The Chairs engaged in a full agenda in Bodø. The Chairs had a meeting along with Gunnar Stefánsson, Vice-President of Research for the UArctic, where they planned future activities and discussed development of philanthropic funding for their activities. The Chairs also discussed how the UArctic and their host institutions can further support the Chairs in their role.

The Chairs held a panel during the Rectors meeting, moderated by Gunnar Stefánsson, VP Research for UArctic. The Chairs that participated in the panel were Kirk Anderson, Jan Borm, Melody Brown Burkins, Bing Chen, Hanne Hvidtfeldt Christiansen, and Tuija Turunen. The Chairs gave a presentation of their ongoing activities and research area, and outlined the future research and educational activities. The Chairs also discussed the importance of cooperation for their research, how their role as Chairs provides a wider base for cooperation, and provided insights into the their roles as Chairs for various Rectors of the UArctic member institutions.

 

 

 

 

 

From left: Gunnar Stefánsson, Tuija Turunen, Bing Chen, Melody Brown Burkins, Kirk Anderson, Hanne Hvidtfeldt Christiansen, and Jan Borm.

The Chairs contributed in various panels in Bodø, some in collaboration with each other and some focusing on their area of expertise. Below is a an overview of some of the sessions the Chairs participated in:

David Anderson - Was the convener for the session Local Foraging and Self-Reliance in the Arctic, where he held a presentation called "Convivial relations in the North: Reflections on food sovereignty". The session focused on the cultural histories of wild food procurement in industrialised or severely disrupted frontiers of the North Atlantic, focusing on the work of indigenous experts and local enthusiasts. He also participated in the session Science, Politics, and Science Diplomacy in the ‘Exceptional’ Arctic: Two Years into the War in Ukraine along with other Chairs.

Kirk Anderson - Was the convener for the session Success in Education for the Circumpolar North: Student Success, Teacher Development, and Persistence and was the co-convener for the session The Role of Education for Environmental Sustainability and Sustainable Development in Northern Communities. Anderson also participated in the Chairs Panel during the Rectors meeting.

Jan Borm - Was the convener and moderator of the session UArctic Thematic Network ARCH Session: 'Writing and Visualising the Arctic; Travel Writing, Indigenous Life Stories and Historical Sources, 18th-21st Century'. He was also the co-convener for the session Shaping Academic Education to the need for Multidisciplinary Future Arctic Experts and participated in the Chairs Panel during the Rectors meeting.

Melody Brown Burkins - Participated in the session Science Diplomacy in the ‘Exceptional’ Arctic: Two Years into the War in Ukraine and the Chairs Panel during the Rector’s Meeting.

Bing Chen - Participated in the session Integrating Scientific, Societal and Engineering Approached to Access Water Resources Management in a Changing Arctic where he held a presentation on "Occurrence and impact of Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers (PBDEs) in the Great Slave Lake and Coastal Communities in the Northwest Territories of Canada". Chen also participated in the Chairs Panel during the Rector’s meeting.

Hanne H. Christiansen - Participated in the session Shaping Academic Education to the need for Multidisciplinary Future Arctic Experts, where she held a presentation on "Developing internships as an important part of increasing permafrost higher education opportunities", she also participated in the Chairs Panel during the Rector’s Meeting.

Kamrul Hossain - Participated in the session Advancing Urban Sustainability in Resource-Dependent and Single Industry Cities in the Nordic Arctic, where he held a presentation on "Sub-national governance networks: Bottom-up governance in the Nordic Arctic". He also participated in the session Science, Politics, and Science Diplomacy in the ‘Exceptional’ Arctic: Two Years into the War in Ukraine.

Timo Jokela - Participated in the Art Exhibition in Stormen Concert Hall called New Genre Arctic Art and Art Education where he showed his work "Shifting River: You Can’t Step Twice into the Same Water", and introduced the collaborated work of "Nomadic Hub of Art Education in the Arctic: Spring 2024 pilot". Jokela also participated in the session Shaping Academic Education to the need for Multidisciplinary future Arctic Experts, where he held a presentation on "Art and Art-Based Research for Multidisciplinary Understanding of the Arctic".

Roland Kallenborn - Was the convener for the session Shaping Academic Education to the Need for Multidisciplinary future Arctic Experts, where he held a presentation on "Combining research and education: A practical concept for University education in Arctic environmental sciences". The session focused on the impact of environmental changes and how it requires new concepts for educating the Arctic environmental experts of tomorrow. A new generation of scientific academic experts must be educated with interdisciplinary expertise in relevant sciences as well as in-depth understanding of indigenous, cultural, regulative, jurisdictive, jurisdictive, educational, teacher development, over-tourism and technological needs

Tuija Turunen - Participated in the session Science, Politics, and Science Diplomacy in the ‘Exceptional’ Arctic: Two Years into the War in Ukraine and the Chairs Panel during the Rector’s Meeting.

David Natcher - Participated in the session Building Sustainable Arctic Futures: Exploring the WEF Nexus and Socio-economic Resilience where he held a presentation on "Cascading Impacts of Climate Change on Water, Energy and Food (WEF), Nexus Security in the Arctic".

Philip Steinberg - Was the convener for the session: Interdisciplinarity and Transdisciplinarity in Arctic Higher Education: The DurhamArctic Experience and Shaping Academic education to the need for multidisciplinary future Arctic Experts, where he held a presentation on "Interdisciplinary doctoral training in for a changing Arctic: The View from DurhamARCTIC". Steinbeirg also convened and chaired the session Science, Politics, and Science Diplomacy in the ‘Exceptional’ Arctic: Two Years into the War in Ukraine.

From left: Philip Steinberg, Melody Brown Burkins, Charlotte Gehrke, David Anderson, Kamrul Hossain, and Corine Wood-Donnelly.

Expression of Interest for hosting UArctic Chair expired May 15th. Read more about the Chairs here.