Past Events

The registration (and travel support application) deadline for a workshop bridging glacial geology and ice sheet modelling for the Late Pleistocene evolution of the Greenland and Antarctic ice sheets has been extended to Feb 10/14. The workshop will be held at:

LGGE (Laboratoire de Glaciologie et Géophysique de l'Environnement),
Grenoble, May 22-24, 2014, (just prior to the IGS International
Symposium on Observations, Modelling and Prediction of the Cryospheric
Contribution to Sea Level Change, in Chamonix)

Workshop Objectives include:

• Bring together the field and modelling communities working on
  Antarctica, Greenland, or both.
• Clarify key uncertainties for the field data and modelling
  communities
• Compare latest model results to data and glaciological/geological inferences
• Identify key model deficiencies wrt data
• Identify priorities for new data
• Consider what can be done to make paleo records and model output
  more accessible to various users
• Consider surprises in the model results and whether they are
  refuted by data

Confirmed speakers include:

Michael Bentley, Durham U.
Peter Clark, Oregon State U.
Rob DeConto, U. Mass.
Brenda Hall, U. Maine
Claus-Dieter Hillenbrand, British Antarctic Survey
Anne Jennings, INSTAAR, U. of Colorado
Kurt Kjaer, U. of Copenhagen
Antony Long, Durham U.
Frank Pattyn, Free University of Brussels
John Stone, U. of Washington
Pippa Whitehouse, Durham U.

Thanks to generous support from International Association of Cryospheric Sciences (IACS), IUGG, Past Antarctic Ice Sheet Dynamics (PAIS), and SCAR, funding will be available to support attendance by early career and non-OECD scientists. Deadline for travel support application is also extended to Feb 10/14.

For more information and/or registration/abstract submission refer to the workshop webpage. Note, abstracts are not required to register/participate.

ICASS VIII's theme is 'Northern Sustainabilities'. By using the plural, we underscore both that ‘sustainability’ has social, cultural, economic, political and environmental dimensions, and that definitions of the concept vary. Yet, while debating specific definitions, most would agree that working toward sustainable ways of living in the North and on approaches to sustainable engagement with the North, are critical both to the North’s and to the world’s future. Community sustainability in the North, whether for small settlements or large urban conglomerations, requires new models of food and energy security, and of access to employment, health care and social and cultural services for residents. The North is faced with demographic challenges to sustainability. Appropriate governance regimes for renewable and nonrenewable resources underpin sustainable development. We will welcome sessions and papers on all facets of sustainability in the North. And, as always, we also welcome sessions and papers on all other subjects of relevance to our members.

IARPC Collaboration Teams meet on a regular basis to implement the Arctic Research Plan: FY 2013-2017. Most meetings are open to the Arctic research community. Collaboration teams facilitate communication and collaboration between Federal agencies, the academic community, industry, non-governmental organizations, and State, local and tribal groups.

Contact Sara Bowden, bowden [at] arcus.org, if you would like to join this meeting.

IARPC Collaboration Teams meet on a regular basis to implement the Arctic Research Plan: FY 2013-2017. Most meetings are open to the Arctic research community. Collaboration teams facilitate communication and collaboration between Federal agencies, the academic community, industry, non-governmental organizations, and State, local and tribal groups.

Contact Sara Bowden, bowden [at] arcus.org, if you would like to join this meeting.

International Symposium on Glaciers and Ice Sheets Contribution to Sea-Level Change (Observations, Modelling and Predictions)

Meeting participants are encouraged to present on a wide variety of topics. All these topics can be addressed using observations, forward or inverse modelling, theoretical analysis or the coupling of data and modelling through the use of data assimilation methods. The first six topics are more related to a specific interface and focus on local processes, whereas the last ones seek to address the large-scale response of ice mass. These include, but are not limited to:

1. Basal processes: effect of basal water, link between runoff and surface velocity, hydrological model, friction law linking basal hydrology and water pressure, drumlins and associated sub-glacial landforms.

2. Basal melting below ice-shelves and at the front of marine terminated glaciers, distribution and amount of melt, accretion of marine ice, coupling of ice sheet and ocean models.

3. Grounding line dynamics: marine ice sheet instability, observed rate of migration, positioning by various techniques, sensitivity of the rate of migration of grounding line to forcing regimes.

4. Calving processes: calving rate parameterization, damage modelling, numerical implementation in ice-sheet models.

5. Surface mass balance: snow accumulation and runoff, influence of refreezing in firn, coupling of regional climate and ice sheet models.

6. Ice body and rheology: anisotropy, temperature field within ice masses, borehole records, rheology of marine ice, modelling of englacial structure.

7. New generation of ice-sheet models, their numerical design, impact of mechanics, their coupling with ocean and/or climate.

8. Estimation of the contribution of glaciers and ice-sheets to sea level change: initialization (spin-up), forecast estimates of future sea level rise, ensemble methods, and associated error bars, paleo-reconstruction of past changes.

IARPC Collaboration Teams meet on a regular basis to implement the Arctic Research Plan: FY 2013-2017. Most meetings are open to the Arctic research community. Collaboration teams facilitate communication and collaboration between Federal agencies, the academic community, industry, non-governmental organizations, and State, local and tribal groups.

Contact Sara Bowden, bowden [at] arcus.org, if you would like to join this meeting.

The Institute of the North is excited to announce the Northern Regions Mining Summit, to be held May 28-30 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, at the Pinnacle Marriott Hotel. The Summit will address the social, cultural and economic impact and opportunity of mineral resource development for Northern peoples in Alaska, Canada and Greenland. The organizing committee hopes you will consider attending and participating in what promises to be a unique forum for exploring the relationship between responsible mineral resource development and benefits to Northern peoples.

Recognizing that the North American Arctic has vast reserves of mineral resources – from traditional base and precious metals to rare earth elements and coal – the Summit will explore how policy development, regulatory environments, and fiscal regimes impact the mining industry. It will provide an interactive, meaningful opportunity for cross-governance engagement and cross-sectoral communication among participants, resulting in practical recommendations to address the challenges faced in northern exploration and development.

Issues to be addressed include Resource Supply and Market Evaluation; Governance; Regulatory Frameworks; Fiscal Regimes; Infrastructure, Operations, Access, Transportation and Logistics; Workforce Development; Capacity-Building; Investment; and Partnerships.

Stephen Tanner, Project Manager at the National Snow & Ice Data Center, will present an in-depth overview of the Satellite Observations of Arctic Change (SOAC) website (http://nsidc.org/soac/). The SOAC site exposes NASA satellite data and research on Arctic change, in the form of maps that illustrate the changes taking place in the Arctic over time. Change maps of seven selected datasets available on this website include: near-surface air temperature, water vapor, sea ice, snow cover, vegetation, frozen ground, and annual minimum exposed snow and ice. Steve's presentation will entail a demonstration of the site features, including how users can view the data and how the data shows change over time. He also will explain how the data was processed and where to get more information. The presentation will conclude with a general discussion focused on questions and feedback on the site.

Contact Sara Bowden, bowden [at] arcus.org, if you would like to join this meeting.

The Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research at the University of Bergen in collaboration with the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory is proud to host the 2014 Ice Sheet System Model (ISSM) Workshop. The workshop will take place at the Bjerknes Centre for Climate Research at the University of Bergen, located in Bergen, Norway, from Monday, June 2nd to Wednesday, June 4th, following the IGS conference in Chamonix.

Interactive sessions will be offered for beginners/advanced users and developers interested in learning how to use ISSM. Updates to ISSM since last year’s workshop, including user-requested features (i.e. a new Python port, support for new OS/Platforms, etc) will be presented. Also, we invite participants to showcase their work during an open poster session. Details for participating in this poster session will be available on the registration website.

A limited amount of travel support may be provided by CliC (Climate and Cryosphere) to help students or early-career scholars attend the workshop. Details on applying for travel support will be provided on the registration page. In addition, there is no fee for participation in the workshop.

We hope this workshop will generate fruitful interactions between our team, the growing community of ISSM users, and the broader cryosphere community.

The Network for Sustainable Climate Risk Management (SCRiM) links a transdisciplinary team of climate scientists, economists, philosophers, statisticians, engineers, and policy analysts to answer the question, “What are sustainable, scientifically sound, technologically feasible, economically efficient, and ethically defensible strategies for managing the risks associated with climate change?”

SCRiM invites undergraduates and beginning (first- and second-year) graduate students interested in climate change, sustainability, risk management, and/or decisionmaking under uncertainty to propose summer research projects centered on SCRiM themes. Appropriate projects might include modeling experiments using simple Earth system and/or economic models, analyses of geophysical datasets (observed or modeled), or meta-analyses based on synthesis of existing literature. Although projects will be largely self-directed, participants will be mentored and supported by SCRiM researchers as they develop and execute their research agenda.

The program runs for 9 weeks, starting 2 June 2014. Housing, travel support, and a stipend of $4500 is provided for all participants.

Students studying in the following disciplines would be well-positioned for the program:

• Applied Mathematics
• Civil & Environmental Engineering
• Computer Science
• Economics
• Environmental Science
• Geography
• Geosciences / Geology
• Meteorology / Atmospheric Science
• Oceanography
• Operations Research
• Philosophy
• Physics
• Statistics

This is a competitive opportunity with a limited number of openings. To apply, please send a single PDF file to scholars [at] scrim.psu.edu containing a cover letter (briefly explaining your interest in the program and what you hope to gain from the experience), a one-page research proposal, a current CV, transcripts (unofficial acceptable), and contact information for two references. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis and should be submitted no later than Monday 28 April 2014 to receive full consideration. Women, members of underrepresented groups, and students from small colleges are especially encouraged to apply.

Conference organizers announce that the 7th International Conference on Arctic Margins (ICAM VII) will be held 2-5 June 2015. The venue for this meeting will be the A.P. Karpinsky All-Russian Geological Research Institute in St. Petersburg, Russia.

The preliminary outline of the scientific themes for ICAM VII is as follows:

• New data on seafloor geology and deep structure of the Arctic basin and their implementation in international projects (with sub-session on planned field activities)
• Structural connections between the Circum-Arctic mainland and the Central Arctic offshore
• Seismic stratigraphy and environmental history of sedimentary basins
• Large igneous provinces and their geodynamic significance
• Plate reconstructions and lithosphere evolution of the Arctic region
• Glacial events and their geological consequences (with sub-session on origin of bottom sediments)

The local organizing committee for the conference consists of V. Kolesnikov, S. Shokalsky, S. Kashubin, N. Kuba (VSEGEI), G. Grikurov, M. Kosko, and D. Kaminsky (VNIIOkeangeologia). A single email address common for all local organizers will be created and announced separately. Additionally, links for online registration and abstract submission will be distributed when available; deadlines are anticipated for sometime in the early spring of 2015.

The local organizing/program committee will work under guidance of Andrey Morozov (ROSNEDRA), Oleg Petrov (VSEGEI), Valery Kaminsky (VNIIOkeangeologia), Sergey Sokolov (RAS) and in contact with representatives from other relevant Russian agencies and institutions, as well as dedicated Arctic explorers in others countries. Harald Brekke (NPD), Victoria Pease (Stockholm University), Elizabeth Miller (Stanford University), Carmen Gaina (University of Oslo), Alexander Minakov (University of Oslo), Wilfried Jokat (AWI), Ruediger Stein (AWI), Thomas Funck (GEUS), Christian Marcussen (GEUS), Bernard Coakley (UAF), James Clough (Alaska DGGS), have already confirmed their planned participation and willingness to cooperate in refining the scientific program, evaluating the abstracts, and suggesting and/or delivering invited talks.

Organizers welcome suggestions relevant to the scientific program and/or organizational issues. Until activation and announcement of the organizing committee email address, all questions or suggestions can be addressed to: Garrik Grikurov Email: grikurov [at] mail.ru.

The 71st Eastern Snow Conference (ESC) will be held at Appalachian State University, Boone, North Carolina, USA, from 3-5 June 2014. The ESC is an international organization in Canada and the United States concerned with snow and ice, in particular the origin, precipitation, accumulation, character, melt, and runoff of snow. The scientific program is open to sessions on theoretical, experimental, and operational studies of snow, ice, and winter hydrology. This year’s general theme is SNOW AND ICE IN MOUNTAIN ENVIRONMENTS, with a complementary sub-theme of ephemeral snow. The ESC has only plenary (paper and poster viewing) sessions, allowing time to view and discuss the research of each participant. You are invited to submit an abstract for an oral or a poster presentation (please indicate type). An abstract of 200-250 words should be submitted by 7 March 2014 to the program chair: Dr. Baker Perry (perrylb [at] gmail.com). Complete registration and lodging information is available on the ESC website.

Students are encouraged to enter the ESC Student Paper Competitions. The winner of the best submitted student paper will receive the Wiesnet Medal, a $750 prize. The Campbell Scientific Canada Award of $500 will be awarded to the submitted paper by a Canadian student demonstrating the most innovative use of technology in the gathering of data. In addition, the David Hewitt Miller Student Poster Award of $100 will be awarded to the best student poster. To be considered for the Wiesnet and Campbell awards please submit an abstract by 7 March 2014 and send an electronic copy of the paper with the supervisor's endorsement (separate email) to the Chair of the Research Committee, Dr. Christopher Fuhrmann (fuhrman1 [at] email.unc.edu), no later than 25 April 2014. Please consult the ESC website for conditions and details.

All submitted papers will be published in the ESC Proceedings; please consult the ESC website for details on submission. In addition, Hydrological Processes (HP) will publish refereed papers (typically 10-12 are published) from the meeting. The subject matter of these papers must fit within the scope of the journal. If you would like your paper to be considered for journal publication, please indicate this on your abstract and submit an electronic copy of your paper to HP co-editors Mauri Pelto (mspelto [at] nichols.edu) or Richard Kelly (rejkelly [at] uwaterloo.ca) by 3 July 2014.

On behalf of the Belmont Forum, we invite you to a second researcher matching webinar on Tuesday, June 3rd, from 12pm-1:30pm Eastern Time that focuses on the breadth of end users and best practices for engagement of end users in the development and implementation of research projects. The webinar features a panel of experts representing a variety of end user perspectives and organizations. Webex details, including a link to international dialing options, are below. Slides will be shown via Webex and discussion will be handled via the international phone lines provided.

End users provide a required expertise on Belmont Forum proposals. The term "end user" encompasses a variety of organizations in citizen, indigenous, policy, government, academic, industry, advocacy, and managerial domains. The panel represents a cross-cut of end users and representative organizations active in Arctic natural and social science research.

A moderated panel discussion will be followed by a Q&A session. Panelists for the June 3rd event include:

Christina Anderson, Willow Environmental LLC
Jim Gamble, Aleut International Association
Eva Kruemmel, Inuit Circumpolar Council
Gordon McBean, Centre for Environment and Sustainability, Western University / President-elect International Council for Science
Zach Stevenson, Northwest Arctic Borough
Aki Tonami, Nordic Institute of Asian Studies, University of Copenhagen

The webinar will be recorded and made available on the ArcticHub (http://www.arctichub.net) after the event under the Long-Term Observing Management Discussion Group.

Join the ArcticHub today and utilize the “help wanted ads” functionality to connect with other researchers and end users to submit a proposal to the Belmont Forum. This researcher matching capability allows you to post messages looking for collaborators or offering your expertise to a proposing team. Additional researcher matching to can be sought through the Belmont Forum website: https://www.igfagcr.org/user/register.

Thank you for your interest, and we look forward to your participation Tuesday, June 3rd.

To join the online meeting (Now from mobile devices!)

1. Go to https://nsf.webex.com/nsf/j.php?MTID=m56d7d10f5c7fd33bde94a3e9c9795568
2. If requested, enter your name and email address.
3. If a password is required, enter the meeting password: arctic
4. Click "Join".

To view in other time zones or languages, please click the link:
https://nsf.webex.com/nsf/j.php?MTID=md1aa2fd427563442bfbe823da04fd0cb

To join the teleconference only

Toll Free (US/Canada): 866-844-9416
Toll Local (US/Canada): 203-369-5026

Refer to Global Access List for Numbers

Announce Attendee Password: arctic

State your name with spelling to the operator to be joined to the meeting in listen only mode until Q&A is announced.

For assistance

1. Go to https://nsf.webex.com/nsf/mc
2. On the left navigation bar, click "Support".

You can contact me at:
ekey [at] nsf.gov
1-703-292-8029

WebEx will automatically setup Meeting Manager for Windows the first time you join a meeting. To save time, you can setup prior to the meeting by clicking this link:
https://nsf.webex.com/nsf/meetingcenter/mcsetup.php

IARPC Collaboration Teams meet on a regular basis to implement the Arctic Research Plan: FY 2013-2017. Most meetings are open to the Arctic research community. Collaboration teams facilitate communication and collaboration between Federal agencies, the academic community, industry, non-governmental organizations, and State, local and tribal groups.

Contact Sara Bowden, bowden [at] arcus.org, if you would like to join this meeting.

The organizing committee of the 35th Polar Symposium announce that it will be held 5-7 June 2014. It will be convened in Wroclaw, Poland, at the Training Centre of the National Labour Inspectorate.

The 2014 symposium will be entitled 'Diversity and State of Polar Ecosystems.' Anyone interested in attending will be invited after acceptance of submitted abstracts. Organizers expect special accommodations to be available for students wishing to attend the event.

Further information will be posted online as available.

For questions, please email:
polar [at] uni.wroc.pl

The University of Alaska Fairbanks, through its Summer Sessions and Lifelong Learning program, announces open registrations for a summer field course, entitled "Arctic Alaska Environmental Change." The course is offered to undergraduate and graduate students, will be held 6-21 June 2014, and based in Fairbanks, Alaska.

During this 16-day field course students will traverses boreal forest, alpine, and Arctic biomes to learn about Arctic vegetation, soils, landforms, permafrost, geology, wildlife, and land-use. Plant species and vegetation will be studied in the context of environmental gradients and methods for vegetation sampling and description will be taught. Students will undertake an independent research project of their choosing.

Ten days of the course will be spent camping at different locations along the transect from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay, Alaska. The course will include a stay at Toolik Field Station, an NSF supported Arctic research station. Students are expected to bring all-weather clothing, sleeping bag, and a tent. Costs of meals, lodging, and travel between field sites are included in the course fee. Scholarships are available.

Registration is now open. Registration deadline for international students: Saturday, 15 March 2014.

The Californian Goldschmidt will take place in Sacramento between June 8th and June 13th, 2014. Goldschmidt2014 will follow the pattern established for the recent Goldschmidt conferences, and should be the prime forum for all recent developments in Geochemistry and related fields. The venue is conveniently close to many of California's renowned geologic features including Yosemite Valley and the Sierra Nevada batholith, several ophiolite complexes, and the fossil subduction zone of the Franciscan Complex. Sacramento is also well placed for excursions to the main Californian wine producing areas and other tourist areas in the state. Field trips linked to symposia will be a hallmark of the conference.

The 7th International Conference on Environmental Science and Technology sponsored by the American Academy of Sciences will be held on June 9-13, 2014 in Houston, Texas, USA. The conference will provide a multidisciplinary platform for environmental scientists, engineers, management professionals and government regulators to discuss the latest developments in environmental research and applications. Please visit the conference website at for more information or email inquiries.

Conference Brochure: http://www.aasci.org/conference/env/2014/EST2014.pdf
Abstract Format: http://www.aasci.org/conference/env/2014/abstract-format-2014.pdf
Abstract Submission: env-abstract [at] AASci.org
Questions: env-conference [at] AASci.org
Conference Web Site: http://www.aasci.org/conference/env/2014/index.html
Registration: http://www.aasci.org/conference/env/2014/registration.html

This workshop brings together those with research and operational/logistical interests in Antarctic meteorology and forecasting and related disciplines. As in the past, the annual activities and status of the observing (e.g. Automatic Weather Stations) and modeling (Antarctic Mesoscale Prediction System) efforts will be addressed, and feedback and results from their user communities will be solicited. More broadly, this workshop also is a forum for current results and ideas in Antarctic meteorology, numerical weather prediction, and weather forecasting, from contributors around the world. There will be discussions on the relationships among international efforts and Antarctic forecasting, logistical support, and science. Organizers welcome papers and posters on these topics.

Registration and abstract submission deadline: 9 May 2014.
Reduced rate lodging deadline: 1 May 2014.

IARPC Collaboration Teams meet on a regular basis to implement the Arctic Research Plan: FY 2013-2017. Most meetings are open to the Arctic research community. Collaboration teams facilitate communication and collaboration between Federal agencies, the academic community, industry, non-governmental organizations, and State, local and tribal groups.

Contact Sara Bowden, bowden [at] arcus.org, if you would like to join this meeting.