Celebrating Edith Fanta

The APECS and Polar Research Communities received the sad news of the death of Dr. Edith Fanta. Edith, one of our Advisory Committee members, was connected to Antarctica for over 25 years as a researcher in marine biology and professor at the Federal University of Paraná, Brazil, and she represented Brazil in many international Antarctic flora. 

Read more about the amazing life of Dr. Fanta and her contributions to Antarctic Research.

Comments Welcome on Draft of APECS Constitution!

Dear Members of APECS,
The first draft of our APECS Constitution is now available for your review. Please click here to read more and send us your input. This organization is ours to build, so we need everyone's comments to assure its future!.

Career Paths in New Zealand Polar Research

Workshop for students and early career polar researchers Monday, 30th June 2008 University of Otago

As part of the Antarctica New Zealand’s Annual Conference, a morning workshop is being held for students and early career polar researchers to provide an informal venue for this group to network.  The workshop will take the form of a panel discussion, drawing on the experience of Antarctic scientists at various stages in their careers to talk openly about the challenges and rewards of career paths in polar research.  The focus will be on the transition from student to PI and how this process is supported in New Zealand.  This is a great opportunity to make contacts with other students as well as established polar experts, and to share and form new ideas about how to continue our careers in the Polar Regions.

Registration for the workshop will begin in May as part of the registration process for Antarctica New Zealand’s Annual Conference. All welcome from students to established scientists.  For more information about the workshop, please contact Mélianie Raymond or visit http://www.antarcticanz.govt.nz/article/10566.html#19289/

In association with APECS, Antarctica New Zealand, and the University of Otago Polar Environments Research Theme.

Information for the SCAR/IASC Open Science Conference and APECS Workshop!!!

If you are planning to attend the APECS Career Development Workshop at the SCAR/IASC Open Science Conference in St. Petersburg, Russia in July, please email Liz Thomas as soon as possible. 

We would also encourage you to register for the conference soon.
"Polar Research - Arctic and Antarctic Perspectives in the
International Polar Year" taking place in the Pribaltiyskaya Hotel
(venue of the APECS workshop) 8th- 11th July.

The deadline for the early bird registration is the 20th April 2008.

You can register online for the conference at www.scar-iasc-ipy2008.org

Accommodation and excursions can also be booked online.

* Important * All foreign participants of the Conference and APECS workshop must obtain a visa to enter the Russian Federation.

For all those registered for the science conference the Conference
Service Agency Monomax  PCO will provide participants with the tourist visa support papers, which includes an invitation & hotel voucher. We strongly encourage all workshop participants to register for the conference and make use of the visa support services that Monomax are offering. Visa support documents are issued based on a personal information submitted by each participant during the registration on this web site (Visa Support section) or on your e-mail request sent to: osc2008@onlinereg.ru

In order to obtain a Russian Visa, please contact the nearest Russian Consulate or Embassy in your home country.

Monomax PCO provides visa support papers ONLY after receiving hotel accommodation pre-payment so we recommend that you book your accommodation as soon as possible.

Please be advised that in order to obtain the visa your passport must be valid for at least 3 months after the proposed date. More information about visas can be found at the conference site
www.scar-iasc-ipy2008.org.

APECS Article in Science Careers

... "Networking among polar scientists is the primary goal of APECS. Since the organization's first council meeting in 2007, the group has capitalized on other conferences and the Internet to meet, give talks, and host polar-science career workshops. For the ocean sciences conference, Renner, APECS's networking coordinator, sent out a call for early-career polar scientists to meet up. Alex Poulain, president of the student body for the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography--the conference co-sponsor--brought the sandwiches. Two new members from Spain's IMEDEA (Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies) also dropped by: coastal ecologist Raquel Vaquer Suñer and biological oceanographer Pedro Echeveste." ...

Read the entire article: Networking Group Seeks to Bridge the Poles

Website Updates Underway

You might notice some changes to our website. Our friends at the Arctic Portal are busy helping us upgrade our site and add new features.  Please be patient as we are undergoing these changes. If you have comments, please send them to Peter DiFiore.

We extend our thanks to Trausti, Hoddi, Palmar, and Halldor for helping us make improvements to our website.