April 28, 2014

capital Today's Congressional Action:

The House is in session and will consider several legislative provisions, including H.R. 3110, the Huna Tlingit Traditional Gull Egg Use Act. The Senate is expected to consider non-Arctic nominations.

Media

Obama Pressured to Boost Russia Sanctions. Senators on both sides of the aisle are calling for the Obama administration to beef up its sanctions regime against Russia over the country's meddling in Ukraine. Current efforts to target individuals close to Russian President Vladimir Putin aren't being effective, they say. Instead, the U.S. needs to target entire sectors of the Russian economy to get Russia to move troops away from the Ukrainian border. The Hill

Shelters from the Storm. Regardless of where in the Arctic you go, the suicide statistics are grim. Greenland has the highest rate in the world. In Alaska, the rate of suicide is twice as high as the national average. Nunavut last year saw its highest number of suicides since the territory was created in 1999. Explanations vary for why people in the Arctic - particularly Inuit men - chose to take their own lives. They include everything from weather (most suicides occur in the late spring and early summer) to uncertainty about cultural identity. Arctic Journal

Man of the Muskoxen: Joel Berger Protects Big Mammals. When you think of animals at risk, muskoxen probably don't leap immediately to mind. Unless you're Joel Berger. The professor of wildlife conservation at the University of Montana studies the effects of climate change on large mammals, such as muskoxen and wild yaks. Berger, also a senior conservation scientist at the World Conservation Society, has devoted his career to preserving large animals and the ecosystems that support them. In the United States, his research and advocacy efforts helped persuade the government to create the first federally protected wildlife corridor, the Path of the Pronghorn in Wyoming. Indianapolis Star

New Report Confirms that the Kvanefjeld Mining Project is not Sustainable. Jan Willem Storm van Leeuwen who is an expert in technology assessment and life cycle analyses of energy systems at Ceedata Consultants in the Netherlands has published a new report on the Kvanefjeld mining project. The report comments on the bias of regulators such as the IAEA and WHO and gives new evidence of the project's negative impact on public health and the environment. Among others, it is stressed that Kvanefjeld, which according to the licensee, Greenland Minerals and Energy, might contain the world's second largest uranium deposit, will be the first big open pit uranium mine located on top of a mountain. This means that mining water and spills from the processing of the ore could run off the slopes and reach inhabited areas in a very short time. Furthermore, dust from the mining pit could reach inhabited areas within minutes. Arctic Journal

Canadian Polar Commission Report: The State of Northern Knowledge in Canada. The Canadian Polar Commission has released a new report entitled "The State of Northern Knowledge in Canada." The report analyzes the gains in knowledge made since 2007, the beginning of the International Polar Year, to determine current opportunities for research. The report focuses on the perspectives of northern peoples and highlights new knowledge available to address issues identified by that community. Canadian Polar Commission

Legislative Action

No Arctic legislation was formally considered Friday.

Future Events

The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions, April 29, 2014. (Webinar) This webinar will provide a briefing on the new National Research Council report "The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions". The co-chairs of the authoring committee will present emerging research questions that span traditional disciplinary boundaries as well as tools for meeting the challenges of understanding a rapidly changing Arctic. There will be an opportunity for questions at the conclusion of the briefing.

AAAS Forum on S & T Policy, May 1, 2014. (Washington, DC) The American Association for the Advancement of Science will host a forum on science and technology policy. On May 1, AAAS will host a breakout session on US Leadership in the Arctic Council: International Science Cooperation. Presenters include executive director of the US Arctic Research Commission John Farrell.

Alaska Policy Commission. May 6-7, 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. The draft agenda is available here.

International Congress of Arctic Social Sciences, May 22-24, 2014. 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, ICASS underscores both that 'sustainability' has social, cultural, economic, political and environmental dimensions, and that definitions of the concept vary. Yet, while debating specific definitions, most would agree that working toward sustainable ways of living in the North and on approaches to sustainable engagement with the North, are critical both to the North's and to the world's future. Community sustainability in the North, whether for small settlements or large urban conglomerations, requires new models of food and energy security, and of access to employment, health care and social and cultural services for residents.

Arctic in the Athropocene. June 23-July 2, 2014 (Potsdam, Germany). Under the overarching theme "Arctic in the Anthropocene", this two-week interdisciplinary and interactive event will be the first in a series of Potsdam Summer Schools to be held annually. The goal is to bring together early-career scientists and young professionals from research departments, governmental and non-governmental agencies and organizations, as well as the private sector from all around the world. Participants will deal with global challenges and address urgent questions on how to shape sustainable futures in the Arctic and beyond from a scientific and socioeconomic point of view.

Alaska Policy Commission. August 26-27, 2014 (Kotzebue-Nome, 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.

Arctic Circle, October 31-November 2, 2014 (Reyjavik, 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.

Alaska Policy Commission. November 13-14, 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.

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.

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