Polar Knowledge Canada Board of Directors and United States Arctic Research Commission Meeting of the Boards at the Canadian High Arctic Research Station
News release
JOINT STATEMENT
Canada and United States will work together to advance Arctic research and knowledge.
July 9, 2024, Cambridge Bay, Nunavut – The Members of the Board of Directors of Polar Knowledge Canada and the Commissioners of the US Arctic Research Commission met at the Canadian High Arctic Research Station in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut, on June 4 and 5, 2024. Both organizations have mandates from their respective national governments to provide leadership in Arctic research and science. Officials from the US National Science Foundation’s Office of Polar Programs also joined the meeting.
Discussions covered topics of mutual interest with the goal of further aligning key bilateral priorities and future collaboration opportunities, including how to fully involve Northern and Indigenous Peoples in the direction and conduct of Arctic research.
As we look ahead to the Canadian (2029-31) and US (2031-33) chairships of the Arctic Council, and the International Polar Year (2032-33), we have opportunities to build a more effective Arctic research collaboration, leveraging the strengths of each country.
Participants also met with local Elders, elected officials and community members in Cambridge Bay, to improve knowledge sharing.
The Polar Knowledge Canada Board and US Arctic Research Commissioners committed to furthering collaborations on: permafrost research, modelling and adaptation; data sharing; and communications and public information.
The U.S. National Science Foundation will work with its Canadian counterparts to address key shared research priorities by facilitating access to research stations and vessels and strengthening partnerships between our Arctic research communities.
Quotes
“By leveraging our complementary research priorities and capacities we can inform and address the rapidly changing environmental, political, social, economic and cultural landscapes of our shared Arctic,” noted Dr. Mike Sfraga, chair of the United States Arctic Research Commission. Dr. Janet King, chair of the Polar Knowledge Canada Board of Directors reflected, “Enhancing, aligning and strengthening cooperation between Canada and the United States across all aspects of Arctic research will have tremendous benefits for people and the environment, in the North and around the world.”
Quick facts
-
Polar Knowledge Canada (POLAR) is a Government of Canada agency responsible for strengthening Canadian leadership in polar science and technology created by the Canadian High Arctic Research Station Act of 2014. It is headquartered at the Canadian High Arctic Research Station (CHARS), which it operates, in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut.
-
POLAR undertakes and supports a wide variety of research across Canada’s Arctic, including at CHARS, much of it in collaboration with Indigenous knowledge holders and international partners.
-
POLAR’s Board of Directors is responsible for the organization's strategic direction. They are selected through a Governor-in-Council process and appointed by the Prime Minister based on their experience and knowledge and how it best supports POLAR’s mandate.
-
The US Arctic Research Commission (USARC) is an independent federal agency that advances US Arctic research. USARC was created and assigned duties by the Arctic Research Policy Act of 1984, as amended, and consists of presidentially appointed commissioners supported by staff in Washington, DC and in Anchorage, Alaska.
-
In addition to delivering a biennial report to the President and Congress outlining recommended scientific research goals and objectives for the Arctic, the Commission develops and recommends an integrated national Arctic research policy and builds cooperative links in Arctic research within the federal government, with the State of Alaska, with Alaska Native Tribes and communities and with international partners.
Associated links
Contacts
Polar Knowledge Canada
Email: communications@polar-polaire.gc.ca
Telephone: 343-391-0168
US Arctic Research Commission
Email: info@arctic.gov
Telephone: 703-525-0111
Page details
- Date modified: