Event date: October 16th and 17th
Where: Bouche-à-Oreille, Brussels
Registration, programme and further information: http://www.
Note: Registration is required, and space at the venue is limited.
On October 16th and 17th annual Arctic Futures Symposium brings together Arctic residents, researchers, industry representatives and politicians for frank and lively discussions on issues facing the region. Organised by the International Polar Foundation [1], the programme for the 2013 edition of Arctic Futures corresponds with Canada’s priorities during its chairmanship of the Arctic Council, which began following the Kiruna Ministerial in May of this year under the theme “development for the people of the North” [2]. The symposium will focus on responsible Arctic resource development, safe Arctic shipping sustainable circumpolar communities, and research to inform policymaking.
Hannu Halinen, Finland’s Ambassador to the Arctic Council, will discuss his country’s plan to lead the way towards a sustainable Arctic, while Peter Wadhams of Cambridge University will help explain future sea ice predictions.
President of the Canadian Climate Forum, Gordon McBean will address the need to close the divide between the scientific community and policymakers on climate issues, while Agneta Fransson of the Norwegian Polar Institute will look at Arctic Ocean acidification and its impacts on marine ecosystems.
Representatives form industries operating in the Arctic will also be represented. Gro Gunleiksrud Haatvedt, Statoil’s Senior Vice President for Exploration in Norway will discuss her company’s approach to developing resources in the Arctic. Julian Vangen from the Norwegian Fisherman’s Sales Organization will look at what’s happening to fisheries as climate change affects the Arctic.
Reconciling indigenous livelihoods and economic development in the Arctic will be addressed by a number of indigenous stakeholders, including Helena Omma, Vice-Chair of the World Reindeer Herder’s Association, and Reggie Joule, Mayor of Alaska’s Northwest Borough.
Shipping and its potential effects on the Arctic will also be examined in detail during a joint IPF-Arctic NGO Forum workshop to be held on October 17th, featuring Swedish Ambassador to the Arctic Council Gustaf Lind, Arctic Institute European Director Kathrin Keil, and a host of other experts.
Arctic Futures will address Arctic Council priorities during sessions focusing on the following topics:
o The priorities and concerns of Arctic Council nations and other Arctic stakeholders
o Natural and social science research on the Arctic's environment and communities to inform policymaking
o The Arctic’s resources and the sustainable development of Northern economies
o Trends and future scenarios for Arctic marine transport
The Arctic Futures Symposium 2013 is an initiative of the International Polar Foundation. This year’s edition is organized in partnership with the Arctic NGO Forum, with the support of the EU Commission, the European External Action Service, the EU Arctic Information Centre and The North Norway European Office.
http://www.arcticfutures.org
Confirmed speakers for Arctic Futures 2013:
· Alain Hubert (President, International Polar Foundation)
· Maria Damanaki (European Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries)
· Isabelle Durant (Vice-President, European Parliament)
· Didier Reynders (Belgian Deputy Prime Minister; Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and European Affairs)
· David Sproule (Canadian Ambassador to Norway with responsibility for the Canadian International Centre for the Arctic Region)
· Hannu Halinen (Finnish Ambassador to the Arctic Council)
· Gustaf Lind (Swedish Ambassador to the Arctic Council)
· Else Berit Eikeland (Norwegian Ambassador to the Arctic Council)
· Erik Lorenzen (Danish Ambassador to the Arctic Council)
· Tómas Orri Ragnarsson (Counsellor on Arctic Affairs, Icelandic Ministry for Foreign Affairs)
· Richard Tibbels (Head, Eastern Partnership, Regional Cooperation and OSCE Division, European External Action Service)
· Gro Gunleiksrud Haatvedt (Senior Vice President for Exploration in Norway, Statoil)
· Jens Johan Hjort (Mayor of Tromsø)
· Reggie Joule (Mayor, Alaska's Northwest Arctic Borough)
· Michael Byers (Canada Research Chair (Tier 1) in Global Politics and International Law at the University of British Columbia)
· Peter Wadhams (Professor of Ocean Physics and Head of the Polar Ocean Physics Group, Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics, University of Cambridge)
· Helena Omma (Vice-Chair, World Reindeer Herders Associaton)
· Liisa Holmberg (Rector, Sami Education Institute)
· Rodion Sulyandziga (Chair, Center for the Support of Indigenous Peoples of the North)
· Gordon McBean (President, Canadian Climate Forum; Professor of Geography, University of Western Ontario)
· Konrad Steffen (Director, Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research)
· Olav Orheim (Chairman, GRID-Arendal)
· Agneta Fransson (Research scientist and ocean acidification expert, Norwegian Polar Institute)
· Seeta Sistla (NOAA Climate and Global Change Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Irvine)
· Peter Harrison (Professor, Director of the School of Policy Studies at Queen’s University; Chair of the IPY 2012 “From Knowledge to Action” conference)
· Harriet Kühnlein (Professor Emerita of Human Nutrition, McGill University; Founding Director, Centre for Indigenous Peoples Nutrition and Environment)
· Anders Marvik (Vice President and Head of Staoil EU Affairs Office)
· Julian Vangen (Fishing industry analyst, Norwegian Fishermen's Sales Organization)
· Paula Kankaanpää (Director, Arctic Centre, University of Lapland)
· Adam Stępień (Researcher, Arctic Centre, University of Lapland)
· Antoine Kedzierski (Policy officer, Transport & Environment)
· Kathrin Keil (Europe Director, Arctic Security, Cooperation, Resources and Institutions, the Arctic Institute)
· Sandra Rita Allnutt (Senior Technical Officer, Marine Technology Section, Maritime Safety Division, International Maritime Organization)
· Hans Bolscher (Associate Partner, Ecorys)
· Layla Hughes (Commissioner, Alaska Arctic Policy Commission)
· Arnoud Willeumier (Port of Rotterdam)
· Anders Backman (Head of Polar operations, Viking Supply Shipowners; University of Göthenberg)
The full symposium programme and biogrpahies of speakers can be found on the website of the Internatinal Polar Foundation at: www.arcticfutures.org.