NEWS Climate change is happening faster and is affecting people’s lives more severelyin the Arctic region than in most other places on Earth. On that note, several Nordic universities are now jointly contributing with a so-called side event to the COP21 global summit in Paris called Arctic lessons. Peter Sköld from Arcum at Umeå University is one of the participants.
The 2015 global summit on climate change, COP21, is one of the largest international conferences ever held in France with the objectives to achieve a legally binding and universal agreement on climate. It takes place from 30 November to 11 December and is expected to attract 50,000 participants, including 25,000 official delegates from governments, intergovernmental organisations, UN agencies, nongovernmental organisations and civil society.
Several Nordic universities have jointly succeeded in organising side events to COP21. One of them is Arctic lessons, at which Anne Husebekk, rector at UiT, the Arctic University of Norway, is one of the speakers. Additional participants are researchers from Aarhus University, University of Lapland in Rovaniemi and University of Iceland. Peter Sköld from Arcum – Arctic Research Centre at Umeå University – also participates with the presentation “Climate change is a serious challenge to reindeer herding, Sami culture and Sami health”. A speech by the President of the Sami Parliament of Norway, Aili Keskitalo brings the summit to an end.
Arctic lessons takes place at COP21 venue, Observer Room 03, on Saturday 5 December, at 15:00–16:30.
UiT website about the summitCOP21s website
Editor: Anna Lawrence