U.S. annual dues support for the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) and the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) – 2020-2022

National Academy Of Sciences, Washington DC

Investigators

Abstract

The Polar Research Board (PRB) of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine serves as the U.S. National Committee to two international organizations: the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC), and the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR). SCAR helps advance Antarctic research by implementing new research initiatives, identifying emerging scientific themes, promoting international cooperation and partnerships, and providing scientific advice to the Parties to the Antarctic Treaty on issues related to the management and protection of the Antarctic region and the Southern Ocean. IASC encourages and facilitates international cooperation in Arctic research, provides scientific input to the Arctic Council and other international policy organizations, and helps support international science development, including numerous opportunities for early career researchers. U.S. annual dues for these organizations provides a foundation for advancing opportunities and interests of the U.S. polar research community, and for assuring continued progress in international-level research and assessment. The International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) and Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) are unique organizations that provide opportunities for U.S. scientists to develop research partnerships with polar science colleagues in other countries around the world. IASC’s efforts to facilitate international cooperation in Arctic research are advanced through activities such as: the annual Arctic Science Summit Week gatherings; the individual and cross-cutting initiatives of IASC’s Working Groups (Atmosphere, Cryosphere, Marine, Social and Human, Terrestrial); the Arctic Data Committee and Sustaining Arctic Observing Networks; and the IASC Fellowship Program, which helps early career researchers get involved in workshops, science planning activities and research programs. SCAR’s efforts to promote international scientific cooperation in Antarctica are advanced through activities such as the biennial business meetings and Open Science Conference; the SCAR Biology Symposium and Antarctic Earth Sciences Symposia; the SCAR Early Career Fellowship and Visiting Professor programs; the program planning efforts of SCAR's Scientific Groups (Geosciences, Life Sciences, Physical Sciences); and the Scientific Research Programmes that are the main focus of SCAR’s international scientific coordination. These SCAR and IASC activities help early career scientists expand research interests and develop professional connections; they help ensure that important policy decisions about managing and protecting the polar regions are based on sound scientific assessment; and they help advance scientific objectives that would be impossible for single investigators, programs, or countries to do alone. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.