StFX SCHOLAR
StFX Scholar is the official repository of St. Francis Xavier University (StFX), offering a secure and free platform to share publications, academic outputs, and other works of StFX faculty, staff, and students.
StFX Scholar is also the hub for exploring our digitized and digital collections. Our mission is to preserve and highlight the intellectual and creative achievements of the StFX community and the broader Antigonish region.
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Communities in StFX Scholar
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- StFX-affiliated works, including open-access (aka free) journal articles, books, and more!
- Digitized or born-digital theses and dissertations completed at StFX.
- Materials about StFX.
- The library's digitized and digital collections.
Recent Submissions
Examining mineral-associated soil organic carbon pool dynamics following clearcut harvesting in a temperate red spruce forest chronosequence
(St. Francis Xavier University, 2018-04) MacIntyre, Stephanie; Kellman, Lisa
Clearcut forest harvesting is a common practice in temperate forests. Whereas the mineral soil contains a substantial proportion of total forest carbon (C), little is known about the effects of harvesting disturbance on the quantity and character of mineral-associated C pools. This thesis documents changes in the size and chemical character of four pools (water soluble, organo-metal, poorly crystalline, and crystalline) within the organo-mineral fraction through 50 cm mineral soil depth (0-5, 5-10, 10-15, 15-20, 20-35, and 35-50 cm) profiles from a chronosequence of Podzol soils representing important stages of forest development (1yr, 15yr, 45yr, 80yr post harvest and a 125+yr reference stand). At all sites, the dominant C pool was the organo-metal complexed, and significant losses were documented following disturbance, particularly in the deeper (>20 cm) mineral soil. Trends of decreasing C concentration, along with chemical character and isotopic data support the hypothesis that increased microbial processing is responsible for C losses following disturbance. These findings suggest that soil C associated with minerals can become destabilized with a change in soil environmental conditions, and that this can increase susceptibility to microbial decomposition. The sheer size of the mineral C pool, as well as the observation that deeper soil dynamics appear to drive trends at these sites, warrants further investigation.
AccessAbility: an exploration of the perspectives of educators who use digital tools to support students' learning
(St. Francis Xavier University, 2025) Kawaja, Nancy; Carter, Ellen
This thesis explores the role of assistive technology in supporting Universal Design for Learning principles in K-12 education. The intersections of disability, advancements in technology and Universal Design for Learning served as a background and focus of this inquiry. The purpose of the study is to better understand the perspectives of educators who use digital technologies to support student learning. To investigate this, a narrative inquiry approach was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted virtually with four educators who use technology to support students with exceptionalities, and work in K-12 publicly funded schools in Ontario. Central to each narrative were themes of the necessity of assistive technology in true inclusion and the implementation of Universal Design for Learning, an educator perception of assistive technology supporting transferrable skills and holistic growth for students supporting both academic and social well-being, and the importance of professional learning for educators. An unexpected finding was a central theme of perceived stigma for students with disabilities. These findings suggest that assistive technology is critical for student learning and that it is timely to consider the role of stigma in the experience of students with disabilities.
Whose land, whose voice? Indigenous rights and the corporate pursuit of a social license in the Ring of Fire
(St. Francis Xavier University, 2025-04-04) Head, Emily; Long, Brad
This thesis investigates the complexities surrounding the pursuit of a social license to operate (SLO) by mining companies in Canada's Ring of Fire region, particularly in the context of Indigenous relations and environmental stewardship. Through a content analysis methodology focusing on news articles, media reports, and public documents, the research critically examines corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts and evaluates how these initiatives align with Indigenous communities' expectations and legal frameworks such as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) and Canada's constitutional duty to consult. Findings reveal significant gaps between industry actions and community expectations, highlighting the challenges companies face in achieving meaningful engagement and genuine reconciliation. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that despite notable CSR investments and government incentives, the lack of true participatory processes and informed consent continues to impede sustainable development and community acceptance in the Ring of Fire. The research underscores the necessity of transitioning from transactional interactions to authentic partnerships to secure lasting social licenses.
Desertification trends following the cessation of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2)
(St. Francis Xavier University, 2025) Silva, Violet; MacDougall, Andrew
Desertification remains a global issue, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions, where changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) influence plant-water dynamics. This study examines the impact of CO2 stabilization and decline on desertification risk using climate model data from the Zero Emissions Commitment Model Intercomparison Project. Data from multiple Earth system models were analyzed under two scenarios: the 1pctCO2 experiment, which simulates a gradual CO2 increase followed by stabilization, and businessas-usual scenarios with continued emissions. Results indicate that while CO2 fertilization initially increases plant water use efficiency, a subsequent decline in CO2 concentration increases water stress, particularly in dryland regions. The study further reveals that differences in various variables between the two scenarios may affect ecosystem stability. These findings suggest that desertification risk may become a more prevalent issue even after emissions cease, highlighting the need for adaptive land management strategies in a post-emissions world.
Age and petrogenesis of Li pegmatites in southern Newfoundland
(St. Francis Xavier University, 2025) Saha, Deepyaman; Archibald, Donnelly
Canada’s efforts to develop low-carbon technologies has increased the demand for critical
minerals, including lithium. Southern Newfoundland is a region displaying favourable
geological conditions to host lithium pegmatites, particularly in the aureoles of voluminous,
geochemically evolved plutonic rocks. The present research is focussed on the Killick
pegmatite field, a swarm of lithium-cesium-tantalum (LCT) pegmatites discovered in 2021 in
southern Newfoundland. Fieldwork focussed on mapping and sampling multiple
spodumene-bearing pegmatite dikes. The dykes intruded metasiltstone, meta-quartz
arenite, and metavolcanic rocks of the Dolman Cove formation. Due to the homogeneity of
the >10 dykes in the Killick swarm, three dykes form the focus of petrographic and mineral
chemistry data collection (Kraken, East and Hockey Stick dykes). The dykes are of variable
thickness with irregular widths ranging from <1 up to <5m. The textures in the Kraken dyke
are mostly equigranular and dykes show no internal zoning, but the East and Hockey Stick
dykes have irregular zoning patterns including layered aplite zones in the contact with the
host rock and coarser-grained cores with spodumene up to 15cm in length. Most plagioclase
grains are albite, which likely formed due to the alteration of K-feldspar. Muscovite is
present as both primary and secondary muscovite. Spodumene is acicular in shape, pale
green, up to 15 cm in length, and it formed during the late magmatic stage. In some cases,
the spodumene is altered to clay minerals. The garnet grains are Mn-rich spessartine and is
either magmatic or xenocrystic. The tourmalines are acicular, schorl in composition, and
mainly present in the contact zones of the pegmatites with the host rocks. The columbite –
tantalite minerals are mostly manganocolumbite to manganotantalite that are rich in HFSE.
Apatite, monazite, and beryl are also present in minor proportions. The high Li and Cs
content in the dykes and the presence of spodumene, spessartine, and columbite-tantalite
group minerals indicate that the pegmatites are highly fractionated. Taken together, these
new data provide a better understanding of the magmatic-hydrothermal processes that
resulted in the emplacement of LCT pegmatites in southern Newfoundland. The pegmatites
may be related by a remelting or anatexis of nearby, voluminous, geochemically evolved
two-mica granites (Peter Snout and Rose Blanche plutons) or originated by the remelting of
the metasedimentary host rocks