Breakfast is included in your registration.

Welcome remarks from the conference organizing committee, the University of Regina, and the President of CANQUA.

Ancient DNA: Recent Advances and Near Term Prospects from a Canadian Perspective The fields of ancient and environmental DNA have progressed rapidly in the last decade. This includes the recovery of ecosystem wide 2-million-year-old sedimentary ancient DNA and whole genome reconstructions from both discrete tissues and environmental samples. This presentation overviews exciting developments in modern environmental DNA research—notably the emerging field of airborne environmental DNA—the state of ancient DNA research today and associated methodologies, and reviews how ancient DNA has contributed to our understandings of Beringian palaeoecology, and where improvements are needed. Highlights from several ongoing (unpublished) ancient environmental DNA projects across Canada are discussed, as is our plan in development to create a Canadian ancient DNA collaborative network.

Coffee is included in your registration.

The repeated advance and retreat of ice sheets during the Quaternary has created diverse glacial land systems that characterize much of the Canadian landscape. Understanding the physical characteristics of these landsystems and the chemical properties of their sediments is critical for responsible resource development and land use planning while improving knowledge of landsystem origin and broader ice sheet evolution during periods of climate change. The study of glacial landsystems has undergone several improvements in recent years. For example, the acquisition of high-resolution and regional-scale remote sensing data, combined with continued field-based studies in critical regions, has revealed more complex subglacial thermal organization of past ice sheets than previously recognized.In this session, we bring together studies from the eastern Laurentide, Cordilleran, and Innuitian ice sheets. This session aims to highlight the diverse and evolving glacier dynamics that affect the timing and patterns of landform development and regional sediment depositional systems of ice sheets. We invite contributions ranging from regional data compilations and sediment sampling programs to detailed site-scale investigations and/or reviews of complex issues facing Quaternary research from the inner regions of the ice sheets to their margins.

The Quaternary fossil record of northern North America, particularly Canada, is complex. Recent advances in analytical methodologies, and analyses of new and previously collected fossil finds, are allowing us to elucidate new patterns in the spatial and temporal distribution of organisms, their ecological interactions, and the environments in which they lived. This session aims to bring together scientist working on different aspects of Quaternary palaeontology and palaeoecology. We welcome contributions on a variety of topics, including morphological studies of Quaternary fossils, studies of ancient DNA (including environmental DNA), and studies of isotope geochemistry of Pleistocene and Holocene fossils.

Lunch is included in your registration.

Canadian Association of Palynologists

If you are interested and or work on any aspect of outreach and Quaternary sciences, please join us to discuss, learn, share experiences, etc. This is a very informal discussion to try to find out how we can improve the public interest in our discipline!

The repeated advance and retreat of ice sheets during the Quaternary has created diverse glacial land systems that characterize much of the Canadian landscape. Understanding the physical characteristics of these landsystems and the chemical properties of their sediments is critical for responsible resource development and land use planning while improving knowledge of landsystem origin and broader ice sheet evolution during periods of climate change. The study of glacial landsystems has undergone several improvements in recent years. For example, the acquisition of high-resolution and regional-scale remote sensing data, combined with continued field-based studies in critical regions, has revealed more complex subglacial thermal organization of past ice sheets than previously recognized.In this session, we bring together studies from the eastern Laurentide, Cordilleran, and Innuitian ice sheets. This session aims to highlight the diverse and evolving glacier dynamics that affect the timing and patterns of landform development and regional sediment depositional systems of ice sheets. We invite contributions ranging from regional data compilations and sediment sampling programs to detailed site-scale investigations and/or reviews of complex issues facing Quaternary research from the inner regions of the ice sheets to their margins.

The Quaternary fossil record of northern North America, particularly Canada, is complex. Recent advances in analytical methodologies, and analyses of new and previously collected fossil finds, are allowing us to elucidate new patterns in the spatial and temporal distribution of organisms, their ecological interactions, and the environments in which they lived. This session aims to bring together scientist working on different aspects of Quaternary palaeontology and palaeoecology. We welcome contributions on a variety of topics, including morphological studies of Quaternary fossils, studies of ancient DNA (including environmental DNA), and studies of isotope geochemistry of Pleistocene and Holocene fossils.

Coffee is included in your registration. A cash bar will be set up.

Challenge and impress your colleagues with your vast knowledge of Quaternary science in the university's on-campus pub. Playing time will be around 1 hour. Some food will be provided. Pub food and drink is available for purchase.