The International Study of Arctic Change (ISAC) is an open-ended international research program designed to understand the future state of the Arctic System under anthropogenic stress. The driving force behind ISAC is the need to build understanding, improve capacity for predicting Arctic System changes, and develop necessary mitigation and adaptation strategies to minimize the adverse effects of such changes. ISAC facilitates international co-operative efforts to understand the Arctic System and all its components on a pan-Arctic scale. ISAC extends the study of the Arctic from basic science to offer insight into options for solutions to the real world problems that are intrinsic to a changing planet. ISAC research encompasses the important science activities outlined in previous initiatives while evolving into a program that is international and informed by stakeholder-defined needs for solutions.
Partners
These organizations are active partners in the planning of the State of the Arctic Conference.
ArcticNet is a Network of Centres of Excellence that brings together scientists and managers in the natural, human health and social sciences with their partners in Inuit organizations, northern communities, federal and provincial agencies and the private sector to study the impacts of climate change in the coastal Canadian Arctic. Over 100 ArcticNet researchers from 27 Canadian universities and 5 Federal departments collaborate with research teams in the USA, Japan, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Poland, the United Kingdom, Spain, Russia, Greenland and France.
DAMOCLES (Developing Arctic Modeling and Observing Capabilities for Long-term Environmental Studies) is an integrated ice-atmosphere-ocean monitoring and forecasting system designed for observing, understanding and quantifying climate changes in the Arctic. DAMOCLES is specifically concerned with the potential for a significantly reduced sea ice cover, and the impacts this might have on the environment and on human activities, both regionally and globally.
