Panel Discussions are interactive audience participation events. A convenor and panel of experts introduce the topic to be discussed followed by active participation by attendees. To encourage participation, the convenors and panelist will pose a series of questions to direct to the conversation.

Note:  The opinions expressed within this presentation/panel discussion do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SCAR or imply endorsement by SCAR.

The Panel Discussion for the 10th SCAR Open Science Conference is:

Funding for Antarctic research remains highly dependent upon government money, particularly when the considerable logistical expenses are taken into account. Antarctic research must therefore be justified as a political priority if the necessary funding is to be maintained. The purpose of this panel discussion is to consider how this larger issue of ensuring the relevance of Antarctic research may be addressed by its practitioners and advocates at a time of multiple challenges, from the pandemic to anthropogenic climate change and social justice movements.

Key issues could include

1. what challenges are faced in different SCAR member states, and to what extent these may be common to multiple countries;
2. the role of analyses from history and political science to understanding how political decision-making on Antarctic research functions; and
3. whether there is a specific role for SCAR in acting as a collective voice for Antarctic researchers within this context.

Panel Speakers

Dr Priscilla Wehi

Prof. Jefferson Cardia Simões
Professor, Department of Geography, Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil

JC Simoes is a professor of Polar Geography and Glaciology, Department of Geography at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil. He received his Ph.D. from the Scott Polar Research Institute, the University of Cambridge in 1990 and since then has been working on Antarctic and Andean glaciers. His academic interest covers a wide area, from glaciology to issues of science diplomacy and including the geopolitics of polar regions. He is the Brazilian National Delegate and presently one of the SCAR vice presidents.

Dr. Morgan Seag
SCAR Fellow

Morgan recently completed her PhD at the University of Cambridge, where her research centered on the sociocultural and political dimensions of Antarctic history. As a SCAR Fellow, she studies intersectional gender (in)equality in Antarctic research. She also works as the Global Mountains Director for the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative, connecting cryosphere science to international climate policy.

Dr. Claire Christian
Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition (ASOC)

Claire Christian is the Executive Director of ASOC. She coordinates policy and strategy related to many issues that impact the Antarctic environment including tourism, fisheries, marine protected areas and climate change and leads ASOC’s delegations to Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings (ATCMs) and meetings of the Commission on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR).

Dr. Lize-Marie van der Watt
KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden

Lize-Marie Hansen van der Watt is a historian and researcher at the Division for History of Science, Technology and Environment at KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden. Her work focusses on the intersections of politics, the environment and science in the polar regions, from the 1950s onwards. More recently she has turned her focus to critical heritage studies in the Antarctic context, specifically exploring decay as heritage practice.