International Polar Year (IPY) Online Forum
Hosted by The Polar Research Board of The National Academies
Forum begins Monday, 21 April 2003
For more information and to join the discussion visit:
http://www.nationalacademies.org/prb/ipy
The 125th anniversary of the International Polar Year (IPY) and the 50th
anniversary of the International Geophysical Year (IGY) will occur in
2007-2008. These milestones have the potential to spark exciting new
polar science and research, both engaging the next generation of
scientists and illustrating to the public the benefits and challenges
still inherent in polar exploration. The Polar Research Board of The
National Academies has created a website with a list of events related
to the next IPY (IPY-4), links to other IPY web sites, a brief history
of previous IPYs, and an on-line forum to foster discussion on IPY-4.
This is your chance to voice your opinion on the form and themes of the
next IPY.
The first forum opens on Monday, April 21, and the question is,
"The IPY requires a compelling scientific objective, not just
anniversary champagne and fireworks. What do you think should be the
overarching theme(s) or questions addressed?"
In subsequent weeks, other forum questions will be available for
discussion, including, but not limited to:
"The IPY/IGY in 1957-58 was a training ground for a generation of
geoscientists, many of whom went on to become leaders in their fields.
How do we engage the next generation of scientists in the 2007-08 IPY,
to leave a similar legacy?"
"This IPY must deal with questions in both the Arctic and the Antarctic
and include a broad range of disciplines. How do we ensure that the IPY
is truly multidisciplinary and, ideally, interdisciplinary, doing a full
range of geology, atmospheric sciences, climate, ecology, biology and
earth system science, as well as addressing human dimensions?"
Please navigate to http://www.nationalacademies.org/prb/ipy for more
information on the International Polar Year and to join in the
discussion. Please send an email to Sheldon Drobot at sdrobot [at] nas.edu if
you have any difficulties with the forum or any other general questions
and comments. Apologies if you receive this email more than once.
Sheldon Drobot, Ph.D.
Program Officer
Polar Research Board
Email: sdrobot [at] nas.edu