Camille Benoit has earned her many accolades.
When she was a Grade 12 student attending Collège Notre-Dame, Camille placed second for physics in the senior division with her experiment “Expérience sismique: magnitude vs profondeur” (“Seismic Experiment: Magnitude vs Depth”).
She was presented with the Collège Boréal Award, which is given to the best French-language project in the senior division. Benoit has also received the Scientific Writing Award, the Harquail School of Earth Sciences Award and the University of Ottawa Admission Scholarship. She was nominated for a Schulich Award.
And last, but certainly not least, as a 2023 graduate from Collège Notre-Dame, Camille was the recipient of the Governor General’s Academic Medal.
“Receiving the Governor General’s Academic Medal would definitely be my greatest accomplishment,” Camille said. “It proved that my hard work truly did pay off. It’s an absolute honour.”
She is more than happy to explain her award-winning experiment.
“It really started while I was studying earthquakes in my Grade 12 ‘Science of the Earth and Space’ course. I became curious as to why earthquakes of a smaller magnitude seemed to have a bigger depth and vice versa,” she said. “Thus began my experiment! I observed earthquakes with a magnitude of 5.0 and higher over the course of two weeks, 79 earthquakes in total, to see if I could distinguish some kind of pattern.
“My hypothesis seemed valid, although there were a couple of anomalies to investigate. I still can’t definitively remark on my hypothesis, as there are just so many external factors to consider, even human factors. Needless to say, this field is worth researching further to give us a clearer understanding how to reduce earthquake-related fatalities and improve our safety protocols. It may also allow us more sustainable ways of bettering humanity— cartography, mining industry, energy sources, etc.”
Currently at Queen’s University, Camille is specializing in astrophysics, and although her love of the science is great, she confesses, “I’m highly considering switching my major to Geology and potentially minoring in Physics.”
“I love to understand how the world around me works, not only in terms of the hard sciences — mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, geology, astronomy — but also in the soft sciences of psychology, sociology, anthropology,” she said. “I’m equally curious as to how the human mind works, how we work as a community, our creativity in terms of film, music, media and writing, just as I’m curious about the earth and its compositions. I’m curious about planets, stars, black holes, quasars, galaxies and how all of the above relate to each other. It’s just all so fascinating to me.”
Asked about her inspirations, Camille has a long list.
“There are plenty of people to thank for my ever-growing curiosity — my parents, my older brother, two teachers from elementary school, many from high school and recently added to the list, two professors. They’ve all taught me how to look at the world through a larger lens.
“My dad is a patient, kind person with a good sense of humour who’s fascinated by astronomy, strong in mathematics and who taught me how to rock ’n’ roll. My mom is hard working, strong willed and kind. She would bend over backwards to help anyone. She taught me the world of film, and is excellent with communication in both French and English. They’ve always been my biggest supporters, rivalling maybe my older brother, and I know they are proud of how far I’ve come.”
When it comes to volunteerism, Camille has strong opinions.
“I honestly loved that high schools required students to do a certain amount of volunteering,” she said. “I’ve been volunteering at St-Dominique Church since I was about nine years old. My grandma and my mom volunteered there, so I’d accompany them.
“We would often provide food service for funerals below the main floor of the church. The most important values I took from those experiences were respect, kindness, hard work, and a good team spirit among coworkers to ensure we gave the best service we could to those mourning.”
Benoit hopes for an uncomplicated future.
“Maybe that of a theoretical researcher or a teacher. I would love to lead a simple life, bringing joy and wonder to whomever I meet. I know wherever I end up, whatever crazy career, I will always spread my curiosity and wonder for the world to others, Not to simply educate, but to engage, to allow them to feel the same sense of determination and inspiration for their ever-changing, ever-amazing world that I feel.”
Camille Benoit’s words of inspiration
“There is so, so much I would like to say, but to sum it all up, it would have to sound something like this: live your best life, whatever that may be because we are on a rock, floating in space. We are so minuscule and so important at the same time. Sometimes, with everything going on in the world, it’s easy to forget. So, it’s important we take considerate care of ourselves and of our planet because we are so unique, not one alike. Dream big and start small, follow your path, and you can accomplish whatever you wish. Wherever you currently are in your journey, I’m proud of you. Keep on keeping on, live respectfully and kindly. If everyone did that, I truly think the world would be a better place.
“Dream big and start small.”
James Stewart is a writer in North Bay. Inspire is made possible by our Community Leaders Program.
