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October 7, 2014
 

[UK] Committee to Host Bumper Day of Evidence, October 7, 2014 (London, England). The House of Lords Committee on the Arctic will hold three evidence sessions on key issues for the region including shipping, opportunities for energy resource extraction and the role of Russia in the Arctic.

 

Making Progress on Food Security in the North American North: Building on 15 Years of Research, October 7, 2014 (Webinar). Food security is a world-wide societal challenge, and one area of the world where food insecurity is increasing is the North American Arctic and Subarctic. In this presentation Dr. Loring reviews research on food security in general and as it has been executed in the North over the last 15 years. He reviews a comprehensive set of findings regarding why people are food insecure: challenges like remoteness and climate change play a role, but the primary drivers of food insecurity for northern peoples continue to be governance and policy issues, issues that have been recognized and critiqued for many decades. In light of new challenges to the rights of indigenous peoples in the North such as climate change and development, Loring offers suggestions for future research and policy that focuses on place-based and rights-based approaches to planning and development.

 

2014 Week of the Arctic, October 6-11, 2014 (Nome, Kotzebue and Barrow, Alaska, USA). The Institute of the North will host the 2014 Week of the Arctic. The 2014 Week of the Arctic is a platform for community leaders, subject matter experts and interested stakeholders to learn about the Arctic while contributing to a growing list of priorities and perspectives. Presentations, roundtable discussions and workshops will be held in Nome, Kotzebue and Barrow. Throughout the week, presentations and interviews will be captured on video for distribution through social media and web-based sharing.


capital Today's Congressional Action:  

The House and Senate are not in session.

Media  

 

Frontier Scientists TV series. Mondays Oct.6th - Dec.8th at 8pm AST [5am UTC], tune into 360North over the air in Alaska or online at 360North.org
to watch 30 minute Frontier Scientists programs featuring real scientists and their work, bringing contemporary scientific discoveries to your screen. Frontier Scientists

 

Blog: Ice Navigator in the Arctic. Japanese research vessel RV Mirai has departed Dutch Harbor, Alaska, northbound for her annual Arctic research mission. I am on board once again as ice navigator to provide Captain Kan Matsuura and chief scientist Jun Inoue support in operating in and near ice. We passed through the Bering Strait on the evening of 02 September and began dedicated observations with a conductivity, temperature, depth (CTD) rosette cast off Little Diomede Island. Mirai voyage MR14-05 is predominantly focused on meteorology, primarily the study of Polar Lows. The first step is the collection met data in the Arctic from areas where no or very few observations have been made before. The data will be shared amongst the participating agencies near real time and incorporate in near term weather mapping and forecasting. More in depth analysis will follow with the goal of improving prediction of extreme weather events that are often associated with Polar Lows and to improve sea ice forecasts. Concurrent with the met observations, water column sampling will continue. Scientist Shigeto Nishino who was chief scientist on board last year will lead that portion of the research program. Maritime Executive  

 

NOAA, NASA & BOEM to Monitor Biodiversity. The projects, to be funded at approximately $17 million over the next five years, subject to the availability of funds, will demonstrate how a national operational marine biodiversity observation network could be developed. Such a network would serve as a marine resource management tool to conserve existing biodiversity and enhance U.S. biosecurity against threats such as invasive species and infectious agents. The three demonstration marine biological observation networks will be established in four locations: the Florida Keys; Monterey Bay and the Santa Barbara Channel in California; and on the continental shelf in the Chukchi Sea in Alaska. MarineLink 

 

NASA NASA's Airborne Research Campaigns Focus on Climate Change in Arctic. Over the past few decades, average global temperature has been increasing and this warming is taking place two to three times faster in the Arctic region. This summer and fall, NASA researchers are carrying out three Alaska-based airborne research campaigns. These campaigns aimed at evaluating greenhouse gas concentrations near Earth's surface, observing Alaskan glaciers, and gathering data on Arctic sea ice and clouds. Marine News Online 

 

Port Cities Vie for Arctic Trade Route Title. Korean port cities and coastal provinces are competing to become a hub for the Northern Sea Route (NSR), a new lane that is said to cut ship travel times now that the Arctic ice is thawing. The new shipping lane connecting Europe to Korea through Siberia, is said to bring massive economic benefits for port cities due to the shorter trade routes. Gangwon Province Governor Choi Moon-soon has predicted that the shipping and fishery industries will benefit hugely if the shorter trade route becomes a reality. Port Technology 


An Improved Satellite Imager for Year-Round Arctic Monitoring. Routine satellite monitoring of the Arctic is critical to a host of environmental applications. Surveillance enables weather forecasting and studies of climate change, sea ice conditions, and natural disasters such as volcanic eruptions that affect commercial activities and transportation. However, coverage of the region by current space-based imaging systems is insufficient. Imagers onboard traditional geosynchronous Earth orbit (GEO) environmental satellites, such as the US's Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite and the European Meteosat, image the full Earth disk as seen from the satellites' assigned longitude every 15-30 minutes, but they provide poor coverage of high latitudes, and cannot reach the center of the Arctic. Imaging radiometers onboard the other major type of traditional environmental satellite-those in sun-synchronous polar orbits that revisit the Arctic approximately every 100 minutes-do not always cover the entire region on every pass. These limitations reduce the systems' effectiveness for monitoring rapidly changing environmental conditions. We need satellites that provide continuous coverage of the Arctic and that host instruments with image refresh rates similar to, or better than, those of GEO systems. SPIE Newsroom

 

Arctic Peat May Release More Methane Than Previously Thought. As Arctic peatlands warm, they're releasing more and more greenhouse gases. Now, scientists have taken a closer look at these normally-frozen regions and have created more accurate models to predict methane emissions and carbon dioxide emissions. Peatlands cover about four percent of all land, but they hold 20 percent of all carbon stored on land," said Zhaosheng Fan, the lead researcher, in a news release. Science World Report 

 

Indigenous Women From Across the Circumpolar North to Gather in Yellowknife. The strength and struggles of indigenous women leaders from across the circumpolar world will be brought to the forefront when international representatives converge this fall at the first-ever Indigenous Circumpolar Women's Gathering in Yellowknife, organized by Dene Nahjo. An international body of established and emerging political, cultural and community leaders will join together at the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre from November 12 to 15 for a series of workshops, panel discussions and cultural events that will highlight leadership in all of its manifestations, barriers faced and success stories that can serve as templates for positive, women-led change in the North. Arctic Journal 

 

Legislative Actionfutureevents  

 

The House and Senate did not formally consider Arctic legislation yesterday.

Future Events

  

2014 Sea Ice Outlook Post-Season Discussion, October 9, 2014 (Webinar) Registration is now available for the Sea Ice Prediction Network (SIPN) webinar, which will focus on post-season analysis and discussion of the 2014 Sea Ice Outlook (SIO). This webinar will provide a venue for discussion of the 2014 SIO, including processes that influenced sea ice melt this year and a review of the differing approaches to predicting the sea ice minimum extent. The webinar is open to all interested participants, including sea ice researchers, students, decision-makers, and others. This webinar is scheduled for Thursday, 9 October 2014 from 11:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. AKDT. Registration is required. To register, go here.

 

2014 FAMOS School and Workshop #3, October 21-24, 2014 (Woods Hole, MA). The Forum for Arctic Ocean Modeling and Observational Synthesis (FAMOS) is an international effort to focus on enhancing collaboration and coordination among Arctic marine and sea ice modelers, theoreticians and observationalists synthesize major results from the field studies and coordinated numerical experiments. The major themes of workshop include but not limited by studies focused on: predictions; Arctic observational and modeling initiatives; fate of sea ice in models and observations; atmospheric, sea ice and ocean dynamics; process studies and parameterizations; model validation and calibration; numerical improvements and algorithms; ecosystems, biological issues, and geochemistry.

 

Transatlantic Science Week 2014, October 27-28, 2014 (Toronto, Canada). The purpose of the annual Transatlantic Science Week (TSW) is to promote enhanced cooperation between Canadian, American and Norwegian stakeholders in research, innovation and higher education. TSW is an arena where different stakeholders can meet with the purpose of developing long-term collaborations or partnerships. The conference also hopes to strengthen the linkages that currently exist between the research and education domains. Finally, TSW also provides an excellent arena for dialogue between the research communities and policymakers. 

  

Oil Spill Response 25 Years After the Exxon-Valdez and in the Wake of Macondo 252: What have we learned and what are we missing? October 28-29, 2014. (University of New Hampshire). The University of New Hampshire Center for Spills in the Environment and the School of Marine Science and Ocean Engineering will host a forum entitled Oil Spill Response 25 years After the Exxon Valdez and in the Wake of Macondo 252, What Have We Learned and What Are We Missing? Questions to be addressed include: what have we learned from these two spills? How can they inform future spill response? What should we do differently to address the spills of the future? Topics covered will include a) the types of spills that could occur in the future and the challenges they pose for response; b) the improvements needed in communication among responders, scientists, the public and politicians; c) the role of academic science in spill response; and d) the impacts of new scientific methods, such as molecular biology, on impact assessment and restoration. The forum will feature an array of speakers who played key roles during the Exxon Valdez and Deepwater Horizon spills.  After an opening overview of oil spills by Gary Shigenaka, NOAA Office of Response and Restoration, Captain Ed Page, Chief of Coast Guard Operations during the Exxon Valdez oil spill and Dr. Robert Spies, Chief Science Advisor to the Governments on the Exxon Valdez spill will kick off the discussion.  Then Thad Allen, former Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard and Dr. Marcia McNutt, who was director of the U.S. Geological Survey, will present their perspectives on the Deepwater Horizon spill.  Speakers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute, U.S. Arctic Research Commission, U. S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Institutes of Health, the American Petroleum Institute, Ocean Conservancy, and many other experts will offer perspectives on oil spills in the United States. 

 

Arctic Circle, October 31-November 2, 2014 (Reykjavik, Iceland).

The Arctic Circle is nonprofit and nonpartisan. Organizations, forums, think tanks, corporations and public associations around the world are invited to hold meetings within the Arctic Circle platform to advance their own missions and the broader goal of increasing collaborative decision-making without surrendering their institutional independence. The Arctic Circle will organize sessions on a variety of issues, such as: Sea ice melt and extreme weather; Polar law: treaties and agreements; The role and rights of indigenous peoples; Security in the Arctic; Shipping and transportation infrastructure; The prospects and risks of oil and gas drilling; Clean energy achievements and sustainable development; Arctic resources; Business cooperation in the Arctic; The role of Asian and European countries in the Arctic; Greenland in the new Arctic; Fisheries and ecosystem management; The science of ice: global research cooperation; Arctic tourism; The ice-dependent world: the Arctic and the Himalayas. 
 

US- Canada Northern Oil and Gas Research Forum, November 4-6, 2014 (Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada). Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Canada and the Canadian Polar Commission in partnership with the U.S. Department of the Interior, are hosting the fourth Canada - United States Northern Oil and Gas Research Forum. The Northern Oil and Gas Research Forum is a biennial meeting with representation from government, industry, academia, Aboriginal groups and Northerners from both Canada and the United States. The Forum provides an opportunity to discuss current and future priorities for northern oil and gas research. The Forum will showcase the value of northern research in support of sound decision-making for oil and gas management.

 

Alaska Policy Commission. November 17-18, 2014 (Anchorage, Alaska). The Alaska Arctic Policy Commission (AAPC) has more important work to do in 2014. The Commission will strive to gather public input and engage with Alaskan communities, state agencies, federal partners, and the international organizations working in the Arctic. In order to meet our goals AAPC will convene three in-person meetings over the course of 2014 and focus on implementation and final recommendations. 

 

Maritime Risk Symposium, November 18-19, 2014 (Los Angeles, CA, USA). The theme for this year's Symposium will be Worldwide Chokepoints and Maritime Risks. "Chokepoint" is a common military strategy term that refers to any enclosed space, corridor, or area where large numbers of personnel and/or resources are forced to pass through, with no reasonable alternate routes. Within the maritime environment, geographical features such as a strait or canal are considered chokepoints. The event is hosted by the Homeland Security Center of the University of Southern California.

 

The Arctic Biodiversity Congress, December 2-4, 2014 (Trondheim, Norway). The Arctic Biodiversity Congress will present and discuss the main scientific findings of the ABA; facilitate inter-disciplinary discussion, action and status updates on the policy recommendations in the ABA; provide scientific, policy, management, NGO, academia, Indigenous peoples and industry audiences the opportunity to collaborate around the themes of the ABA; advise CAFF on national and international implementation of the ABA recommendations and on the development of an ABA Implementation Plan for the Arctic Council; highlight the work of CAFF and the Arctic Council on circumpolar biodiversity conservation and sustainable development; and, contribute to mainstreaming of biodiversity and ecosystem services, ensuring that the recommendations of the ABA are implemented by not just governments, but many organizations and people across disciplines.

 

Arctic Change 2014, December 8-12, 2014 (Ottawa, Canada). The international Arctic Change 2014 conference aims to stimulate discussion and foster collaborations among people with a vested interest in the Arctic and its peoples. Coinciding with the pinnacle of Canada's chairmanship of the Arctic Council and marking ArcticNet's 10th anniversary, Arctic Change 2014 welcomes researchers, students, Northerners, policy makers, and stakeholders from all fields of Arctic research and all countries to address the numerous environmental, social, economical and political challenges and opportunities that are emerging from climate change and modernization in the Arctic. With over 1000 participants expected to attend, Arctic Change 2014 will be one of the largest trans-sectoral international Arctic research conferences ever held in Canada. 

  

AGU Fall Meeting, December 15-19, 2014 (San Francisco, CA, USA). With nearly 24,000 attendees, the AGU Fall Meeting is the largest Earth and space science meeting in the world. The AGU Fall Meeting brings together the entire Earth and space sciences community for discussions of emerging trends and the latest research. The technical program includes presentations on new and cutting-edge science, much of which has not yet been published.

 

Arctic Frontiers: Climate and Energy, January 18-23, 2015. The earth is in the midst of major climate changes. The Arctic is experiencing the impact of these changes more and faster than other parts of the globe. Processes starting in the Arctic may have deep and profound impacts on other parts of the globe. At the same time the Earth's population is rising and with it the global energy demand. New and greener energy sources are gaining market shares, but still the energy mix of the foreseeable future will have a substantial fossil component. The Arctic is expected to hold major oil and gas resources, while the regions green energy potentials are less explored. The Arctic Frontiers conference is a central arena for discussions of Arctic issues. The conference brings together representatives from science, politics, and civil society to share perspectives on how upcoming challenges in the Arctic may be addressed to ensure sustainable development. Arctic Frontiers is composed of a policy section and a scientific section. 

  

Alaska Marine Science Symposium, January 19-23, 2015. (Anchorage, Alaska, USA). The symposium will feature a session on the Communicating Ocean Sciences, keynote addresses, poster sessions, and workshops. As in past years, the main content of the symposium is organized by large marine ecosystem. The 2015 schedule will be: Tuesday, January 20 - Gulf of Alaska; Wednesday, January 21 - Bering Sea; and Thursday, January 22 - Arctic Ocean. The details of the 2015 Alaska Marine Science Symposium program will be available in mid-November.

  

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.

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