APECS News

The Association of Polar Early Career Scientists (APECS) is pleased to announce its participation in SYNCHRONY, a new Horizon Europe project that was launched on 1 August 2026. Coordinated by the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI), SYNCHRONY brings together 27 international partner organisations to establish a more coordinated and synchronised observing system for the Southern Ocean and the coastal regions of Antarctica.

The Association of Polar Early Career Scientists (APECS) and the Southern Ocean Observing System (SOOS)  are looking for an early career scientist to join the SOOS Observing System Design Capability Working Group (OSD CWG) as an early career representative.representative.

The successful applicant will have an interest in observing system design for the Southern Ocean. The early career representative will participate in telecons and meetings, help to take minutes and compile notes, serve as a liaison to APECS, help to prepare newsletter items, and contribute to other activities within the SOOS OSD working group. We are interested in receiving applications from any country, including those not yet represented by the WG Leadership Group.

For specific questions about this position, please contact the OSD CWG Co-Chairs, Emma Boland (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) and Pierpaolo Falco (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) or the SOOS Executive Officer, Alyce Hancock (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).

The position will be for 2 years (September 2026-September 2028) and non-salaried, but there will be travel reimbursement for attending one meeting if the working group holds a meeting during your term, and potential for co-authorship of publications.

To apply, you need to meet the following criteria:

• early career researcher (up to 5 years past PhD)
• have a research background that fits the focus of the group

How to apply?

Please send the following two documents as PDFs to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. no later than 31 August 2026, 23:59 GMT.

1. CV
2. Statement of interest (max one page), including: 

• your research background
• your motivation for joining the working group
• your thoughts on how you can contribute to the group and how this would benefit your career

This call is organized by Lina Madaj and Anirudha Mahagaonkar, APECS Representative Coordinators 2025-2026, on behalf of the APECS Executive Committee and International Directorate.

The Association of Polar Early Career Scientists (APECS) and the Southern Ocean Observing System (SOOS) are looking for an early career scientist to join the SOOS Censusing Animal Populations from Space (CAPS) Capability Working Group (CWG) as an early career representative.

The APECS International Directorate will be closed 9 July - 2 August 2026 due to summer holidays of its staff members.

APECS is pleased to contribute to the SCAR Open Science Conference through a range of activities that support early career researchers, foster international collaboration, and strengthen early career engagement across the polar research community. Below is an overview of the events, meetings, and initiatives organized by and with contributions from APECS groups and International Directorate staff members. More information about sessions and the official programme can be found on the official SCAR OSC website.

Do you want to engage with Antarctica InSync but don’t know where to start? Have you heard about the initiative and want to learn more about the opportunities it provides to the research community and early career researchers in particular? Join us online on 28 or 29 July for an introduction to the Antarctica InSync framework and explore ways for you to get involved.

How can Arctic resilience move beyond adaptation and place Indigenous self-determination at its centre?

A team of APECS members published a new article on "Building Resilient Arctic Futures Through Indigenous Knowledge and Self-Determination", developed from discussions held during the Polar Early Career World Summit (PECWS).

Photo: Geneviève Degré-Timmons, APECS Canada

APECS Canada is now accepting applications for the 2026 "Arctic Science to Art" Contest.

Do you want to contribute to APECS and be a part of our Council? Applications for Council Leadership and Project Group Leader positions are now open!