Well, spring is slowly starting to come to Tromsø. We still have at least a half-meter of snow, but the days are getting much longer and the temperatures a little 'warmer'.
As Tromsø's contribution to the International Polar Week, APECS together with the Tromsø High North Cluster (THiNC) hosted the first Tromsø Young Polar Researchers Symposium. Over 50 people participated plus leaders of several of the major research institutes here in town. Many new friendships were formed, and folks had so much fun, that we are going to get people together again in May, thanks to the efforts of APECS member Silje-Kristin Jensen. So for those of you stopping through on your way to Svalbard, be sure to watch the APECS calendar for more details.
In case you are wondering what THiNC is, its a new initiative to tie together the many institutes here in Tromsø working on polar research. The partners in THiNC are the University of Tromsø, Norwegian Polar Institute, NORUT, Norwegian Institute of Marine Research, Akvaplan-niva and NOFIMA. The Secretariat of the Cluster is located right next to the APECS office at the University of Tromsø. The project has a steering group with one participant from each of the organizations in the core. Look for many exciting things to be coming from the efforts of all these great institutions working together to increase our understanding of the Polar Regions.
