Léonard Saint-Arnaud – Geography Intern (2025)
A geography internship at Mountain in Motion.
From July 16th until August 28th, 2025, I had the chance to take part in an internship with Mountains-in-Motion. This was made possible by the GeoInternational committee who support geoscience students across the world.
During my time at the lab, I was charged with helping students and researchers with their field work at the Finse alpine research station. I had the chance to study pollinators in alpine region, helping master’s students, as well as helping professors and researchers recover data from the field. Some of the work was, for example, to follow a glacial river to its source, collecting algae from it. Other tasks were to hunt and count bumblebees and geotag flowers in front of the Blåisen part of the glacier. All in all, it was a lot of hiking with a breathtaking panorama. This leap into a biology and ecology field was very helpful for my personal and academic development, permitting a more specific and micro-scale understanding of ecosystems geographers usually apprehend at a bigger scale.
During this internship, I was very well guided and welcomed by the lab. The initiative, proactivity and overall enthusiasm of every single member of the team led by prof. Suzette Flantua is contagious, making the Norwegian experience a lot warmer than its weather. Furthermore, living in Bergen and in Finse made my stay in the country very cozy and social, the work/life balance in Norway is very important, making flexibility an important asset for whoever works there, no one is safe from a surprise barbecue!
Looking back on my experience, I can’t believe I had the chance to live it, I am grateful for the opportunity Mountains-in-Motion gave me and for everything I was taught, from FieldMaps (ArcGIS) to adapting to the Bergen weather, every lesson I was given was useful at some point in my stay.
In conclusion, I can undoubtedly say this experience will have a great impact on my academic journey, thanks to the people of the lab.
Remko Pape – Erasmus student (2024)
A graduation internship at Mountain in Motion.
From the 15th of February until the 7th of July (2024) I had the fortune of doing my graduation internship at the Mountains-in-Motion lab. During this internship, I was tasked with analysing the differences between mountain ranges around the globe and how these differences influenced climate models. Furthermore, I also had to establish the difference between these climate models and in which mountain ranges these occurred.
Throughout this, I received plenty of support from a very helpful team of researchers and supervisor in weekly meetings and article discussions, who taught me plenty of new theories, programs, and work ethics that will positively impact my future career. This included programs such as ArcGIS, RStudio for analysing climate models and mountain characteristics and one of my new favourite note-taking programs called Obsidian. Furthermore, the team also collaborates in an international research environment, enhancing my communication skills and broadening my perspective on the latest global climate issues, mountain/alpine concepts or theories, and fostering plenty of new valuable connections for the future.
While the Mountains-in-Motion lab offered plenty of enriching academic experiences, living in Bergen also offered great opportunities to explore breathtaking nature through the amazing fjords and high mountains around the region. Additionally, there are plenty of opportunities to immerse oneself in Norwegian culture through various language classes and Norwegian language hiking groups.
As I reflect on this transformative experience, I am filled with gratitude for the opportunity provided by the Mountains-in-Motion lab. The knowledge, skills, and memories I’ve gained will undoubtedly have a lasting positive impact on both my professional and personal life.