As Early Career Polar Scientists, we should all be concerned about Climate Change and the impact it is having on the people of the world as well as particularly our polar ecosystems. The Association of Polar Early Career Scientists (APECS) and York University’s Institute for Research and Innovation in Sustainability (IRIS: www.irisyorku.ca) co-hosted two virtual workshops this year in preparation for the 17th United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) Conference of the Parties in Durban, South Africa (COP 17).
The idea originated during a Skype meeting to discuss the potential side-events that were planned for COP17. The side event was the brain child of Rachel Hirsch, a FES post-doctoral fellow and IRIS executive member at York University. Her first call for abstracts for her proposed side-events at COP17 spurred so much interest, that it was decided that APECS and IRIS would co-host virtual workshops focusing on four themes: Planning for Change; Climate Politics and Justice; Mobilizing Knowledge through Digital Storytelling; and Arctic Climate and Ecology. The aim of these virtual workshops was to allow discussion on research objectives, finding and discussion points about problems yet to be addressed.
Two virtual sessions and various meetings on each theme were held prior to COP17. The first virtual workshop was a combination of a film festival and a Question and Answer session. For the film festival on September 27 2011, another partner, the Nanisiniq: Arviat History Project (http://nanisiniq.tumblr.com/), joined in to showcase a series of films in parallel, including the film "Inuit Knowledge and Climate Change" by Zacharias Kunut and Ian Mauro. Virtual contact was made with Arviat, Nunavut to enable discussion between the Arviat youth and the Canadian as well as broader international audience. This session was hosted through Adobe Acrobat Connect (hosted by University of Canterbury and set up by Daniela Liggett). Unfortunately, due to the time differences, Mariëtte Wheeler (as APECS representative) was unable to attend. From all the feedback received, it was a great workshop. In the words of April Diamond from the Nanisiniq: Ariviat History Project “Thank you for your hard work, dedication, and enthusiasm in putting this event together. At first there were a lot of questions about whether or not this would work- and it did! Thank you for your patience. I truly believed that we accomplished what we set out to do, raise awareness about the Inuit perspective on climate change.”
The second workshop was held on 26 October 2011. This workshop’s aim was to promote dialogue and discussion on the effects of climate change on people and animal lives. It specifically focused on the impact of climate change on the marginalized groups of society: the women, dispossessed classes, indigenous peoples, ethnic minorities and citizens of poorer countries. The five student panellists addressed the following topics:
- Just and unjust solutions to climate change and human displacement (Aaron Saad)
- Climate change and hybrid ethics: a review of four ethical theories (Mihae Ahn)
- Animals and climate change (Rachel York-Bridgers and Paul York)
- Capitalism, climate change and the discourse of ecological modernization (JP Sapinski)
- Resilient Cooperation – A (Re)new(ed) Alternative to Sustainable Development (Chris Bisson
The presentations were followed by a commentary by guest discussant Dr. Ellie Perkins, from York University’s Faculty of Environmental Studies. Again, virtual connection was made possible through Adobe Acrobat Connect (hosted by University of Canterbury and set up by Daniela Liggett).
Unfortunately, the application for the proposed combined side event “Bridging Knowledges: Communicating on Climate Change Experiences to Build Resilient Communities” with the description of: “Researchers, filmmakers, activists, indigenous peoples, and youth share tips and methods for transcending barriers to collaborate and create resilient communities in a warming climate. Findings evolved from organic ‘experience sharing’, including digital storytelling and cross-cultural activities.” were not successful. However, a delegation from York University, including the Nanisiniq: Arviat History Project was still able to attend COP17 and Mariëtte Wheeler attended COP17 as part of this delegation. Please see Article:Raising Voices on Climate Change at COP17.
These virtual workshops indeed served the purpose of promoting discussion on the important topics of climate change and enabled people from various areas and realities to discuss their perceptions and experiences. This again also showed the expertise of APECS in virtual communication.
