| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
56th Annual Air & Waste Management Association Conference October 5-7, 2016 (Juneau, AK USA). Come join us at the Pacific Northwest International Section's (PNWIS) annual conference in Juneau and connect with many of the region's top environmental professionals. Catch up on the latest developments in arctic related regulatory policy and law, environmental science and technology, environmental modeling, and other topics over three days of parallel technical sessions. PNWIS is a catalyst for environmental leadership by providing a neutral forum for discussion, education, and networking on technical issues relating to environmental management in the U.S., Alaska, the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada. Exhibitor booths will be on display and you can attend a keynote speech by the Deputy Commissioner of the AK Department of Environmental Conservation, Alice Edwards.
20th Biennial Inuit Studies Conference: Inuit Traditions. October 7-10, 2016 (St. Johns, Newfoundland and Labrador).
Inuit traditions are a repository of Inuit culture and a primary expression of Inuit identity. The theme for the 2016 Inuit Studies Conference invites Elders, knowledge-bearers, researchers, artists, policy-makers, students and others to engage in conversations about the many ways in which traditions shape understanding, while registering social and cultural change. The institutional hosts of "Inuit Traditions," Memorial University of Newfoundland and the Nunatsiavut Government, invite you to contribute to an exchange of knowledge to be held in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, October 7-10, 2016. Presentations on all aspects of Inuit studies will be welcome.
Arctic Circle Assembly. October 7-9, 2016 (Reykjavik, Iceland).
The Arctic Circle is the largest network of international dialogue and cooperation on the future of the Arctic. It is an open democratic platform with participation from governments, organizations, corporations, universities, think tanks, environmental associations, indigenous communities, concerned citizens, and others interested in the development of the Arctic and its consequences for the future of the globe. It is a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization.
In addition to the annual Assemblies, the Arctic Circle organizes Forums on specific areas of Arctic cooperation.
Today's C
ongressional Action:
The House and Senate are not in session.
|
Media
 US Wants to Strengthen Agreement to Ban Arctic Ocean Fishing. The United States is trying to broker an agreement between a host of nations to prohibit unregulated fishing in the international waters of the Arctic Ocean.Such an agreement would piggyback on a non-binding agreement that the U.S. entered into with Norway, Denmark, Russia and Canada last year to avoid fishing in the area. Adm. Robert Papp, the U.S. Special Representative for the Arctic, says a binding, multinational agreement would prevent fishing in the Arctic high seas before scientists can determine what is sustainable. He says the issue is especially important as Arctic ice melts.
Alaska Public Radio
Arctic Research Foundation Went Off Course to Find HMS Terror, Sought Permit Later. Parks Canada staff scrambled to obtain the proper permit to search for HMS Terror - eight days after the initial discovery of the wreck - because searching Terror Bay was never part of the original plan. "As soon as Parks Canada was notified about the discovery of HMS Terror, the agency took immediate action to obtain an amended archeological permit from the government of Nunavut and then proceeded to validate the wreck site as per archaeological protocol," reads a statement sent to CBC News by Parks Canada spokeswoman Natalie Fay.
CBC News
 Arctic Meltdown Has Polar Bears Slimming Down on All-Egg Diet. New research from the University of Windsor reveals melting sea ice is forcing Canada's polar bears to put all their eggs in one basket when it comes to finding food. A recent study from the university's Great Lakes Institute for Environmental Research and Environment and Climate Change Canada shows that as Arctic ice melts earlier each year, polar bears have less time to stock up on their favourite meal - seals. Instead bears are stuck scavenging on land where one of their main food sources is bird eggs - specifically those of the common eider.
Windsor Star
Arctic Council Continues Environmental Studies. The Arctic Council concluded their latest meeting in Portland, Maine, on October 6, hearing updates from a range of working groups involved with environmental protection of the region. The three currently active task forces of the Arctic Council presented updates on their work to advance cooperation on Arctic marine issues, enhance cross-border scientific cooperation and survey the current state of telecommunications infrastructure in the Arctic.
Maritime Executive
 Senators Want to Forever Bar Offshore Rigs from Arctic.
Fourteen U.S. senators sent
a letter
to President Obama today, asking him to keep drill rigs out of federal waters in the Arctic forever. In recent months, environmentalists have been asking Obama to remove the Arctic from the five-year oil and gas leasing plan for federal waters. Today's letter, though, asks the president to use a section of the Outer Continental Shelf Leasing Act to permanently exclude the Arctic, and also the Atlantic, from oil and gas leasing. No Republicans signed the letter. Vermont Independent Bernie Sanders is the only non-Democrat on the list.
Alaska Public Radio
|
Legislative Action
No Arctic legislation was formally considered yesterday.
|
|
Future Events
Arctic Technology Conference, October 24-26, 2016 (St. John's, Canada). Founded in 1969, the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) is the world's foremost event for the development of offshore resources in the fields of drilling, exploration, production and environmental protection. The Arctic Technology Conference (ATC) is built upon OTC's successful multidisciplinary approach, with 14 technical societies and organizations working together to deliver the world's most comprehensive Arctic event.
Fulbright Arctic Week. October 25-27 (Washington, DC)
The 18-month Fulbright Arctic Initiative supports U.S. priorities on Arctic issues and increasing mutual understanding between Americans and those in other countries. As a culmination of the program, 17 scholars will be presenting their work at public events. Other invited speakers will include officials from the Inuit Circumpolar Council, Arctic Executive Steering Committee, and U.S. Arctic Youth Ambassadors, among other. For more information, please visit the
Fulbright Arctic Week website
and/or
register your interest for updates
.
October 25, 2-5:30pm - Smithsonian Natural History Museum
October 26, 2-5pm - Arctic Policy Dialogue at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
October 27, 9am-4:30pm - Fulbright Arctic Symposium at the National Academy of Sciences (Constitution Ave. location)
Towing Safety Advisory Committee, October 2016 Meeting, October 26-27, 2016 (Washington, DC USA). The Towing Safety Advisory Committee will meet in Washington, DC, to review and discuss recommendations from its Subcommittees and to receive briefs. This committee is established in accordance with, and operates under the provisions of, the Federal Advisory Committee Act. As stated in 33 U.S.C. 1231a, the Towing Safety Advisory Committee provides advice and recommendations to the Department of Homeland Security on matters
relating to shallow-draft inland and coastal waterway navigation and
towing safety.
** New this week **
1st International Muskox Health Ecology Symposium, November 7-10, 2016 (Calgary, AB Canada).
The goal of this symposium is to share knowledge on muskox health ecology and sustainability across a variety of international stakeholders including community members/users, industry, wildlife management, and academia. We will discuss: the values, ecological, economic, social and cultural, of muskoxen; population status and trends; threats, vulnerabilities and resilience or sustainability; knowledge gaps; disease ecology; and existing and new tools for muskox health monitoring and research. For more information, please contact Susan Kutz.
Annual Scientific Meeting 2016, December 5-9, 2016 (Winnipeg, MP Canada).
ArcticNet
will host its 12th Annual Scientific Meeting.
The ASM2016 will welcome researchers, students, Inuit, Northerners, policy makers and stakeholders to address the numerous environmental, social, economical and political challenges and opportunities that are emerging from climate change and modernization in the Arctic. As the largest annual Arctic research gathering held in Canada, ArcticNet's ASM is the ideal venue to showcase results from all fields of Arctic research, stimulate discussion and foster collaborations among those with a vested interest in the Arctic and its peoples.
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.
|
| 
  
4350 N. Fairfax Drive, Suite 510
Arlington, VA 22203, USA
External links in this publication, and on the USARC's World Wide Web site (
www.arctic.gov) do not constitute endorsement by the US Arctic Research Commission of external Web sites or the information, products or services contained therein. For other than authorized activities, the USARC does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations. These links are provided consistent with the stated purpose of this newsletter and the USARC Web site.
|
|
| |
|
|
| |
|
