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 Today's C
ongressional Action:
The House is not in session. The Senate is expected to consider non-Arctic legislation.
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 International Trade in Polar Bear Trophies Okay: CITES.
The trade in trophies from legally-hunted and sustainably-managed polar bears is not detrimental to the survival of the species in the wild. That's what more than 200 global scientific experts from over 50 countries decided at the 28th meeting of the Animals Committee of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, or CITES, held in Tel Aviv, Israel from Aug. 30 to Sept. 3. The CITES Animals Committee members reviewed trade levels for a wide range of animals, internationally traded as food products, clothes, skins, traditional medicines, tourist souvenirs and pets. Nunatsiaq Online
Inuit Orgs: Suicide Prevention Means Closing the Gaps. You can't reduce the appalling rates of death by suicide among Inuit without wide-ranging efforts aimed at fixing the social environment in which Inuit live, two Inuit leaders said Sept. 10 at a World Suicide Prevention Day event on Parliament Hill in Ottawa. "We Inuit youth want to see suicide eradicated. We as Inuit youth want a renewed relationship with our country to see a reversal of the grim statistics of suicide among Inuit...," the president of the National Inuit Youth Council, Maatalii Okalik, said in a speech. "No one individual or government is responsible for suicide prevention. Today's celebration of life event is a reminder of the collaboration that is required in embracing life and preventing suicide," she said. Nunatsiaq Online
 New Research: Polar Bears Can Survive Shrinking Sea Ice. Polar bears living with a longer, ice-free season in the Arctic will turn to land-based foods to fill their tummies - and they'll thrive. That's according to researchers from the American Museum of Natural History, whose paper was recently published in the online journal, Plos One. In the article, co-authors Robert F. Rockwell and Linda Gormezano say predictions - made repeatedly by other researchers - that Western Hudson Bay polar bears will starve to death when the ice-free period increases by 60 more days are "overestimated." Nunatsiaq Online
The Arctic Looses Its Grip. A
ny day now Arctic sea-ice is going to hit its lowest extent for the year, and once again it's set to be one of the lowest years on record (the four lowest years have all occurred since 2007). Already a number of ships have glided safely through the fabled northwest passage, unencumbered by sea-ice. Typically the Arctic sea-ice minimum occurs in mid to late September and the signs so far suggest a lean year. Back in August the sea-ice covered 5.61m square kilometers - the fourth lowest August average in the satellite record. And by the end of August the area of sea-ice was already in sixth lowest position. The Guardian
Photo of Sickly Polar Bear Signals Tragedy Ahead in Arctic.
A viral photograph taken of an emaciated polar bear is significant due to where the image was snapped, according to wildlife experts. The extremely thin bear was spotted by photographer Kerstin Langenberger off the Barents Sea on the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard, which was once home to a thriving population of polar bears, but is now monitored by researchers who have observed extraordinary loss of sea ice due to global climate change. Geoff York, senior director of conservation for Polar Bears International, spent 14 consecutive seasons out on the sea ice, and has been studying the Arctic and its wildlife for two decades. He told Discovery News that he has seen other similar photos recently of polar bears in terrible condition. Discovery
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| Legislative Action No Arctic legislation was formally considered yesterday. |
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Future Events
CSIS. Arctic Transformation: Understanding Arctic Research and the Vital   Role of Science, September 16, 2015, 8:30 am to 12:30 pm, Washington, DC.
Co-organized by the Senate Arctic Caucus and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).
Featuring opening remarks by
Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK)
and
Angus King (I-ME).
With a keynote address by
Dr. John Holdren, Chair, Arctic Executive Steering Committee, Director of OSTP, The White House. Panelists include Larry Hinzman, Richard Glenn, George Roe, Paul Mayewski, Martin Jeffries, Kelly Falkner, John Farrell, and Cathy Cahill. CSIS's Senior VP, Heather Conley, will moderate.
Eighth Polar Law Symposium Alaska 2015, September 23-26, 2015 (Fairbanks and Anchorage, Alaska , USA).
The Eighth Polar Law Symposium is co-hosted by
A
laska Pacific University
(APU), the
University of Alaska Fairbanks
, the
University of Alaska Anchorage
(through its
Justice Center
and its
Institute of Social and Economic Research
), the
University of Washington School of Law
, and
Vermont Law School
, in cooperation with the
Arctic Law Section
of the
Alaska Bar Association
. The symposium will be held on both campuses of the University of Alaska. The 2015 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 Arctic Circle is the largest global gathering on the Arctic. It is attended by heads of state and governments, ministers, members of parliament, officials, experts, scientists, entrepreneurs, business leaders, indigenous representatives, environmentalists, students, activists, and others from the growing international community of partners and participants interested in the future of the Arctic. The Arctic Circle highlights issues and concerns, programs, policies and projects; it provides platforms for dynamic dialogue and constructive cooperation. While the plenary sessions are the responsibility of the Arctic Circle, the breakout sessions are organized by various participating partners in their own name and with full authority over the agenda and the choice of speakers.
2015 Arctic Science Conference, October 1-3, 2015 (Anchorage, Alaska, USA). The conference theme is "Healthy Estuaries: Sustainability and Resilience." Conference topics include traditional scientific disciplines, science education, arctic social sciences, biomedical research, and artistic interpretation of the evolving North. Abstract submissions are now being accepted. The deadline is August 1, 2015.
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.
Forum for Arctic Modeling and Observational Synthesis Meeting, November 3-6, 2015 (Cape Cod, MA, USA). On November 3rd, the
2015 School for young scientists will consider "Regional Oceanography of the Arctic marginal seas" with lectures covering major features of atmospheric, sea ice and oceanographic regimes of the: Bering, Chukchi, Beaufort, East-Siberian, Laptev Sea, Kara, Barents and Nordic seas. On November 4-6, the meeting portion will summarize project accomplishments for the last 3 years of activities and will focus on the formulation of scientific questions and directions for FAMOS future research (2016-2019) to: (a) improve Arctic modeling, employing very high resolution models; (b) develop and test new arctic monitoring/observing systems and (c) improve predictions of Arctic environmental parameters with reduced uncertainties.
Due North: Next Generation Arctic Research & Leadership, November 5-8, 2015 (Calgary, Alberta, Canada).
The Association of Canadian Universities for Northern Studies (ACUNS) will convene an interdisciplinary conference of early career scientists working on Arctic issues. Topics will include:
Arctic Communities, Arctic Sustainable Development, Arctic Wildlife, Ecosystem and Biodiversity, Arctic Food Security, Arctic Landscapes, Climate Change and Adaptation, Disaster Risk Management, Policy, Politics and Leadership, Arctic Environment (Data and Techniques), Arctic Resources, and Future of Arctic.
Arctic Observing Open Science Meeting, November 17-19, 2015 (Seattle, Washington). The Arctic Observing Open Science Meeting will be 2.5 days and held at the Hyatt at Olive 8 in Seattle, Washington. The conference will bring together individuals and teams involved in the collection, processing, analysis, and use of observations in the Arctic - from academia, agencies, industry, and other organizations. The meeting will be convened as a combination of plenary talks, parallel science sessions, and a poster session. The agenda and registration information will be forthcoming.
In the Spirit of the Rovaniemi Process 2015, November 24-26, 2015 (Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland).
When the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy, the so-called Rovaniemi Process, was adopted in 1991, it aimed at overcoming divisions and turning the zone of Cold War military tensions into a region of peace and co-operation. In this joint effort focusing on the protection of environment, and later, sustainable development, the Arctic states supported by indigenous organizations laid grounds for institutionalized collaboration and the emergence of Arctic regional identity. The second international conference will bring together decision-makers, scholars, artists, designers and students to address these questions and discuss the Arctic in global, regional and local perspectives.
Arctic Encounter Paris (AEP 2015), December 11-12, 2015 (Paris, France) (During the UN Convention on Climate Change - COP21).
The Arctic Encounter Paris will take place at the French Senate at Luxembourg Palace and the French Military College,
École Militaire, in Paris, France, on the final days of the monumental United Nations Convention on Climate Change (COP21) where thousands of global citizens and government delegates will be gathered to deliberate the world's response to our changing planet in Paris. The AEP is the only Arctic policy side event currently planned to take place during the UN Convention.
A reception will take place following the closing panel.
3rd Annual Arctic Encounter Symposium (AES 2016), January 15-16, 2016 (Seattle, WA, USA).
Building upon the preceding Arctic Encounter event in Paris, the third annual Arctic Encounter Symposium (AES) in Seattle, Washington will convene policymakers, industry leaders, and leading experts to confront the leading issues in Arctic policy, innovation, and development. As the largest annual Arctic policy event in the United States, the AES mission is to raise awareness, engage challenges, and develop solutions for the future of a region and a people. The two-day program includes two keynote luncheons, expert plenary sessions, break out sessions, a networking cocktail reception and seated dinner at the
Museum of History and Industry
on South Lake Union
. A closing reception will take place at the conclusion of the program.
The official host of the third annual AES is the University of Washington School of Law.
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