POLAR XPRESS – March 20, 2020

FROM THE TOP

POLAR in the news

Click on the headlines below to read the recent articles mentioning POLAR:

Nunatsiaq News – Canadian High Arctic Research Station acts to reduce COVID-19 risk (March 17, 2020)

APTN National News – Nunavut braces for COVID-19 (March 14, 2020)

National Newswatch – Two Nunavut hamlets ask visitors to stay away to keep COVID-19 out (March 13, 2020)

ScienceDirect – Exploring electricity generation alternatives for Canadian Arctic communities using a multi-objective genetic algorithm approach (March 13, 2020)

CBC News North – Nunavut steps up preventative measure to keep residents healthy (March 13, 2020)

COVID-19 Updates

The health and safety of POLAR employees and their families is of top priority. Flexible work arrangements have been made available to all staff, with the approval of their manager. The situation surrounding COVID-19 is being closely monitored and all employees are being updated regularly. A few things to keep in mind:

  • Communicate regularly with managers
  • Advise managers of any travel plans that should arise
  • Advise managers should there be any changes in health

Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact your manager.

POLAR understands that this rapidly changing environment may be stressful. Please do not hesitate to take advantage of the services of the Employee Assistance Program available to you and your family members at 1-800-268-7708.

For more information on COVID-19, please consult Canada.ca/coronavirus or https://www.canada.ca/en/government/publicservice/covid-19.html.

March 20 is a Time to Celebrate the Francophonie!

The International Day of La Francophonie has now been celebrated annually for 30 years. Every year on March 20, 274 million francophones worldwide celebrate their language and its diversity.

This Day promotes French language and cooperative relations between the 84 States and governments who are members of the International Organization of La Francophonie (IOF).

Interesting facts about the Francophonie

  • 300 million speakers
  • 5th most spoken language in the world
  • Official language in 32 states and governments

Social Distancing: What it means and how you can manage it in day-to-day life

Here is where you will find LifeSpeak’s expert blog posts around navigating and managing the COVID-19 pandemic. Social Distancing: What it means and how you can manage it in day-to-day life

To access LifeSpeak, whether you are using a computer, a tablet or a smartphone, simply log on to the following address: canada.lifespeak.com, select Access Through Group Account and enter the Client Password: canada

POLAR’S PEOPLE

A DNA Barcoding Survey of an Arctic Arthropod Community: Implications for Future Monitoring

Ian Hogg and Bryan Vandenbrink are co-authors of a recent paper published in the open access journal Insects (MDPI) on the use of DNA barcoding to monitor arctic terrestrial arthropods (insects, spiders and their relatives). The paper discusses a POLAR pilot project that showed how community-based sample collection, in combination with DNA barcoding, could overcome some of the logistical, financial, and other obstacles to large-scale tracking of changes in arctic arthropod communities. These accurate and cost-effective methods could help in the development of integrative environmental monitoring programs, which are essential to understanding change in arctic ecosystems.

The study collected samples with pan traps, which attract arthropods with their bright yellow colour.
The study collected samples with pan traps, which attract arthropods with their bright yellow colour.
 

LEARNING AND PERFORMANCE

Inuinnaqtun/Inuktitut word of the week

The Inuinnaqtun/Inuktitut word of the week is: Pilimmaksaivik. It is the Federal Centre of Excellence for Inuit Employment in Nunavut.

It is pronounced: pee-leem-mak-sah-ee-veek.

Listen to the pronunciation here:

Are you ready to Talk the Talk?

Talk the Talk

Canada School of Public Service Notice

The Canadian School of Public Service released a statement addressing action being taken for COVID-19:

“To minimize the draw on common Government of Canada networks and systems that are used by organizations responding to the COVID-19 situation, the School's GCcampus system has been taken offline. In addition, all School learning activities, including classroom courses, online courses, events and other development programs, have been suspended until April 10, 2020.”

UPDATES

Key outcomes from Senior Management Committee

Here are the key outcomes and decisions deriving from the March 4 Senior Management Committee meeting:

  • Approval of the Departmental Security Plan for 2020-2023
  • Discussion regarding international travel in light of COVID-19
  • Review of capital projects under $1M currently proposed in the CHARS Building Management Plan

In addition, the SMC continues to meet regularly to discuss the COVID-19. These discussions include POLAR’s Head of Human Resources, and the Chief Security Officer/Director of Facilities Management. Regular updates on COVID-19 will continue to be shared with all POLAR employees.

POLAR Events Calendar

You will find below the latest version of the POLAR events calendar, including upcoming events and conferences for your information.

Note: The calendar is subject to change. Any travel has to be pre-approved by the appropriate delegated manager.

Please send any calendar updates or additions to Jerry Kallada at jerry.kallada@polar.gc.ca

POLAR events calendar: March 19, 2020

WORKPLACE NOTICES

How-to guide: working from home

Working from home can be great… right up until your dog gives you puppy dog eyes and you decide to go to the park, or your neighbour decides to pop by for tea and tell you about their day. Although the ability to get distracted when home can be high for some, teleworking can also be incredibly productive for others. Working from home can take away the in-office distractions, such as a co-worker stopping by for a conversation. If approached in the correct way it is possible for everyone to have productive days away from the office. Below is a list of work-at-home tips to make your work days as productive as possible.

  1. Pretend like you are going to office: when the alarm goes off, prepare yourself as you would to head to the office, there is no reason the normal work routine should be lost when teleworking.
  2. Structure your day: as if you are in the office, stay on schedule by including your tasks in a calendar. Create working times for projects and times for breaks to eat a snack or take your dog for a quick stroll around the block.
  3. Choose a workspace: just because you are not in the office, doesn’t mean you can’t have a designated workspace.
  4. Communicate your expectations to anyone who will be home with you: ask those within your home to respect your working hours. Just because you’re home doesn’t mean you’re actually home, the work must still get done.
  5. Log off at end of day: one of the most important aspects of healthy work-from-home routines is knowing boundaries. Set a time to log off from the work day and the computer. Just because you have access to work at all times, it does not mean you need to be logged in 24/7. Allow yourself some downtime to create good work-life balance.

Remember, teleworking is not for everyone. While some flourish with self-motivation, others may struggle to stay on task. Reach out to your teammates or manager if you’re feeling distracted, are in need of some motivational guidance or simply need to have a conversation with another person in the same work environment. Communication can go a long way!