Fulbright Canada U.S. Student Kyrin Pollock is combining marine acoustics, Inuvialuit knowledge, and multimedia storytelling to better understand the changing soundscape of Arctic waters.
Fulbright Canada U.S. Student Kyrin Pollock is combining marine acoustics, Inuvialuit knowledge, and multimedia storytelling to better understand the changing soundscape of Arctic waters.
In the waters surrounding Ulukhaktok, Northwest Territories, sound can reveal a great deal.
Marine mammals use it to communicate. Hunters use generational knowledge to understand the movements and behaviour of animals. And beneath the surface, hydrophones can record everything from whale calls to passing vessels.
For Kyrin Pollock, a 2025–2026 Fulbright Canada U.S. Student and recipient of the Fulbright-National Geographic Digital Storytelling Fellowship, listening is at the heart of her Fulbright project, Arctic Echoes: Exploring Inuvialuit Knowledge and Marine Soundscapes in Conservation.
Working with Inuvialuit partners and the Arctic Noise Research Team at the University of Victoria, Pollock is investigating the effects of human-generated underwater noise in the Beaufort Sea. Her project brings acoustic research together with the observations and expertise of people who know these waters intimately.
During a recent two-week field visit to Ulukhaktok, Pollock led and supported a wide range of research activities. Ten knowledge holders and Elders participated in a mapping workshop to identify ecologically important areas for future protection and monitoring. She also worked with the Ulukhaktok Aquatic Monitoring Observation Team to determine priority biodiversity survey locations and provide training on data-collection protocols.
Another major part of the visit was listening—both literally and figuratively.
Pollock conducted 12 in-depth interviews to document observations on underwater sound and marine animal behaviour. At sea, the research team recovered two hydrophones deployed during the previous season and installed two new devices, extending a multi-year acoustic record of the waters around Ulukhaktok.
The resulting recordings offer another way to understand the Arctic marine environment as it experiences growing vessel traffic and industrial activity. Pollock’s work examines how changes in the underwater soundscape affect marine life in the Beaufort Sea, what those changes mean for Inuvialuit communities and ways of life, and how local knowledge can help guide decisions about the waters surrounding Ulukhaktok.
Research through storytelling
Pollock’s Fulbright work also has a strong storytelling component.
During her recent fieldwork, she collaborated with a film crew, including National Geographic Explorer Monica Engel and cinematographer Spencer Thomas, to document the research and capture interviews with those involved.
The combination of research and storytelling is particularly fitting for a recipient of the Fulbright-National Geographic Award.
Since 2013, the Fulbright Program and the National Geographic Society have partnered on an additional opportunity for Fulbright U.S. Students whose projects combine rigorous inquiry with a strong commitment to communicating their work. Today, award recipients can pursue projects spanning science, education, and storytelling and may receive additional National Geographic Society resources to expand their Fulbright projects and bring their stories to broader audiences.
Fulbright Canada notes that U.S. Student award recipients may be eligible for up to US$20,000 in additional funding from the National Geographic Society, as well as the opportunity to join the National Geographic Explorer network.
For Pollock, that storytelling dimension extends naturally from the research itself. Her project proposes creating an audio record of Arctic waters and sharing the sounds and stories gathered through her work with audiences in Canada and the United States.
It is also leading to new opportunities. Pollock was recently elected President of the ArcticNet Student Association and is helping organize an early-career event connected to Arctic research. She is also planning a National Geographic Explorer Classroom episode focused on underwater sound.
We are always somewhere
Some of the most memorable lessons from Pollock’s time in Ulukhaktok have come not from an instrument or dataset, but from the people and places she visited.
Reflecting on conversations with hunters, she wrote about a realization that has stayed with her: “We are always somewhere.”
Inuvialuit place names, she observed, can convey information about geography, resources, proximity, and history. The more one learns about a place, the more its significance becomes apparent.
She was similarly struck by the central role of sea ice in life across the Arctic. Stories from Elders and hunters illustrated how ice can serve simultaneously as a home, a route for travel, and a source of food—connecting people across a vast region.
Those observations reflect an important feature of Arctic Echoes: sound may be Pollock’s scientific focus, but understanding what those sounds mean depends on listening to the people whose lives are connected to the Beaufort Sea.
Pollock will next analyze the interview and acoustic data collected during the project before returning to Ulukhaktok. There, she will review her findings with local partners, incorporate their perspectives, and share an initial version of her documentary to help inform discussions about a proposed marine protected area.
Through Arctic Echoes, Pollock is demonstrating what can happen when scientific inquiry, local expertise, and storytelling come together—and when research begins with a willingness to listen.