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Inuit knowledge of the sea ice environment has been praised by generations of early explorers, arctic travellers, natural scientists, anthropologists, and popular writers. Surprisingly little has been done to systematically document and analyze the richness of the Inuit sea ice nomenclatures until quite recently. This article reviews the history of Inuit (Eskimo) sea ice terminology collection, including efforts undertaken in 2005-2009 for the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007-2008. Altogether, a database of 35 indigenous ice nomenclatures from the Bering Sea to East Greenland has been created, displaying the richness of over 1,500 terms for sea ice in all Inuit/Eskimo languages and most regional dialects, as well as in other indigenous northern languages (Chukchi, Dena'ina Athabascan, and Sámi). Processing these vocabularies, analyzing the origins and historical geography of the Inuit sea ice nomenclatures, and returning the data to participating communities as educational, heritage, and language materials may become one of the lasting contributions of the IPY 2007-2008 program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Igliniit Project brought together Inuit hunters and geomatics engineering students during the International Polar Year (IPY) to collaborate on the development and testing of a new integrated GPS/PDA/mobile weather station technology for observing and monitoring the environment. Part of the larger Inuit Sea Ice Use and Occupancy Project (ISIUOP), the Igliniit Project culminated in a tangible product that is the direct result of combined scientific and Inuit knowledge, ingenuity, and engineering. This paper describes the Igliniit Project and examines the resulting technology as (i) an artifact of Inuit knowledge, science and engineering collaboration; (ii) a tool for meaningful engagement of Inuit in environmental science and community-based monitoring; (iii) a new approach and tool in the field of indigenous mapping; and (iv) an example of one technology in the expanding ecology of technologies in everyday Inuit life. The technology requires improvements in hardware and further development of supporting systems such as data management and mapping capability, but there is potential for the Igliniit Project approach and system to have wide appeal across the North for a variety of applications including environmental monitoring, wildlife studies, land use mapping, hazards research, place names research, archaeological and cultural inventories, and search and rescue operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The International Polar Year (2007-2008) (IPY) established an IPY data policy that guides a formal data management (DM) process. The DM system envisioned includes data based on Indigenous knowledge systems linked to data collected in the Western scientific tradition. Based on experiences developing an online Atlas of Inuit Sea Ice Knowledge and Use (Siku Atlas) we argue that an 'Indigenist' DM program must be developed if the envisioned IPY DM system is to be realized. Existing ideas proposing an Indigenist research paradigm are discussed in the context of DM. To move towards the development and implementation of an Indigenist DM program, we review four key relationships for consideration when documenting Indigenous knowledge and managing the resulting data: Indigenous and Western scientific knowledge systems; communities and researchers; Indigenous knowledge and power; and Indigenous knowledge and documentation methods. To ground the discussion, we link Indigenist DM processes to the Siku Atlas development process and results. Last, lessons learned are presented along with an outline of directions for a research program in support of an Indigenist DM program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Relatively little is known about polar marine biodiversity, which faces increasing threats from extractive and non-extractive activities and from the effects of climate change. The international legal regime for the protection of polar marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction is currently inadequate, particularly in the Arctic. An important and useful outcome of this International Polar Year would be an international agreement for conservation and sustainable long-term management of marine biodiversity in the central Arctic Ocean areas beyond national jurisdiction. This agreement should incorporate the best elements of the Antarctic Treaty System together with modern conservation and management principles, and it should recognize the legitimate interests of the international community as a whole in the conservation and management of polar marine biodiversity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]