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 Today's Congressional Action:
The House and Senate are not in session.
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 Global Interest in the Arctic. On Tuesday, Alaska Public Radio will air an "Addressing Alaskans" feature with chair of the US Arctic Research Commission Fran Ulmer. " Addressing Alaskans" features local lectures and forums recorded at public events. In assuming chairmanship of the Arctic Council once again, the US has upped its attention to Arctic issues. On the heels of the Dept. of State's GLACIER conference in Anchorage, the Alaska World Affairs Council invited representatives from nations one wouldn't necessarily assume would have an interest in the Arctic. Their discussion with Fran Ulmer helps to show how this global interest is taking shape. Alaska Public Radio
Arctic Coastal Communities Prepare for Possibility of Cruise Ship Emergency. It had been an ordinary day in the small coastal city of Kotzebue until 120 foreigners on a German cruise liner made a surprise visit. The passengers had been redirected to the Arctic hub because weather had thwarted them from flying out of Nome, remembers Maija Lukin, now Kotzebue's mayor. The ship arrived in 2012, and she was a private citizen at the time. Alaska Dispatch News
 Caribou Hunting and Science. On Thursday, Alaska Public Radio will host a show on caribou hunting and science. Alaska's immense herds of caribou are one of the natural wonders of the world. Imagine seeing and hearing tens of thousands of animals migrating across the tundra. This edition of Outdoor Explorer is about these magnificent animals. We'll learn about the science and ecology of the herds, viewing them, and hunting. Caribou are a critical part of northern ecosystems, and an important source of meat for rural Alaskans and urban hunters. Alaska Public Radio
What Obama's Arctic Visit Might Mean for Paris. All eyes were on the U.S. state of Alaska last week, where a major Arctic conference was underway. The international event was called Global Leadership in the Arctic: Cooperation, Innovation, Engagement and Resilience, or GLACIER for short. It included foreign ministers from around the world along with scientists, indigenous leaders and policy makers form other Arctic regions. The event was capped with a major climate speech by U.S. President Barack Obama, who also spent time talking to local indigenous leaders and traveling to areas of the state already feeling the effects of the changing environment. Alaska Dispatch News
 Estimated 35,000 Walrus Come Ashore in Northwest Alaska. An estimated 35,000 Pacific walrus came ashore last week on Alaska's remote northwest coast, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Thursday, a September phenomenon tied to shrinking sea ice brought on by climate warming. Observers from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on Sept. 2 flew near Point Lay and photographed the animals, Fish and Wildlife spokeswoman Andrea Medeiros said by email. That was the same day President Barack Obama flew above the Arctic Circle to Kotzebue to showcase how human-influenced climate change is influencing Alaska's landscape. Alaska Dispatch News
Coast Guard Continues Studying Arctic Operations. The Coast Guard expects to conclude its Arctic Shield 2015 mission in mid-October, and service officials say the objectives thus far have been achieved. LT Veronica Colbath, a public affairs officer with the Coast Guard's Seventeenth District, said the Arctic mission objectives this year were to perform Coast Guard missions and activities in the Arctic, enhance Arctic Maritime Domain Awareness, broaden partnerships and enhance and improve preparedness, prevention and response capabilities. Arctic Shield kicked off in June, deploying cutters, aircraft and personnel to the region to engage in operations encompassing the wide range of Coast Guard missions in the vicinity of the Bering Strait, Alaska's North Slope and Outer Continental Shelf, and the Chukchi and Beaufort Seas. "We are extremely pleased with the adaptability and professionalism of our crews. All the men and women that participated in the planning and mission execution of Arctic Shield ensured the above objectives were met," Colbath said. Sea Power Magazine
Climate Research: Where is the World's Permafrost Thawing? This Saturday at a conference in Quebec, Canada an international research team will present the first online data portal on global permafrost. In the Global Terrestrial Network for Permafrost researchers first collect all the existing permafrost temperature and active thickness layer data from Arctic, Antarctic and mountain permafrost regions and then make it freely available for download. This new portal can serve as an early warning system for researchers and decision-makers around the globe. A detailed description of the data collection is published today in an open access article on the Earth System Science Data portal. Phys.Org
 Shell's Big Gamble: Oil Wrangling on the North Slope. Shell Oil Co.'s president Marvin Odum made the trip on Sept. 2 from Houston, Texas, to Barrow, a town whose traditional name, Ukpeagvik, means "place where snowy owls are hunted." Odum is here hunting, too, for oil offshore and political support from Alaska Natives living in Barrow, a ramshackle town of muddy streets, littered with all-terrain vehicles and guarded by snow fences on one side and on the other a four-foot-high earthen berm to protect against high winds and seas. Alaska Dispatch News
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Legislative Action
No Arctic legislation was formally considered Friday.
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Future Events
CSIS. Arctic Transformation: Understanding Arctic Research and the Vital   Role of Science, September 16, 2015, 8:30 am to 12:30 pm, Washington, DC. Co-organized by the Senate Arctic Caucus and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). Featuring opening remarks by Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and Angus King (I-ME). With a keynote address by Dr. John Holdren, Chair, Arctic Executive Steering Committee, Director of OSTP, The White House. Panelists include Larry Hinzman, Richard Glenn, George Roe, Paul Mayewski, Martin Jeffries, Kelly Falkner, John Farrell, and Cathy Cahill. CSIS's Senior VP, Heather Conley, will moderate.
Eighth Polar Law Symposium Alaska 2015, September 23-26, 2015 (Fairbanks and Anchorage, Alaska , USA). The Eighth Polar Law Symposium is co-hosted by Alaska Pacific University (APU), the University of Alaska Fairbanks, the University of Alaska Anchorage (through its Justice Center and its Institute of Social and Economic Research), the University of Washington School of Law, and Vermont Law School, in cooperation with the Arctic Law Section of the Alaska Bar Association. The symposium will be held on both campuses of the University of Alaska. The 2015 theme is: The Science, Scholarship, and Practice of Polar Law: Strengthening Arctic Peoples and Places.
2015 Arctic Energy Summit, September 28-30, 2015 (Fairbanks, Alaska, USA). The Institute of the North's 2015 Arctic Energy Summit builds on our legacy efforts to address energy as a fundamental element of the sustainable development of the Arctic as a lasting frontier.Central to this concept is a focus on providing pathways for affordable energy development in the Arctic and for Arctic communities.
The Arctic Circle is the largest global gathering on the Arctic. It is attended by heads of state and governments, ministers, members of parliament, officials, experts, scientists, entrepreneurs, business leaders, indigenous representatives, environmentalists, students, activists, and others from the growing international community of partners and participants interested in the future of the Arctic. The Arctic Circle highlights issues and concerns, programs, policies and projects; it provides platforms for dynamic dialogue and constructive cooperation. While the plenary sessions are the responsibility of the Arctic Circle, the breakout sessions are organized by various participating partners in their own name and with full authority over the agenda and the choice of speakers.
2015 Arctic Science Conference, October 1-3, 2015 (Anchorage, Alaska, USA). The conference theme is "Healthy Estuaries: Sustainability and Resilience." Conference topics include traditional scientific disciplines, science education, arctic social sciences, biomedical research, and artistic interpretation of the evolving North. Abstract submissions are now being accepted. The deadline is August 1, 2015.
The Polar Oceans and Global Climate Change, November 3-6, 2015 (La Jolla, California USA). The American Polar Society will host this Symposium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography. A flyer with a partial list of presenters is available on the Society's website (americanpolar.org) and from the Society's Membership Chairman by email.
Forum for Arctic Modeling and Observational Synthesis Meeting, November 3-6, 2015 (Cape Cod, MA, USA). On November 3rd, the 2015 School for young scientists will consider "Regional Oceanography of the Arctic marginal seas" with lectures covering major features of atmospheric, sea ice and oceanographic regimes of the: Bering, Chukchi, Beaufort, East-Siberian, Laptev Sea, Kara, Barents and Nordic seas. On November 4-6, the meeting portion will summarize project accomplishments for the last 3 years of activities and will focus on the formulation of scientific questions and directions for FAMOS future research (2016-2019) to: (a) improve Arctic modeling, employing very high resolution models; (b) develop and test new arctic monitoring/observing systems and (c) improve predictions of Arctic environmental parameters with reduced uncertainties.
Due North: Next Generation Arctic Research & Leadership, November 5-8, 2015 (Calgary, Alberta, Canada). The Association of Canadian Universities for Northern Studies (ACUNS) will convene an interdisciplinary conference of early career scientists working on Arctic issues. Topics will include: Arctic Communities, Arctic Sustainable Development, Arctic Wildlife, Ecosystem and Biodiversity, Arctic Food Security, Arctic Landscapes, Climate Change and Adaptation, Disaster Risk Management, Policy, Politics and Leadership, Arctic Environment (Data and Techniques), Arctic Resources, and Future of Arctic.
Arctic Observing Open Science Meeting, November 17-19, 2015 (Seattle, Washington). The Arctic Observing Open Science Meeting will be 2.5 days and held at the Hyatt at Olive 8 in Seattle, Washington. The conference will bring together individuals and teams involved in the collection, processing, analysis, and use of observations in the Arctic - from academia, agencies, industry, and other organizations. The meeting will be convened as a combination of plenary talks, parallel science sessions, and a poster session. The agenda and registration information will be forthcoming.
In the Spirit of the Rovaniemi Process 2015, November 24-26, 2015 (Rovaniemi, Lapland, Finland).When the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy, the so-called Rovaniemi Process, was adopted in 1991, it aimed at overcoming divisions and turning the zone of Cold War military tensions into a region of peace and co-operation. In this joint effort focusing on the protection of environment, and later, sustainable development, the Arctic states supported by indigenous organizations laid grounds for institutionalized collaboration and the emergence of Arctic regional identity. The second international conference will bring together decision-makers, scholars, artists, designers and students to address these questions and discuss the Arctic in global, regional and local perspectives.
Arctic Encounter Paris (AEP 2015), December 11-12, 2015 (Paris, France) (During the UN Convention on Climate Change - COP21). The Arctic Encounter Paris will take place at the French Senate at Luxembourg Palace and the French Military College, École Militaire, in Paris, France, on the final days of the monumental United Nations Convention on Climate Change (COP 21) where thousands of global citizens and government delegates will be gathered to deliberate the world's response to our changing planet in Paris. The AEP is the only Arctic policy side event current planned to take place during the UN Convention. A cocktail reception will take place following the closing panel.
3rd Annual Arctic Encounter Symposium (AES 2016), January 15-16, 2016 (Seattle, WA, USA). Building upon the preceding Arctic Encounter event in Paris, the third annual Arctic Encounter Symposium (AES) in Seattle, Washington will convene policymakers, industry leaders, and leading experts to confront the leading issues in Arctic policy, innovation, and development. As the largest annual Arctic policy event in the United States, the AES mission is to raise awareness, engage challenges, and develop solutions for the future of a region and a people. The two-day program includes two keynote luncheons, expert plenary sessions, break out sessions, a networking cocktail reception and seated dinner. A closing reception will take place at the conclusion of the program. The third annual AES at the University of Washington with a dinner reception at the Museum of History and Industry on South Lake Union, Seattle.
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