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 Today's Congressional Action:
The House is in session. The Senate is expected to consider a budget resolution which will set the groundwork for considering future federal appropriations.
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Media
State Senators Question Need for Water, Sewer Construction Dollars.
State Senate Finance Committee members are going over proposed agency budgets one by one, looking for funds or programs they can cut. Thursday they questioned Department of Environmental Conservation officials, asking just how bad it would be to turn down federal dollars for water and sewer systems. Alaska Public Radio
Canada Already Protects Aboriginal Rights: Conservative MP. The Conservative government says the Canadian constitution is doing its job of protecting the rights of Aboriginal peoples in this country. Conservative MP Mark Strahl suggested last week that bill C-641, a private member's bill that aims to adapt Canadian law to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, or UNDRIP, is little more than "lip service." Strahl told the House of Commons March 12 that Canada "already boasts a unique and robust legal framework through which Aboriginal rights are protected." Nunatsiaq Online
 First Global Review of Arctic Marine Mammals Reveals Uncertain Future. Despite Arctic marine mammals being icons of climate change, little is known about their populations across the Arctic. In a first ever global review of Arctic marine mammals, published last week in Conservation Biology, an international team of scientists provides a circumpolar range assessment. They studied population status and trends for 11 species, including polar bears, ice seals, narwhals, and walruses. The scientists also measured changes in sea ice habitat and recommended conservation priorities for the future. National Geographic spoke with lead author Kristin Laidre of the University of Washington's Polar Science Center about the team's findings. National Geographic
Canada-Finland Arctic Orgs Vow Closer Collaboration. Finland and Canada moved toward closer collaboration March 23 with the signing of a declaration of cooperation between the Arctic Society of Finland and the Canadian Polar Commission. A news release on the declaration says they will agree to: cooperate in support of sustainable development of Arctic areas; support in conducting Arctic research; increase awareness of the need for Arctic cooperation in economic, environmental and other appropriate areas for developing northern communities; and, work with the governments of Canada and Finland to support such developments. Nunatsiaq Online
 Ear Infections Too Common in Inuit Children: Pediatrician. A doctor who treats Inuit children in Nunavik says ear infections were rare before Inuit were settled into communities and she's calling for the creation of a circumpolar group to examine the issue. Dr. Johanne Morel, a pediatrician based at the Montreal Children's Hospital, has been treating children in James Bay and Nunavik for 35 years. She spoke at an infectious disease conference in Iqaluit this weekend about a middle ear infection called otitis media that causes hearing loss in 20 per cent of Inuit children in Nunavik. CBC News
Mapping the Uncharted Diversity of Arctic Marine Microbes. The Arctic Ocean is home to an extraordinary diversity of life, including the unseen majority: microbes. Algae, heterotrophic protists, bacteria, archaea, and viruses all live together in a hidden ecosystem that recycles nutrients within Arctic seawater, sediment, and sea ice. These tiny organisms play a critical role in the overall Arctic ecosystem, making possible the amazing bounty of macroscopic life found there. Despite the vastness of sea ice cover in the Arctic, the molecular diversity in polar sea ice habitats is almost completely uncharacterized. The Arctic is one of the most rapidly changing environments on Earth, and without a baseline understanding of the microbial organisms that are key in structuring the overall function of Arctic ecosystems, we cannot adequately prepare for future changes and make informed decisions about resource use in the region. NOAA Ocean Explorer
 Applicants Sought for President and Chairperson of CHARS. In anticipation of the establishment of the new Canadian High Arctic Research Station (CHARS) organization, the Government of Canada is seeking dynamic, innovative individuals with Northern expertise and experience for the positions of President and Chairperson of the Board of Directors. In filling these positions, the Government will have regard to balancing not only the knowledge and experience that will assist the new Canadian High Arctic Research Station organization in carrying out its purpose, but also the cultural and demographic diversity of Canada's Arctic. The deadline for applications is April 10, 2015. Science Canada
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| Legislative Action No Arctic legislation was formally considered yesterday. |
| Future Events
Coast and Ocean Film Festival, March 28, 2015 (Anchorage, Alaska, USA) In celebration of its 10th Anniversary, the Alaska Ocean Observing System and Alaska Geographic are co-hosting a Coast & Ocean Film Festival at the Bear Tooth on Saturday, March 28th! The festival will showcase fantastic short films that highlight an array of ocean-related topics. This event promotes ocean conservation, raises awareness about issues facing marine habitats, and celebrates Alaska's unique coast and ocean environments!
is held in collaboration with the Swedish
Polar Research Secretariat (SPRS) and the Swedish Research Council (Formas and VR). The US delegation will be led by Drs. Patricia Matrai (Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences) and Peter Minnett (RSMAS, U. Miami), as workshop co-organizers with Dr. Caroline Leck (Stockholm U.). This workshop will bring together those with research and operational/ logistical interests in the Arctic and will discuss a baseline for establishing a new, longer-term collaborative relationship among U.S. and Swedish scientists for Oden-based research in the Arctic Ocean.
Leadership, Diplomacy and Science: Resolving the Arctic Paradox" April 13-14, 2015, (Medford, MA, USA). The 4th annual Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy International Inquiry on the Warming Arctic will convene high-level decision makers from diplomatic and security circles, cutting-edge energy and science researchers, and social, environmental and business stakeholders to investigate solutions to the Arctic Paradox and promote a sustainable future for Arctic inhabitants within a "High North, Low Tension" policy framework. Special appearance: the North American debut of the Arctic Circle Assembly's panel "Rising Stars: Young Arctic Energy Researchers". For more information: [email protected]
Arctic States Symposium, April 17-19, 2015 (Charlottesville, VA, USA).
ARCTIC STATES, a three-day symposium at the University of Virginia School of Architecture, brings together an international consortium of leading designers and colleagues from allied disciplines to posit the role of design in the rapidly transforming region, and generate critical discussions by sharing recent work that will trace, critique and speculate on its past, present, and future.
Arctic Science Summit Week, April 23-30, 2015 (Toyama, Japan). The Arctic Science Summit Week (ASSW) is the annual gathering of the international organizations engaged in supporting and facilitating Arctic research. The purpose of the summit is to provide opportunities for coordination, collaboration and cooperation in all areas of Arctic science. The summit attracts scientists, students, policy makers and other professionals from all over the world.
The Polar Geography and Cryosphere, April 21-25, 2015 (Chicago, IL, USA). The Polar Geography and Cryosphere Specialty Groups of the Association of American Geographers will host its annual meeting in Chicago to consider: current topics in human-environment interactions; current topics in politics, resource geographies, and extractive industries; current topics in Antarctic research; advances in cryosphere research; high latitude environments in a changing climate; an mountain ice and snow.
The House of Sweden Conference, May 19-20, 2015 (Washington, DC, USA). A two day conference focusing on changes, adaptations and opportunities for a changing Arctic. The conference will be divided into separate, but intertwined thematic segments - policy, science, climate change and green technologies. The conference is organized by the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs, the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat, the Embassy of Sweden in Washington, DC and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), and is aimed at Arctic oriented policy-makers, researchers, business representatives and NGO's in the lead-up to the U.S. chairmanship of the Arctic Council.
The European Union and Arctic (2015 EU-Arctic Conference), May 29, 2015 (Dundee, UK). The School of Law, University of Dundee, UK and the K. G. Jebsen Centre for the Law of the Sea, University of Tromsø, Norway are pleased to announce the registration open for "The European Union and the Arctic" (2015 EU-Arctic Conference). This conference will bring together academics and practitioners from relevant disciplines such as international law, international relations, political science and marine biology, NGOs, representatives from EU institutions and international organizations to discuss the EU's potential contribution to enhance Arctic governance. A roadmap for increasing the effectiveness of the EU's action in the Arctic will be drawn at the end of the conference. 6th Symposium on the Impacts of an Ice-Diminishing Arctic on Naval and Maritime Operations, July 14-16, 2015 (Washington, DC, USA). Program in development...check back soon. To see the programs from prior symposia, click here.
2015 ESSAS Annual Science Meeting, June 15-17, 2015 (Seattle, WA, USA). This symposium, to be held at the University of Washington, is intended for interdisciplinary scholars who will be prepared to discuss their research in the sub-arctic North Atlantic, sub-arctic North Pacific, and the Arctic Ocean that bears on the issue of how changes in sea ice are likely to affect these marine ecosystems. The symposium will also consider the people who depend upon these ecosystems and how they may be able to cope with the changes in the ecosystem goods and services that are coming. These goods and services include the availability of transportation corridors, the availability of subsistence foods, and the opportunity for commercial fishing. To put the present day in a longer perspective, the symposium will include a session on the paleo-ecology of people in sub-arctic and arctic regions that were forced to adjust to changing sea-ice conditions in the past.
Polar Law Symposium (8th) will be held in Alaska (
Sept. 23-24, UAF; Sept. 25-26, UAA). It's sponsored by UAF, UAA (and ISER), UAA Justice Center, UW Law School. Abstracts due 3/15/15. This year's conference theme is, "The Science, Scholarship, and Practice of Polar Law: Strengthening Arctic Peoples and Places."
2015 Arctic Energy Summit, September 28-30, 2015 (Fairbanks, Alaska, USA).The Institute of the North's 2015 Arctic Energy Summit builds on our legacy efforts to address energy as a fundamental element of the sustainable development of the Arctic as a lasting frontier.Central to this concept is a focus on providing pathways for affordable energy development in the Arctic and for Arctic communities.
The Polar Oceans and Global Climate Change, November 3-6, 2015
(La Jolla, California USA.) The American Polar Society will host this Symposium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. A flyer with a partial list of presenters is available on the Society's website (
americanpolar.org
) and from the Society's Membership Chairman by
email.
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