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Today's C
ongressional Action:
The House and Senate will be in session and expected to consider non-Arctic legislation.
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Media
Makivik Fights Nunavut Government Polar Bear Quota in Court. Makivik Corp., the organization that represents Nunavik Inuit, has taken a spat over polar bear hunting quotas in the southern Hudson Bay management area to the Nunavut court, documents filed at the Nunavut Court of Justice reveal.
In a notice filed Nov. 4, 2016, Makivik said a Government of Nunavut decision to set the total allowable harvest in the region at 25 was "discriminatory," "unfounded," and was issued "without reasons or with reasons that are manifestly inadequate."
Nunatsiaq Online
 Feds Finalize Plan to Save Polar Bears in the Arctic.
On Monday the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service released its finalized Polar Bear Conservation Management Plan to save polar bears from disappearing in the Arctic. According to U.S. Fish and Wildlife, if greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise at its current rate, polar bears will likely disappear. "In Alaska, it's not a positive story if climate change isn't addressed in the long term," said Jenifer Kohout, Deputy Assistant Regional Director, U.S. Fish and Wildlife.
KTUU
As Arctic Warms, Interest in Geoengineering Increases. Get ready to take part in a planet-wide experiment, which could see science helping to cool the world's temperature and provide a cheap, short-term fix to climate-warming. With the Arctic sea ice extent breaking more than 200 daily record lows in 2016-which also goes down in history as the hottest year since 1881, scientists have begun to look more closely at climate engineering or geoengineering to curb global warming.
Nunatsiaq Online
 The Polar Code Heralds a new era of Safer Navigation in Arctic Waters. An historic milestone was reached on New Year's Day 2017 when the International Maritime Organization's Polar Code for Ships Operating in Polar Waters came into force. The 'Polar Code,' as it is widely known throughout the maritime world, is designed to improve marine safety and enhance protection of Arctic peoples and polar marine environments. It is a groundbreaking marine governance regime for the Arctic and Southern oceans. The code establishes a set of mandatory and voluntary international standards for new and existing commercial ships and passenger vessels (all 500 tons or more) operating in Arctic and Antarctic waters.
Arctic Now
Rapid Arctic Warming Has in the Past Shifted Southern Ocean Winds.
The global climate is a complex machine in which some pieces are separate, yet others are connected. Scientists try to discover the connections to predict what will happen to our climate, especially in a future with more heat-trapping gases.
A dramatic pattern in our planet's climate history involves paroxysms in Arctic temperatures. During the last ice age, tens of thousands of years ago, Greenland repeatedly warmed by about 10 degrees Celsius over just a few decades and then gradually cooled. Meanwhile the Southern Hemisphere climate stayed fairly stable, with only weak and long-delayed echoes of the temperature chaos up north.
Phys.Org
Hybrid Airships: A New Form of Arctic Transportation. I first encountered the need for hybrid airships or lighter-than-air cargo aircraft in Alaska about 10 years ago when I chaired a roundtable. This roundtable was originally scheduled for a dozen leaders in Anchorage, Alaska. The topic was the possible uses of those airships for logistics, transportation and supply chain needs of commercial businesses throughout Alaska. There is still a need to move seafood inland from coastal ports along the seacoast to the Ted Stevens International Airport. We also need to transport supplies to oil companies and gold mines hundreds of miles from any major city, like Fairbanks or Anchorage.
In Homeland Security
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Legislative Action
No Arctic legislation was formally considered yesterday.
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Future Events
ARCUS Arctic Research Seminar with Craig Fleener, January 11, 2017 (Washington, DC USA). The Arctic Research Consortium of the U.S. (ARCUS) will host the next Arctic Research Seminar Series event featuring Craig Fleener (State of Alaska Arctic Policy Advisor). The ARCUS Arctic Research Seminar Series brings some of the leading Arctic researchers to Washington, D.C. to share the latest findings and what they mean for decision-making. These seminars will be of interest to Federal agency officials, Congressional staff, NGOs, associations, and the public.
Alaska Marine Science Symposium, January 23-27, 2017 (Anchorage, AK USA). The annual Alaska Marine Science Symposium (AMSS) is Alaska's premier marine research conference. It brings together roughly 800 scientists, educators, resource managers, students, and interested public to discuss marine research being conducted in Alaskan waters. Research will be presented by geographic theme, including the Gulf of Alaska, Bering Sea & Aleutian Islands, and the Arctic. Topic areas will include ocean physics, fishes and invertebrates, seabirds, marine mammals, local traditional knowledge and more. Keynote presentations will be held Monday, January 23rd; Gulf of Alaska presentations will be on Tuesday, Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands on Wednesday, followed by the Arctic on Thursday.
Alaska Forum on the Environment, February 6-10, 2017 (Anchorage, AK USA). This statewide gathering of environmental professionals, community leaders, Alaskan youth, conservationists, biologists and community elders will be holding its 19th meeting to continue providing a strong educational foundation for all Alaskans and a unique opportunity to interact with others on environmental issues and challenges. As many as 1,800 people are expected to attend AFE this years meeting.
6th Annual Fletcher Arctic Conference, February 17-18, 2017 (Medford, MA USA). Fletcher Arctic VI, a TEDx-style event, will showcase the ideas, stories, and initiatives of people who live and work in the Arctic. The conference will bring together inspiring leaders, innovative business people, expert scientists, and artists from the pan-Arctic region. Building on The Fletcher School's interdisciplinary approach, Fletcher Arctic VI will be a forum to engage in conversation and spark open and constructive debate between speakers and participants, providing deep insights into this unique and rapidly changing region.
IV International Forum, March 2017 (Arkhangelsk, Russian Federation)
Arkhangelsk will host the Forum. The Forum will be titled Human in the Arctic and will be aimed at putting together joint efforts of the international community to promote effective development of the Arctic region as a territory for comfort life, work and leisure. The Forum will be attended by government officials, representatives of international organizations and prominent business communities, centers for political studies, Polar researchers and members of the international Arctic expeditions, foreign political scientists and economists, Russian and foreign journalists from leading international media organizations. The Forum will be attended by the President of the Russian Federation, Mr. Vladimir Putin. Additional information will be announced
here
.
- The Arctic Cryosphere
- Pollution in the Arctic
- Human Health Aspects of Pollution and Climate Change
- Global and Arctic Systems Feedback Mechanisms
- Resilience within Arctic Ecosystems
- Science and Policy Making
- Socio-Economic Drivers and Impacts of Arctic Change
Organizers announce a call for abstracts which are due by December 2, 2016. The event is organized by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Program (AMAP).
Ninth International Congress of Arctic Social Sciences: People and Places (ICASS IX), June 8-12, 2017 (Umea, Sweden).
ICASS IX's theme is People & Place. Research on social sciences and humanities have a great responsibility to address the challenges for sustainable development in the Arctic, with a specific focus on the many different parts of the Arctic and the people that live there. The multiple Arctics have lately been addressed by many policy makers and researchers. The purpose is often to counteract the stereotypic understanding of the Arctic too often represented by icebergs and polar bears. A focus on people and place highlights the many variances across the region in terms of climate, political systems, demography, infrastructure, history, languages, legal systems, land and water resources etc.
The 2nd Asian Conference on Permafrost, July 2-6, 2017 (Sapporo, Japan). Delegates will participate in state-of-the-art oral and poster presentations in the modern city of Sapporo (host of the 1972 Winter Olympics). Field trips will visit marginal and extrazonal mountain permafrost sites that support unique geo-eco-hydrological features. All aspects of frozen ground research will be covered, from needle ice to deep permafrost, from frozen ground engineering in cities to permafrost on volcanoes, and from links between frozen ground and ancient cultures to present-day outreach. Plan now to enjoy science and engineering, excellent food, and unique field trips in Sapporo.
Co-hosted by U.S. National/Naval Ice Center (NIC) and the U.S. Arctic Research Commission (USARC). A biennial symposium originating in 2001 that focuses on U. S. naval operations and national strategic issues in an "ice-free Arctic." This symposium brings together nationally and internationally recognized experts on Arctic observations, climate change, and maritime operations.
- Small and off-grid community energy solutions
- Oil and gas development
- Renewable energy
- Regulation and Financing
- Transportation and transmission
The AES is a multi-disciplinary event expected to draw several hundred industry officials, scientists, academics, policy makers, energy professionals and community leaders together to collaborate and share leading approaches on Arctic energy issues.
Polar Law Symposium 2017 and Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit, November 13-16, 2017 (Rovaniemi, Finland).
The purpose of the Polar Law Symposium is to examine, in detail, the implications of the challenges faced by the Polar Regions for international law and policy and to make recommendations on appropriate actions by states, policy makers and other international actors to respond to these emerging and re-emerging challenges. The Rovaniemi Arctic Spirit
Conference is integrated with the Polar Law Symposium, which will be organized by the Northern Institute for Environmental and Minority Law at the Arctic Center of the University of Lapland.
POLAR 2018, June 15-27, 2018 (Davos, Switzerland).
POLAR2018 is a joint event from the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) and the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC). The SCAR meetings, the ASSW and the Open Science Conference will be hosted by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL under the patronage of the Swiss Committee on Polar and High Altitude Research. The WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF is organizing POLAR2018.
As the Symposium is organized jointly by two leading Research Institutes of Russian Academy of Science - Institute of Water Problems and Melnikov Permafrost Institute, particularly the contributions on following research topics are welcome:
- *Observational evidences of change in coupled permafrost-hydrology system.
- *Present state and future projections of local, regional and pan-Arctic hydrology.
- *Modeling studies representing landscape evolution, dynamics of water storages and permafrost degradation.
- *Impacts of permafrost hydrology changes on local communities."
** New this week** VII International Conference on Cryopedology, August 21-25, 2017 (Yaktsk, Russia).
The conference will be hosted by the Institute for Biological Problems of the Cryolithozone of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences (SB RAS). Plenary reports will be organized in the hall of the Academy of Sciences of the Sakha (Yakutia) Republic.
The official languages of the conference are English and Russian (with translation).
All technical facilities (projectors, computers, video sets) will be available during the conference for presentation of papers. Additional information will be available soon. See the Facebook page
here.
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