Past Events

The Eleventh Conference on Hunting and Gathering Societies (CHAGS 11) will be taking place in Vienna from September 7-11, 2015. CHAGS 10 - held at Liverpool in June 2013 - has put hunter-gatherer studies back at the centre of scholarly debates and CHAGS 11 will make sure that the momentum is not being lost. The Vienna conference will be a joint effort by four among the major anthropological institutions in town – the World Museum Vienna (formerly the Museum of Ethnology), the Institute for Social Anthropology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the Department of Social and Cultural Anthropology at the University of Vienna, and the Anthropological Society Vienna.

Call for Sessions (deadline October 1, 2014)

CHAGS 11 Conference Theme - REFOCUSING HUNTER-GATHERER STUDIES

With the landmark conference Man the Hunter in 1966 the study of hunter-gatherer societies became a major topic within the social and human sciences. Since then, some of the topics and concerns – egalitarianism, sharing, and mobility – remain central, while others – such as social and technological evolution – have seen better times. Thus, while scholarly trends change over time, the goal of the initial conference, to establish a unified field of hunter-gatherer studies, is still valid. The general question of CHAGS 11 therefore is how the results of the last 50 years and new research agendas can be utilized for the present and future.

While many hunter-gatherers are forced to give up their ways of life and subsistence practices, they figure prominently in public discourses on ecological and ideological alternatives to industrial society. Thus, CHAGS 11 will attempt to attract a variety of stakeholders in these debates – indigenous representatives, NGOs, scholars, etc. Based on fieldwork and research from the full spectrum of hunter-gatherer ways of life and from all perspectives our disciplines have to offer, the goal of CHAGS 11 is to bring hunter-gatherer studies back to the center of the human and social sciences.

Session proposals addressing topics ranging from the classical domains of hunter-gatherer research to new and alternative practices referencing hunter-gatherer lifestyles are welcome. We would like to encourage colleagues to think about NEW FORMS OF SESSION STRUCTURES and PRESENTATION FORMATS. While the old 20-minute lecture style is still valid, sessions in the form of a round table, science-slam, debate session, informal exchange, etc., as well as the inclusion of discussants, are encouraged. Also, we suggest that session organizers strive to balance the composition of their presenters by age, gender, geography, and ethnicity to provide a dialog across divergent experiences in the world of hunter-gatherer scholarship.

Please send your session proposals in a WORD document, including the name of organizer(s), title, description of content and form (maximally 300 words) to chags11 [at] univie.ac.at by OCTOBER 1, 2014. The proposals will be reviewed by the International Organizing Committee of CHAGS 11 shortly thereafter.

The course provides a basic introduction to the dynamics of glaciers and ice sheets with a focus on ice-climate interactions. Topics include:

• Continuum mechanics
• Kinematics
• Ice rheology
• Sliding and hydraulics
• Numerical modeling
• Polar meteorology
• Ice-ocean interaction
• Ice cores
• Interaction of ice sheets with the solid earth
• Glacier fluctuations

Lectures will be given in the morning and exercises (including computer projects) in the afternoon. An excursion will be organized to nearby glaciers. The course is meant for Ph.D. students that work on a glaciology-related climate project. Some places are available for junior scientists. The registration fee is € 700. This covers lodging, full board, excursion and course material.

Lecturers include:

• T. Blunier
• O.Eisen
• H. Gudmundsson
• A. Jenkins
• N. Karlsson
• F. Ng
• F. Pattyn
• A. Stroeven
• C. Tijm-Reijmer
• R. van de Wal
• J. Oerlemans (convenor)

Send your application to the convenor (j.oerlemans [at] uu.nl), before 18 May 2015. You will be notified about the decision of the Selection Committee by 15 June 2015.
Your application should include:

• A statement why you want to participate in this course
• Affiliation, name of supervisor
• A description of your research project (~200 words)
• A curriculum vitae
  Please supply this information as a single PDF file.

The ongoing global process of glacial isostatic adjustment (GIA) contributes significantly to present-day rates of sea level change, causes temporal changes in the Earth’s gravitational field, and is evident in the displacement of the Earth’s surface.

A training school focused on GIA modeling will be held from 13-19 September, 2015, at the Ohio State University’s Stone Laboratory on Gibraltar Island in Lake Erie, Ohio. The school is aimed at early-stage researchers from a wide range of backgrounds, and no previous experience in GIA modeling is required. An introduction to the fundamentals, methods, applications, and current state of GIA modeling will be provided. Participants will be given intensive training on GIA modeling and relevant processes, including ice mass change, solid-earth deformation, and sea-level and geoid variations, and they will learn about the multitude of relevant data and data sources used to generate, tune, and constrain GIA models. The program will include both lectures and computer exercises utilizing freely available modeling software, and participants should expect to come away with an understanding of the theory and development behind GIA modeling as well the practical ability to independently install and run GIA modeling software.

Instructors for the GIA School include Mike Bentley, Mike Bevis, Ian Dalziel, Erik Ivins, Matt King, Meredith Nettles, Giorgio Spada, Holger Steffen, Bert Vermeersen, Wouter van der Wal, Pippa Whitehouse, and Doug Wiens.

There is no registration fee, and participants will be provided with food and lodging for the duration of the training school. Funding for additional travel expenses, including airfare, may be available for both US and non-US participants. Individuals seeking financial support should submit both an Enrollment Application and a Financial Support Application, available at www.polenet.org. The deadline for application is 31 March, 2015.

Financial support is provided by NSF-Polar/Antarctic Earth Sciences and the SCAR-SERCE Research Programme.

We look forward to seeing you there!

The National Park Service's Shared Beringian Heritage Program announces the 2015 Request for Proposals.

The NPS Shared Beringian Heritage Program funds cooperative efforts that link people, organizations, institutions, and local governments across the Bering Strait. Projects funded under this program may be either scientific research projects or local, community-based educational, cultural or conservation projects that fulfill some or all of the goals of the Beringia program. Full proposals are due Monday, September 14, 2015

To be eligible to apply:

• A duration of 1 to 3 years and funding not to exceed $150,000 for three years.
• Cooperator must be a non-profit organization, which Includes non-governmental organizations, academic institutions, tribal governments, and representative indigenous groups from the region
• Project has to meet one or more of the goals of the Beringia Program
• Proposal includes a "meaningful" Russian component
• Submitted applications must be received electronically by midnight on the 14th of September and if mailed in, must be postmarked by the 9th of September.

If you are having issues with any part of the application, or have questions about any step in the proposal process, please call:

Katerina Wessels, Program Specialist
Phone: 907-644-3602
Email: katerina_wessels [at] nps.gov

or Janis Kozlowski
Phone: 907-644-3503
Email: janis_kozlowski [at] nps.gov

The Swedish Agricultural University, Uppsala University, and The International Tundra Experiment (ITEX) announces that the 21st ITEX meeting is scheduled for 15-18 September 2015. It will be held at the Campus Ultuna, Swedish Agricultural University in Uppsala, Sweden.

The conference is open for all scientists and students with an interest in arctic and alpine ecology. All areas of ecological research in both terrestrial and aquatic environments in alpine or polar regions are welcome! A special focus at this meeting is linking above and belowground processes under climate change.

You can look forward to three interesting days, and we especially welcome students to present research. Ten of the 40 slots for oral presentation are reserved for students.

All areas of ecological research spanning climate change and above- and below- ground processes in alpine or polar regions are welcome. Information on how and when to register, conference fees, and instructions for oral and poster presentations are available on the conference website.

Ideas for workshops (focusing on meta-analysis, new collaboration, etc.) can be sent to:
Sara Hallin
Email: Sara.Hallin [at] slu.se

Organizers announce that registration is currently available for the 21st Integrating Arctic Plant and Microbial Ecology (ITEX) Meeting. It will be convened 16-18 September 2015 in Uppsala, Sweden.

The conference is open to all scientists and students with an interest in Arctic and alpine ecology. All areas of ecological research in both terrestrial and aquatic environments in alpine or polar regions are welcome. A special focus at this meeting is linking above and below-ground processes under climate change.

Registration and session proposal deadline: 1 June 2015.

For further information, please visit the conference webpage above.

This three-day conference aims to bring together UK Arctic scientists of all natural and social science disciplines to present and discuss recent findings. We welcome presentations on the following topics:

• Terrestrial Biogeochemistry
• Terrestrial Ecology
• Arctic Oceanography
• Ice-Ocean Interaction
• Landscape Processes and Dynamics
• Arctic Climate
• Terrestrial Cryosphere: Snow and ice – past and present
• Arctic Change – implications for society and culture

Key dates:
Friday 17th July 2015: Abstract submission deadline.
Friday 28th August 2015: Registration deadline.

Please note: Although there is no registration fee, refreshments will be provided, including a sandwich buffet lunch on Thursday 17th September. Participants are expected to cover their own travel and accommodation costs.

To register, please follow this link: https://secure.antarctica.ac.uk/conference/ukarctic2015/

Scientific Conference: Longyearbyen, 20-21 September 2015
Field Workshops for young researchers: Longyearbyen area, 18-19 September 2015; Hornsund, 22-24 September 2015

The University Centre in Svalbard, Norway (UNIS) and the Centre for Polar Studies, Poland (CPS) together with University of Oslo and University of Sheffield invite to conference and field workshops under the common title Interdisciplinary Polar Studies in Svalbard (IPSiS).

The main goal of IPSiS is to facilitate international and interdisciplinary cooperation in studies on the interactive effects of climate change on Arctic nature and societies. The meeting has a special focus on young scientists and PhD students in particular, and is meant to enable them to share ideas and acquire new skills and experiences in Arctic research, mainly by participating in the workshops.

The conference part of IPSiS will provide a venue where scientists, authorities, entrepreneurs and local inhabitants will have an opportunity to meet, exchange experience and discuss monitoring the current climate change and its effects in the Arctic. The plenary sessions of the conference will be open to general audience including Longyearbyen citizens, authorities and entrepreneurs.

IPSiS will cover wide range of disciplines and study areas: climatology and atmosphere physics, glaciology, geomorphology, periglacial processes, freshwater hydrology, terrestrial ecology, physical oceanography, marine ecology, environmental chemistry, human activity in the Arctic. Abstracts of oral presentations and posters are welcomed for submission.

Important dates:
Abstracts submission, application for workshops: 15 May 2015
Notification on acceptance of abstracts and participation in workshops: 8 June 2015
Registration with regular fee rate: 30 June 2015
Late registration: 31 July 2015
Application forms will be available at the webpage shortly.

Based on the success of the past TAMScience meeting and the interest in promoting interdisciplinary research in Antarctica you are invited to participate in the upcoming NSF-sponsored Interdisciplinary Antarctic Earth Science Meeting (ANT-Sci). The meeting is intended to provide a forum for recent Antarctic research, to facilitate the exchange of information, and to encourage interdisciplinary research in the Earth Sciences.

ANT-Sci will be a 3-day long, single-session meeting, that will include invited and contributed presentations, daily poster sessions, and dedicated discussion time to promote exchange of ideas. The program will be guided by an interdisciplinary organizing committee that will identify unifying session themes based on community interest along with the critical questions identified by the U.S. Polar Research Board and the international Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research. The meeting will immediately follow the West Antarctic ice sheet (WAIS) meeting at the same venue.

In advance of the proposed Shackleton Camp logistics hub, the ANT-Sci meeting will include a dedicated session to communicate key information about the camp planning process with participation by NSF and Antarctic Support Contract staff.

Details on session topics, registration and lodging will follow, but please save the dates.

Please share this announcement with others, particularly graduate students, postdocs and early career scientists who may be interested.

Send email queries to:
tamcamp13 [at] gmail.com

Organizers invite participation in the upcoming NSF-sponsored Interdisciplinary Antarctic Earth Science Meeting (ANT-Sci). It will be held 20-22 September 2015 on the Sylvan Dale Ranch in Loveland, Colorado.

The meeting is intended to provide a forum for recent Antarctic research, to facilitate the exchange of information, and to encourage interdisciplinary research in the Earth Sciences. It will be convened as a single-session meeting that will include invited and contributed presentations, daily poster sessions, and dedicated discussion time to promote exchange of ideas. The program will be guided by an interdisciplinary organizing committee that will identify unifying session themes based on community interest along with the critical questions identified by the U.S. Polar Research Board and the international Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research. The meeting will immediately follow the West Antarctic ice sheet (WAIS) meeting at the same venue.

In advance of the proposed Shackleton Camp logistics hub, the ANT-Sci meeting will include a dedicated session to communicate key information about the camp planning process with participation by NSF and Antarctic Support Contract staff.

Details on session topics, registration and lodging will follow. For questions, please contact organizing committee member Melissa Nigro at melissa.nigro [at] colorado.edu.

The Eighth Polar Law Symposium is sponsored by University of Alaska Fairbanks, University of Alaska Anchorage, UAA Justice Center, UAA Institute of Social and Economic Research, and University of Washington School of Law in cooperation with the Arctic Law Section of the Alaska Bar Association.

The symposium will be held:

September 23–24 (Wednesday–Thursday) at University of Alaska Fairbanks
September 25–26 (Friday—Saturday) at the University of Alaska Anchorage

This conference, "The Science, Scholarship, and Practice of Polar Law: Strengthening Arctic Peoples and Places", seeks to address the following questions:

• How can lawyers and other legal scholars interact with scientists and academics from other disciplines to the benefit of the Arctic?
• What can lawyers and academics from all disciplines contribute to each other’s understanding of issues of common concern?
• Can models of cooperation among scientists, scholars, and lawyers from other geographic areas be adapted for the Arctic?

Other major themes to be addressed include:

• Antarctic Science and Resources
• The Changing Arctic Council
• Human and Indigenous Rights — Education, Self-Determination, Food Security
• Monitoring and Observing Networks: Natural and Social Science Fieldwork
• Ocean and Polar Governance
• Trade and Economy

For more information and to register, please visit the link above.

In FY 2016, the Climate Variability and Predictability (CVP) program solicits projects that will refine the current scientific understanding of the AMOC state, variability, and change. Specifically, projects are sought that use newly deployed and existing observations in combination with modeling experiments to refine our understanding of the present and historical circulation (and related transports of heat and freshwater) in the North and/or South Atlantic. An emerging priority is to provide a more detailed characterization of AMOC flow pathways and their impact on variability. Successful principal investigators will become members of the U.S. AMOC Science Team and are expected to participate in the Science Team meetings and report

In FY 2016, the MAPP program solicits research proposals to improve the understanding of predictability and the potential to advance the prediction of phenomena occurring on S2S time scales. Such phenomena include, but are not limited to, the MJO and associated midlatitude teleconnections, the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO), stratospheric flow regimes, and atmospheric blocking episodes. Projects will use global numerical model experiments for sensitivity studies and/or reforecast datasets such as the S2S Prediction Project database, the North American Multi-Model Ensemble hindcast dataset, the WMO Lead Centre for Long Range Forecast Multi-Model Ensemble database, and the Intraseasonal Variability Hindcast Experiment (ISVHE) dataset, and observational datasets for diagnostic studies to explore how prediction of S2S phenomena is influenced by various aspects of the prediction system set-up, including: (i) model resolution of various prediction system components; (ii) initialization of, and coupling between, Earth system components; (iii) model physics; (iv) generation, number, and resolution of ensemble members; (v) reforecast length and calibration methods; or (vi) multi-model combination. New model system experiments (if any) are encouraged to follow elements of the protocol for experimentation on subseasonal prediction as appropriate. Researchers are encouraged to develop and apply novel verification metrics tailored for subseasonal prediction (e.g., the probability of a large-scale flow regime transition) in addition to applying verification traditionally used for seasonal prediction.

Kacy Krieger, coordinator of Alaska Hydrography will present a webinar entitled "Mapping Alaska's Waters".

The National Hydrography Dataset (NHD) depicts how surface waters occur on maps. Maps of our streams and lakes in Alaska are sometimes incorrect because relatively few updates have been made to our NHD layer since it was developed off of 1950's topographic maps. A collaborative effort with several of the LCCs in Alaska and many additional partners is working to address this need so that updates made by an individual entity can be shared with others and moved into the National NHD layer. Learn about the progress that has been made across the state during today's webinar.

Connect to the Webinar:
Audio: Teleconference: 1-866-755-3168 Passcode: 40211914

WebEx:

• Go to https://www.mymeetings.com/nc/
• Type in the Meeting Number 499 875 146 & Passcode 40211914
• Choose “Conference” and click proceed

First time users, click on “New Users” to check your system and download the software. Then go back to Join Net Conference page.

• Enter your name
• Agree to the terms and conditions and click proceed

The Institute of Physicoсhemical and Biological Problems in Soil Science, Scientific Council on Earth Cryology and Institute of Earth Cryosphere of Russian Academy of Sciences would like to invite you to take part in the International conference "Permafrost in XXI century: basic and applied researches". The conference will be held from September 27 to October 01, 2015, in Pushchino, Russia. Registration fee is 50 euro, the banquet ticket is about 30 euros. Students and Ph.D. students are welcome to participate without registration fee. Accommodation in Pushchino hotels (25-100 euros per day). Working languages are Russian and English. Foreign participants will be provided with a simultaneous English translation.

The abstracts in English should be no more than 4000 characters including spaces (one page of A4 format). Deadline for registration and abstracts is June,1, 2015. Main topics will be:

• General, regional and historical geocryology
• Permafrost response to climat change
• Physico-chemical approach in permafrost studies
• Permafrost engineering and hazards
• Permafrost soils
• Microbiology, biotechnology and astrobiology aspects of permafrost research
• Geophysical and remote sensing data in permafrost investigations
• Education of the new generation of permafrost researchers

Several roundtables will be organized: TSP, CALM, Antarctic permafrost and soils (ANPAS). The special PYRN event will celebrate 10th Anniversary of this young permafrost researchers network. Additional ones can be organized on request. We invite researchers of wide range of studies of the cryosphere in the Arctic, Antarctic and mountain areas of the Earth.

The Institute of the North works on an array of critical issues in the Arctic, focused on the region's economic prosperity and resilient communities. Our legacy work has addressed Arctic infrastructure development – including energy, aviation, telecommunications, and marine shipping. Much of that work is based on establishing and sustaining cross-border relationships. The Arctic Energy Summit is a great example of our efforts in this arena, having occurred twice under the auspices of the Arctic Council's Sustainable Development Working Group and generating robust discourse resulting in tangible outcomes. This intersection of business, community and government provides meaningful exchanges that inform decision-making. Beyond those who attend, the sessions are filmed and video, presentations and the written proceedings are distributed to a network of thousands of interested stakeholders.

The 2015 Summit will address:

• Oil & Gas Exploration and Production
• Remote and Rural Heat & Power
• Business of Clean Energy
• Transportation and Transmission

The three day Summit will feature:

• Plenary keynote speeches and panel discussions related to overarching themes
• Breakout sessions in panel, technical presentation and workshop format
• Remote energy “hackathons” – collaborative problem-solving for northern communities
• Closing work sessions to develop recommendations

Actualization of agenda and elaboration of practical measures for effective collaboration between public authorities, business, science and communities within economic projects and implementation of innovative macro-regional development models are stated as goals for the international scientific conference: Natural Resources and Integrated Coastal Areas Development in the Arctic Zone, which is to be held on 29 September – 01 October, 2015 in Arkhangelsk, Russia.

Conference organizers are:

*Federal Agency for Scientific Organizations,
* Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS),
* Government of Arkhangelsk region,
* Ural branch of the RAS (UB RAS),
* Arkhangelsk Scientific Center (ArkhSC) of the UB RAS,
* International Arctic Science Committee and
* European Polar Board (European Scientific Foundation).

In elaboration of outcomes of the forum "Competitive Potential of Northern and Arctic Regions" held by ArkhSC in 2014, the Conference's scientific agenda in 2015 will cover the following Problematic Issues:

• Natural resources and development of economic potential of marine spaces and coastal areas in the Arctic;
• Technologies and methods of natural complexes research,
• Preservation and development in the Arctic oceanic and coastal zones;
• Ethno-social and socio-cultural processes, indigenous population’ living conditions in the coastal areas of the Arctic;
• integrated management and governance in the coastal areas as an instrument for balanced socio-economic development in the Arctic regions.

Being intended toward productive and comprehensive discussion, contributed by representatives from public authorities, industrial companies, research and educational institutions, experts and stakeholders, the Organizing Committee hereby invites you to take part in the Conference.

The Conference will be followed by traditional Scientific school for young researchers "Circumpolar Studies" for Russian and foreign students, post-graduates and young researchers (up to 35 years old), including lectures by specialists in the Arctic and Northern research, knowledge exchange and discussions on science & technologies development, training of professional orientations.

The purpose of this notice is to request applications for special projects and programs associated with NOAA's strategic plan and mission goals, as well as to provide the general public with information and guidelines on how NOAA will select proposals and administer discretionary Federal assistance under this Broad Agency Announcement (BAA). This BAA is a mechanism to encourage research, education and outreach, innovative projects, or sponsorships that are not addressed through our competitive discretionary programs. It is not a mechanism for awarding congressionally directed funds or existing funded awards. Funding for potential projects in this notice is contingent upon the availability of Fiscal Year 2014 and Fiscal Year 2015 appropriations. Applicants are hereby given notice that funds have not yet been appropriated for any potential activities in this notice. Publication of this announcement does not oblige NOAA to review an application, or to award any specific project, or to obligate any available funds.

The Office of Naval Research (ONR) is interested in receiving proposals for Long-Range Science and Technology (S&T) Projects which offer potential for advancement and improvement of Navy and Marine Corps operations. Readers should note that this is an announcement to declare ONR’s broad role in competitive funding of meritorious research across a spectrum of science and engineering disciplines.

The National Science Foundation’s Coastal SEES program focuses on the sustainability of coastal systems, which include barrier islands, mudflats, beaches, estuaries, cities, towns, recreational areas, maritime facilities, continental seas and shelves, and the overlying atmosphere. The Coastal SEES program, in short, seeks to 1) advance understanding of fundamental, interconnected processes in coastal systems, 2) improve capabilities for predicting future coastal system states and impacts, and 3) identify pathways for research to be translated to policy and management domains, enhancing coastal resilience. The program seeks proposals from interdisciplinary research teams to conduct integrated coastal systems research (which can include theoretical, field, laboratory, or modeling activities). Proposal budgets should be in the range of $800,000 to $2 million (maximum) total, over a period of three to five years. The foundation anticipates a funding amount of $13 million, thus awarding up to 10 proposals depending on availability of funds.