National Academies Press: OpenBook

The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions (2014)

Chapter: Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses

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Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
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APPENDIX C

Summary of Questionnaire Responses

The committee carefully considered multiple forms of community input (see also Appendix B). One of them was an informal online questionnaire1 distributed to a wide audience via newsletters and e-mail distribution lists. The questionnaire was distributed to various NRC boards and committees (including the Polar Research Board, Ocean Studies Board, Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate, Space Studies Board, Board on Environmental Change and Society, and Marine Board); e-mail distribution lists such as ArcticInfo, Arctic Monitor, IASSA, CLIMLIST, CRYOLIST, Paleoclimate List, APECS, and USARC Arctic Update; the U.S. IASC Delegation; and other groups, blogs, and online networks. The input collected was not used in a statistical or quantitative analysis. Rather, the comments provided insights into whether the committee had overlooked some aspects of emerging research. Multiple sources of information were considered in the drafting of this report.

Each respondent was asked to answer a few background questions about career stage, scientific discipline, and sector. Respondents were then asked to address the following questions about the future of Arctic research:

  • Within your own discipline, please list up to three emerging scientific questions that will enhance our understanding of the Arctic over the next 20 years.
  • Please list up to three ideas or needed improvements for technology, infrastructure, or innovative logistics that you believe will play a major role in Arctic Research over the next 20 years.
  • Please share any additional comments or information you wish the committee to consider.

A total of 330 complete responses were received from a wide range of disciplines, expertise, and geographical locations (Figures C.1 through C.4). The following figures show that there was a range of response types, but this should not be viewed as a systematic survey of the community.

The questionnaire asked respondents to identify, within their own discipline, up to three emerging research questions that will enhance understanding of the Arctic

_______________

1 The committee used SurveyGizmo (http://www.surveygizmo.com/).

Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
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image

FIGURE C.1 Respondents were asked to briefly describe their discipline. They were sorted into eight categories: atmosphere/climate, biology/ecology, cryosphere, oceans, people/social science, terrestrial/geo, paleo, and other/interdisciplinary. A variety of disciplines and expertise was represented.

 

image

FIGURE C.2 The largest percentage of respondents considered themselves to be late career (25+ years post terminal degree), but almost as many were mid-career and a large number of responses were received from graduate students and early-career scientists.

 

Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
×

image

FIGURE C.3 When asked to describe their primary sector, the majority of questionnaire respondents indicated that they are in academia and research. Smaller percentages of respondents represented local and federal government, industry, NGOs, and others.

 

image

FIGURE C.4 By far, most questionnaire respondents were from the United States, although a number of other countries are also represented. Canada has the second largest representation in this questionnaire.

 

Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
×

over the next 20 years. Responses to this question were grouped into the following categories:

  • Biological systems
  • Physical systems
  • Human-environmental systems
  • Arctic system/feedbacks/cascading effects
  • Rapid change/thresholds
  • Management/governance
  • Other (including technology ideas)

Respondents were then asked to list up to three ideas or needed improvements for technology, infrastructure, or innovative logistics that they believe will play a major role in Arctic research over the next 20 years. They were also asked to select the category or categories that best describe their response:

  • Existing but not yet deployed
  • New technology with a high potential for deployment in the next 20 years
  • Emerging technology that requires further development but is critical even if its likelihood of deployment in 20 years is uncertain

Finally, respondents were asked to share any additional comments. These could include, for example, emerging questions in crosscutting realms such as integrated systems science, sustainability science, and applying knowledge for decision support. Some themes emerged from this open-ended question:

  • Interconnections (e.g., international, interagency, intergovernmental, and interdisciplinary connections)
  • Human and ecosystem connections and community involvement (including indigenous knowledge and citizen science)
  • Infrastructure needs
  • Arctic system and linkages with the Earth system (including climate change and Arctic impacts as well as feedbacks)
  • Data coordination and management (particularly open access)
  • Communication (with the public, media, local communities, and other scientists, for example)
  • Sustainability

The committee found that it was useful to have some insight into the research questions, science ideas, and general concerns of the Arctic community (across a broad range of disciplines and expertise), but this was not a systematic survey. The committee did not consider the responses to be a complete or official statement for the scien-

Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
×

tific community, and generalizing based on the responses received should be avoided. The individual responses are available in the Public Access File for this study. The committee considered them in their deliberations and used their expert judgment, as well as other community input, into the development of the questions presented in Chapter 3.

Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
×

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Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
×
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
×
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
×
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Suggested Citation:"Appendix C: Summary of Questionnaire Responses." National Research Council. 2014. The Arctic in the Anthropocene: Emerging Research Questions. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/18726.
×
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Once ice-bound, difficult to access, and largely ignored by the rest of the world, the Arctic is now front and center in the midst of many important questions facing the world today. Our daily weather, what we eat, and coastal flooding are all interconnected with the future of the Arctic. The year 2012 was an astounding year for Arctic change. The summer sea ice volume smashed previous records, losing approximately 75 percent of its value since 1980 and half of its areal coverage. Multiple records were also broken when 97 percent of Greenland's surface experienced melt conditions in 2012, the largest melt extent in the satellite era. Receding ice caps in Arctic Canada are now exposing land surfaces that have been continuously ice covered for more than 40,000 years.

What happens in the Arctic has far-reaching implications around the world. Loss of snow and ice exacerbates climate change and is the largest contributor to expected global sea level rise during the next century. Ten percent of the world's fish catches comes from Arctic and sub-Arctic waters. The U.S. Geological Survey estimated that up to 13 percent of the world's remaining oil reserves are in the Arctic. The geologic history of the Arctic may hold vital clues about massive volcanic eruptions and the consequent release of massive amount of coal fly ash that is thought to have caused mass extinctions in the distant past. How will these changes affect the rest of Earth? What research should we invest in to best understand this previously hidden land, manage impacts of change on Arctic communities, and cooperate with researchers from other nations?

The Arctic in the Anthropocene reviews research questions previously identified by Arctic researchers, and then highlights the new questions that have emerged in the wake of and expectation of further rapid Arctic change, as well as new capabilities to address them. This report is meant to guide future directions in U.S. Arctic research so that research is targeted on critical scientific and societal questions and conducted as effectively as possible. The Arctic in the Anthropocene identifies both a disciplinary and a cross-cutting research strategy for the next 10 to 20 years, and evaluates infrastructure needs and collaboration opportunities. The climate, biology, and society in the Arctic are changing in rapid, complex, and interactive ways. Understanding the Arctic system has never been more critical; thus, Arctic research has never been more important. This report will be a resource for institutions, funders, policy makers, and students. Written in an engaging style, The Arctic in the Anthropocene paints a picture of one of the last unknown places on this planet, and communicates the excitement and importance of the discoveries and challenges that lie ahead.

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