Arctic Update Header
April 30, 2018

No Arctic science event is on today's agenda.
Media
 
On Ilulissat's Declaration's 10th, Arctic Governments to Gather in Greenland. In a little more than three weeks, on May 23, top ministers from the governments of Denmark, the United States, Russia, Canada and Norway will gather in Ilulissat, Greenland, where they are expected to discuss security, scientific co-operation and possibly sign a long-awaited agreement on regulating fisheries in the central Arctic Ocean. Their meeting is intended to mark the 10th anniversary of the Ilulissat Declaration, in which the five nation-states with Arctic coastlines vowed to act responsibly on future developments in the Arctic Ocean and maintain peaceful cooperation in the Arctic.  Nunatsiaq Online

Russia's Floating Nuclear Power Plant Bound for the Arctic Ocean. Russia's controversial floating nuclear power plant has headed out for its first sea voyage. The floating plant, the Akademik Lomonosov, was towed on Saturday (local time) out of the St Petersburg shipyard where it was constructed. It is to be towed through the Baltic Sea and around the northern tip of Norway to Murmansk, where its reactors are to be loaded with nuclear fuel. ABC News

'North is the Future,' Festival Celebrates Life in the Arctic. For the past four days, the North by North Festival has been celebrating life and cultures in the arctic while also addressing unique challenges to the region. This year's theme focused on sustainability, well-being and livability. "Alaskans are leading the way. Northerners are leading the way in addressing all of these topics," Nils Andreassen, Executive Director at Institute of the North said.  KTUU
 
Arctic Phytoplankton Assemblages in Coastal Waters Remain Productive, Despite Variable Environmental Conditions. Even when Arctic water becomes more acidic and the available light or temperatures change, phytoplankton assemblages in the ocean demonstrate undiminished productivity and biodiversity. They form the basis of the Arctic food web-and are extremely tough. This was the main finding presented in a study by researchers at the Alfred Wegener Institute, released jointly with their Canadian colleagues in the journal Nature Climate Change. Yet much more research is required to determine whether phytoplankton, a source of food for seals, whales and commercially harvested fish species in the Arctic, can ultimately cope with global climate change.  Phys.org
 
What Climate Change Means to the Arctic's Creepy Crawlies. The springtail is not one of your better-known Arctic creatures. The small, wingless insect gets its name from how it uses its rigid tail to catapult itself into the air and out of harm's way. The springtail also has a neat trick to help survive freezing during long Arctic winters. It manages to wick nearly all the moisture out of its body, turning itself into a small husk. It then rehydrates and plumps back up again when spring arrives. But rapidly changing conditions prompted by climate change may not be as hospitable to the Arctic springtail.  Nunatsiaq Online

Arctic Social Science...a new assessment, funded by NSF, of the goals,NSF logo potentials and needs in the context of a rapidly changing Arctic.  A final report has been released (see  here ) on the Arctic Horizons' process, which was a series of six social science community workshops that took place in 2016-2017 across the U.S. to examine the state of Arctic social science research and to "assemble the diversity, needs, and priorities of the Arctic social sciences and its related disciplines and research approaches." Key recommendations include: promote, support, and enact Indigenous scholarship; promote the information sovereignty of Arctic Indigenous communities in research; pursue international and interdisciplinary research; mentor the next generation of northern scholars and promote equity in research; address rapid loss of cultural heritage, language and prehistory; and invest in data management. Learn more about this inclusive process at the Arctic Horizon website  http://www.arctichorizons.org .

Future Events
 
The Arctic of the Future: Strategic Pursuit or Great Power Miscalculation? May 8, 2018 (Washington, DC USA). The Center for Strategic & International Studies will host this half-day discussion on the geostrategic and geo-economic future of the Arctic. In a moderated "exit interview," the Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, Admiral Paul F. Zukunft, will discuss his active public advocacy for and interagency pursuit of securing greater U.S. capabilities and readiness for a rapidly changing Arctic, as well as offer some thoughts on the overall trajectory of the Coast Guard's future mission in the polar regions. Subsequent panels will closely examine Russia's future economic and security ambitions in the Arctic as well as address the key drivers of future economic growth and the forces that are shaping these new economic dynamics.

The Face of Climate Change in the Arctic: The National Media's Role in Public Disengagement. May 11, 2018 (Washington, DC USA). Elizabeth Arnold of the Harvard Kennedy School will present this event hosted by the Arctic Research Consortium of the US (ARCUS). More than a decade of national media attention to the human impacts of climate change in the Arctic has largely framed communities as victims to sell the urgency of mitigation to the public. The talk will focus on Arnold's own experience and current research of media coverage to discuss the need for journalism and science communication that includes both threat and efficacy.

Council on Earth Cryology, May 15-16, 2018 (Moscow, Russian Federation).  Scientific council on Earth cryology of Russian Academy of Sciences  together with Department of Geocryology of Faculty of Geology of Lomonosov Moscow State University, Institute of the Earth Cryosphere, the Tyumen Scientific Senter, Melnikov Permafrost Institute (Yakutsk) of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Science holds on May 15 - 16, 2018 an enlarged meeting with participation of the Russian and foreign scientists, engineers and experts:  "Current problems of geocryology." The meeting of Scientific council on Earth Cryology of RAS has the status of the International meeting. The publication of materials in the collection of reports is planned. Submissions ( Submission Form ), offers on cooperation, support of a conference and papers ( Sample of Paper ) to e-mail:  [email protected]

Alaska National Lab Day, May 30-31, 2018 (Fairbanks, Alaska USA). Research scientists and lab directors from the 17 US Department of Energy national laboratories will co-lead conversations about cutting-edge research important to Alaska and the world. Discussions will focus on the following themes:
-       Addressing the energy field of the future;
-       Defense energy systems in the North;
-       Natural hazards and aerospace/defense;
-       Empowering Alaska's entrepreneurs;
-       Navigating the changing Arctic; and,
-       Developing local and global energy solutions.
 
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), N. 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, 2018 (Stockholm, Sweden).
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.

5th European Conference on Permafrost, June 23-July 1, 2018 (Chamonix-Mont Blanc, France). In the continuation of the International and Regional conferences convened by the International Permafrost Association, the 5th European Conference on Permafrost (EUCOP 2018) will be held in Chamonix-Mont Blanc, France, 23rd June - 1st July 2018. The conference aims at covering all relevant aspects of permafrost research, engineering and outreach on a global and regional level. Conference website: here.

Arctic Observing Summit 2018, June 24-26, 2018 (Davos, Switzerland). The Arctic Observing Summit (AOS) is a high-level biennial summit that provides a platform to address urgent and broadly recognized needs of Arctic observing across all components of the Arctic system. AOS 2018 will be held in Davos, Switzerland ( June 24-26) and will focus on pressing issues in the implementation and support of sustained observations that can be addressed through a business-case lens. To that end, short submissions are requested that address any and all aspects of the overarching theme and sub-themes. Additional information can be found here.
 
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.

UArctic Congress 2018, September 3-7, 2018 (Oulu and Helsinki, Finland).
The UArctic Congress 2018 will bring together key UArctic meetings and a science conference into one single gathering, including business meetings of the Council of UArctic, Rectors' Forum, Student Forum, and Thematic Networks & UArctic Institutes Leadership Team. The Congress is an integral part of the Finland's Arctic Council chairmanship program, and open to the public. The event will highlight the themes and priorities of the Finnish chairmanship, including the goals of the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the Paris Agreement under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change.

15th International Circumpolar Remote Sensing Symposium, September 10-14, 2018 (Potsdam, Germany). This symposium focuses specifically on remote sensing applications in polar environments, both Arctic and Antarctic. The theme of this year's symposium is, "Polar Regions in Transformation - Climatic Change and Anthropogenic Pressures." 

Scientific Exploration of the Arctic and North Pacific (SEA-NorP), September 25-27, 2018 (Mt. Hood, Oregon USA). This workshop will include discussion of hypotheses that can be tested by scientific drilling in the region, the technology necessary to achieve those goals, ideal sites for drilling based on existing data, and where additional site survey data is needed. The goal of the workshop organizers is that multiple proposals will be initiated at the workshop, both for full cruise legs and for shorter, targeted expeditions around the following themes: ocean gateways, geohazards, volatile cycling, ice histories at transition zones, biosphere and climate.

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. 

2018 Forum for Arctic Modeling and Observational Synthesis (FAMOS) Project Annual School and Meeting, October 23-26, 2018 (Bergen, Norway) Major goals of this meeting are to coordinate FAMOS activities, report accomplishments, exchange ideas and hypotheses, enhance international arctic studies collaboration and discuss plans for continuing FAMOS work beyond 2019. Meeting registration form is available at project websites: here and here. For questions and details contact A. Proshutinsky, Mike Steele, and Amelie Bouchat.

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