I’m extremely pleased to report on the latest Polar Aspect educational initiative—the Online Model Arctic Council (OMAC) delegate training and conference programme. This new initiative aims to engage pupils from secondary-schools anywhere in the world in a process of experiential learning about the Arctic through an online version of the Model Arctic Council programmes that I run …
Presentation at 2nd MUN Impact Global Summit
This past weekend, Polar Aspect had the privilege of giving a presentation to the second MUN Impact Global Youth Summit about the new Online Model Arctic Council (OMAC) programme that we’re about to launch. I say ‘Polar Aspect’ and ‘we’, because the presentation was actually given by my new OMAC Secretariat team—Joshua Gray, Olivia Silk …
Panel discussion at Centre of Gravity contemporary art exhibition
Yesterday I had the very enjoyable experience of participating in an ‘Arctic/Antarctic Symposium‘ connected with the Centre of Gravity (CoG) contemporary art exhibition. Originally planned as an in-person event in the old Soapworks in Bristol, which was turned over to the CoG artistic collective for a month of artistic and creative outreach, the symposium unfortunately …
Launch of UArctic Læra Institute for Circumpolar Education
I’m pleased to share the press release below, announcing the launch of the Læra Institute for Circumpolar Education, a new part of the international University of the Arctic, to which I’m honoured to have been appointed Managing Director. Our work formally began in early September, and I’m looking forward to collaborating with my UArctic colleagues …
Student remarks on 2nd online mini Model Arctic Council for Trent University
I was very pleased recently to read a blog post from Stephanie Masterman, an undergraduate student at the University of Washington who participated in the second online ‘mini’ Model Arctic Council (MAC) that I ran this past July as part of a Trent University course on the Circumpolar North. Stephanie seems to have found her …
2nd Online Mini Model Arctic Council for Trent University
Today I ran a second online Model Arctic Council (MAC) for students at Trent University where I’m appointed as an adjunct professor, as well as from other universities around the world participating in the University of the Arctic Circumpolar Studies programme. This ‘mini-MAC’ follows a similar one last year, though slightly expanded and more deeply …
Presentation at MUN Impact Global Summit
I was delighted to give a presentation today on ‘Model Arctic Council for Sustainable Development’ to teachers and students attending the first ever Global Summit hosted by MUN Impact. MUN Impact is an exciting young organisation dedicated to using Model United Nations simulations to inspire secondary-school pupils to learn about sustainable development, and to take …
Lecture to AGATU International Summer School
It was a pleasure to give a lecture today on ‘The Moral Geography of the Arctic’ to faculty and students attending the International Summer School hosted by the Arctic State Agrotechnological University (AGATU, in Russian Arkticheskiy Gosudarstvyennuy Agrotekhnologicheskiy Universitet) in Yakutsk, Sakha Republic, Russia. Due to Covid-19, the summer school was held online. This was perhaps …
Norwich Model Arctic Council 5
Last week, the fifth annual Norwich Model Arctic Council (NORMAC) convened at Norwich School in the UK. Like last year’s conference, NORMAC 2020 spanned three days, from the afternoon of Thursday 5th March to the afternoon of Sunday 8th March. It was the largest NORMAC conference yet, involving 49 pupils visiting from seven secondary schools …
Model Arctic Council Bilbao 3
Last week, 24 pupils from 12 secondary schools gathered at Colegio Ayalde in Bilbao, Spain, for the second annual Model Arctic Council Bilbao (MAC Bilbao). They came from schools in France, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the UK, and I was especially pleased to see one pupil attending MAC Bilbao for a third consecutive year! As at MAC Bilbao 2019, …