Symposium on Research Urgencies in the Polar Regions

23 - 24 September 2011, Siena, Italy

This two day symposium is entitled 'Research urgencies in the Polar Regions and their links to the ICSU Grand Challenges in Global Sustainability'. It will address all aspects of polar science, with a focus on the functioning of the Earth System in the Arctic and Antarctic, the major drivers of pervasive change and the as yet unaddressed research issues in these regions. These global issues will be considered in the polar regions within the context of the ICSU Grand Challenges and the research priorities of the SCAR, the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC), the International Association of Cryospheric Sciences (IACS) and other ICSU Unions and Interdisciplinary Scientific Bodies with interests in polar sciences.

Invited speakers will outline the major current global challenges and changes in terrestrial and oceanic domains in the polar regions and highlight how these are linked to the ICSU Grand Challenges in Global Sustainability. A Panel Session, involving representatives of a range of ICSU bodies, will discuss the relevance of polar urgencies to their organisations research priorities, and to the overall ICSU strategy.