1. Washington, DC - Sunday , 7 February 2010 United States Report to the SAON Board Martin Jeffries AON Sub-committee of the Inter-agency Arctic Research Policy Committee SAON Board Meeting :: 24-25 January 2012 :: Tromsø, Norway

2. Arctic Observing and US National Policy - I • National Ocean Council and National Ocean Policy • Established by Executive Order (President Obama), July 2010 • Nine national priority objectives, each to be implemented according to • a strategic action plan • Strategic Action Plan 8: Changing Conditions in the Arctic • Strategic Action Plan 8: Changing Conditions in the Arctic • Seven themes • Theme 3: An Integrated Arctic Observing Network • Six action items • Action Item 2: Observe and Forecast Arctic Sea Ice • Action Item 3: Establish a Distributed Biological Observatory

3. Arctic Observing and US National Policy - II • IARPC (Inter-agency Arctic Research Policy Committee) • Since July 2010 a sub-committee of the National Science and • Technology Council (NSTC) • Six priority research themes identified in April 2011 • Research Theme 4: Continue to deploy and integrate a national • Arctic observing system and promote international cooperation to • create a circumpolar Arctic observing system • IARPC Research Theme 4: An Arctic Observing System • Nine priority topics • State of the sea ice cover • Glacier/ice sheet mass balance and global sea level • Terrestrial and marine permafrost and carbon cycle • Atmospheric constituents and surface radiation balance • A Distributed Biological Observatory • Observing system design • Community-based observing • Assess local resident priorities • Improve access to data

4. Arctic Observing Coordination Workshop 20-22 March 2012, Anchorage, Alaska • Goals • Summarize agency contributions to Arctic observing efforts. • Recommendations for improving collaboration and coordination among projects and agencies. • Identify two or more pilot projects for observing activity coordination among several agencies and entities, with recommendations for short-term (5 years or less) implementation. • Themes • Understand and predict sea ice changes and the consequences for ecosystems, people and climate. • Understand and predict glacier/ice sheet mass loss and global sea level. • Understand the consequences of the loss of shallow permafrost on Arctic and global systems. • Societal and policy implications of Arctic environmental change, e.g., an Arctic observing system for a broad spectrum of users, including communities and individuals, decision- and policy-makers, business/industry and scientists.

5. US-led SAON Tasks • Arctic Observing Summit • SEARCH/AON, ArcticNet, ISAC • Arctic Collaborative Environment (ACE) • Von Braun Center for Science & Innovation • Arctic Ocean Structure During IPY • University of Alaska Fairbanks & Arctic and Antarctic Research Institute • Historical Climate Analysis – Pacific Sector of the Arctic • NOAA Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory • Community-based Monitoring Classification to Improve • Standardization of Vocabularies • Aleut International Association