Report from ArcSolution – UArctic Summer School 2025 at NMBU

This year’s event was organized by the Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology and Food Science (KBM) and held at the NMBU Science Park.

A total of 19 early-career researchers from four countries - China (11), Norway (5), Denmark (2), and Hungary (1) - participated in the summer school. The group included postdoctoral fellows, PhD candidates, and master’s students. Among them, 8 students from NMBU, Agroscope, Aarhus University, and Nord University represented the ArcSolution Early Career Network. Additionally, two senior scientists from Harbin Institute of Technology (HIT) accompanied the Chinese delegation and actively contributed to the academic discussions.

 Academic Programme and Topics

The summer school covered a broad spectrum of topics under the umbrella of One Health and Arctic Environmental Forensic Strategies, including:

·       Introduction to the One Health concept

·       Analytical methods for contaminant detection and their application in Arctic monitoring and research

·       Overview of international Arctic collaboration within the framework of the Arctic Council

·       Insights into UArctic’s programmes and networks

The teaching team featured leading experts from the ArcSolution project:

·       Roland Kallenborn (NMBU)

·       Arja Rautio (University of Oulu, Finland)

·       Katrin Vorkamp (Aarhus University, Denmark)

·       Lars-Otto Reiersen (Arctic Knowledge, Norway)

They were joined by:

·       Leo Yeung (Örebro University, Sweden)

·       Jan Ludvig Lyche (NMBU)

·       Marianna D’Amico (Aarhus University), who presented the ArcSolution Early Career Researchers Network

·       Gabrielle Haddad-Weiser (NMBU), who delivered a lecture on microplastic analysis

Student Projects and Group Work

Based on the lectures and an initial literature review, students selected topics from a catalogue of 24 suggested project themes related to One Health in the Arctic. Working in groups of 3–4, they explored the following five priority questions:

1.       Contaminants of Tomorrow: Developing early warning systems for the Arctic

2.       Microplastics in the Arctic: Risk assessment gaps and mitigation strategies

3.       Climate-Driven Exposure: Snow, ice, and contaminant pathways in Arctic communities

4.       Ecosystem Resilience: A One Health perspective on Arctic contaminants

5.       Human Exposure: From ice to blood—tracking Arctic pollutants in humans

Each group presented their preliminary findings in 15-minute presentations on the final day. These results will be further developed into written reports, to be submitted by 5 October 2025.

Beyond the academic content, the summer school fostered cross-border collaboration, interdisciplinary exchange, and network-building among young researchers and senior scientists. It served as a dynamic platform for advancing knowledge and strategies related to One Health and environmental forensics in the Arctic.