ArcSEES Dear Colleague Letter

Dear Colleagues,

The Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH) and the International Study of Arctic Change (ISAC) steering groups encourage SEARCH and ISAC-relevant proposals to the recent solicitation from the National Science Foundation (NSF) on Arctic Science, Engineering, and Education for Sustainability (ArcSEES, http://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2012/nsf12553/nsf12553.htm). We would like to highlight a few reports that may be useful in linking proposal topics to identified priorities from the science community.

The NSF ArcSEES solicitation presents an excellent opportunity to propose projects that implement ideas developed by the broad SEARCH and ISAC communities that are relevant to sustainability issues in the Arctic.

Three recently-released reports provide perspectives from the scientific community and arctic stakeholders on relevant topics, and identify contacts for new partnerships that may be of help in submitting competitive proposals to the ArcSEES call:

  1. SEARCH Goals and Objectives – The SEARCH Science Steering Committee, with the help of the scientific community and partner agencies, has developed a draft five-year goals and objectives document that identifies priority themes and activities, many of them related to sustainability and prudent decision-making in a changing Arctic: Download SEARCH Draft Goals (PDF - 275 KB)

  2. Recommendations for Understanding Arctic System Change: Workshop Report – A joint task force through SEARCH and the Arctic System Science (ARCSS) effort developed a report that explores novel, cross-disciplinary approaches to understanding arctic change, with a focus on societally-relevant research questions. Download Understanding Change Report (PDF - 338 KB)

  3. ISAC Report: Responding to Arctic Environmental Change: Translating our Growing Understanding into a Research Agenda for Action – ISAC, in partnership with SEARCH and with contributions by participants in programs such as Canada's ArcticNet and the European Union's Arctic Climate Change, Economy and Society (ACCESS) program, has released a report by researchers from academia and government agencies as well as stakeholders from indigenous and non-governmental organizations that provides a framework for "responding to change" science. Download ISAC Report (PDF - 4.2 MB) Also available through the ISAC website, here.

In summary, the ArcSEES call is an opportunity to advance research on SEARCH and ISAC science goals that have been identified as urgent by the broader research community. We encourage submission of proposals that address the specific SEARCH 5-year goals, drawing on approaches and activities outlined in the Understanding Arctic Change and ISAC Responding to Change reports.

The documents above reflect a consensus perspective among the scientific community, stakeholders, and agencies on research priorities and key information needs and may further serve as resources for ideas, contacts, and potential partnerships to strengthen proposals. Note that this letter is from the leadership in the SEARCH and ISAC steering groups and does not represent NSF or other agency positions; evaluation of proposals to ArcSEES will follow only the criteria explicitly referenced in the solicitation.

Please do not hesitate to contact members of the SEARCH SSC and the ISAC Office to further explore these topics and identify areas where we can help, including facilitating links to groups outside your discipline or research area. Initial inquiries may go to Helen Wiggins, ARCUS, at helen [at] arcus [dot] org.

With best regards,

Hajo Eicken
Chair, SEARCH SSC

Peter Schlosser
Co-Chair, ISAC SSG

John Walsh, Matthew Berman
Co-Chairs SEARCH Understanding Change Panel

Craig Lee, Taneil Uttal
Co-Chairs SEARCH Observing Change Panel

Maribeth Murray
Executive Director, ISAC

Other Relevant Links:
Arctic Observing Network Meetings and Reports: http://www.arcus.org/search/aon
Additional SEARCH planning documents are available at: http://www.arcus.org/search/goals