Overview

Sea covered with thick ice all year round, uninhabited extensive wilderness, fat polar bears catching seals--such a long-held image of the Arctic is no longer the case. Climate change in the Arctic not only has been affecting ecosystem and the livelihood of people there but also will have multiple effects, such as causing extreme climate, globally. In addition, the Arctic has been an issue of greatest concern even in non-Arctic nations because of the emerging economic opportunities resulted from decline of sea ice.
Based on the recognition that the rapid change of the Arctic should be addressed through concentrating the wisdom of mankind and Japan cannot remain indifferent to the changing Arctic, GRIPS-ScieREX Center holds this symposium with the participation of the Arctic experts of policy, natural science and humanities from home and abroad. It will cover recent movements regarding the Arctic in the world, collaboration between natural science and humanities, the way to make science inform policy etc. This symposium is aimed at increasing public awareness and understanding of the importance of the Arctic issues and contributing to deepening discussions on how Japan, a non-Arctic country, can contribute to address the changing Arctic.