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 The US Arctic Research website is updated. Please take a minute to review the new website and send your comments to Kathy Farrow ([email protected])
 Today's Congressional Action:
The House and Senate are not in session.
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Indigenous Arctic Peoples Group Gather in Denmark. Representatives of major Arctic indigenous peoples groups met last week last week in Denmark to celebrate 40 years of co-operation and struggle for their rights. The Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) organized the conference together with the Saami Council with support from the Nordic Council. "It is one thing is to fight for rights," said Aile Javo, head of the Saami Council, said during the conference. "It is another to implement them and fill the positions they create." Arctic Journal
 Hundreds of Dead Seabirds Wash Ashore on Alaska Island Bering Sea. Nature's cold brutality apparently marked hundreds -- and perhaps thousands -- of seabirds for death following storms that slammed into Western Alaska earlier this month and littered stretches of St. Lawrence Island with the carcasses of crested auklets, murres, ducks and other birds. Facebook alarmists feared Fukushima radiation was to blame for the deaths that began appearing last week, but an expert said the island between Russia and the Alaska mainland is too far north for that to be possible. And Savoonga residents who walked the beaches to calculate the carnage said they're convinced this fall's powerful winter storms are the real culprit. Alaska Dispatch
Nuclear Repository Could End Up in Arctic. What happens if thousands of cubic meters of radioactive waste that need to be kept safe for thousands of years is buried in permafrost that could melt away due to climate changes? This is one of the tricky questions to be answered before nuclear waste repositories are built in the Russian Arctic. Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom is working on a roadmap exploring where to build final repositories for nuclear waste. Barents Observer
 US Navy Responds to Increased Arctic Activity. The loss of seasonal sea ice in the Arctic will have ramifications for the U.S. Navy in terms of future missions, force structure, training and investments. To get a better handle on planning for future Arctic missions, Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) Adm. Jonathan Greenert asked me to provide an unambiguous assessment of how ice coverage will change in the Arctic and how human activity in the Arctic will change in response to decreased ice coverage and other factors. MarineLink
 Putin's Green Security Strategy Goes Arctic. Speaking in a recent session in the National Security Council, Putin highlighted the need for a new Russian strategy on environmental security. "We have unique ecosystems, which affect the environmental sustainability of the whole planet", the president said, adding that "we are obliged to protect this richness", a transcript from the meeting reads. Barents Observer
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Legislative Action
No Arctic legislation was formally considered yesterday.
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Future Events The Arctic: Region of Cooperation and Development, December 2-3, 2013. (Moscow, Russia). The Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) together with the Institute of the World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO) RAS and in partnership with the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Center for Strategic and International Studies will host an international conference on "The Arctic: Region of Development and Cooperation". The event is endorsed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. The conference is held in line with RIAC long-term project Roadmap for International Cooperation in the Arctic, aimed at promoting the development strategy of the Russian Arctic and preserving its unique environment on the basis of international cooperation. The main objective of the conference is to establish a permanent forum for representatives of the expert community, ministries and departments for systematizing the experience of international cooperation in the Arctic in order to develop proposals for effective development of the region and responsible use of its resources. USARC Commissioner David Benton is one of the speakers. Report Release: Abrupt Climate Impacts: Anticipating Surprises, December 3, 2013. (Washington, DC). The National Research Council's Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate will release a report entitled "Abrupt Climate Impacts: Anticipating Surprises." The public release event will be at the Koshland Science Museum with a briefing from James White (committee chair, University of Colorado), Anthony Barnosky (University of California - Berkeley), and Richard Alley (Penn State University).
Arctic Cities, Global Processes, and Local Realities, December 2-4, 2013 (Rovaniemi, Finland). "The conference is organized jointly by the City of Rovaniemi and the Arctic Centre of the University of Lapland, Finland. The goal of the conference is to present the latest scientific research and knowledge about the global processes as they become local realities. Even if the Conference is scientific in orientation, it aims to bridge science and knowledge into action by bringing top scholars to share their research results, and to organize joint discussion with the leaders of the Arctic Cities. Sessions include: Rovaniemi Process: past, present, future; Arctic responses to global environmental problems; people and extractive industries; tourism in the Arctic; the Arctic in global economy; climate change in the Arctic; indigenous peoples in cities; and, Arctic global flows. Cross-cutting themes include: Arctic cities and global processes; management and governance in the Arctic; and, Arctic together with non-Arctic."
Alaska Policy Commission Meeting, December 9-10, 2013. (Anchorage, Alaska). The Alaska Arctic Policy Commission will convene to continue working on their draft of Alaska's Arctic Policy. This Preliminary Report will be submitted to the State Legislature on January 30, 2014 and will help guide the Commission's work in 2014 as they prepare to submit a final Report in January 2015. At the Anchorage meeting Commissioners will review and discuss draft Arctic policy statements, specific preliminary recommendations, and the supporting background document. See www.akarctic.com for a draft agenda and additional information as it becomes available.
Public testimony will be accepted Monday, Dec 9 from 11:15a-12:30p, limited to 3min. Supplementary written testimony can be emailed to [email protected]
Meeting will be audio streamed live on akl.tv
American Geophysical Union (AGU) Fall Meeting, December 9-13. (San Francisco, CA). The AGU Fall Meeting is the largest worldwide conference in the  geophysical sciences, attracting more than 24,000 Earth and space scientists, educators, students, and other leaders. For 46 years, scientists from around the world gather at the AGU Fall Meeting to exchange information and broaden their knowledge base. In addition to the scientific programming, the meeting offers over 50 Town Halls and Workshops, including one on Monday, Dec. 9, titled, "Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC) and Study of Environmental Arctic Change (SEARCH), organized by Helen Wiggins, Brendan Kelly, and Hajo Eicken, from 12:30 pm to 1:30 pm in 2018 Moscone West.
Search the AGU meeting for Arctic-related research sessions here.
Alaska Marine Science Symposium, January 20-24, 2014. (Anchorage, Alaska). The mission of the Alaska Marine Science Symposium is to bring together scientists, policymakers, students, educators, media and the public to share research findings focused on Alaska's marine fisheries and ecosystems. The Symposium is built around regional themes-Bering Sea, Arctic Ocean, and the Gulf of Alaska. Within each theme, there will be discussions on climate, oceanography, lower tropic levels, the benthos, fishes and invertebrates, seabirds, marine mammals, local and traditional knowledge, and socioeconomic research.
The agenda is available here.
The Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research of the University of Colorado will host the workshop. This year's theme is "Arctic's New Normal." The workshop will consider shifting environmental baselines over decades to millennia and comparisons with the Antarctic. Previous Workshops have included presentations on Arctic and Antarctic climate, atmospheric chemistry, environmental geochemistry, paleoenvironment, archeology, geomorphology, hydrology, glaciology, soils, ecology, oceanography, Quaternary history and more.
Association of American Geographers Polar Geography Sessions, April 8-12, 2014. Tampa, Florida. Polar Geography Sessions are being planned in areas such as Sustainable Development in the Arctic, Urbanization and Transportation in the Arctic, etc. Contact Scott Stephenson ( [email protected]) for more information, and see attached flyer.
Arctic Science Summit Week April 5-8, 2014 and Arctic Observing Summit, April 9-11, Helsinki, Finland. ASSW is a gathering for Arctic research organizations. Any organization engaged in supporting and facilitating arctic research is welcome to participate. The ASSW meeting in 2014 will be arranged during April 5-8 in Helsinki Kumpula Campus, in the facilities of FMI and Physics Department of the University of Helsinki. Second circular here.
International Congress of Arctic Social Sciences, May 22-26, 2014 (Prince George, British Columbia). "The International Arctic Social Sciences Association (IASSA) announces the 8th International Congress of Arctic Social Sciences (ICASS VIII).ICASS is held every three years, bringing together people from all over the world to share ideas about social science research in the Arctic. ICASS VII, held in Akureyri in June 2011, attracted 450 participants from 30 different countries. ICASS VIII's theme is Northern Sustainabilities. By using the plural, we underscore both that "sustainability" has social, cultural, economic, political and environmental dimensions, and that definitions of the concept vary."
 IceTech14: International Conference and Exhibition on Performance of Ships and Structures in Ice, July 28-31, 2014 (Banff, Alberta, Canada). "The focus will be on the general theme of performance of ships and structures in ice - but with emphasis and special sessions on looking to the future in a warming world. Coverage will include technical aspects of offshore operations in Arctic and ice populated waters, as well related ice mechanics, icebreaking and ice resistance, global warming and geopolitical effects, safety and EER, subsea facilities and operations, and other relevant subjects in a polar context particularly in view of current global concerns. Both technical papers and selected panel sessions will be included. We will also continue to host a small commercial exhibition for organizations wishing to set up stand."
Abstract Submission Deadline: November 17, 2013
Arctic Science Summit Week, April 23-30, 2015. (Toyama, Japan). ASSW is the annual gathering of 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. IASC's (International Arctic Science Committee) 25th anniversary will be celebrated during ASSW2015. The summit presents an opportunity to review IASC contributions and recognize those who have been instrumental in its founding, development and growth. ASSW2015 will also include the 3rd International Conference on Arctic Research Planning (ICARP III) and the 4th International Symposium on the Arctic Research (ISAR-4). These four-day symposia create a platform for exchanging knowledge, inspiring cross fertilization, and promoting collaboration. The summit attracts scientists, students, policy makers and other professionals from all over the world.
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External links in this publication, and on the USARC's World Wide Web site ( www.arctic.gov) do not constitute endorsement by the US Arctic Research Commission of external Web sites or the information, products or services contained therein. For other than authorized activities, the USARC does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations. These links are provided consistent with the stated purpose of this newsletter and the USARC Web site.
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