To: ICSU/WMO IPY Project Leaders REF: The SCAR/IASC International Scientific Organizing Committee request input from ICSU/WMO IPY science program leaders regarding the content of the science program. From 8-11 July, 2008; the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) and the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) will jointly sponsor the third Open Science Conference in St. Petersburg, Russia. The SCAR Open Science Conference is rapidly becoming a marquee event for the presentation and exchange of the latest developments in polar science. The previous two Conferences included on average 1000 participants and ~600 oral and poster presentations. Numerous workshops, meetings, planning efforts, and events occur in the margins of the meetings....

DRAFT 19th April, 2007 The Smithsonian Institution will host a polar science symposium as one of the inaugural U.S. contributions to celebrate the International Polar Year 2007-2008. "Smithsonian at the Poles: Contributions to International Polar Year Science" is scheduled for Thursday and Friday, May 3-4 at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History and the Smithsonian Institution Building (Castle) in Washington, D.C. The symposium, which is also supported by the National Science Foundation, will present research findings by Smithsonian scholars and their collaborators from Arctic and Antarctic research, with particular attention to changes in polar systems past, present and future, and their global impact. The symposium will ...

The Arctic Centre of the University of Lapland is pleased to announce the opening of its fully renewed permanent exhibition on 18th of April, 2007, in Arktikum house in Rovaniemi. The exhibition opening is one of the highlights of Finnish IPY activities. "The Arctic in Change" exhibition offers the visitors a journey through the Arctic world today. The exhibition promotes the natural beauty and the cultural richness of the Arctic, while it informs the visitors about the ongoing rapid social and environmental changes occurring in the fragile Arctic. Set up in a friendly environment, the exhibition combines multimedia shows, interactive stations, artefacts and photo enlargements. The exhibition revolves around the ongoing changes in the Arctic and illuminate...

National UK Children’s Art Competition Today, the Muscular Dystrophy Campaign announced its Young Pavement Artists Competition 2007 and is on the look out for the next Picasso. Young people in the UK aged 4-19 are invited to take part in the national art-based, educational and fundraising initiative where they get the chance to create their masterpieces on a novel canvas – the pavement. To coincide with the International Polar Year (IPY), the theme is the Arctic and Antarctic, home of polar bears and penguins. Mark Speight, from Children’s BBC and president of the Young Pavement Artists Competition said: “Pavement art ca...

The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) seeks an Executive Officer to assist in the running of the SCAR Secretariat. SCAR is a body of the International Council for Science (ICSU). It facilitates and coordinates Antarctic research and identifies issues emerging from greater scientific understanding of the region that should be brought to the attention of policy makers. Its objectives and activities are described on the SCAR web site at http://www.scar.org. The primary tasks of the Executive Officer are: - to assist the Executive Director in the day-to-day operation of the Secretariat including supervising staff, coordinating programmes, analysing scientific issues concerning the A...

The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) seeks an Executive Officer to assist in the running of the SCAR Secretariat. SCAR is a body of the International Council for Science (ICSU). It facilitates and coordinates Antarctic research and identifies issues emerging from greater scientific understanding of the region that should be brought to the attention of policy makers. Its objectives and activities are described on the SCAR web site at http://www.scar.org. The primary tasks of the Executive Officer are: - to assist the Executive Director in the day-to-day operation of the Secretariat including supervising staff, coordinating programmes, analysing scientific issues concerning the A...

Exploratorium Webcast with the South Pole: Celebrating the International Polar Year 10:30 PM PDT, March 30, 2007 http://www.exploratorium.edu/poles In a special live Webcast, educators at the Exploratorium will connect with scientists and engineers at the South Pole to kick off the International Polar Year, 2007-9. We'll talk about the history of IPY, including the IGY of 1957-8 which established the first permanent research station at the South Pole. We'll also check in with scientists spending the winter in the coldest, darkest science location in the world. They'll give updates on the IceCube neutrino telescope and the brand-new 10-meter South Pol...

In its Edinburgh Declaration on the International Polar Year 2007-2008, the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting said: “We, the Antarctic Treaty Parties, express our support for a successful International Polar Year. We believe that the scientific research undertaken during the International Polar Year will increase knowledge of the Antarctic and will yield a better understanding of the major terrestrial, ocean and atmospheric systems that control the planet. The polar regions are sensitive barometers of climate change, and we value their biodiversity. Their health is vital to the well-being of the earth’s systems and its inhabitants.” This International Polar Year builds on the historic achievements of the three previous initiatives which took place ...

Exploratorium Webcast with the South Pole: Celebrating the International Polar Year 10:30 PM PDT, March 30, 2007 http://www.exploratorium.edu/poles In a special live Webcast, educators at the Exploratorium will connect with scientists and engineers at the South Pole to kick off the International Polar Year, 2007-9. We'll talk about the history of IPY, including the IGY of 1957-8 which established the first permanent research station at the South Pole. We'll also check in with scientists spending the winter in the coldest, darkest science location in the world. They'll give updates on the IceCube neutrino telescope and the brand-new 10-meter South Pol...

The University of Texas at Austin Office of Public Affairs is providing the following news release from the recently held West Antarctic Links to Sea-Level Estimation (WALSE) Workshop. The article will also be posted in the "News Releases" section of the Office of Public Affairs Web site. 28th March, 2007 Statement: Thinning of West Antarctic Ice Sheet Demands Improved Monitoring to Reduce Uncertainty over Potential Sea-Level Rise AUSTIN, Texas-Polar ice experts from Europe and the United States, meeting to pursue greater scientific consensus over the fate of the world's largest fresh water reservoir, the West Antarctic Ice Sheet, conclud...