The funded projects are:
Heritage Making in the Arctic
Project partners: UiT The Arctic University of Norway (Lead), University of Aberdeen, Memorial University of Newfoundland, and University of Oulu
This is a research-led networking project which strengthens the Thematic Network CAFÉ (Circumpolar Archives, Folklore and Ethnography). The project sponsors meetings to elaborate the idea of “deep emplacement” in Arctic heritage making. Building on insights from indigenous philosophical traditions, and social theory, our network project brings together Arctic scholars and local indigenous practitioners to elaborate methods of self-reliance and to ground cultural heritage work by consulting with audio archives. This two-year project will sponsor a set of face-to-face meetings – the first since the pandemic – to revive the network. We will meet to examine field recordings, to elaborate articles for publication, and to draft applications for research funding. The meetings will build on the considerable archival and ethnographic expertise within the network. In particular, the meetings will present, in a workshop format, sets of digitized audio recordings which were made by members of the network during the pandemic, as well as incorporating recent pandemic-inspired field research on self-reliance and food sovereignty. The project is built around the six UArctic values and will develop a theoretical and practical model of working with heritage products in order to evoke a deep attachment to place which are neither nostalgic nor a strategy for bringing in extra cash from tourism.
The Ocean Incubator Network
Project partners: UiT the Arctic University of Norway (Lead), University of Lapland, University of Edinburgh, James Hutton Institute (Scotland), Dalhousie University and Kiel University
The Ocean Incubator Network (OIN) brings together experts, local authorities and education institutions, from across UArctic to develop integrated research and education programs with the primary objective of accelerating Ocean Literacy (OL) to advance the attainment of SDG 4 (quality education and lifelong learning for all), SDG 5 (gender equality), and SDG 14 (protecting life below water) throughout Arctic communities. OIN involves academic staff, students, teachers, pupils of all ages and Arctic indigenous communities (target audience) in learning about OL topics including marine ecology, blue sustainability, ocean rights and governance. The project's secondary objectives are: To keep partners informed on progress made and milestones reached; to share the project’s activities, results and added value to research and education institutions within UArctic and beyond. The primary activity is the OIN interactive workshop where a pilot ocean education program and a curriculum on Ocean Literacy will be developed by participants (month 6). Follow up activities and milestones include: a co-authored cross-disciplinary publication on OL; footage for a digital library and podcast series on different partners approaches to OL (month 6-24). Main deliverables: a dissemination plan (months 1-24); the OIN interactive workshop report (month 7); a final report (month 24).
Strengthening Cooperation for a Resilient Arctic
Projects partners: UiT the Arctic University of Norway (Lead), Umeå University, University of Oulu, University of Lapland and Luleå University of Technology
The fundamental aim of the project broadly defined is to provide a basis for long-term research cooperation within an extended Thematic Network on Arctic Economic Science (TNAES) on sustainable development in the Nordic Arctic. To facilitate this take-off for the Nordic re-orientation of TNAES, the project plans to organize four hybrid workshops during the coming two academic years in Finland, Norway and Sweden. From the thematic network point of view, this will be an opportunity to gather economists across A5 to discuss the way forward, as well as developing a basis for research proposals on economic issues considered of prime importance for the Arctic. One concrete and immediate mission discussed is developing pilots as a preparatory step for developing ambitious high-quality research proposals. The research group will collaborate closely with stakeholders to achieve the objectives of the project. Stakeholder interaction in the early stage of the research process will benefit both the network and the stakeholders.
Networking for increasing sustainability in snow crab fisheries in the Arctic
Project partners: UiT the Arctic University of Norway (Lead), Memorial University of Newfoundland, Greenland Institute of Natural Resources and Technical University of Denmark
The objective of this project is to increase collaboration and networking to address sustainability in Arctic resource exploitation and problems caused by lost fishing gear due to plastic materials used in snow crab pot fisheries in the Arctic. This will be addressed by collaboration of four UArctic member institutions which have conducted research regarding sustainability of fisheries in the Arctic, including the snow crab fishery. Snow crab is commercially exploited species over cold-water areas in the Arctic Hemisphere. Several challenges are common in the Arctic such as unintended capture and mortality of undersized crab, continuous capture of animals by lost snow crab pots creating unintended mortality and Arctic marine plastic pollution. The aim of this networking project is to share the knowledge for developing technical modifications to improve fisheries sustainability by reducing unintentional snow crab mortality and potential handling related injuries of undersized individuals and reduce negative environmental impacts caused by lost pots.
Arctic outdoor occupational health and safety in the changing climate
Projects partners: UiT the Arctic University of Norway (Lead), Finnish Institute of Occupational Health (Oulu/Helsinki) and Umeå University
Climate change affects occupational health and safety (OHS) of Arctic outdoor occupations. It calls for adaptation at all sectors and organizational levels, to support sustainable development. However, little is known about current preparedness and awareness of climate change impacts on workplaces. The project will strengthen an Arctic OHS network with experts in climate, health, and safety. It will initiate a cross-border research project on climate change preparedness and develop an online training course regarding Arctic outdoor OHS. The planned activities help increase awareness and preparedness, as well as building models and tools for managing climate-related exposures and effects. The obtained information can be used for improving health, wellbeing, and safety of Arctic outdoor workers in the changing climate. Project activities build on an already existing Nordic OHS network with UArctic institution members and linked to the UArctic Thematic Network Working in the Arctic.
Collaboration for advancing crisis management research and education in the Arctic – CCArctic
Project partners: Nord University (Lead), UiT the Arctic University of Norway, Laurea University of Applied Sciences, York University (CAN), Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences and University of South-Eastern Norway
Networking is one of the main ingredients for strengthening collaboration and consequently the preparedness in the Arctic. Threats to human safety and the environment, as well as the challenging context, necessitate strengthening of the collaboration for advancing crisis management research and education in the Arctic. The current lack of robust research on crisis management programs and courses in higher education leaves a gap that educators must bridge, seeking out ways to provide and assess the essential abilities for student success. This project aims to contribute to crisis management research and education by emphasizing knowledge transfer, sharing experiences, identifying educational gaps and best practices to further develop the academic cooperation and formalize institutional-level cooperation between Norwegian partners and international ones. The primary target group of the CCArctic will be educator (faculty members), students within crisis/emergency management; and professionals. Main deliverables will be two workshops on curriculum development, project initiatives, students and staff mobility.
Developing joint deeper inter-university educational innovative collaboration bridging the Fram Strait
Project partners: UNIS (Lead), Aarhus University, Greenland Institute of Natural Resources (GINR), University of Copenhagen, Technical University of Denmark and UiT
The project’s goals are to develop deeper institutional transnational higher educational collaboration across the Fram Strait aiming to develop a joint Erasmus application, funding an interdisciplinary master degree bridging the Fram Strait using this largest high-Arctic gradient with its unique infrastructure. This is based on extensive use of the large national and international investments made in Svalbard and Greenland within SIOS and GIOS. Together they provide unique access to research infrastructure, observations and data covering the Fram Strait region. All SIOS and GIOS members will be involved in this higher educational ambition. The potential is large for developing a very attractive unique, innovative joint interdisciplinary degree including minimum 2-3 institutions on both sides of the gradient open to all master students. This is because of the uniqueness of this Nordic high Arctic region, containing the largest climatic gradient in the high Arctic, and at the same time the absolute hotspot for ongoing climatic changes. Finally, the project also aims for acting to initiate discussions on how future closer, deeper and more committing inter-university collaboration can be developed in the Arctic, based on the development going on in the new EU university ambition.
UArctic Research Network for Microtomography of Arctic Marine Organisms
UArctic partners: UiT the Arctic University of Norway (Lead), Luleå University of Technology, University of Copenhagen, Greenland Climate Research Center (GCRC) and Greenland Institute of Natural Resources (GINR)
Natural history museum collections provide historical records of species in place and time. This is especially relevant for the Arctic, where climate change is affecting the ecosystem at an alarming rate. A vastly unknown part of the Arctic ecosystem could be lost forever as species go extinct, and some specimens can be difficult to store in museum collections due to their small size and fragility. To document animals of the Arctic Ocean for future generations, the project proposes to scan specimens and reconstruct them digitally through X-ray microtomography. This will enable a ‘digital collection’ of the Arctic fauna, to describe new species, discover new anatomical and morphological characters, facilitate open science, and to make museum exhibitions for the public based on digital or 3D-printed reconstructions of individual animals. The digital specimens will be openly accessible for everyone to use in research and education.
Arctic Conference on Educational Sciences (ACCESS)
UArctic partners: UiT the Arctic University of Norway, University of Lapland (Lead), Memorial University of Newfoundland, Sámi University of Applied Sciences, University of Manitoba, University of Alaska Anchorage, Leeds Beckett University, University of Aberdeen, University of the Faroe Islands, Ilisimatusarfik/University of Greenland, University of Akureyri, University of Iceland, Umeå University, University of Prince Edward Island, University of Strathclyde and Kokkola University Consortium Chydenius
The overall goal of the project is to strengthen the wide network of educational researchers in the circumpolar north, and to concentrate researcher community perspectives on UArctic, the Thematic Network on Teacher Education and Arctic educational issues. This will be implemented by organizing an Arctic conference on educational sciences and publishing series of video interviews, as the main activities of the project. The project milestones include 1) setting up a local organization committee and scientific board, 2) publishing the conference website and call for abstracts, 3) the conference event and 4) publishing the video interviews. The project has three key target audiences – network contact persons, network member universities and Arctic educational science community –who will benefit of the stronger connections, platforms of sharing knowledge, and engagement to UArctic and the Thematic Network on Teacher Education.
Digital North: GENI Growth Networking Initiative
Project partners: UiT the Arctic University of Norway (Lead), University of Saskatchewan, Memorial University of Newfoundland and Umeå University
This project is designed to broaden collaboration and mobility relevant to the joint master’s program in Governance and Entrepreneurship in Northern and Indigenous Areas (GENI), a partnership between UiT The Arctic University of Norway and the University of Saskatchewan. Through this Growth Networking Initiative, they are taking the first steps toward expanding cooperation network to include Memorial University (Canada) and Umeå University (Sweden). Scholars at these universities have agreed to cooperate with the GENI partners in building an innovative pedagogical approach to our joint study program through the creation and incorporation of case studies from their respective regions. This project will also foster collaboration between our faculty and scholars associated with the Læra Institute for Circumpolar Education.
Deep-time Arctic Climate archives: High-resolution coring of Svalbard's sedimentary record (SVALCLIME)
Project partners: UNIS (Lead), University of Oslo, UiT the Arctic University of Norway, University of South Bohemia, Université de Sherbrooke, University of Kiel, Uppsala University, University of Hamburg, RWTH Aachen University, Khalifa University, University College Dublin and Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland (GEUS)
The proposed ‘Deep-time Arctic climate archives: High-resolution coring of Svalbard’s sedimentary record (SVALCLIME-UArctic)’ project is firmly rooted in the UArctic Thematic Network on Arctic Geology. Svalbard has an outstanding sedimentary record from the Neoproterozoic to the Cenozoic, which includes a high number of key paleoclimate events. The main aim here is to bring together an ambitious and cross-disciplinary international group of scientists to submit a full proposal for an International Continental Scientific Drilling Programme (ICDP) project focusing on deep-time paleoclimate dynamics in Svalbard. During the next two years, the project group will not only submit the ICDP proposal but also publish a review article on deep-time paleoclimate (covering hundreds of millions of years of geologic time), compile an online based popular science article (as ArcGIS StoryMaps) on the project website, generate and share a data package of existing paleoclimate-related data and organize outreach events (both digital and in-person). As a research project, SVALCLIME primarily targets paleoclimate researchers, many of whom have limited experience with Svalbard or Arctic geology. Students and faculty at UNIS and partner institutions are the main beneficiaries for the generated data package and teaching material, though data and outreach products will also be open to public access.
Rethinking Arctic collaboration
Projects partners: University of Bergen (Lead), Alfred Wegener Institut, Nord University, International Center of Reindeer Husbandry, Dartmouth College (USA) and the Macdonald-Laurier Institute
The tight connection between science and diplomacy in the Arctic has traditionally helped reduce geopolitical tensions and facilitated international resource management. However, after Russia’s invasion in Ukraine, the Russo-western relationship has entered an ice-cold face. Due to the war and international sanctions, science, science-informed decisions, and science diplomacy suffers severely. Reduced international Arctic science collaboration may have severe consequences for climate research and other important scientific topics like social science and ocean ecosystems. The objective of the project is to understand what the effects of war are on scientific collaborations and the volume and value of arctic science in the north. And, in the light of various discussions in the scientific community, to elevate a discussion on what principles should be the foundation for political decisions on science collaboration across borders in turbulent times. And finally, what may become the characteristics of the future Arctic science collaboration architecture.