Activity Report

Background

UArctic builds and strengthens collective resources and collaborative infrastructure, thereby enabling member institutions to better serve their constituents and their regions. UArctic members cooperate with each other on multiple levels, focusing on faculty, institutional leadership, and international collaboration. UArctic represents its members’ interests internationally by promoting their diverse and shared capacity to serve northern communities and interests. UArctic is the North’s only truly circumpolar higher education network and one of the world’s largest education and research networks.

UArctic Thematic Networks and Institutes form a natural framework for development of UArctic education and research providing an optimal structure for increasing the knowledge generation and sharing across the North. UArctic Institutes are self-governing units devoted to research, monitoring, and education throughout the Arctic. Empowered by local knowledge and international level academic expertise, they facilitate development of multidisciplinary solutions for challenges in the Arctic.

UArctic is one of the ICARP IV partner organisations contributing to the process leading to both ICARP IV and IPY 2032-33 and for making sure that UArctic’s contribution considers its diversity, gender and geographical balance a task force was created. Task force has planned UArctic’s community events for gathering the input on research priorities to be developed further in ICARP IV Research Priority Teams.

UArctic aims to engage with all of its about 200 members, which vary from large universities to small local colleges, from research institutions to Indigenous organizations. In addition to contacting UArctic members, a specific discussion was done with UArctic Thematic Networks and during their annual meeting in late April 2023 and with UArctic member representatives at the annual assembly meeting in May 2023.

Community engagement process

The starting point of the community engagement was an open online survey which collected personal opinions of people’s most pressing challenges in their lives. The survey asked respondents to relate those to the northern "region of interest", and in addition to thinking about the current time, it also asked them to think about the 10 years ahead. The region of interest could be the area of the Circumpolar North where they live, work, originally come from, do research in/about, or have any another connection. The survey was launched on March 1 and kept open until April 11, 2023. The survey received 46 responses. The results were compiled and analysed by looking at the results based on a) region, b) age group as we are interested to see particularly youth perspective, (c) gender, and (d) interdisciplinary clusters of challenges.

The results were analysed, presented and discussed in the UArctic Thematic Networks leadership team meeting held in Rovaniemi, Finland in April 25-27, 2023 and were discussed in a pre-meeting and networking session organised during the UArctic Assembly meeting in Quebec city, Canada in May 22 – 26, 2023. The results were compiled into the graphs and presentations which were also presented at ICARP IV session at the Arctic Circle Assembly in Iceland in October 2023 and graphs were available for feedback at the UArctic website until December 2023. The compilation of these community engagement survey and feedback is attached in Annex 1.

Results of the UArctic community engagement

UArctic is a membership organization committed to creating better lives for people in the North. Through cooperation in education, research, and outreach UArctic enhances human capacity in the North, promotes viable communities and sustainable economies, and forges global partnerships. Keeping all this in mind, UArctic’s community engagement and research needs and priorities are centered around the people in the Arctic and neighboring regions.

People, regardless of their origin, country, or culture, are affected by the biggest global threats: climate and environmental change and globalization. Climate change affects people and communities directly and indirectly, it affects environment, lands, waters and biodiversity surrounded by people, economy and livelihoods, traditional ways of living and modern cities, infrastructures, and transport and in so many other ways. The challenges (Figure 1) faced are local but often have global consequences and it is well known that Arctic amplification affects global climate and its weather patterns. Main climate change effects identified were permafrost thaw and infrastructure failures caused by it, biodiversity loss, new and invasive species introduced to Arctic, and how climate change affects Indigenous cultures and their livelihoods. Food and water security, quality of life, cultural preservation, socioeconomic pressures were listed. There is growing concern about biosecurity: microviruses and contaminants released due to permafrost thaw needs biosurveillance and monitoring, including human security perspective. Research with holistic view is needed and different mitigation and adaptation measures are needed for resilience. There is a need to understand the rate and scale of change and feedback processes.

Globalisation with growing trade across the Arctic Ocean and interest for natural resources can have major influence on Arctic communities. Current geopolitical situation needs views on security from inside the Arctic, not from the outside.

Education creates a global view of the World, but how and what to educate should not be globally decided but based on local needs (Figure 2). The relation between education and capacity building is important. There are different needs in different regions, different ways of communicating which sometimes need for innovative solutions. Skill building is needed for training personnel in the North as there is often mismatch of education and demand. Training of trainers and teachers te, passing the knowledge to new people, foot paths of ancestors were mentioned. Local training in local languages, skills training developed and enrolment of local and Indigenous communities were considered meaningful. Important question is how can education serve Arctic and where are possibilities in western education for Indigenous education? Digitalization can be a tool in places where digital tools can be reached, but online teaching resources and education must be co-created with Indigenous communities. Equal access to higher education in all regions needs increasing online offerings.

Educating stakeholders and connecting socio-economic thinking to education was stated. This is important for creating critical Arctic studies which would be available for global markets, business, tourism companies and tourists. Sustainable, respectful of Indigenous cultures and nondisruptive tourism should be offered to everyone, including through means of A massive open online courses (MOOCs).

Thirdly, mitigation and adaptation are needed, but how to do those in sustained way without hampering people’s lives and cultures? Can the same action be acceptable and sustainable in one region and the opposite in another? Everyone who lives in the Arctic knows that Arctic is not homogenous and therefore globally acceptable actions, such as windmills or electric cars, can be a labeled as green colonialism as they threaten the Indigenous Peoples culture and livelihood. This is particularly a case in Nordic countries, in Sápmi, Sámi homeland where reindeer husbandry is threatened by windmill farms and mining, also for those rare minerals needed for electric car batteries. This has created conflicts, very often because there are no two-way dialogues, no respect, and no understanding of the needs of either side. Critical perspective on economy; growth versus non-growth, how to ensure the extractive industries do not decrease the quality of life in the Arctic? There is a need to understand and learn and to do research on alternative ways of mitigation against climate change. Sustainable use of natural resources, including mining, is important. Restoration and climate-friendly processes and responsible tourists are needed. Reusing and recycling, circular economy and how can environmental challenges be turned into circular economy business opportunities? Figure 3 gives examples of issues raised in green transition, use of natural resources and what kind of socio-economic measures must be taken into account.

Research cannot be planned without thinking how to do it ethically (Figure 4). This is particularly true in the Arctic where lands and waters have been occupied for thousands of years by Indigenous Peoples. Research has to respect different ways of knowing and it has to consider/include all knowledge systems, Indigenous and local Knowledge and western science. Interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary research , citizen science and/or community-based monitoring are needed for finding ways to adapt and mitigate against climate change and globalization related challenges. Efficient detection and monitoring of changes in biodiversity is needed. For that, engagement of stakeholders, decision-makers, citizens and Indigenous People (citizen science) is required. A holistic system approach cutting across the existing categories and disciplines has to be adopted by funding agencies calling for novel and sustainable funding models. Ethical and inclusive research is very important. The problem is that the short-term funding system doesn't enable long-term relationships as one never knows if one can get another funding and continue working with a community, where one has built relationship and trust. There are great ethical frameworks and collaborative, decolonial methodologies are also being developed but there is need to develop more.

Key questions related to ICAPR IV process:

• How do we create a pan-arctic approach to research and use research on pressing challenges, especially at times of geopolitical tension and exclusion of the Russian Arctic?
• How can ICARP IV Research priorities have the greatest impact? And what are the metrics of progress? What processes enable impact (local to global)?
• How do we develop processes that integrate and couple economic wellbeing, governance, resources allocation, human preparedness and resilience, and environmental sustainability challenges?
• What types of awareness and education are needed at a local level? And how can this be enabled for broader and more nuanced understandings? And how are the processes and knowledge mobilized?
• How are these priorities different or differently prioritized from region to region?
• What are the kinds of generational solutions that will prove valuable 30 to 50 years from now? And considering immediate urgencies as well as circular timelines?

Download the Final Project Report

Link to Activity Website

Main Organisers:

• University of the Arctic
• Contact: Kirsi Latola and Scott Forrest

Type of Activity

• Workshop
• Community Listening Session
• Survey

Dates and Location

• February 2023 | Online
• 25 - 26 April 2023 | Rovaniemi (Finland)
• 22 - 27 May 2023 | Quebec City (Canada)

Back

Activity Description:

The International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) in cooperation with many partners, is coordinating a multi-year planning process for the Fourth International Conference on Arctic Research Planning (ICARP IV)lasting from 2022 until 2026. The ICARP IV process will engage Arctic researchers, Indigenous Peoples, policy makers, residents and stakeholders from around the world to discuss the state of Arctic science, the place the Arctic occupies in global affairs and systems. ICARP IV will

• consider the most urgent knowledge gaps and Arctic research priorities and needs for the next decade, and
• explore avenues to address these research needs.

The first stage of the ICARP IV process will focus on seeking community input throughout 2023 with a diverse set of engagement activities (in-person and online). Individuals, groups, networks, institutions and organisations are encouraged to organise projects and events as part of this ICARP IV engagement process and report their outcomes back to us to ensure they are included in the development of the ICARP IV research priorities and implementation plans.

This Townhall Meeting during the ASSW 2023 provided an introduction to the ICARP IV process, show some examples of community engagement activities planned throughout 2023, and give ASSW 2023 participants the opportunity to provide input into the process as well as ideas for engagement activities that you want to contribute.

Main Organiser: 

International Arctic Science Committee (IASC)

Type of Activity:

• Townhall Meeting,
• Community Listening Session

Dates and Locations: 

• 22 February 2023 | Hybrid | Vienna, Austria

Open / Closed Activity:

Open

Link to Activity Website

Back

Activity Report

The IASC State of Arctic Science Report 2023 presents a cohesive synthesis of Arctic research activities and priorities with a large range of input and contributions touching upon all aspects of Arctic research. It is aimed at Arctic science agencies, managers, and users, including a wide range of decision-makers and policy-makers, to help all Arctic science stakeholders and rightsholders stay up to date on Arctic research.

Published annually since 2020 by the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC), the report is updated by the members of several IASC or IASC-affiliated committees including the

• five IASC Working Groups (Atmosphere, Cryosphere, Marine, Social and Human, Terrestrial);
• International Science Initiative in the Russian Arctic (ISIRA);
• Arctic Data Committee (ADC); and
• Sustaining Arctic Observing Network (SAON).

The IASC State of Arctic Science Report series contributes an important resource to the Fourth International Conference on Arctic Research Planning (ICARP IV) process for the period of 2022 – 2026. Therefore, a wider range of contributors from the ICARP IV International Steering Committee also update the report during the ICARP IV Engagement Phase in 2023 and 2024.

The content of the report is compiled by the researchers themselves and thus is not exhaustive. There are many other NGOs, IGOs, institutions, non-profits, Indigenous Peoples’ organisations, private and public companies, and others around the world working in the Arctic knowledge space that are currently not participating in the preparation of this report.

Download the IASC State of Arctic Science Report 2023

Link to Activity Website

Organiser(s)

• International Arctic Science Committee (IASC)

Type of Activity

• Assessment
• Report

Back

Activity Report

After 10 years of contributing to circumpolar research on plant-herbivore interactions, the Herbivory Network is using a horizon scan to identify research priorities in Arctic herbivory for the coming decade. As part of this process, the Herbivory Network organized a one-day in-person workshop, as a pre-conference activity, parallel to the Nordic Society Oikos conference held in Lund, March 12-15, 2024.

During the workshop, participants worked on refining the emerging themes and determining key action points for Arctic herbivory research in the next decade, based on feedback received from Arctic herbivory experts through an online survey. You can find more information about the project here.

The workshop was organized by Isabel C Barrio (Agricultural University of Iceland), Stefaniya Kamenova (University of Oslo) and Helen Anderson (University of Aberdeen). Registration for the workshop was open through the portal of the NSO conference, ensuring a broader participation than from network members alone. A total of 26 researchers participated in the workshop, many of them early career scientists. The Herbivory Network workshop was organized as part of the activities of the Nordic Oikos Society conference 2024 held in Lund. The workshop took place in the Ecology Building of the University of Lund.

During the workshop a strong emphasis was placed on hands-on work and discussions, first in smaller groups, and then in the larger groups to try to reach consensus on the suggestions presented by the smaller groups. In the morning session, a brief introduction of the project was given by Isabel C Barrio, and workshop participants introduced themselves. Participants were split into four groups (5-8 participants each), led by Isabel C Barrio, Stefaniya Kamenova, Mathilde Defourneaux and Laura Barbero-Palacios. All groups were provided with a list of 146 questions compiled from the input received from the online surveys. The online surveys took place before the workshop, and included an initial elicitation of input by Arctic herbivory researchers, where researchers were asked to provide up to 5 questions they thought would be relevant in Arctic herbivory research in the coming decade. In a second step, after deduplicating questions and cleaning the database, researchers were asked to score the questions in terms of two criteria: their scientific relevance and their relevance to management. The list of questions provided to workshop participants was ranked based on this online scoring, and the top 25% for each criterion (scientific and management) were retained for further discussion. The groups were tasked with synthesizing the top-ranked questions in each criterion.

In the afternoon session, the four groups came back together to share and discuss their suggested synthesis. After the workshop, the conclusions have been summarized in a paper now published in Arctic Science.

The Herbivory Network (HN) is an international collaborative research initiative. Since its establishment in 2014, the HN has worked towards addressing the role of herbivory in Arctic and alpine ecosystems and developing new approaches to harmonise research efforts. The goal of HN is to foster collaborations within and across disciplines, facilitate multi-site comparisons, and work towards understanding the complexity and variability of responses of tundra ecosystems to herbivory. The Herbivory Network was endorsed as a UArctic Thematic Network in 2020.

This project has been endorsed by the International Arctic Science Committee as an ICARP IV activity. Funding to support the participation of early career scientists in this workshop has been made available by the Terrestrial Working Group of the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC). Many of the discussions held during the meeting contribute to the TUNDRAsalad project (grant nr. 217754), funded by the Icelandic Research Fund.

Three Highlights

• After 10 years of contributing to circumpolar research on plant-herbivore interactions, the Herbivory Network used a horizon scan to identify research priorities in Arctic herbivory for the coming decade.
• A one-day workshop was organized in Lund on March 12 2024, parallel to the activities of the Nordic Society Oikos conference, and was attended by 26 researchers from seven Arctic countries and in different career stages.
• The legacy of the workshop, in the form of a scientific publication that identifies the top priorities for arctic herbivory research in the coming decade, represents a contribution to the ICARP IV.

Summary of input provided for the ICARP IV process

We collected nearly 300 suggestions from 85 experts through online surveys and an in-person workshop. After analyzing their responses, we identified eight key scientific priorities and eight key management priorities.These priorities emphasise the need to deepen our understanding about the ecological role of herbivores and their interactions, from small-scale local interactions to broader changes over time in the landscapes where herbivores and humans coexist. Learning more about how herbivores both respond to and influence climate change, including their role in feedback loops that could speed up or slow down climate warming, represents another priority area. Moreover, herbivory researchers highlighted the need for new, improved tools and methods to better study and monitor these complex and remote ecosystems, while making scientific data quickly accessible to everyone. Finally, improving the ways to combine scientific and Indigenous knowledge was also identified as an important priority. Our work offers a roadmap for future research and collaboration. By bringing together scientists, Indigenous knowledge holders, and decision-makers, we can develop better ways to study and manage Arctic herbivores and help ensure the health of these ecosystems for generations to come. The outcomes of this horizon scanning exercise have been published in Arctic Science.

Recommendations for priorities in Arctic research for the coming decade

We identified 8 scientific and 8 management priorities for Arctic herbivory research in the next decade. These priorities centred on: a) understanding and integrating fundamental ecological processes across multiple scales from individual herbivore-plant interactions up to regional and decadal scale vegetation and animal population effects; b) evaluating climate change feedbacks; and c) developing new research methods. Our analysis provides a strategic framework for broad, inclusive, interdisciplinary collaborations to optimise terrestrial herbivory research and sustainable management practices in a rapidly changing Arctic.

Recommendations for the implementation of the suggested priorities

The upcoming Fifth International Polar Year in 2032-33 will provide considerable motivation for planning and developing new research initiatives on Arctic herbivores. Such research initiatives should include coordinated ecosystem-based and circumpolar efforts that incorporate diverse knowledge systems into future research programs. It will be important to match the current state-of-knowledge and emerging technology with the quickly changing dynamics of many Arctic herbivores and the environmental changes occurring in tundra ecosystems. Addressing these priorities will require developing new methods and inclusive, interdisciplinary collaborations. Including diverse research communities and management bodies are both prerequisites for effective cross-domain knowledge sharing and adoption. In terms of facilitating and enhancing the interface between science and management, we are hopeful that our horizon scan research prioritization will help to create and sustain informal “communities of practice”, for example through the Herbivory Network (http://herbivory.lbhi.is) or independently. These efforts will also enable periodic updates of this horizon scan, complemented with the additional insights from diverse stakeholders.

[Text extracted from Barrio et al 2025: https://cdnsciencepub.com/doi/10.1139/as-2024-0080]

Main Organiser

Isabel C Barrio (Agricultural University of Iceland); Herbivory Network

Type of Activity

• Workshop

Dates and Locations

• 12 - 15 March 2024 in Lund, Sweden

Back