International
Polar Year
Belgium’s
contribution to The International Polar Year (IPY 2007/2008)
1. What is the IPY 2007/2008?
2. Why a focus in the pole areas?
3. How is the IPY organised?
4. Belgium’s participation
5. Belgian Youth Steering Committee
6. Links to complementary resources
1. What
is the IPY 2007/2008?
1 March was the launch of the fourth International
Polar Year (IPY 2007/2008) an initiative of the International
Council for Science (ICSU)
officially lasting from 1 March 2007 up to 1 March 2009 and including
2 Arctic and 2 Antarctic summers.
This 4th edition of the IPY was
proceeded by two International Polar Years (1882/1883 and 1932/1933)
and the International Geophysical Year (IGY, 1958), where an
intensive burst of internationally coordinated, interdisciplinary,
scientific research and observations focused on the earth’s
high latitudes was created.
This 4th IPY is the largest and most
ambitious international effort to develop research at and around
both poles to investigate the impact of polar processes on the
global environment. Results should be used to secure a sustainable
development of the polar regions in a changing climate.
2. Why
a focus in the pole areas?
The white surfaces and the cold water circulation
of the poles form a key role in the global climate system of
our planet; the pole regions are also our early warning systems
for climate change; and the ice archives earth’s climate
trough geological time scales.
However we still remain remarkably ignorant of many aspects of
how polar climate operates and its interaction with polar environments,
ecosystems and societies. In order to better understand the current
global climate and what might happen in future the science community
needs a better picture of conditions at the poles and how they
interact with and influence the oceans, atmosphere and land masses.
An IPY in 2007-2008 also affords an opportunity to engage the
upcoming generation of young Earth System scientists and to get
the public to realise just how much the poles do influence us.
The International Polar Year (IPY) 2007-2008, hence, provides
a unique opportunity to bring research and science centres together
to promote polar science.
3. How
is this IPY organised?
The entire polar community at individual, national
and international level (from research institutes, schools, public
organisations,..) was invited to create project proposals for
activities during the IPY. A very large number Expressions of
Intents (EoI’s)
(870+) were thus submitted and assessed. Most proposals were
endorsed and linked to six IPY themes.
4. Belgium’s
participation
After an initial submission of ideas channelled
through our National Committee (Prof Hugo Decleir, Dr Annick
Wilmotte, Celine Dessaucy), 33
proposals with Belgian involvement were Endorsed:
Projects with Belgian lead:
Projects with Belgian involvement:
| ID 22 |
POLARSTERN
expedition “HERMES - the Nordic margin” in
the framework of the EU funded Integrated Project HERMES
(Hotspot Ecosystem Research on the Margins of European
Seas) |
| ID 28 |
Climate
of the Arctic and its role for Europe/Arctic System Reanalysis |
| ID 32 |
POLar
study using Aircraft, Remote sensing, surface measurements
and modelling of Climate, chemistry, Aerosols and Transport (POLARCAT) |
| ID 34 |
Impact
of CLImate induced glacial melting on marine and terrestric
COastal communities on a gradient along the Western Antarctic
PENinsula |
| ID 35 |
International
Polar Year GEOTRACES: An international study of the biogeochemical
cycles of Trace Elements and Isotopes in the Arctic and
Southern Oceans |
| ID 40 |
Developing
Arctic Modelling and Observing Capabilities for Long-term
Environmental Studies |
| ID 42 |
Subglacial
Antarctic Lake Environments – Unified International
Team for Exploration and Discovery |
| ID 53 |
A
Census of Antarctic Marine Life |
| ID 54 |
Antarctic
Climate Evolution |
| ID 55 |
Microbiological
and Ecological Responses to Global Environmental Changes
in Polar Regions (MERGE) |
| ID 59 |
Terrestrial
ecosystems in ARctic and ANTarctic: Effects of UV Light,
Liquefying ice, and Ascending temperatures |
| ID 66 |
ANDEEP – SYSTCO
(ANtarctic benthic DEEP-sea biodiversity: colonisation
history and recent community patterns – SYSTem
COupling) |
| ID 72 |
Network
for ARCtic Climate and Biological DIVersity Studies |
| ID
92 |
Integrated analyses
of circumpolar Climate interactions and Ecosystem Dynamics
in the Southern Ocean–International
Polar Year |
| ID 99 |
Ozone
layer and UV radiation in a changing climate evaluated
during IPY |
| ID 107 |
IPY
in the Antarctic Peninsula – Ice and Climate [The
APY, APICS, GLABENAP, and TRAPIS Expressions of Intent] |
| ID 118 |
The
Greenland Ice Sheet – Stability, History and Evolution |
| ID 121 |
Improved
numerical weather forecasting and climate simulations
by exploitation of in-situ, airborne remote-sensing and
satellite data, advanced modelling systems and basic
research into polar processes and into polar-global interactions. |
| ID 124 |
Astronomy
from the Polar Plateaus |
| ID 132 |
Climate
of Antarctica and the Southern Ocean – Ocean Circulation
Cluster |
| ID 137 |
Evolution
and Biodiversity in the Antarctic: the Response of Life
to Change |
| ID 141 |
Antarctic
Sea Ice in International Polar Year |
| ID
151 |
Present day
processes, Past changes, and Spatiotemporal variability
of biotic, abiotic and socio-environmental conditions and
resource components along and across the Arctic delimitation
zone. (PPS Arctic) |
| ID 168 |
International
Polar Year Youth Steering Committee (IPY YSC) |
| ID 185 |
Polar
Earth Observing Network |
| ID 213 |
Environmental
baselines, processes, changes and Impacts on people in
sub-arctic Sweden and the Nordic Arctic Regions (ENVISNAR) |
| ID
214 |
Retrospective and Prospective Vegetation Change
in the Polar Regions: Back to the Future |
| ID 267 |
Comprehensive
Meteorological dataset of active IPY Antarctic measurement
phase for Scientific and applied Studies |
| ID 328 |
Integrated
Communication, Education and Evaluation |
| ID 339 |
Measurement
and Attribution of recent Greenland Ice sheet chaNgeS
(MARGINS) |
| ID 343 |
Students
on Ice - IPY Youth Expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic |
| ID 385 |
Towards
an international astronomical observatory at Dome C in
Antarctica |
| ID
391 |
BIANZO2: Biodiversity of three representative groups of Antarctic Zoobenthos |
| ID 417 |
Integrated analyses of circumpolar Climate
interactions and Ecosystem Dynamics in the Southern Ocean-International
Polar Year |
| ID 455 |
IGLO
(International action on GLObal warming). |
| ID 459 |
IceCube
South Pole Neutrino Observatory |
5. Belgian
Youth Steering Committee
The International Polar Year Youth Steering Committee
(IPY-YSC)
was recently created in the framework of IPY 2007-2008, aiming
at involving young researchers and youth from different backgrounds
in the IPY program. It is meant as a global effort to focus research
attention and public interest on the world’s Polar Regions
and the issues facing these areas. This YSC consists of representatives
of different countries (e.g., Belgium, Canada, Germany, New Zealand,
Portugal, The Netherlands, United Kingdom, United States), which
are responsible for providing the link between the International
YSC and their own National Youth Steering Committees.
The Belgian YSC, for which a call for participation
was posted on the Belgian Polar
Platform aims at forming a network of young polar researchers,
providing a background for future collaborations, and creating
opportunities to share their work with a broader public. Together
with people from other backgrounds (artists, students, teachers)
they will try to reach especially those who don’t easily
get in touch with (polar) science. The Belgian YSC had its first
meeting on 08-06-06, in which these aims and potential activities
were discussed. Possible activities to focus on are e.g., the
organization of a polar competition and exhibition on polar issues
(both scientific and artistic), combined with a popularizing
scientific conference. The Belgian YSC keeps with regular intervals
in contact with the International YSC via audio meetings to discuss
(inter)national efforts and actions.
Collaboration with BE-POLES,
the International Polar Foundation (IPF)
and Jeugd, Cultuur en Wetenschap (Flemish organization that aims
at promoting science to the youth, JCW will
be an additive to this stimulating project.
People interested in joining the YSC are still
welcome. Contact info: mieke.sterken@UGent.be
6. Links
to complementary resources
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