Turning the spotlight on the Arctic

As world attention focusses on this week’s climate change talks in Paris leading scientists, economist and geopolitical commentators highlight the increased prominence of Arctic issues for European and global society.

A European Commission (EC) Briefing Session, hosted by the European Polar Board, the science project ICE-ARC and the consortium EU-PolarNet, managed by the Alfred Wegener Institute, examine the science, impact, opportunities and potential conflicts arising from of Arctic climate change.

“The increased global focus on the Arctic brings significant regional opportunities and possibilities, such as new shipping routes, fisheries, and hydrocarbon extraction. But with this comes the potential for conflict and risks to human activities across the region and beyond”, says Dr Nicole Biebow from the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz centre for Polar and Marine Research and EU-PolarNet project manager.

The European Polar Board, the ICE-ARC project and EU-PolarNet are committed to connecting science with society through dialogue and engagement with businesses and communities living on the frontline of environmental change.  The aim of their session is to stimulate new thinking and raise awareness of the importance for discussion crossing the boundaries between science and society.

Session speakers include Peter Horvath, EC Directorate General for Research and Innovation; Sir David King, UK Government Special Representative for Climate Change; Professor Jean-Claude Gascard, Senior Scientist, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS); Anthony Hobley, Chief Executive, Carbon Tracker Initiative; Sheila Watt-Cloutier, Former Chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference; and Thorben Hoffmeister, Executive Officer Geopolitics, Bundeswehr Geoinformation Center.

Session details:

Host: ICE-ARC, EU-PolarNet, and the European Polar Board

Location: Room Brussels (European Union Pavilion, Hall 2B in the Blue Zone of Le Bourget - accreditation needed)

Date: Saturday 5th December at 14:30

Duration: Afternoon session, approx. 90 minutes including discussion

This 90-minute Briefing Session will provide a flow of up-to-date information from researchers to participants and vice versa.  We have divided the session into succinct keynote presentations (each by Leaders in their field) on the multi-sector impacts of Arctic change. These are:

Peter Horvath, Directorate General for Research and Innovation, European Commission. Climate Change in the Arctic: Local, Regional, and Global Impacts

Sir David King, FCO Special Representative for Climate Change; The Physical Basis of Arctic Change

Jean-Claude Gascard, Senior Scientist, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS). Scenarios for Arctic change and Global Consequences

Anthony Hobley, Carbon Tracker Initiative. Economic Impact of Arctic change; regional and global contexts

Sheila Watt-Cloutier, Former Chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Conference and winner of the Right Livelihood Award 2015. Societal Consequences of Arctic change; regional and global contexts

Thorben Hoffmeister, Executive Officer Geopolitics, Bundeswehr Geoinformation Center (ZGeoBw). Geopolitical and Security Consequences of Arctic Change

Additional Information:

ICE-ARC (Ice, Climate, Economics – Arctic Research on Change) is a £11.5M, four-year programme of research (2014-2017), which investigates the environmental, economic and social impacts of a changing Arctic. Physicists, chemists, biologist, economists and sociologists from 23 institutes and 11 countries across Europe, Greenland and Russia have to study and better understand the multifaceted impact of Arctic change.

EU-PolarNet is the world’s largest consortium of expertise and infrastructure for polar research. Seventeen countries are represented by 22 of Europe’s internationally-respected multi-disciplinary research institutions. From 2015-2020, EU-PolarNet will develop and deliver a strategic framework and mechanisms to prioritise science, optimise the use of polar infrastructure, and broker new partnerships that will lead to the co-design of polar research projects that deliver tangible benefits for society.

The European Polar Board is an independent European Organisation of Directors and Managers of the major European National Polar Programmes. It was established in 1995 by the European Science Foundation as a strategic advisory body on Polar Science. It is concerned with major strategic priorities in the Arctic and Antarctic and has members from national operators and research institutes in 17 countries.