Building Bridges was raised as a potential theme early last March, when the administration had an initial meeting to discuss the content of the 2021 conference. That meeting was supposed to take place in person in Tromsø on 13 March, but on 12 March as the country locked down for the first time we cancelled flights and took our brainstorming sessions over two days on Teams. Little did we know then that Building Bridges would come to symbolism not only our central theme for Arctic Frontiers 2021, but our own internal mantra as we plan our digital conference via hundreds of online meetings.
While the format of Arctic Frontiers has changed, we remain committed to delivering the full suite of Arctic Frontiers content in robust plenary, science and young programs. If anything, we are able to dive deeper into our themes, securing highly respected speakers and reaching a global audience with impactful content and discussions around the most pressing issues facing the Arctic societies.
This year under the banner of Building Bridges we will have created four thematic days that bridge both plenary and science topics:
- Monday 1 Feb: Arctic Health and Well-being
- Tuesday 2 Feb: Resilient Arctic Voices
- Wednesday 3 Feb: Oceans and Society
- Thursday 4 Feb: Arctic Economies – Pressures and Responses
From our live studio in Tromsø we will host our plenary discussions through a combination of live panel discussions and pre-recorded content relevant to the daily themes. With Tromsø as our backdrop we will invite a small number of guests to participate live in-studio and welcome other speakers from around the world. But key to making this year a success is you, our friends and participants, who we trust will engage with us on social media and via questions during our sessions.
Stay tuned for more information on the plenary program by following us on Facebook and Twitter, and by visiting the Arctic Frontiers website!