Arctic Circle Breakout Session: ICARP IV - Arctic Scientific Planning for the next Decade

In lead up to its 35th anniversary in 2025, the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) is coordinating a multi-year planning process for the Fourth International Conference for Arctic Research Planning (ICARP IV) that will engage Arctic researchers, policymakers, residents, and stakeholders from around the world to collegially discuss the state of Arctic science, the place the Arctic occupies in global affairs and systems, to consider the most urgent knowledge gaps and research priorities that lie before us and to explore avenues to address these research needs.

For ICARP IV, a process initiating in 2022 will culminate at the ICARP conference to be convened in Boulder, Colorado, USA in 2025, hosted by a consortium of U.S. institutions, including the University of Colorado Boulder, University of Northern Iowa, University of Alaska Fairbanks, and Alaska Pacific University.

The ICARP IV process during 2022 to 2025 must be well planned and coordinated with other ongoing international activities. ICARP IV will identify important research questions and priorities that cut across disciplines and knowledge systems, and that requires new and innovative thinking and collaboration. ICARP IV will develop a vision for implementation and science plans for addressing these priorities. An integral aspect of the ICARP IV will be the inclusion of early career scientists (in collaboration with APECS), Indigenous Peoples, and local residents in the development of priorities and science plans to address the key questions.

This session will discuss the work undertaken by IASC and its partners in fostering Arctic science cooperation and outlining Arctic research priorities both in the short term (Arctic Science Summit Week) and in the long term (ICARP).