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November 6, 2017
 
North Slope Science Initiative Science Technical Advisory Panel, Nomination Period Open October 25 - November 24, 2017  (Anchorage, Alaska USA). Nominations and applications currently are being accepted for new members to fill six vacant positions on the Science Technical Advisory Panel (STAP) for the North Slope Science Initiative (NSSI). The STAP is a federal advisory committee chartered to advise the NSSI Oversight Group on scientific matters including proposed inventory, monitoring, and research activities necessary for addressing the impacts of past, ongoing, and anticipated development activities on Alaska's North Slope and its associated marine environment. The Oversight Group is composed of senior representatives of federal, state, and local government entities that have management and regulatory responsibilities for development activities on the North Slope. More information on the North Slope Science Initiative is available  here .
Media

The Arctic Science Agreement Propels Science Diplomacy. Global geopolitics are fueling the renewal of East-West tensions, with deteriorating U.S.-Russia relations in the wake of conflicts in Ukraine and Syria, issues involving cyber-security, and broader concerns about expanding militarization. Against this backdrop, the Agreement on Enhancing International Arctic Scientific Cooperation, signed on 11 May 2017 by foreign ministers of the eight Arctic States, including the U.S. and Russia, as well as Greenland and the Faroe Islands, is a milestone. This "Arctic Science Agreement" is a strong signal reaffirming the global relevance of science as a tool of diplomacy, reflecting a common interest to promote scientific cooperation even when diplomatic channels among nations are unstable. It provides a framework for enhancing the efforts of scientists working on cutting-edge issues, but translating the general language of the agreement into enhanced action requires further attention, collaboration, and effort among diplomats and scientists to ensure its successful implementation. Science Magazine
 
Top Diplomat Will Join Center's Groundbreaking Polar Initiative. The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars is pleased to announce the appointment of Ambassador David Balton as a Global Fellow with the Center's Polar Initiative. Ambassador Balton will begin his Fellowship in 2018 and will focus on strengthening the international architecture for the governance of both the Arctic and Antarctic regions. "I'm thrilled that David Balton picked the Wilson Center - the only think tank in Washington to house a broad-based initiative on the Arctic - as his intellectual home," said Congresswoman Jane Harman, Wilson Center President and CEO. "While here, he will focus on new policy options for governing the Arctic region, propose concrete steps to safeguard fragile Arctic ecosystems, and assess lessons learned from the Antarctic Treaty system.  The Center is living up to its rating as the top think tank in the world in transdisciplinary research, and I couldn't be more proud." Wilson Center
 
Scientists Use Drone to Sample Whale Breath and Snot. Scientists flew a small drone over the blowhole of a few humpback whales in the US and Canada to collect the microbes living inside their breath. Sampling the community of microbes and bacteria living inside whales, called the microbiome, can help us better understand what makes a healthy whale, and what happens when a whale gets sick. In the new research, published this week in the journal mSystems, scientists describe 25 species of microbes found in each humpback's breath they sampled. Though they don't know how exactly these organisms affect the health of the whales yet, many of the same microbes are often found in other marine mammals, suggesting they play a role in keeping the animals healthy. The study is also the latest example of how drones can help scientists in their quest to conserve species: in Hawaii, botanists are also using drones to hunt down rare plants in hard-to-reach places like cliffs. The Verge
 
Architecture Group Tours Alaska With Eye on Arctic Design. When a group of architecture students from the University of Virginia's Arctic Design Group came to tour Alaska, one of the first stops was the Anchorage Museum, a building packed with exquisite northern artwork blending style with function.  As part of the museum's September Design Weekend, UVA assistant architecture professor Matthew Jull delivered a lecture about northern design and how, at least in some parts of the world, it is done right.The next morning, as the students stood in the rain in downtown Anchorage, they confessed that their first impressions of Alaska's biggest city produced something of a letdown. KTOO
 
NSF logo Request for Information on Mid-scale Research Infrastructure. The National Science Foundation has recently released a Dear Colleague Letter: Request for Information on Mid-scale Research Infrastructure. NSF seeks information on existing and future needs for mid-scale research infrastructure projects from the US-based NSF science and engineering community. This Request for Information, due December 8, is an opportunity for Polar researchers to influence the direction of Arctic and Antarctic Research efforts and resources. The importance of providing your feedback is further highlighted by the fact that Navigating the New Arctic has been identified as one of NSF's Ten Big Ideas. National Science Foundation
 
A Letter From Our Acting Chair and Executive Director. On behalf of the U.S.  Global Change  Research Program, we are pleased to announce major milestones in the timelines of three important reports. The first of these is the Climate Science Special Report (CSSR), which represents Volume I of the Fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA4). The final version of CSSR is released today as a step toward completing the quadrennial assessment mandated in the Global Change Research Act of 1990.  US Global Change Research Program
Future Events

Arctic Seminar Series, November 8, 2017 (Durham, New Hampshire  USA). This seminar will be a coordinated, group presentation by three members of the US Arctic Research Commission (USARC, www.arctic.gov), an independent federal agency. After a brief description of the USARC, including its purpose, duties, and eff­orts, John Farrell will discuss Arctic science and public policy, and will highlight recent developments. Jackie Richter-Menge will discuss her current e­fforts, such as highlighting the value of Arctic community participation in research, encouraging the value of interdisciplinary approaches, and highlighting opportunities to be come involved. Larry Mayer will give examples of work being done at UNH that are relevant to policy issues, such as the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Siberian Arctic shelf as a natural gas resources and the "clathrate bomb" issue, Petermann Glacier and the rapid degradation of the Greenland Ice Sheet, Arctic marine charting using an autonomous surface vessel, and Swedish funding for Arctic collaboration.

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.

Arctic Research Seminar with Courtney Carothers and Laura Zanotti: In a Climate of Change: Co-producing Knowledge and Community Researcher Relationships in the Leadership and Strength Project in Utqiagvik, Alaska, November 30, 2017 (Washington, DC  USA). Courtney Carothers is an associate professor of fisheries in the College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences at the University of Alaska Fairbanks. She is an environmental anthropologist currently researching how fishery systems are being remade by enclosure and privatization processes and the total environment of change facing Arctic Indigenous communities. Her work explores human-environment relationships, cultural values, equity, and well-being. She has co-edited two books and published over 30 articles and book chapters on these topics. She currently serves on a number of boards and working groups, including: the SEARCH (Study of Environmental Arctic Change) Science Steering Committee, the North Pacific Research Board Science Panel, the Alaska Sustainable Salmon Fund Expert Panel, the State of Alaska's Salmon and People. This event is part of the ARCUS DC Arctic Research Seminar Series.

AGU Fall Meeting, December 11-15, 2017 (New Orleans, LA USA). Fall Meeting is the largest and preeminent Earth and space science meeting in the world. The 2017 Fall Meeting will take place in New Orleans, Louisiana, offering attendees the chance to discover a new location that features world renowned cuisine, music, arts and culture, and provides access to vital scientific ecosystems. Fall Meeting will offer a unique mix of more than 20,000 oral and poster presentations, a broad range of keynote lectures, various types of formal and informal networking and career advancement opportunities, scientific field trips around New Orleans, and an exhibit hall packed with hundreds of exhibitors.

ArcticNet invites the global Arctic research community to Arctic Change 2017! This conference will bring together Arctic researchers and students with Inuit, Northerners and government, industry and NGO stakeholders. The world's foremost Arctic scientists will presen t research  findings and discuss impacts of climate change and modernization. With over 1500 participants expected, Arctic Change 2017 will be one of the largest trans-sectoral international Arctic research conferences held in Canada. We welcome students and early career researchers to participate in "Student Day" at the start of the Conference. See an excerpt from last year:  ArcticNet ASM2016 .
 
ISAR-5 Fifth International Symposium on Arctic Research, January 15-18, 2018 (Tokyo, Japan). The fifth ISAR has been planned at the recommendation of the science steering committee of ISAR-4, which was held in Toyama, Japan in April 2015. The fifth ISAR will be devoted to discussions on environmental changes in the Arctic and their regional and global implications, to seek additional international scientific collaboration in this area by gathering, synthesizing and sharing information related to these changes occurring in the Arctic. Special emphasis will be placed on the fields of the social sciences and humanities, which were not included in the previous ISARs.  ISAR-5 will consist of general sessions and special sessions. The general sessions will address the following topics: atmosphere; ocean and sea ice; rivers, lakes, permafrost, and snow cover; ice sheets, glaciers, and ice cores; terrestrial ecosystems; marine ecosystems; geospace; policies and economy; and social and cultural dimensions. Special sessions will be solicited on cross-cutting themes.
 
2018 Arctic Frontiers: Connecting the Arctic, January 21-26, 2018 (Tromso, Norway). Arctic Frontiers is an international arena on sustainable development in the Arctic. The conference addresses the management of opportunities and challenges to achieve viable economic growth with societal and environmental sustainability. Arctic Frontiers brings academia, government and business together to create a firmer foundation for decision-making and sustainable economic development in the Arctic. Join the Arctic Frontiers conference preparing the new Arctic future. The conference takes place the fourth week of January in the Norwegian city of Tromsø, known as the Gateway to the Arctic.
 
Alaska Marine Science Symposium, January 22-26, 2018 (Anchorage, Alaska.)
The Alaska Marine Science Symposium (AMSS) is Alaska's premier marine research conference. For over 20 years, it has brought together scientists, educators, resource managers, students, and the public to discuss marine research conducted in Alaskan waters. Over 700 people attend this 4-day long conference held annually in January.  Each day of the conference highlights Alaskan marine ecosystems: Arctic (Tuesday), Bering Sea & Aleutian Islands (Wednesday), and the Gulf of Alaska (Thursday). Research topics discussed range from ocean physics, fishes and invertebrates, seabirds, marine mammals, to local traditional knowledge.  Website for 2018 meeting is here .
 
Alaska Forum on the Environment, February 12-16, 2018 (Anchorage, Alaska) AFE is a statewide gathering of environmental professionals from government agencies, non-profit and for-profit businesses, community leaders, Alaskan youth, conservationists, biologists and community elders. The diversity of attendees sets this conference apart from any other. The 2018 event will be our 20th year providing a strong educational foundation for all Alaskans and a unique opportunity to interact with others on environmental issues and challenges.

The Effects of Climate Change on the World's Oceans, June 4-8, 2018 (Washington, DC USA).   The 4th International Symposium will bring together experts from around the world to better understand climate impacts on ocean ecosystems - and how to respond. The event is hosted by a variety of groups including International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), North Pacific Marine Science Organization (PICES), Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC), and Food and Agriculture Organization of the  United Nations (FAO).


 
International Conference on Arctic Margins (ICAM) VIII, June 11-14, 2
The international Conference on Arctic Margins (ICAM) is a forum for earth scientists who study the Arctic. It was founded to help understand the little known Arctic geology and to foster cooperation and collaboration among Arctic researchers. There have been 7 meetings since its inception in 1991.See here  for more information.
 
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.
 
17th International Congress of Circumpolar Health (ICCH17), August 12-15, 2018 (Copenhagen, Denmark). The ICCH congresses are held every third year in different locations in the circumpolar area and represent the largest scientific meetings worldwide on circumpolar health. The ICCH congresses serve as the primary source of information exchange and scholarly communication in issues relating to circumpolar health. More than 750 participants generally register and participate in each Congress, and more than 400 scientific papers or posters are usually presented.

Arctic Biodiversity Congress, October 9-11, 2018 (Rovaniemi, Finland). The second Arctic Biodiversity Congress is hosted by the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), the biodiversity working group of the Arctic Council, and the Ministry of the Environment, Finland. The second Arctic Biodiversity Congress will build on the success of the first Congress, held in 2014 in Trondheim, Norway, and will bring together scientists, policymakers government officials, Indigenous representatives, Traditional Knowledge holders, industry, non-governmental organizations, and others to promote the conservation and sustainable use of Arctic biodiversity. 

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