The Smithsonian Institution convened a polar science symposium May 3-4, 2007, as one of the inaugural U.S. contributions to celebrate the International Polar Year (IPY) 2007-2009. The proceedings of ‘Smithsonian at the Poles: Contributions to International Polar Year Science’ are currently in SI Scholarly Press production and scheduled for publication this year, edited by Igor Krupnik, Michael A. Lang and Scott E. Miller.

This two-day symposium presented findings by polar scientists from Arctic and Antarctic research, with particular attention to changes in polar systems past, present and future, and their global impact. The symposium carried on a tradition of polar science that began at the Smithsonian nearly 150 years ago and resulted in some of the world’s foremost collections and archives of Arctic and Antarctic materials.

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More than 30 scholars discussed their papers on the following six themes: polar astronomy; systematics and biology of polar organisms; environmental change and polar marine ecosystems; IPY histories and legacies; methods and techniques of under-ice research; and, cultural studies. Sessions featured disciplinary presentations from both the Arctic and Antarctica. Speakers included research leaders from National Science Foundation-supported polar projects and Smithsonian research staff.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) contributed funding in support of Science at the Poles. NSF, an independent federal agency, was designated the lead agency for the federal government’s International Polar year activities by the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy. NSF manages the U.S. Antarctic Program, which coordinates all U.S. science on the southernmost continent; the NSF director heads the Interagency Arctic Research Policy Committee (IARPC).