The overall focus of the ECOGREEN consortium is to establish the scientific basis for a long-term ecosystem-based management of marine resources in West Greenland. The West Greenland society relies almost entirely on marine resources for industrial as well as subsistence utilisation. Today, the West Greenland marine ecosystem is very productive and sustains fisheries which contribute 95% of Greenland’s total export value. The Greenland Marine ecosystem also sustains seals and whales who feed in the area during summer, and, from the entire North Atlantic, seabirds by the million find a critical winter habitat resource in the ice-free area. Human use of the West Greenland marine ecosystem presents a complex mosaic of small- and large-scale commercial fishing, as well as subsistence and recreational fishing and hunting.

Some of the most dramatic weather events – including spring thaws, sea ice movements and the strong winds and high seas associated with severe winter cyclones – occur in the polar regions, and being able to forecast these events more accurately is crucial for mitigating their impact on local communities, fisheries, wildlife, energy production and transport. Using satellite data, this 15-nation project will help design the next generation of observing networks that are needed to improve our ability to forecast “high impact” weather events in polar regions.

The Greenland Ice Sheet is an outstanding archive of information about what the Earth’s climate was like in the past, and the water locked in its ice will have a major impact on sea level rise due to climate change. Because of this, understanding how Greenland will react to global warming is crucially important. By gathering seismic data, ice cores and using radar, laser ranging and echo sounders, this project will shed new light on the Greenland Ice Sheet and improve scientists’ ability to model how it will react to climate change.

International summit and working group conference on the development and deployment of energy resources in the Arctic including remote and rural villages Focusing on the Arctic as an emerging energy province, the Arctic Energy Summit is comprised of a web-based educational program, an international technology conference to be held in Anchorage, Alaska Oct. 14-18, 2007 and the creation of an arctic energy task force to develop a vision and programmatic way forward related to the development and deployment of Arctic energy.

The West Antarctic Ice Sheet is currently undergoing rapid change, in particular over the Amundsen Sea Emabayment (ASE) region, and this may lead to accelerated future sea-level rise. Previous aerogeophysical investigations over the Siple Coast reveal that the geology of the West Antarctic Rift System may strongly modulate the dynamics of fast-flowing glaciers that drain the West Antarctic Ice Sheet. But what are the interplays between the virtually unknown sub-ice geology and the apparently thinning and retreating ASE glaciers, such as Pine Island Glacier and Thwaites Glacier? We will utilise new airborne geophysical data collected by UK, US and German teams over the ASE region to provide a unique window on the lithospheric cradle for the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and to study the geodynamics of the largest glaciated rift system on Earth.

Climate of the Arctic and its role for Europe/Arctic System Reanalysis The overall objective of IPY-CARE (International Polar Year - Climate of the Arctic and its Role for Europe) is to create, co-ordinate and prepare a Pan-European science and implementation plan for Arctic climate change and ecosystems research programme as contribution to the International Polar Year.

Links between Climate and Human Well-being This project, involving scientists in the U.S., Canada, Russia, Sweden, Germany, and Japan, will document changes in large-scale disturbances (permafrost thaw, fire, insect outbreaks, and forest harvest) occurring throughout the Arctic. We focus especially on the effects of disturbance on future climate, ecosystem change, and the benefits that society receives from ecosystems.

Changing Trends in Polar Research as Reflected in the History of the International Polar Years The aim of the project is to study to what degree research in the Arctic and Antarctic during the first three International polar years primarily was driven by scientific criteria. To what extent were compromises made in the light of political barriers, territorial borders of circumpolar countries and logistical limitations? Employing historical perspectives we will review essential background factors during international workshops and conferences.