methods. There are so many topics to dive deep into in the field of Arctic
Studies, it’s amazing. People here are very friendly and I enjoy the atmosphere here
a lot.

After experiencing a completely new environment –
northern lights, darkness and the coldness of winter in Rovaniemi, Ningning realized
how important it is to go and put herself in different places and situations to
really foster personal growth through these kinds of unique experiences. In the
future, Ningning wishes to continue working in projects promoting sustainability,
possibly even work with documentaries related to climate change – the same way she
has started her journey.

– Overall, I feel so grateful to
be here and be able to learn and grow so much. This amazing experience won’t be
possible without my wonderful mentors at Dartmouth and at the Arctic
Centre.