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Russian dilemma for global arctic science.

Published version
Peer-reviewed

Repository DOI


Change log

Authors

Büntgen, Ulf 

Abstract

Polar regions are critically implicated in our understanding of global climate change. This is particularly the case for the Arctic, where positive feedback loops and climate tipping points enhance complexity and urgency. Half of the Arctic and much of the world's permafrost zone lie within Russian territory. Heightened geopolitical tensions, however, have severely damaged scientific collaboration between Russia and previously well established academic partners in western countries. Isolation is now causing increasingly large data gaps in arctic research that affect our ability to make accurate predictions of the impact of climate change on natural and societal systems at all scales from local to global. Here, we argue that options to resume both practical knowledge of collaborative working and flows of research data from Russia for global arctic science must continue to be asserted, despite an increasing tendency for the Arctic to become disconnected. Time is short, as preparations for the fifth International Polar Year begin to gather momentum. While sanctions remain in place, efforts to foster peer to peer connections and re-activate effective institutional cooperation are vital to address the grand challenges of global climate change.

Description

Keywords

Arctic science, Crisis, Russia, Scientific collaboration, Arctic Regions, Russia, Climate Change, International Cooperation

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Publisher

Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Sponsorship
Czech Science Centre (23-08049S)
European Research Council (882727, 101118880)
UB was supported by the Czech Science Foundation (# 23-08049S; Hydro8), the co-funded EU project AdAgriF (# CZ.02.01.01/00/22_008/0004635), the ERC Advanced Grant (# 882727; Monostar), and the ERC Synergy Grant (# 101118880; Synergy-Plague).