Effects of massive melting of Arctic ice on the marine ecosystem
Johan Wikner, Department of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University.

Most parts of the Arctic Ocean are changing faster than our joint ability properly measure and document them, thereby also our collective ability to understand them. Wikner present a joint international synoptic study to better asses the status of the Arctic Ocean and better understand the large-scale effects of the rapid climate change.

Sami legal traditions and sustainable development
Malin Brännström, Department of Law, Umeå University.

Within local Sami communities there are unwritten rules on how land and water can be used. These legal traditions can contribute with knowledge about how the land and natural resources can be utilized in a sustainable way, also outside the Sami society. Accordingly, there is need to document local legal traditions. However, this can only be accomplished if Sami choose to be a part of such processes and share their knowledge.

Arctic ecosystems and our climate

Ellen Dorrepaal, Climate Impacts Research Centre, Dept. Of Ecology and Environmental Science, Umeå University.

The arctic plays a critical role in our climate system through feedbacks from natural ecosystems. Ellen Dorrepaal explains how frozen soils and open tundra do this, and how interactions between plants and microbes are key drivers of the feedback when permafrost soils thaw or forest moves into the arctic tundra.

Ocean Governance from an Indigenous Perspective
Margherita Paola Poto, JCLOS, UiT

The governance of the oceans has always been considered a “State-matter” without taking too much into account the symbiotic relationship between the sea and the peoples that depend on it, their observations, stories and cosmologies. My research shifts the focus on this relationship and on these stories.

Socioecological changes in the coastal Arctic
Vera Hausner, Arctic Sustainability Lab, Department of Arctic and Marine Biology, UiT-the Arctic University of Norway.

The accelerating warming trends and a prolonged season of open waters increases the opportunities for resource extraction, commercial fisheries, tourism and commerce through shipping routes. This will have implications for coastal ecosystems and communities. Hausner focuses on socioecological systems and reflects upon the need to deliver targeted and meaningful information for local decision makers and to effectively engage Arctic residents to prepare for change.

Synthesis vs Analysis in tacking energy related challenges in the Arctic
Matteo Chiesa, Department of Physics and Technology, UiT, the Arctic University of Norway.

The Arctic Center for Sustainable Energy ARC is to tackle energy related issues through synthesis, by integrating technologies while considering social issues, to create solutions for the problems we are facing.