WorldChanging's Geoff Manaugh writes a long an interesting piece on the likely ways in which Antarctica may change in the coming decades. He's not just talking about climate change — there is also the fact that increased human visitation is raising the chances of new species taking root on the continent, altering the local ecosystem.

Geoff also looks at what's being done to reduce the risk of these alien species taking hold. He covers the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting in Edinburgh this past June, and notes that the IPY is also set to tackle the question of Antarctica's enivronmental fitness. Well worth reading.