I write with the aim of keeping subscribers and readers informed about forthcoming changes concerning Polar Record, the journal of the Scott Polar Research Institute, that is published by Cambridge University Press. Many will be aware that the journal dates from 1931 and that its name arises from the need to record activity in polar areas, and in those days this largely consisted in setting out the heroic deeds of the various pioneering expeditions. The very first issue (priced at 1 shilling or 5 pence in today's currency!) contained information about Mawson's British Australian New Zealand Antarctic Research Expedition, Byrd's first Antarctic Expedition and referred to the then recent deaths of Nansen, Sverdrup and Royds.

Lieutenant de vaisseau Joseph René Bellot, (1826–1853) participated, as second-in command, in Lady Franklin's private expedition in search of her missing husband on board Prince Albert, under the command of Captain William Kennedy in 1851–1852. Having wintered at Batty Bay on the east coast of Somerset Island, Kennedy and Bellot sledged south in the spring of 1852, to Bellot Strait, which they discovered. Having passed through the strait, they crossed Peel Sound, and continued west across Prince of Wales Island to Ommanney Bay, then back across Prince of Wales Island, north to Cape Walker, and back to Batty Bay via the north coast of Somerset Island and Prince Leopold Harbour. They discovered no trace of the missing Franklin expedition. In 1853 Bellot again volunteered to go to the Arctic, this time as supernumerary on board the supply ship Phoenix, Captain Edward Inglefield. From Beechey Island, Bellot volunteered to carry dispatches north up Wellington Channel to Captain Sir Edward Belcher who was in that vicinity. Having been driven out of sea on an ice-floe, Bellot disappeared during a gale, and it is assumed that he was blown off the ice into the water and was drowned. Memorials to Bellot may be found on Beechey Island, at Greenwich, England and at Rochefort, France, but probably the most enduring memorial to him is the name ‘Bellot Strait’, applied by Kennedy to the narrow strait between Somerset Island and Boothia Peninsula which represents an integral component of one variant of the northwest passage.

This article studies the role of observers under both the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS) and the Arctic Council (AC) before the Nuuk ministerial meeting that took place in May 2011. In this meeting, the AC actors were able to find consensus on criteria for admitting new observers, an issue that has received much media attention, given that China and the European Union, for example, are queuing to become observers in the AC. It is of importance to examine the content of these recently adopted Nuuk observer rules and their potential to impact decision-making on whether the external actors can be included as observers. Moreover, this article studies how, if at all, the Nuuk observer rules might affect the position of the AC in the broader setting of circumpolar cooperation.

The Thule region in north Greenland formerly supported a population of musk-oxen (Ovibos moschatus). Radiocarbon dating of bones of this mammal collected on the terrain surface and from archaeological sites has yielded late Holocene ages, indicating that the species was a late immigrant to this part of Greenland. The species may have arrived at a time when the area was uninhabited, and it had at least a thousand years to spread south, before the Late Dorset people arrived. The heavy glaciation of Melville Bugt in the late Holocene was probably the main reason that the musk-ox did not disperse south to west Greenland. The population of musk-ox in the region may have peaked during the Medieval Warm Period, and the species survived during the occupation of the region by the Late Dorset people. The size of the population may have declined during the beginning of the Little Ice Age, and musk-ox was probably exterminated from the region shortly after the arrival of the mobile Thule people.

Fishing is a key livelihood for many people worldwide, and significantly contributes to global nutrition. However, there is an awareness of a widespread crisis in fisheries with profound ecological, social and cultural impacts (Urquhart and others 2013). The majority of people dependent on fishing are involved in small-scale fisheries, which stands in contrast to the narrow focus of most fishery science and policy on large-scale, capital intensive fishing (Berkes and others 2001). Small-scale fisheries require different approaches for research, policy and management, due to their specific technological, economic and sociocultural characteristics that differ from those of large-scale fisheries, as well as a large degree of internal diversity in terms of fish stocks, fishers’ backgrounds, vessel capacity, etc (see Afterword of this collection of papers).

A cold-tolerant fungal strain Thelebolus microsporus was investigated for the first time for its pigment and fatty acid production. High-performance liquid chromatography analysis confirmed the presence of carotenoid pigment. Gas chromatography observations showed the presence of major fatty acids: myristic acid (14:0), palmitic acid (16:0), stearic acid (18:0), heptadecanoic acid (17:0), linolenic acid (18:3) and linoleic acid (18:2). Of these, linolenic acid, a polyunsaturated fatty acid, was present in substantial quantity, suggesting that it may have a role in adapting the fungus to low Antarctic temperatures by modulating membrane fluidity. The commercial application of linolenic acid is as a food supplement for humans suffering from eczema, cardiovascular disease and diabetic neuropathy. Another fatty acid, linoleic acid, a precursor of 1-octen-3-ol, is the principal aromatic compound in most fungi and has also been documented in this strain. Screening of the fungal culture for extracellular enzyme activity for amylase, protease, lipase, chitinase and cellulase was carried out. The isolate showed maximum α-amylase activity at 20°C, suggesting effective applications as a detergent additive, in textile processing and in the food industry.

We present an update of the ‘key points’ from the Antarctic Climate Change and the Environment (ACCE) report that was published by the Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR) in 2009. We summarise subsequent advances in knowledge concerning how the climates of the Antarctic and Southern Ocean have changed in the past, how they might change in the future, and examine the associated impacts on the marine and terrestrial biota. We also incorporate relevant material presented by SCAR to the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings, and make use of emerging results that will form part of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Fifth Assessment Report.

This article assesses the current state of UK-Argentine relations with reference to the South Atlantic and Antarctic region. Three major themes are pursued: the current state of UK-Argentine relations, with the contested Falklands/Malvinas looming large in the assessment, alongside fisheries management around South Georgia; the mapping of Argentine Antarctic territory in the context of extended continental shelf delimitation; and finally, the recent UK White Paper on Overseas Territories is noted insofar as it marks the most recent public assessment of how the coalition government is attempting to manage the most southerly portions of the British Overseas Territories portfolio. The article concludes with a warning that there is a danger that worsening UK-Argentine relations might begin to have more profound implications for the Antarctic Treaty System as resource, sovereignty and territorial issues acquire more piquancy.

This article attempts to reconcile the fact that fishing has been and continues to be a large part of the Gwich'in local economy with the fact that fishing has been neglected in both popular and scientific accounts of Gwich'in practice. The article puts forth an explanation for why fishing has been neglected while at the same time documenting the corpus of fishing activities included in the yearly round. It also situates fishing as an important, but largely underestimated, part of the Canadian fur trade and explains how fish came to be used by traders and Gwich'in in a system of advances that benefited both parties. As a so-called secondary activity, fishing is entangled in Gwich'in history and their current way of life, and this article challenges the idea that it can be easily separated from other land based activities.

The predominantly Inuit Arctic region of Nunavik in the Province of Québec, Canada, currently needs to address major challenges and opportunities. The region needs to develop more employment and wealth creation opportunities without sacrificing the vital land-based subsistence sector that provides food security, sustains cultural identity and provides social and economic stability. A decision about a new direction needs to be taken soon as major mining projects are developing at a rapid pace. In this paper we first assess existing socioeconomic and living conditions data to evaluate the state of social well-being in the region. In addition we report and analyse information from an economic forum in Kuujjuaq, Nunavik in April 2010. The purpose of the forum was to provide an opportunity for regional and local stakeholders to obtain information on specific economic opportunities for Nunavik and to discuss their merit for the communities. Based on our data evaluation and the outcomes at the forum we identify a possible sustainable development feedback envisioning process and discuss possible sustainable development directions for Nunavik.

We report the oxygen isotope ratio (δ18O) and structural analysis of four 2m long firn cores collected in 1997 from inside Mawson's Hut (consisting of a Main Hut and a Workshop), Commonwealth Bay, Antarctica, and 25 snow samples collected in 2001 in the vicinity of the huts. Our aim is to examine the microclimate within the huts. Structural analyses of the cores and snow samples indicate there were no significant melt and refreeze events, however there is evidence of water seepage into the huts from the roof. Oxygen isotope data from the two cores from the Main Hut indicate that the hut filled slowly after being abandoned in 1914. Two cores adjacent to the Workshop suggest comparatively rapid snow filling after it was cleared of snow in 1978. Oxygen isotope analysis of individual samples collected outside Mawson's Hut suggests snow, accumulated south of Cape Denison, is deposited by katabatic winds.

Fifty dogs were ordered from Greenland for use on Douglas Mawson's Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911–1914). Twenty-one more were later donated to the expedition by Roald Amundsen, when he reached Hobart after his successful attainment of the South Pole. Numerous pups were born during the expedition. This note gives the details of the individual dogs during the expedition, including their names (and why they were so named), descriptions (when known), and fates.

The processes undertaken by Arctic states and Antarctic claimant states to submit data to the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS) demonstrates the robustness of polar governance. The robustness of a governing system reflects its capacity to deal with emerging issues. For the purposes of this article, robustness comprises the effective protection of rights in the absence of prejudice and participant confidence. In the Arctic, unilateral assertion of continental shelf entitlement can proceed due to the nature of the CLCS process and recognition of sovereignty. Combined with the voluntary nature of Arctic governance, the process does not hamper cooperation in scientific research, boundary delimitation or engagement in initiatives such as the Arctic Council. In the Antarctic, a coordinated approach to continental shelf delimitation protected claimant states’ entitlement to a continental shelf and the right of other states not to recognise sovereignty. States demonstrated commitment to the Antarctic Treaty and acted according to accepted norms. Though different in structure, each polar governing system has its own characteristics of robustness. State authority drives participant confidence and regional cooperation in the Arctic. In the Antarctic, norms of behaviour foster system legitimacy and resilience is reinforced by the consequences of abandoning the system. With continued acceptance of the individual governing-system dynamics, emerging issues can be accommodated in both polar regions.

The full extent of the height and scale of the Sentinel Range, Antarctica, was not known until reconnaissance flights and scientific traverses in the International Geophysical Year (IGY), 1957–1958. These explorations revealed the range to be twenty miles in length, with a large number of high peaks culminating in Mt. Vinson, the highest on the Antarctic continent at nearly 4900 meters. The discoveries captured the interest of the U.S. and world mountaineering communities setting off a competition to achieve the first climb of Vinson. The challenge was tempered only by the range's remoteness from the coast of Antarctica and the formidable logistics of mounting a mountaineering expedition. The US which had the most advanced ski-equipped cargo aircraft, had an established post-IGY policy that prohibited adventure expeditions that could divert logistic resources from the scientific programme. This paper discusses Mt. Vinson competition within the US and international climbing communities, mounting national pressures to achieve the first climb, and a reversal in policy by the US Antarctic Policy Group that resulted in the 1966–1967 American Antarctic Mountaineering Expedition's first ascents of Vinson and five other high peaks. Today, between 100 and 200 persons climb Mt. Vinson each austral summer.

This paper develops an argument on the empathetic relationship between hunter and prey, as applied to the relations between small-scale fishers and fish. Drawing on ethnographic material from the Kemi River, and recent work on fishing, it suggests that although fishers often do not see the fish, they know their whereabouts and movements through an empathetic engagement with the fish. People on the Kemi do not see fish as merely the animal itself, but include in their empathetic relationship the behaviour and environment of the fish. An analysis of popular fishing techniques used subsequently illustrates that they represent what can be called an inversion of the fish's life story.

Climate and environmental change places a variety of different pressures on remote, indigenous Arctic communities. The sea ice is the platform on which the Inugguit culture of northwest Greenland is based and thus it is inevitable that its retreat will have implications for the indigenous notion of place and for the manner in which the Inugguit articulate their sense of belonging with respect to the natural environment. With the demise of story-telling, the traditional vehicle for knowledge transmission, and the squeeze on hunting by consumer society and the Greenland Self Rule imposed quota system, it is apparent that some younger people are now engaging with more western ontologies of place. The relationship between man and nature is for some beginning to be expressed in terms of detachment and not extension. Whilst the way the Inugguit relate to their immediate natural environment might be in flux, other social practices of belonging such as naming and visiting are unchanged and still characterise these communities. In northwest Greenland, the need to ‘belong’ remains the social imperative that it has always been and the mechanisms used to reinforce this remain intact.

On 12 May 2011 at the seventh ministerial meeting, the member states of the Arctic Council (AC) signed the Arctic SAR agreement, the first legally binding agreement negotiated under the auspices of the AC. Its objective is to strengthen search and rescue cooperation and coordination in the Arctic. The purpose of this article is to explore why an agreement on search and rescue under the auspices of the AC has been negotiated; what its key features are; and lastly, how it is and will be implemented. It is argued that the SAR agreement is more important for the AC than for Norway. It has had limited practical consequences in that country. The agreement may be politically and symbolically significant but it has neither financially nor organisationally changed Norwegian search and rescue policy.

A small number of educational programmes for university students include field experience in Antarctica. These programmes contain a range of educational objectives, approaches and academic assessment related to the field component and the intended on-site learning for students. However, it is possible that the on-site experiences of students in these programmes have an influence on later decisions and behaviour beyond the course itself in the years following participation. This paper investigates the possibility of such influence for students who participated in ship-based tourism field trips to the Antarctic Peninsula and adjacent locations (South Georgia, the Falkland Islands, and South Shetland Islands) and explores whether students link their participation to particular post-course outcomes. It examines how participants report being affected by a trip to the Antarctic Peninsula, particularly in terms of later decisions regarding learning, professional lives, and environmental behaviour. Influences noted by respondents include effects on choices made in relation to academic pursuits and career paths, as well as development of their environmental values through increased awareness of tourism impacts, Antarctic region sustainability issues, and global issues such as climate change.

This article explores the character of domestic political support for the Australian Antarctic Territory and Australia's involvement in the Antarctic Treaty System, using the linked frames of bifocalism and bipartisanship. After first unpacking these concepts it explores how they have shaped the extent and form of Australia's Antarctic endeavours from the 1930s to the present day. It is argued that the analysis shows that bipartisan commitment to Australian interests in Antarctica is framed through bifocalism: first, Australian national interests are closely linked to maintenance of the Antarctic Treaty and Antarctic Treaty System, and second, presentation of these national interests is not inimical to commitments to the Antarctic Treaty and Antarctic Treaty System.

Southern Bering Sea fishermen are vulnerable to losing access to key fisheries due largely to policy changes, permit loss, and the expense of fishing operations. Local residents generally do not have fishing rights in many of the high value commercial fisheries. They must continuously shape policy and explore alternative economies in order to stay fishermen. We were contracted by the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management to study the role of subsistence and commercial fisheries, land use, socioeconomics, and sharing networks in Alutiiq and Aleut/Unangan villages. Through an exploration of these data using innovative social network analysis that presents relationships, social stratification, commercialisation, and other dependencies in the maintenance of fisheries, sharing, trading, and revenue streams, this paper shows that in two of the most socioeconomically valuable fisheries, king crab (Paralithodes sp. and Lithodes sp) and cod (Gadidae), local peoples have had to gain access to these foods by using means outside of what are academically perceived as their traditional subsistence and commercial allocation, resulting in adaptive networks of distribution. This work shows the range of networks surrounding these key foods and their associated vulnerabilities and resilience. Those sharing networks that demonstrate greater interconnectedness are much more stable and resilient.