CDOGS

CDOGS
Annual Conference
of Dalhousie Oceanography Graduate Students
On Friday March 27, 2026


McInnes room, Student Union Building


Dalhousie University

Halifax, Nova Scotia

About the Event

You are invited to participate in and attend the Conference of Dalhousie Oceanography Graduate Students (CDOGS). This is an annual, student-run conference dedicated to showcasing the ground-breaking research being conducted by oceanography students at Dalhousie. This one-day event is the prime occasion for oceanography graduate students and postdocs to share their research through oral presentations and for undergraduate Honours students to present their theses as posters. The public along with fellow faculty members, ocean scientists, and industry representatives are cordially invited to attend the conference, ask questions and network with our aspiring cohort of young professionals. We look forward to hosting you for this special occasion.

Abstract Submission

Abstract submission for this year's conference is now closed. If you have submitted an abstract, you must also submit the registration form.

Registration

Registration for this year's conference is now open. Registration will remain open up to and including the day of the conference.

As always, CDOGS is free of charge.

Registration

Event Schedule

The 2026 schedule is posted below. We will have 2 talk sessions in the morning, followed by a short opening talk from industry before lunch. Our extended lunch break this year will be dedicated to our Sponsor Booth Networking session. Following this afternoon break we will welcome our Keynote Speaker, Dr. Eric Oliver, along with 2 other talk sessions and our undergraduate poster session in the afternoon. At the end of the day, we will have voting for the best presentations and prizes will be awarded to the winners.

The program for the 2026 edition of CDOGS is showcased below.

CDOGS 2026 Schedule & Abstract Book

Session 1 Early Morning
  • 09:00 - Opening Remarks
  • 09:15 - Hana Hourston

    An Assessment of Mean Conditions, Trends, and Variability on the Central Scotian Shelf Using Ship-Based Observations and Autonomous Vehicles

  • 09:30 - Emily O'Grady

    Oceanographic Data Quality Control - A Task for the Bots?

  • 09:45 - Yan Yang

    Effects of Remotely Generated Coastal Trapped Waves in Extreme Coastal Flooding in the Bohai Sea in October 2024

  • 10:00 - David Hughes

    Detecting and Analyzing Kauai Beacon Acoustic Transmissions on Ocean Networks Canada Hydrophones

  • 10:15 - Eva Goblot

    Localization and Source Level Estimation of Blue Whale Calls in the Gulf of St. Lawrence

  • 10:30 - Morning Coffee + Snack Break

    Coffee and light pastries provided

Session 2 Late Morning
  • 10:45 - Manon den Haan

    Underwater Movement of Bowhead Whales

  • 11:00 - Rhyl Frith

    North Atlantic Right Whale Energy Intake in a Summer Foraging Habitat

  • 11:15 - Jay Kirkham

    Dear Diary… Unveiling the Daily Behaviour Budget of North Atlantic Right Whales Using High-Resolution Biologging Tags

  • 11:30 - Opportunities in Ocean Science: Presented by Pro-Oceanus, AOWC, Coastal Action, and OTN
Sponsor Booths & Networking Lunch Break
  • 11:50 - Sponsor Booths:

     - Innovasea

     - CMOS

     - Pro-Oceanus

     - Atlantic Offshore Wind Coalition

     - TERAMARA

     - Coastal Action

     - RBR

  • Lunch and beverages provided

Session 3 Early Afternoon
  • 12:50 - Plenary Speaker: Dr. Eric Oliver

    Plenary

  • 13:20 - Jake Tan

    Synthetic Aperture Sonar Mapping of a Nearshore Benthic Habitat

  • 13:30 - David Fox

    Spatial Resolution and Predictor Selection Shape Modelled Lobster Habitat and Marine Refuge Alignment

  • 13:45 - Emily Sklar

    Boulders as Habitat Islands in a Conservation Area in the Gulf of St. Lawrence

  • 14:00 - Sam Aucoin

    A Very Lazy Submarine Spring

Session 4 Poster Session & Coffee + Snack Break
    • 14:15 - Start of Poster Session & Break

      Snacks and beverages provided

    • Jenny Amsden

      Characterizing Background Zooplankton Assemblages in Current and Potential North Atlantic Right Whale Foraging Habitats Using in situ Imaging

    • Cora Johnson

      Spectral Signatures: Improving Cyanobacterial Detection in Aquatic Systems through Three-Channel Fluorometry

    • Bridget Hart

      Building an OpenCTD: Assessing a Cost-Effective Instrument's Capabilities for Physical Oceanography

    • Felix Sparling

      Using Stable Isotopes of Nitrate to Quantify Nitrification on a Coastal Fjord

    • Hannah Snook

      Isotope Fractionation During Nitrate Assimilation by Phaeocystis pouchetii

    • Jayda Kruger

      Bio-Receptivity of Phytoplankton-Enriched Concrete: A Material that Couples Wastewater Remediation to Carbon Capture and Sequestration

    • Giulia Cerny Oliveira

      Numerical Study of Circulation and Sea Ice over the Labrador Sea and Adjacent Coastal Waters

Session 5 Late Afternoon
  • 15:00 - Nolan Fehon

    Transcriptomic Response of Synechococcus to Changing Light and Temperature

  • 15:15 - Hanna Gingerich

    Using Quantitative Metabarcoding to Evaluate Zooplankton Community Composition in the Labrador Sea

  • 15:30 - William Nesbitt

    Stable Preformed pCO2 and pH in the Cold Intermediate Layer of the Gulf and Lower St. Lawrence Estuary over Two Decades of Rising Atmospheric CO2

  • 15:45 - Alli Lane

    A Quantitative Comparison of the Physical Supply and Biological Uptake of New Nitrogen in the Arctic Ocean

  • 16:00 - Zach Whitworth

    Characterizing Anthropogenic Nitrogen Sources to the Bedford Basin

  • 16:15 - Haley Geizer

    Exchanging Knowledge in Nain, Nunatsiavut: A Full Circle Collaboration

  • 16:30 - Break & Voting
  • 16:45 - Awards & Closing Remarks
Post-Conference Reception
  • 17:30 - Reception:

    Located in Student Lounge Oceanography (5th floor) LSC.

    Bar service will be available (purchase required), along with complimentary pizza.

  • 19+ only event

2026 Sponsors

Thank you to all our CDOGS sponsors for 2026!

FAQ

Commonly asked questions about the event.

1 I'm not in the Department of Oceanography, can I attend?

Anyone can attend the event. However, seating can be limited, so arriving early is best.

2 I'm not in the Department of Oceanography, or a graduate student, can I submit an abstract?

Only graduate students and post-docs studying subjects relating to Oceanography can give oral presentations. Preference for presentations will be given to graduate students within the Oceanography department.

If you are not an Oceanography graduate student but would still like to present, we are including a poster session for undergraduate students in Oceanography and other related programs.

3 Is food served at the event?

Complimentary coffee/tea and snacks will be available, and lunch will be provided during the intermission.

4 How can I include formulas or special characters in my abstract?

With current limitations, you must input your abstract following LaTex syntax. This includes the use of \begin{equation}...\end{equation} or $$...$$ notation. If you need assistance, refer to the following documentation.

5 How can I use italics or bold format in my abstract?

Referring back to question 4, you must use LaTex syntax to accomplish formatting. For italicized text you may use \textit{...} or \emph{...}. For bold text you may use \textbf{...}. For more complex formatting, refer to the following documentation.

6 In what format should my presentation be?

Oral presentations, given by graduate students and post-docs, will be presented in-person, and presentation slides will need to be submitted the week before the conference as a PowerPoint.

Undergraduate presenters will need to print their poster boards to be affixed to the provided boards during the conference and will be presented to attendees during the afternoon break.

7 How are prize winners selected?

All attendees can vote for the "best overall talk". Only students can vote for the best MSc. and PhD. talks, and the best undergraduate poster. QR codes with links to the online vote will be posted around the venue on the day of the conference.

8 What are the poster size requirements?

To fit within the poster display at the event, posters need to be 1.2m x 1.2m (47" x 47") or smaller.

9 How long should my talk be?

Talks are scheduled in 15-minute blocks; however, presentations should be maximum 10-12 minutes long to allow for 1 or 2 questions following your presentation.

Contact Us

Event Location

  • Visit Us
    McInnes Room, Student Union Building, Dalhousie University
    6136 University Avenue, Halifax, NS, Canada
  • Email Us
    dosa.cdogs@gmail.com

Conference Proceedings

Current Tides

Current Tides is a popular science magazine completely run and published by graduate students in the Dalhousie Oceanography Student Association (DOSA). First published in 2014, the 6 Volumes and counting detail the breadth and depth of the research performed by the students in the Department of Oceanography in a way that is digestible to a wide audience including non-scientists. Current Tides is enjoyed by students’ friends and family, as well as being distributed to visiting scientists. All 6 previous issues are viewable on the Current Tides website.

Current Tides Volume 7
Current Tides is looking for authors for Volume 7! In addition, physical copies of Volume 6 are still available. For more information or to express interest being an author, email dalcurrenttides@gmail.com.