He recalls that his passion for the extreme probably began when he first saw the snow, during a school holiday at New Zealand's Tongariro National Park, at the age of sixteen. He was a young teenager living in the countryside and he had never seen the magic of snow. Since that day, Sir Edmund Hillary has spent a great deal of his life amid snow and ice, blizzards and storms, high snowy peaks close to the sky and turbulent rivers flowing down to the sea. In May 1953 he was the first to reach the summit of Mt Everest – with Tenzing Norgay. Thanks to that success another great adventure would keep him close to snow and ice for almost two years: the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic Expedition (TAE), a joint-venture between Great Britain and New Zealand that aimed to cross Antarc...

Janneke de Vries writes: The Forum on Biological Prospecting has been established and a call for submissions has been posted on the forum. Thanks to the colleagues who responded already to take part in the ICG. The work will be conducted in accordance with the following time table: 30 November 2007: Deadline for submissions on the web forum; 31 December 2007: Circulation of draft report of the ICG to the participants in the ICG; 28 February 2008: Deadline for comments on the web forum on the draft report of the ICG; 31 March 2008: Submission of report of the ICG to the ...

EcoKids is Earth Day Canada’s program for kids who care about the planet. Our website has tons of fun and educational games and activities on a range of environmental topics. Our 2007 theme is ‘Exploring Canada’s North’. We have created a new informational section for this theme along with the following online features: Northern Seasons – A glimpse of the landscape through the four seasons in Canada’s north. Mush Rush – A game that puts you in the driver’s seat of a dogsled team. Canada’s North Quizzes – Three challenging quizzes about the environment, wildlife and people in the north. Eco-Field Guide Northern Organisms – Information about 24 different species of fl...

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ANTARCTICA: LIFE ON THE ICE explores life at the bottom of the world What is it like to live in the most desolate place on the planet? The newest collection from outdoorswoman and writer Susan Fox Rogers brings together twenty scientists, writers and workers who tell their dramatic, funny, often moving tales of daily life amidst the ice and isolation of Antarctica. Realizing her childhood dream of walking in the footsteps of Antarctic explorers, editor Rogers spent six weeks on the Ice learning the ways of the penguin researchers, ice diggers, atmospheric scientists, cooks, pilots, and others who are drawn, almost mystically, to the most foreboding climate one can imagine. “I traveled to the Antarctic bec...

The exhibition has been open for over four months now and has seen the graduation of countless ice cadets. If you are yet to visit the exhibition, here is a virtual tour showing some of the exciting things you are missing out on. It all begins with a briefing from Sanjit, our Ice Station Commander, who will guide us through our Antarctic adventure. We soon learn of the perils that lie ahead as we enter the freezer room. This is set at a chilling -10ºC and you wou...

Contents: 1. Reminder: Joint Committee Assessment 2. Reminder: AGU 3. IPY Science Days 4. Young and Early Career Polar Researchers 5. Polar Ambassadors 6. Observational Legacies From: IPY International Programme Office To: IPY Project Coordinators cc: IPY Community Google Groups 1. Reminder: Joint Committee Assessment As described in our September 2007 report, we solicit input from IPY Project Coordinators and from IPY National Committees for the IPY Joint Committee meeting later this month. The Joint Committee will assess the overall IPY programme as it exists, and welcomes comment on any aspects of IPY, particularly on actions or changes that could he...

Who says you can't be green in Antarctica? At the Australian Mawson station in East Antarctica, two wind turbines have been generating part of the station’s electricity since 2003. At wind speeds above 12 m/s — a common occurrences during eleven months of the year — the wind turbines are capable of generating 100% of the electricity needed by the station for long periods of time. The wind turbines have led to monthly savings in diesel fuel use of up to 58%. Over 10,000 litres of fuel are saved per month, significantly reducing the emissions of carbon dioxide that contribute to global warming. For more information on renewable power sources tried and tested for the polar regions, check out the ...

Educational posters for the International Polar Year: First announcement, and call for partnerships UNEP/GRID-Arendal For further information, please go to: http://polar.grida.no/ipyposters UNEP Key Polar Centre at UNEP/GRID-Arendal has received support from the Research Council of Norway (Forskningsradet) to prepare a set of posters for the International Polar Year (IPY). This project supports the education, outreach, and communication efforts of IPY. The posters will primarily present polar science and issues and secondarily create awareness of IPY and its research activities. The main objective is to try to answer the question: Why, and how, are the ...

New Generation of Polar Researchers (NGPR) Symposium, Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA, 4-11 May 2008 Application Deadline: Monday, 15 October 2007 For further information, please go to: http://www.disccrs.org/ngpr/ Advanced students and PhD graduates conducting research in the Arctic or Antarctic during the International Polar Year are invited to apply for the New Generation of Polar Researchers (NGPR) Symposium being held on 4-11 May 2008 in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Applications must be submitted by Monday, 15 October 2007. Complete application information is available at: ...

Shaktoolik, Alaska: Proposed Study on Local Knowledge of Sea Ice and Weather Conditions and Approaches to Adaptation to Climate/Environmental Change Part of IPY project 166: Sea Ice Knowledge and Use (SIKU) Report on the pilot visit, September 2-13, 2007 By Dr. Anja Nicole Stuckenberger, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH, USA The study of Inuit/Iñupiaq cultural knowledge and adaptation to climate/environmental change that I envision as my contribution to the SIKU project will take place in two Arctic communities: the Iñupiat village of Shaktoolik in Norton Sound, Alaska (population 180) and the Inuit villag...