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White House Arctic Science Ministerial 
Today, science ministers from 24 countries and the EU, and representatives from indigenous groups, will gather in Washington, DC, for the first-ever White House Arctic Science Ministerial. This invitation-only, working meeting will expand joint collaborations focused on Arctic science, research, observations, monitoring, and data-sharing. The goals are to advance promising, near-term science initiatives and create a context for increased international scientific collaboration on the Arctic over the longer term.
Specifically, the Ministerial will focus on four key themes:
1. Arctic Science Challenges and their Regional and Global Implications.
2. Strengthening and Integrating Arctic Observations and Data Sharing.
3. Applying Expanded Scientific Understanding of the Arctic to Build
Regional Resilience and Shape Global Responses.
4. Arctic Science as a Vehicle for STEM Education and Citizen Empowerment.
President Obama's Science Advisor, Dr. John Holdren, will Chair the meeting, and Ms. Fran Ulmer (USARC) and Dr. France Cordova (NSF) will serve as Vice Chairs.
The outcome of the meeting, including an agenda, a joint statement, a fact sheet, and a compilation of 2-page descriptions of each nation's Arctic research program, will be published by USARC and available at www.arctic.gov after the ministerial meeting, probably in October.
Today's Congressional Action:
The Senate is expected to consider short-term legislation to fund government operations after September 30th. The House is expected to consider the Water Resources Development Act.
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Media
WH Hosts Alaskan Climate Change Event. Alaska's former Lt. Gov. Fran Ulmer and scientist Jeremy Mathis join Morning Joe to discuss the first-ever White House Arctic Science Ministerial. MSNBC
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| | Photo credit- U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Connie Terrell. |
Science Ministers Meet Today to Protect a Warming North. Science ministers from around the world are converging on Washington, D.C., today to discuss how Arctic warming is affecting life in the north and complicating global climate responses. White House science adviser John Holdren is hosting the inaugural event at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, where ministers from 25 countries and representatives of six Arctic indigenous groups are expected to meet. "The Arctic region is warming faster than anywhere else on earth," Holdren and Arctic Executive Steering Committee Executive Director Mark Brzezinski wrote in a column in The Huffington Post. "Because of feedback loops and propagating effects, moreover, those changes are accelerating the rate of climate change worldwide, ultimately impacting societies everywhere, not just those in or immediately adjacent to the Arctic region." E&E News
Arctic Indigenous Leaders Share Priorities in Advance of White House Arctic Science Ministerial. President Obama visited Alaska in 2015 to observe first-hand the extreme disruptions affecting the Arctic region due to climate change and highlight the role of science in understanding and responding to these changes. While there, he spent time listening to the people who live in Alaska, to learn how climate change is impacting their way of life. Communities around the world are dealing with the effects of climate change, but changes are happening most rapidly and dramatically in the Arctic region. Alaskan communities that have relied on traditional ways of life for centuries are seeing their homes threatened by storm surges and coastal erosion, their land altered by thawing permafrost, and their food security at risk as changes to the ecosystem threaten subsistence hunting and gathering. White House  White House: No Nation an Island on Arctic Science. Cabinet members and high-ranking science advisors from 25 governments will convene on the White House tomorrow to discuss the Arctic. It's billed as the first-ever White House Arctic Science Ministerial. The aim is to pool science resources from around the globe to better understand the rapid changes in the Arctic and also what those changes mean for other regions. "The Arctic is a foreshadow. It's an augury. It's a preview of what is coming our way in the rest of the world," says Mark Brzezinski, the top White House liaison to the Arctic. "The sooner and the more effectively we get in front of that scientifically, the better off we all will be." Alaska Public Radio How Will Arctic Shipping Affect Maritime Law? On October 5, law firm Verrill Dana and oceanographic organization MOTN will host a symposium on "Marine Technology and the North,"timed to coincide with the international Arctic Council meeting in Portland, Maine. The conference is intended to highlight the value of new marine technologies that are well-adapted to the Actic, but also to discuss polar politics, economic opportunities and legal considerations. MarEx spoke recently with Ben Ford, an admiralty lawyer with Verrill Dana and an organizer for the conference, on how the opening of the Arctic will affect shipping. Maritime Executive The World Passes 400 PPM Threshold. Permanently. In the centuries to come, history books will likely look back on September 2016 as a major milestone for the world's climate. At a time when atmospheric carbon dioxide is usually at its minimum, the monthly value failed to drop below 400 parts per million. That all but ensures that 2016 will be the year that carbon dioxide officially passed the symbolic 400 ppm mark, never to return below it in our lifetimes, according to scientists. Climate Central  Nunavut Stresses Prevention on World Rabies Day, September 28. On Sept. 28, World Rabies Day, the Government of Nunavut is urging Nunavummiut to protect themselves and their loved ones by getting their pets vaccinated. Rabies, a deadly virus that can infect animals and humans, affects the central nervous system, causing a disease in the brain which can prove fatal. Early symptoms of rabies include fever, headache and general weakness. If rabies progresses untreated, it can cause insomnia, anxiety, confusion, partial paralysis, hallucinations, an increase in saliva and difficulty swallowing. Nunatsiaq Online Yukon's Climate, Notoriously Cold in Gold Rush Days, Expected to Transform in Coming Decades. In the days of poet Robert Service more than a century ago, Canada's Yukon territory was almost as notorious for its fierce cold as it was for the powerful gold fever that gripped stampeders who rushed into the Klondike. "Talk of your cold! through the parka's fold/ It stabbed like a driven nail," the Bard of the Yukon wrote in a poem that told the tale of a Gold Rush miner who got warm only when his corpse was cremated. Alaska Dispatch News Suicide Prevention Requires Federal Help, Nunavut and Northern Leaders Say. Northern Canada needs more money, cultural support and long-term funding stability from the federal government if it hopes to reduce the alarmingly high rate of suicide throughout the territory. That's according to the Nunavut cabinet minister responsible for suicide prevention, George Hickes, and a host of other northern witnesses who testified before a House of Commons standing committee hearing Sept. 23 at Iqaluit's Frobisher Inn. The standing committee on Indigenous and northern affairs wants to gather information for a report on the factors contributing to Indigenous suicide, expected to be tabled in the House of Commons early in 2017. Nunatsiaq Online  Flies Are Key Pollinators of the High Arctic.
Forget the view of the Arctic as an icy desert devoid of life. The Arctic summer is buzzing with insects - and here as everywhere else, plants rely on them for pollination. But who are the insects driving the pollination services across the Arctic? A new study finds the biggest heroes among the most modest of animals: small flies related to our common house fly. This finding offers cause for concern, as arctic fly abundances are declining as the Arctic continues to warm. Researchers from Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Canada have focused on a single but common arctic plant: the mountain avens (Dryas). They first recorded what insects visited the flowers of avens at 15 sites in northeast Greenland, then returned to score the seed set of these flowers. The results were clear: the more of the house fly -like flies (family Muscidae) that were present, the more flowers set seed. And even among these flies, a single super-hero emerged: what best explained seed set was the abundance of a single fly, Spilogona sanctipauli. Phys.Org
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Legislative Action.gif "futureevents")
No Arctic legislation was formally considered yesterday.
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Future Events
National Academies of Sciences..."Scientific Priorities for a Changing Arctic(panel discussion)," September 29, 4:00 to 6:30pm (Washington, DC. The public is invited to a recap and discussion of the first-ever White House Arctic Science Ministerial taking place, in Washington, DC, on September 28. At that event, ministers of science, chief science advisors, and other senior officials from countries around the world, as well as representatives from indigenous groups, will address the collective actions and innovative collaborations
 needed to enhance scientific understanding of the rapidly changing Arctic. This Academies' event and reception provides an opportunity to broaden the conversation to all those interested in the Arctic science and policy. Panelists will include officials from the White House, from the USARC, and others involved in the ministerial discussions.
As an exciting cultural addition to the program, producers of a new large format 3D film about Greenland will share their storytelling strategies and the process of using immersive cinema, virtual reality and the perspectives of climate scientists and  extreme athletes to expand public understanding of the Arctic environment. Presenters will represent producing partners Giant Screen Films, Teton Gravity Research, and Golden Gate 3D. Support for this event is provided by USARC and the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. Please register
Arctic Economic Council: Building the Bridge Between Arctic Research/ Academia and Business Through Technology, September 29, 2016 (Washington, DC USA). This Arctic Science Ministerial side event, sponsored by the Arctic Economic Council, will explore value propositions for public-private partnerships for effective pan-Arctic knowledge and data exchange. Industry, research and technology experts will convene at the Embassy of Finland to address challenges and innovative tools for building the knowledge bridge between research and business communities. 9:30 am to 11:15 am at 3301 Mass. Ave., NW. Doors open at 9:00 am. Space is limited and RSVP is required for security purposes. Please RSVP by September 26 to anu@arcticeconomiccouncil.com
Media Coverage in the Arctic: News from the North: What's Happening in the Arctic is no Longer Staying in the Arctic, September 29, 2016 (Washington, DC USA). High North News will host on Capitol Hill, a lunchtime discussion on media coverage of the Arctic. The luncheon begins at 12:30 pm, at the Oracle Townhouse, 27 D Street, SE, Washington, DC. RSVP is required, contact Berit Enge (berit.enge@highnorthnews.com)
106th Commission Meeting of the US Arctic Research Commission. September 29-30, 2016 (Washington, DC USA). The U.S. Arctic Research Commission will hold its 106th meeting in Washington, DC, on September 29-30, 2016. The business sessions, open to the public, will convene at 8:30 a.m. at the U.S. Global Change Research Program, 1800 G St. NW., #9100, Conf. Rm. A, Washington, DC 20006. The focus of this meeting will include reports and updates on programs and research projects affecting Alaska and the greater Arctic.
 The daylong conference at the University of Southern Maine will address challenges and opportunities for Arctic science, business, shipping, security and governance. Speakers will include Sen. Angus S. King (I-Maine) and co-chair of U.S. Senate Arctic Caucus (Invited); Craig Fleener, Special Asst. on Arctic Policy, State of Alaska, Prof. Charles Norchi, Dir. Center for Oceans and Coastal Law, Univ. of Maine School of Law, Ambassador David Balton, Chair of the Senior Arctic Officials and Tara Sweeney, Arctic Economic Council Chair and Executive Vice President, External Affairs, Arctic Slope Regional Corporation. Event sponsored by Pierce Atwood LLP and Univ. of Southern Maine on behalf of the Maine and Alaska Arctic Council Host Committees.
Arctic Ambitions V: International Business Conference & Trade Show, October 4-5, 2016 (Anchorage, Alaska, USA). This once-a-year event uniquely focuses on business and investment opportunities flowing from developments in the Arctic. With interest in commercial development in the Arctic growing rapidly, WTC Anchorage initiated the Arctic Ambitions conference five years ago to address issues such as innovation, investment, infrastructure development, transportation, natural resources, and trade. At the event, corporate executives and senior government officials from across the Arctic, and around the world, make presentations and participate in panel discussions. This year's conference also includes a Trade Show and B2B Matchmaking Session. For more information, please contact Greg Wolf ( greg@wtcak.org) or call 907-278-7233.
56th Annual Air & Waste Management Association Conference October 5-7, 2016 (Juneau, AK USA). Come join us at the Pacific Northwest International Section's (PNWIS) annual conference in Juneau and connect with many of the region's top environmental professionals. Catch up on the latest developments in arctic related regulatory policy and law, environmental science and technology, environmental modeling, and other topics over three days of parallel technical sessions. PNWIS is a catalyst for environmental leadership by providing a neutral forum for discussion, education, and networking on technical issues relating to environmental management in the U.S., Alaska, the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada. Exhibitor booths will be on display and you can attend a keynote speech by the Deputy Commissioner of the AK Department of Environmental Conservation, Alice Edwards.
 20th Biennial Inuit Studies Conference: Inuit Traditions. October 7-10, 2016 (St. Johns, Newfoundland and Labrador). Inuit traditions are a repository of Inuit culture and a primary expression of Inuit identity. The theme for the 2016 Inuit Studies Conference invites Elders, knowledge-bearers, researchers, artists, policy-makers, students and others to engage in conversations about the many ways in which traditions shape understanding, while registering social and cultural change. The institutional hosts of "Inuit Traditions," Memorial University of Newfoundland and the Nunatsiavut Government, invite you to contribute to an exchange of knowledge to be held in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador, October 7-10, 2016. Presentations on all aspects of Inuit studies will be welcome.
Arctic Circle Assembly. October 7-9, 2016 (Reykjavik, Iceland). The Arctic Circle is the largest network of international dialogue and cooperation on the future of the Arctic. It is an open democratic platform with participation from governments, organizations, corporations, universities, think tanks, environmental associations, indigenous communities, concerned citizens, and others interested in the development of the Arctic and its consequences for the future of the globe. It is a nonprofit and nonpartisan organization.In addition to the annual Assemblies, the Arctic Circle organizes Forums on specific areas of Arctic cooperation.
Arctic Technology Conference, October 24-26, 2016 (St. John's, Canada). Founded in 1969, the Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) is the world's foremost event for the development of offshore resources in the fields of drilling, exploration, production and environmental protection. The Arctic Technology Conference (ATC) is built upon OTC's successful multidisciplinary approach, with 14 technical societies and organizations working together to deliver the world's most comprehensive Arctic event.
Fulbright Arctic Week. October 25-27 (Washington, DC) The 18-month Fulbright Arctic Initiative supports U.S. priorities on Arctic issues and increasing mutual understanding between Americans and those in other countries. As a culmination of the program, 17 scholars will be presenting their work at public events. Other invited speakers will include officials from the Inuit Circumpolar Council, Arctic Executive Steering Committee, and U.S. Arctic Youth Ambassadors, among other. For more information, please visit the Fulbright Arctic Week website and/or register your interest for updates.
October 25, 2-5:30pm - Smithsonian Natural History Museum
October 26, 2-5pm - Arctic Policy Dialogue at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
October 27, 9am-4:30pm - Fulbright Arctic Symposium at the National Academy of Sciences (Constitution Ave. location)
Towing Safety Advisory Committee, October 2016 Meeting, October 26-27, 2016 (Washington, DC USA). The Towing Safety Advisory Committee will meet in Washington, DC, to review and discuss recommendations from its Subcommittees and to receive briefs. This committee is established in accordance with, and operates under the provisions of, the Federal Advisory Committee Act. As stated in 33 U.S.C. 1231a, the Towing Safety Advisory Committee provides advice and recommendations to the Department of Homeland Security on matters relating to shallow-draft inland and coastal waterway navigation and towing safety.
Annual Scientific Meeting 2016, December 5-9, 2016 (Winnipeg, MP Canada). ArcticNet will host its 12th Annual Scientific Meeting. The ASM2016 will welcome researchers, students, Inuit, Northerners, policy makers and stakeholders to address the numerous environmental, social, economical and political challenges and opportunities that are emerging from climate change and modernization in the Arctic. As the largest annual Arctic research gathering held in Canada, ArcticNet's ASM is the ideal venue to showcase results from all fields of Arctic research, stimulate discussion and foster collaborations among those with a vested interest in the Arctic and its peoples.
POLAR 2018, June 15-27, 2018 (Davos, Switzerland). POLAR2018 is a joint event from the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) and the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC). The SCAR meetings, the ASSW and the Open Science Conference will be hosted by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest, Snow and Landscape Research WSL under the patronage of the Swiss Committee on Polar and High Altitude Research. The WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research SLF is organizing POLAR2018.
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External links in this publication, and on the USARC's World Wide Web site ( www.arctic.gov) do not constitute endorsement by the US Arctic Research Commission of external Web sites or the information, products or services contained therein. For other than authorized activities, the USARC does not exercise any editorial control over the information you may find at these locations. These links are provided consistent with the stated purpose of this newsletter and the USARC Web site.
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