SmartICE: Sea-Ice Safety for Northern Communities
SmartICE combines Indigenous and local knowledge of ice with sensors and satellite mapping to give near real-time ice-thickness information for safe travel (SmartICE).
Image: NASA (SL4-141-4316, Hudson Bay from Skylab 4, Jan. 20, 1974, public domain).
Last reviewed: 1 source cited
Inuit knowledge plus sensors tell travellers how thick the ice really is.
SmartICE has trained 548 operators and monitored about 54,592 km of ice routes since 2018 (SmartICE).
Source: SmartICE, home page
Explain Like I'm 10
- In the far north, people travel on frozen sea ice.
- Warmer weather makes the ice harder to trust.
- SmartICE measures the ice and makes maps so people know where it is safe.
The Five W's of SmartICE
Who
SmartICE, with local community members hired and trained to run its technology.
Source: SmartICE, home page
What
SmartQAMUTIK sleds and SmartBUOYs that measure ice thickness, plus weekly ice travel safety maps.
Source: SmartICE, home page
Where
Over 40 communities across Inuit Nunangat, the Northwest Territories, Yukon, Nunavik and Northern BC.
Source: SmartICE, home page
How You Can Help
- Learn about SmartICE: watch its Impact in Action video series and share it
No Donate button here: we could not verify a donate page or a charity rating for SmartICE. The ways to take part above are real options listed on the organization's own site.
Saving Planets features SmartICE because its work helps the planet. This is a showcase, not a partnership: we are not partners with SmartICE and receive nothing from it.
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Impact Statement
Social enterprise · active
More than 1,000 SmartQAMUTIK runs have measured ice along the most-travelled routes, chosen by Community Management Committees (SmartICE).
Source: SmartICE, home page
For Further Information: SmartICE, home page
Elders and youth have documented 959 Inuktitut ice terms since 2019 (SmartICE).
How This Saves People & the Planet
For People
More than 100 local youth have been employed, with over 45,400 employment hours (SmartICE).
Source: SmartICE, home page
For Nature
Its maps record how sea ice is changing, community by community (SmartICE).
Source: SmartICE, home page
Learn More About SmartICE
Want to go deeper? SmartICE explains its tools and its communities.
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Help This Work
Links go straight to the organization. Saving Planets doesn't receive any of the money.