Negotiating the Arctic: A Science Diplomacy Perspective (Public Forum)

How much do you know about the Arctic?

It is home to some of the most interesting science Canada has to offer, including unique state-of-the-art research stations like PEARL (the Polar Environment Atmospheric Research Laboratory) and CHARS (the Canada High Arctic Research Station). These are a beacon for Canada’s science on the international level, and they may hold some of the answers in our global fight against climate change.

This raises some new questions – How do we bring Canada’s arctic science into the global discussion? How can we leverage diplomacy across borders to solve climate change and other scientific issues? And how can countries cooperate to protect the environment and promote sustainable development in the Arctic? What role do indigenous communities and traditional knowledge play in these discussions?

Our expert panelists will shed light on some of these questions, and look forward to engaging with the Montreal public on this important topic.

Our Panelists

– Dr. Louis Fortier is a Professor at Université Laval (Quebec), who will talk about his research with ArcticNet; – Angela Nuliayok-Rudolph is a Policy Advisor at Polar Knowledge Canada (Canadian High Arctic Research Station, Nunavut), and will discuss the indigenous perspective in arctic knowledge; – Dr. Paul Berkman, Professor of Practice in Science Diplomacy at Tufts University (Massachusetts) will discuss the role of science diplomacy in the arctic and at the Arctic Council.

Program

9:00 - 9:30 Registration

9:30 - 9:45 Introduction and welcome remarks by Science & Policy Exchange and and Rémi Quirion, Chief scientist of Quebec, Fonds de recherche du Québec

9:45 - 10:30 The Indigenous communities’ perspective by Angela Nuliayok-Rudoph, Policy Advisor at Polar Knowledge Canada

The scientific perspective by Louis Fortier, Science director at ArcticNet and Professor at Université Laval

10:30 - 11:00 Coffee break

11:00 - 11:55 Science diplomacy in the Arctic by Paul Berkman, Director, Science Diplomacy Center at Tufts University

Arctic Science & Diplomacy Simulation (Closed Session)

Dr. Melody Brown Burkins, Adjunct Professor of Environmental Studies and Associate Director of the John Sloan Dickey Center for International Understanding at Dartmouth College will lead the simulation of a Sustainable Development Working Group (SDWG) meeting discussing a project to formally connect the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to Arctic international science cooperation activities.