Arctic Ocean Sciences Board

The ICARP II Marine RoundTable and the International Arctic Research Center (IARC), located at the University of Fairbanks Alaska, are organizing a workshop to start the Arctic In Rapid Transition (ART) Initiative in Fairbanks, Alaska. The workshop is endorsed and sponsored by the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) under the Arctic Ocean Sciences Board (AOSB) / Marine System.

The ART Initiative is a proposed integrative, multi-disciplinary, long-term pan-Arctic program to study changes and feedbacks with respect to physical characteristics and biogeochemical cycles of the Arctic Ocean and its biological productive capacity. Background information on the ART Initiative can be found by clicking here. ART will focus on integrating data on past and present transitional states of the Arctic Ocean that can be used synergistically with ongoing monitoring, observing and modeling efforts, to better assess future changes. An ART White Paper has been developed by early career scientists and aims to compile scientific expertise across disciplines, national borders, and career stage to identify and formulate future key questions for integrated research on Arctic Ocean system studies.

The ultimate goal of the ART Initiation Workshop is to develop a full science and implementation plan based upon the ART White Paper to further the goals of ART. Several expert speakers from various disciplines (e.g. oceanography, sea ice, biology, meteorology, geology/paleoceanography, and geochemistry) will discuss with participants the key scientific questions outlined within the ART proposal and during a field trip the participants will be able to experience the Arctic in rapid transition. The workshop will then break into working groups centred on the identified three main components of ART: sea ice variability, land-ocean transport processes, and ecosystem responses (ART White Paper). These groups will discuss the key scientific questions within each field, present them to the workshop as a whole, and help to develop a science plan for addressing them. The final goal of the workshop will be to integrate the proposals and develop the overall ART science plan, with the guidance of a Marine Roundtable panel of experts.

Funding will be available through the ART program itself.

Application deadline is Sunday, 20 September 2009.