INUVIK - It might be the first month of International Polar Year, but staff at the Inuvik headquarters already want to see something changed.

For starters: Why is their office called a "node?"

All jokes aside, Aurora Research Institute director Andrew Applejohn said the Polar Year is going to keep people very busy in Inuvik - despite the department's oddball name, which was decided by the federal government.

(A node is defined as "a connecting point at which several lines come together.')

"We've been involved in International Polar Year for about three years," Applejohn said, adding that the team is still meeting with scientists and government representatives.

On March 6 and 7, for instance, he said more than 40 people met in Inuvik to discuss the project, and how much of the federal $150 million funding would benefit the NWT.

"We know there's roughly 25 new projects (coming to the NWT), and we know where they'll be located. We don't know how much money will be spent, and how many people will be going," he said.

Kristi Benson, who recently left Aurora College to become full-time coordinator for International Polar Year, said she's excited to work at the node.

While "polar year" might seem to imply a one-year term, she said she will likely be busy until 2009.

"They anticipate it'll be trickling down for three or four years," she said, of the project's effects on the local economy and research facilities.

Of course, the logistics of helping to oversee 25 simultaneous research projects will surely cause a few headaches.

But Applejohn and Benson agreed the Polar Year will benefit the NWT.

"Any time you invest $150 million in science - and especially research science, it's not commercial - there will be benefits to the people," Applejohn said.

Benson agreed, saying research into climate change, health and sustainable communities might help shape national policy, or lead to smarter northern development.

"There's a real possibility for positive effects in the North," she said.

When viewed this way, she said, a 'node' is kind of a cool place to work.