For the past three weeks, a group of undergraduates from 11 countries has heard lectures, collected terrestrial and marine samples, climbed the steep slopes beneath bird colonies, and watched huge male walruses at arms length from small boats. I heard that on their 'rest' day they took an 11-hour hike. I know that a few of them (mostly the Norwegians, I hear) took a very short swim.

In the most recent 48 hours they have sorted their samples, identified their organisms, explored and analyzed their data, and produced a presentation and a poster. Along the way they confronted every incompatibility among operating systems, software versions, and analysis and visualization tools, worked long hours, and met deadlines. Then they impressed two Svalbard journalists with their enthusiasm. I often serve as an evaluator for young scientist posters, perhaps because I have substantial experience asking dumb questions and no apparent institutional bias. In the hundreds of posters I have evaluated, the five produced here in two days by teams of inexperienced researchers would rank among the best.

Liz Thomas and Melissa Rohde from APECS, along with Elise Stromseng from IPY-Norway and UNIS, have done a superb job to organize the summer school and to support the students every day. Hanna Christiansen from UNIS has developed and guided the academic programs and expeditions, and UNIS has served as an excellent host and location. Funding for the school came from IPY-Norway and University of the Arctic.

During this final week Jen Baeseman, the APECS Director, and I have talked to them about how to build attractive posters and how to make effective presentations. We can clearly see our advice and recommendations taking new and interesting forms in their products. Personally, I feel impressed and enthused, recharged and optimistic after only a few days in their company.