Martin Fortier, PhD

Martin Fortier holds a Ph.D. in Arctic Oceanography from Université Laval (Québec City) and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Manitoba. In 2002, he was heavily involved in the modification of the CCGS Amundsen into a state-of-the-art research icebreaker and has since served as chief scientist on many expeditions onboard the vessel.  He was the founding Executive Director of the ArcticNet Network of Centres of Excellence from 2003 to 2016. He led the development of the annual CAD 3 million Arctic Inspiration Prize together with the Prize’s founders and occupied the position of executive director for the Prize until 2016. In 2016, he took over the position of founding Executive Director of Sentinel North and assistant to the vice-rector research and innovation at ULaval. He was awarded the 2017 Martin Bergmann Medal for Excellence in Arctic Leadership and Science by the Royal Canadian Geographical Society.