Date

Multiple Resources Available

  1. New Report Available
    Transitions and Tipping Points in Complex Environmental Systems
    NSF Advisory Committee for Environmental Research and Education

  2. New Website and Mailing List Available
    http://ipa-permafrost.org
    International Permafrost Association

  3. New Newsletter Available
    SCAR Newsletter: Issue 20, September 2009
    Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research

  1. New Report Available
    Transitions and Tipping Points in Complex Environmental Systems
    NSF Advisory Committee for Environmental Research and Education

The National Science Foundation (NSF)'s Advisory Committee for
Environmental Research and Education (AC-ERE) released a report entitled
"Transitions and Tipping Points in Complex Environmental Systems" in
September 2009.

The report, which can be downloaded in full-text at the NSF website
(http://www.nsf.gov/geo/ere/ereweb/acere_synthesis_rpt.cfm), finds both
challenges and opportunities in the path to answering two questions
about our fast-changing planet:

  • What will it look like in the years, decades, and centuries to come?
  • How far and in what ways can Earth's systems be stressed before they
    reach tipping points, undergoing rapid transitions to new states--with
    unforeseen consequences?

The rate of environmental change is outpacing the ability of
institutions and governments to respond effectively, according to the
advisory committee. The report suggests that environmental science must
move beyond identifying issues and toward providing sound bases for the
development of innovative solutions, as well as effective adaptation and
mitigation strategies.

The press release gives an overview of the report and its conclusions:
http://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=115474&WT.mc_id=USNSF_51.

The full report is available for downloading at:
http://www.nsf.gov/geo/ere/ereweb/acere_synthesis_rpt.cfm.

  1. New Website and Mailing List Available
    http://ipa-permafrost.org
    International Permafrost Association

The International Permafrost Association (IPA) announces its brand new
website: http://ipa-permafrost.org. The website is a joint venture with
the Arctic Portal and boasts a wide range of new features through user
membership, including access to permafrost data, membership on the new
PERMALIST mailing list, access to picture galleries, IPA documents, and
other resources. It is regularly updated with news from the IPA and
member countries, and will be progressively enhanced.

PERMALIST is a new activity of the IPA and is an email-based,
un-moderated mailing list focused on permafrost activities, resources,
event announcements, etc. It is accessible to all with an interest in
permafrost and periglacial activities. It is coupled to user membership
on the website, and only users can post to the mailing list. PERMALIST
is hosted by the International Arctic Research Center (IARC) in
Fairbanks, Alaska. More information on PERMALIST, including
registration, can be found at:
http://ipa.arcticportal.org/index.php/resources/permalist.html.

The International Permafrost Association, founded in 1983, has as its
objectives to foster the dissemination of knowledge concerning
permafrost and to promote cooperation among persons and national or
international organizations engaged in scientific investigation and
engineering work on permafrost.

For further information, please go to:
http://ipa-permafrost.org.

Or contact:
Hugues Lantuit
Email: Hugues.Lantuit [at] awi.de

  1. New Newsletter Available
    SCAR Newsletter: Issue 20, September 2009
    Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research

The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) announces that
Issue 20 (September 2009) of the SCAR Newsletter is available at:
http://www.scar.org/news/newsletters/issues2009/sep09.html. A list of
contents follows.

Dr. Michael Sparrow Confirmed as Next SCAR Executive Director
The 2010 SCAR Conference
IPY News:
- Nominations open for the Martha T. Muse Prize for Science and
Policy in Antarctica
Science News:
- SCAR Publishes Report on Persistent Organic Pollutants
- Asymmetric auroral intensities in the Earth's Northern and
Southern hemispheres
- Bathymetry data gaps in Southern Ocean need filling
- Progress with the Southern Ocean Continuous Plankton Recorder
(CPR) Survey
- SCAR using DNA barcoding as diagnostic for Southern Ocean species
- Polar Bears Will Decline Along with Arctic Ice
- Sunspots, Oceanic Oscillations, and Global Warming
Data and Information:
- SCAR Launches New Data and Information Strategy
- Online version of the International Antarctic Weather Forecasting
Handbook
Education and Training:
- APECS launches a Polar Literature Discussion Website
Outreach:
- SCAR History Group to hold Workshop at Antarctic Treaty Summit
Partnerships:
- New Website for the International Permafrost Association
Other SCAR-related Newsletters:
- Climate and Cryosphere (CliC) Project Newsletter Now Available
Events:
- Climate Change Colloquium
- AGU Chapman Conference Co-Sponsored by SCAR
- Oslo IPY Science Conference Programme Launched

To view the newsletter, please go to:
http://www.scar.org/news/newsletters/issues2009/sep09.html.