POLAR: FIELDWORK & ARCHIVE FEVER SYMPOSIUM
Polar: Fieldwork and Archive Fever is an interdisciplinary symposium focusing on the curation and production of climate change knowledge in the polar regions. It brings together scientists, writers, artists, historians and social scientists with interests in knowledge about the polar landscape and its broader implications for global climate and society. Polar regions are both exceptional to and considered representative of the developments in global climate change and climate change science. Given the important claims and policy decisions based on the polar archive, it is timely to consider the way in which our knowledge of this archive has been produced. Historically, control of polar archives and landscapes has gone hand in hand. Recent work suggests that this archive and the landscapes represented therein could be structured and interpreted in alternative ways. This might give rise to alternative visions and uses of polar landscapes and their connection to a wider global picture. The symposium is organised by the Open University in association with the British Library and The Arts Catalyst with international partners as part of a wider multi-disciplinary project exploring cultural and scientific issues surrounding climate change in the context of the International Polar Year (2007-08). It incorporates the 2-day Polar symposium, a publication, and a series of public lectures taking place at the British Library.