Past Events

An international workshop on "Understanding and Responding to Global Health Security Risks from Microbial Threats in the Arctic" will be held in Hanover, Germany.

This activity is being planned as a cooperative effort among three boards of the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine [the Polar Research Board, the Board on Life Sciences, and Board on Global Health] in partnership with the InterAcademy Partnership and the European Academies Science Advisory Council.

Motivation. A rapidly warming climate is leading to widespread thawing of permafrost and ice across Arctic and sub-Arctic regions. Among the many concerns this raises are growing questions about bacteria and viruses that could possibly emerge from these thawing environments, raising infectious microbial risks for animal and human populations. This interest grew in 2016, when Siberia's Yamal Peninsula saw an outbreak of anthrax that infected dozens of people and killed more than 2300 reindeer, which some speculated may have resulted from anthrax spores released from a thawing reindeer carcass. Also in recent years there have been numerous instances where researchers have recovered from permafrost soil samples various fragments of DNA/RNA from diseases such as smallpox, bubonic plague, and the 1918 influenza virus. This raises concerns, given that many currently or previously populated high-latitude regions contain buried remains of humans and animals that died from such diseases. Studies have shown that bacteria and viruses frozen in the environment can remain viable for thousands and even millions of years; and this raises questions about whether permafrost may harbor microbes that are human pathogens, and for which modern immune systems have no protection. Given the very limited studies to date, it is difficult to characterize the magnitude and nature of these potential risks; yet understanding and preparing for "low-probability, high-consequence" events is one of the hallmarks of a robust public health protection strategy.

Workshop Plans. This workshop will bring together an international, interdisciplinary group of experts to explore what is known, and what critical knowledge gaps remain, regarding existing and possible future risks of harmful infectious agents emerging from thawing Arctic environments.

The goal of the Graduate Climate Conference (GCC) is to provide a discussion forum for graduate students undertaking research on climate and climate change in an array of disciplines throughout the physical sciences, biological sciences, social sciences, and humanities. The format is designed to encourage new climate researchers to become acquainted with the details of diverse areas of study and to place their own work in the broader context of the climate research community.

Historically, the responsibility for organizing the GCC has rotated between grad students from MIT and the University of Washington. This year’s conference will be a joint venture between students from the MIT Program in Atmospheres, Oceans and Climate, the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, and the Harvard University Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences.

Applications are now open. The deadline for abstract submission is June 15th. Food, lodging, and conference registration fees are provided by our generous sponsors; travel grants will be provided on an as-needed basis to as many participants as possible.

For more information, and a link to the application page, visit the official website at the link above. Feel free to contact the organizing committee with questions at gcc-2019 [at] mit.edu.

The Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit Conference, fourth in a series, focuses on climate change in the Arctic, especially from the point of view of young people. The conference wants the voices of the future generations to be heard.

We no longer need to prove that Arctic climate change is a fact. Instead, we need to talk about what it really means for the future. For this reason, young people have an important role in the conference, says Markku Heikkilä, Head of Science Communications of the Arctic Centre, who coordinates the event preparations.

The first conference day will feature expert speeches and panel discussions, and the second day will focus more on scientific presentations. The side events of the conference may also raise other themes.

The main organizers of the conference are the Arctic Centre at the University of Lapland and the City of Rovaniemi. During the event, Arctic Centre will celebrate its 30th anniversary.

Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit has been organized in Rovaniemi every two years since 2013 and is the only regular international Arctic conference in Finland. The 2019 conference will bring continuity to Finland's Arctic activities after the end of Finland’s chairmanship of the Arctic Council.

Conference registration will open in May 2019.

Organizers of the Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit conference would like to invite papers and presentations covering one of the following themes:

• Climate change as a challenge for organizations in the Arctic
• Climate change and the rights of present and future generations
• Live, work or leave? Youth-wellbeing and the viability of Arctic towns and cities
• Polar regional change: physical, social-ecological and economic feedbacks
• Arctic entwinements of energy, climate and politics

Abstract should be sent before August 23, 2019 by email to rovaniemi.arcticspirit [at] ulapland.fi

The Arctic Leaders’ Summit (ALS) is a unique, longstanding forum in which Indigenous Peoples from across the Arctic set their own priorities for discussion, bridge differences, and create common understanding particularly on matters related to the Arctic environment. In addition to the Permanent Participants, other prominent Arctic Indigenous leaders, Arctic States and Observers to the Arctic Council are invited to attend.

The Permanent Participants to the Arctic Council have organized five ALS since 1991 in Denmark, Norway, Russia and Canada. Each ALS has resulted in a declaration that can be found here.

In total, over 80 leaders are expected to attend. The 6th Arctic Leaders’ Summit (ALS6) will revolve around four themes:

1. A look back to the Arctic Leaders’ Summit history
2. Arctic Indigenous Languages and Environmental Changes
3. Why is Arctic still inhabited? Coping in the changing Arctic
4. Dialogue between Arctic Indigenous Peoples and the Arctic Council Observers

What is left of development in the Arctic? Is sustainable development a utopia in the Arctic? Is development in the Arctic more unsustainable than sustainable? Sustainable development, a popular idea of balanced, equal and participatory development, dominates the debates about the region. Even research about the region often takes sustainable development as a starting point. However, the progress towards reaching this goal seems slow and sustainable development unreachable. These observations make us ask: What makes development sustainable in the Arctic in different political, economic and social contexts? What kind of social and political imaginaries we have and should have for the Arctic? Do our imaginaries match our means and practices? Are there any attractive, viable alternatives for sustainable development? How do different imaginaries motivate or improve current policies and strategies? What kinds of missed voices and ideas there are about development in the Arctic? How do emotions of hope, fear and uncertainty relate to the Arctic future?

Papers and presentations covering different aspects of Arctic developments critically are welcome. The event will be organized in connection to the Arctic Spirit Conference 2019.

Keynote speaker:

Our keynote speaker will be professor Reetta Toivanen (HELSUS, University of Helsinki, Finland). The topic of her talk will be “European fantasies on the Arctic”.

Programme:

The programme will include a keynote talk, presentations by the participants and discussions on the basis of presentations. A symposium dinner will be organized.

Deadline for proposals:

Please send your abstract (max. 250-words) with your name, title, affiliation and contact information before September 15, 2019 by email to Monica Tennberg (monica.tennberg [at] ulapland.fi).

Deadline for registration:

If you prefer to participate to the symposium without presenting a paper, please register your participation before 31.10.2019. by sending an email to Monica Tennberg (monica.tennberg [at] ulapland.fI)

Abstract:

NGS's upcoming geopotential datum will require a dynamic geoid model to maintain centimeter-height accuracy. Geoid change is especially challenging to model in Alaska. Geophysical processes in Alaska, including rapid ice mass loss from mountain glaciers, contribute to geoid change rates of more than 2 centimeters per decade. This webinar presents research modeling geoid change in Alaska, past and present. This work combines satellite gravity data with airborne and satellite measurements of glacier elevation change to predict geoid rates with improved fidelity and spatial resolution. The wealth of existing geodetic and geophysical observations in Alaska also enables us to examine how the geoid has changed across the 20th century.

Please follow the link above for registration.

We are pleased to announce that the Third Polar Data Forum (PDF III) will be hosted by the Finnish Meteorological Institute at thair Dynamicum campus in Helsinki. PDF III will be co-organized with regional partners including the INTAROS project in conjunction with the EU Arctic Cluster, the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research, and other European organizations. The Forum will be co-convened by the IASC-SAON Arctic Data Committee, Southern Ocean Observing System, Standing Committee on Antarctic Data Management, the World Data System and other organizations engaged in polar data management.

PDF III will be a two day conference style meeting in support of information exchange, with the remainder of the week using a “hackathon” approach that will build on the development work done in Boulder, Geneva and other related meetings.

Posters and presentations will be accepted on a wide variety of data, information and knowledge related issues. Abstracts will be reviewed primarily for their relevance or connection to the polar regions and polar activities. While talks or posters on general topics will be considered, priority will be given to abstracts focused on experiences, research, operations, projects, programs or topics that take place in or are about the polar regions. Of particular interest are talks that report on how broader, regional, disciplinary or global standards, protocols and methodologies are, or could be applied, to the polar domain (e.g. how does your polar work link to broader efforts to make data FAIR: Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable). In keeping with past community events, we see the polar data system as part of the broader global system.

Themes of interest include:

• Polar community and network building
• Data discovery and federated search
• All aspects of data interoperability (syntactical, structural, semantic, social)
• Standards and protocols to improve data access
• Analysis of user needs
• Enabling data reuse for multiple audiences
• Ethical utilization of data derived from Indigenous knowledge and community based monitoring
• Data management for polar social science and humanities
• Cloud computing and other advanced analytical methods and platforms (i.e. machine learning, AI)
• Sensor webs and observing systems
• Critical studies on polar data management (e.g. Science and Technology Studies)
• Recognition and attribution in data systems
• Data management for major projects (e.g. Southern Ocean Observing System, MOSAiC, Arctic Supersites etc.)
• Data policy
• Other themes related to polar data broadly defined (i.e. including information and knowledge)

Registration deadline: 18 October.

The Yellowknife Geoscience Forum provides an intimate setting for delegates from industry, academia, and government to exchange information on Mineral and Petroleum Exploration, Mining Activities, and Geoscience Research in Canada’s North. The Forum consists of a trade show and a technical program.

Live event from McMurdo Station in Antarctica with teacher Denise Hardoy and the team researching Antarctic Fish Development Under Future Ocean Conditions. Denise and researcher Anne Todgham will discuss their current fieldwork and observations related to their research.

We request that all participants pre-register to join PolarConnect live events. Anyone with an e-mail address can register, and registration and participation is free.

Snow to liquid ratios (SLR) continue to be a large source of error for forecasters in the prediction of snow amounts during the winter months. Current methods of predicting SLR in Alaska range from an empirical method based solely on surface temperatures, to model-derived SLR. Both of these methods have limitations. Thus an SLR climatology was developed yielding a robust data set of snowfall observations. The mean SLR for all Alaska Weather Forecast Offices was found to be much higher than the method based on surface temperatures. Considerable variability was noted in both mean and median SLR values between sites located along the Gulf coast and those in the interior. It is hypothesized that the frequency of events where warmer marine air over- runs cold, dry arctic air from northwest Canada modulates these variations in snow to liquid ratio. An observed sounding climatology was also developed for various low level thermal fields and was matched to observations of SLR at each site. For Southeast Alaska, it was found that the 1000-850mb thickness was a good predictor of SLR with mid level thickness (850-700mb) being the best predictor in general for other areas of Alaska. Finally, the results were then analyzed on a grid using the National Weather Service Graphical Forecast Editor (GFE) and a smart tool was developed which would allow operational forecasters to use this climatology as a starting point when making a prediction of snow to liquid ratio. This presentation will details the work described above.

The tools and techniques for making monthly and season scale climate forecasts are rapidly changing, with the potential to provide useful forecasts at the month and longer range. We will review recent climate conditions around Alaska, review some forecast tools and finish up the Climate Prediction Center's forecast for December 2019 and the late winter season. Feel free to bring your lunch and join the gathering in person or online to learn more about Alaska climate and weather.

Available online or in-person at: Room 407 in the Akasofu Building on the UAF Campus in Fairbanks.

We strongly encourage pre-registration for webinars. The audio portion of the call is through a toll-free phone line and the slide presentation is streamed via computer. Follow the link above to register.

Join us for our third live event in November from McMurdo Station with educator Amy Osborne and the team researching Thermal Sensitivity of Embryos and Larvae of Antarctic Marine Ectotherms. Educator Amy Osborne and researcher Amy Moran will talk about their current fieldwork and observations in Antarctica.

We request that all participants pre-register to join PolarConnect live events. Anyone with an e-mail address can register, and registration and participation is free.

Arctic Futures aims at creating discussions and exchanges between participants with different backgrounds and perspectives over the challenges and issues the Arctic is facing.

This year's symposium will focus on the challenges the Arctic Council will face in the coming years, safety and security issues, gender considerations, the Arctic labour force and demographics, and the Arctic bioeconomy. The symposium promises to deliver lively discussions on each of topics topics.

The event is free of charge and open to all. However, if you would like to attend the event, registration is required, as it helps the event managers to better plan the logistics of the event and meet participants' needs. As seats are limited, it is highly recommended that you register in order to guarantee a seat will be available for you.

The University of Alaska Fairbanks Center for One Health Research will partner with the U.S. Department of State to host the international conference, One Health, One Future from March 11-14, 2020 in Fairbanks, Alaska.

This event is expected to be the largest circumpolar One Health conference held in the United States in 2020, with participation anticipated from across the Arctic region.

This event is part of the United States contribution to One Arctic, One Health¸ an Arctic Council project now in its fifth year of operation. The project aims to develop a circumpolar network of One Health experts that can share knowledge, conduct exercises, and spur collaborative investigations of One Health phenomena.

Deadline to submit abstract applications is Wednesday, Nov. 27, 2019.

Registration will close March 4, 2020.

Using time series of satellite images, we have observed hundreds of new beaver ponds in tundra regions of western and northern Alaska. This talk will describe beaver movement into arctic tundra regions and some predicted implications for tundra ecosystems.

We would like to invite you to the 4th Polar Ecology Conference organised by the Centre for Polar Ecology at University of South Bohemia in České Budějovice, Czech Republic. The conference will be held on Feb 12-15th 2020 and its theme is “Interactions between Ocean and Terrestrial Ecosystems”. However, we accept submission of abstracts from all polar disciplines.

Registration is now open and there are no conference fees but the attendee list is limited to 70 participants.

Registration and abstract submission deadline is 30 November, 2019.

We would like to welcome you to the Greenland Science Week – a Greenlandic Arctic Science conference surrounded by research-related workshops and public outreach.

Greenland Science Week builds bridges between science and the Greenlandic society, business community and government, and creates a networking and cooperation platform for the Greenlandic and international science community around research in the Arctic. We hope to welcome participants from a wide range of fields to this multi-disciplinary Arctic science conference and networking platform.

Leading up to the conference are GSW Events, organized by the research community. These science-based events varies from workshops, seminars and outreach activities, and have different themes, duration etc.

Abstracts must be submitted via email to carc [at] sermersooq.gl

Abstract submission deadline: 30 September 2019.
Registration deadline: 15 November 2019.

The Institute for Marine and Antarctic Studies (University of Tasmania, Australia) is proud to join the Polar Law Institute (University of Akureyri, Iceland), the Northern Institute for Environmental and Minority Law – Arctic Centre (University of Lapland, Finland), the University of the Arctic and its Arctic Law Thematic Network (Finland) to host the 12th Polar Law Symposium.

Academics, students and practitioners from around the world will attend and participate in this event, which will include sessions on topics:

• Developments in polar law
• Polar marine resources
• Climate law
• Native peoples and human rights
• The Antarctic Treaty system
• Arctic Council
• Developments in international law
• Asian interests in polar affairs
• Polar economies and industry

Participants are encouraged to nominate topics for panel discussions.

Registration is now open. Please see the link above for more information.

The Government of Iceland in collaboration with the Nordic Council of Ministers is hosting an International Symposium on Plastics in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic Region in 21-23 April 2020 in connection with the Icelandic Chairmanship of the Arctic Council. The Symposium will take place in Reykjavík, Iceland.

Iceland holds the Chairmanship of the Arctic Council from May 2019 to May 2021 and intends during this period to promote discussion on ways and means that may reduce the impact of plastics in the Arctic Marine Environment.

Iceland holds the Presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers in 2019. The Icelandic Presidency prioritizes the ocean with a focus on the fight against plastic in the marine environment, one of our times biggest challenges. The Presidency project NordMar Plastic runs for three years, up until 2021 and is in joint partnership of all eight Nordic countries.

The International Symposium will focus on scientific knowledge of the problem and the best practices to deal with the huge challenge. In this way the symposium is expected to build a foundation of science and deliver information and advice for decision makers.

The symposium is furthermore expected to contribute to the Arctic Council's work on plastic litter during the Icelandic Chairmanship.

Key Dates:

• 1 June 2019: Registration opens
• 1 July 2019: Open for abstracts
• 1 November 2019: Early bird registration ends
• 1 December 2019: Abstract submission deadline

An Invitation to Arctic and Northern Researchers, Indigenous peoples, Stakeholders, and all levels of Community and Government Decision-makers.

Canada’s North is experiencing unprecedented change in its sea and terrestrial ice, permafrost and ecosystems under the triple pressures of climate change, industrialization and modernization. The impacts of these pressures can be seen on food and energy security, shipping, sovereignty, northern community health and well-being, and sustainable development and resource exploitation. All these issues have brought the North to the forefront of national and international agendas.

Building on the success of its previous Annual Scientific Meetings and International Arctic Change Conferences, the ArcticNet Network of Centres of Excellence announces the 15th ArcticNet Annual Scientific Meeting, which will be held at the Halifax Convention Centre in Halifax, Canada.

Arctic researchers, Inuit/First Nations/Métis and Northern Community representatives, government and non-government organizations, students, and industry stakeholders are encouraged to attend.

As the largest Arctic & Northern research gathering held in Canada, the ArcticNet ASM is the ideal venue for:

• Access to the best possible research from all fields of Arctic and Northern science
• Participation in discussions around the challenges and opportunities arising from climate change and modernization in the North, and,
• Maintaining and developing collaborations among all those with interest in the Arctic and its peoples.

We are accepting session proposals for the ASM2019 until Wednesday May 15, 2019.