Earth Systems Science (40). The Polaris Project is engaging students and early career scientists in a multifaceted effort that includes: a field course and research experience for undergraduate students in the Siberian Arctic; several new arctic-focused undergraduate courses taught by project Co-PIs at their respective colleges across the United States and in Russia; the opportunity for Co-PIs to initiate research programs in the Siberian Arctic; and a wide range of outreach activities. The unifying scientific theme for the project is the transport and transformations of carbon and nutrients as they move with water from terrestrial uplands to the Arctic Ocean. Given the rapid changes underway in the Arctic, the broader impact of this project is found in the availability of project related materials; its training of future leaders in arctic research and education as well as its education of the public through student and faculty visits to K-12 classrooms; student generated and maintained blogs on their research and experiences; and inclusion in the GoNorth curriculum (www.polarhusky.com) which is used in thousands of K-12 schools worldwide.
The Polaris Project was a multifaceted effort that included an annual field course and research experience for undergraduate students in the Siberian Arctic, several new arctic-focused undergraduate courses taught by project scientists at their respective colleges across the United States and in Russia, the opportunity for project scientist to initiate research programs in the Siberian Arctic, and a wide range of outreach activities. The unifying scientific theme of the Polaris Project was the transport and transformation of carbon and nutrients as they move with water from terrestrial uplands to the Arctic Ocean. This is a central issue in arctic system science, and the project scientists were selected in part because of their potential to bring fresh insights to this complex topic. Polaris Project research has already led to 5 journal articles and more than 40 published abstracts, many of which had undergraduates as lead authors. At the recent State of the Arctic conference (March 2010), 9 Polaris Project students presented their research. Four of these were among the 25 students receiving grants to support their conference travel (out of 81 total applications), and they were the only undergraduates to receive awards. At the American Geophysical Meeting in San Francisco (Dec. 2010), a total of 17 Polaris Project presentations were given. Several of these students have already entered graduate school. We anticipate that the number of Polaris alumni entering graduate school will continue to grow, and that one of the greatest legacies of the project will be the development of a generation of arctic scientists with broad interdisciplinary and international research experience. The affiliated on-campus courses were also highly successful in advancing undergraduate learning about arctic ecosystem science and awareness of human-accelerated changes in the Arctic. Extensive assessment evidence gathered over the life of the project demonstrated significant gains in scientific knowledge and understanding of disciplinary and interdisciplinary arctic research. Students who have completed the on-campus courses, even if they do not pursue arctic research in graduate school, will bring their understanding of the Arctic and climate change into their roles as educated citizens and, in some cases, as professionals whose work has environmental significance. Public outreach, another key component of the Polaris Project, engages our students as well as project faculty. Polaris Project outreach activities have included public presentations, visits to K-12 classrooms, and interviews and stories in local and national media outlets. Our website (www.thepolarisproject.org) has been very active, receiving up to 70,000 visitors per month. The Polaris Project has also been featured in over 20 newspaper articles and radio and television interviews, including stories by the New York Times and National Public Radio.
