Arctic Marine Ecosystems in a Changing Climate

You will learn about the processes, structures and biological communities in different Arctic marine environments and how they are affected by sea ice dynamics and snow and glacial melt. During the course, you will also learn about how the biological structure and function of Arctic marine ecosystems are influenced by physical and chemical parameters e.g. temperatures, freshwater input (salinity), nutrients levels, light conditions and ice cover. The extreme environment of the Arctic makes it particularly vulnerable to climate change and so the course focusses on Arctic marine ecosystem within the context of a changing climate. Thus, the course will provide you with the background knowledge to discuss how future climatic changes may alter different Arctic marine ecosystems. Finally, you will get an introduction to management of living marine resources as well as monitoring of marine environments in Greenland. The course takes place in Nuuk and it involves fieldwork in the Nuuk area.