|
 |
|
|
Ninth International Conference on Permafrost to attract 800 international scientists and engineers
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 19, 2008
More than 800 scientists and researchers will convene on the UAF campus next week for the Ninth International Conference on Permafrost to be held June 29 through July 3, 2008. The meeting will celebrate the 25th anniversary of the international permafrost conference that was held in Fairbanks in 1983 and coincides with the fourth International Polar Year.
Events will kick off with two public courses to be held on Saturday, June 28. Jennifer Harden and Mike Waldrop of the U.S. Geological Survey will teach a course in field methods for describing and sampling northern soils and Paul Perreault, a UAF Ph.D. candidate, will teach a course in building permafrost foundations at the Cold Climate Housing Research Center. Space is limited and fees may apply. More information can be found online at http://www.nicop.org.
Opening ceremonies will be held at the Charles W. Davis concert hall on the UAF campus at 11 a.m. on Sunday, June 29. The event will include speeches by Mead Treadwell, chair of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission and a recorded message from U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski. Larry Hartig, commissioner of the Department of Environmental Conservation will provide the keynote address.
On Monday, June 30, at 4:45 p.m. the public is invited to a Wiley-Blackwell Permafrost and Periglacial Processes public lecture by Andreas Kaab of the University of Oslo, Norway. The lecture, titled “A view from afar: Mountain permafrost hazards and remote sensing” will be held in the Charles W. Davis concert hall.
In addition to 150 oral papers, field trips to permafrost-affected sites and a program for K-12 teachers, the Permafrost Young Researchers Network will be hosting their third annual research competition for students and young researchers during the conference. Two awards for the best oral science and engineering papers will be presented during the closing ceremony on July 3.
Eight international conferences on permafrost have been held since 1963. Hosts have included the United States, China, the former Soviet Union, Canada, Switzerland and Norway. Over the past 40 years, approximately 2500 individuals from 36 countries have participated in the eight conferences. Beginning in 1983, the conferences have been scheduled every five years.
For more information on conference events visit http://www.nicop.org or contact Jenn Wagaman, 907-474-5082 or jenn@alaska.edu.
|
|
|
|
|
|
