IPF associate testifies on International Polar Year to US Congressional Committee

Mark McCaffrey is associate scientist and science communications specialist at the Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), University of Colorado, Boulder. He is also working with the International Polar Foundation in its efforts to communicate on the reality of climate change through the findings of Polar sciences.

Mark, in his capacity as part of CIRES's Education Outreach Program, testified before a hearing held by the Research Subcommittee of the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Science on September 20, 2006. The hearing, entitled "International Polar Year: The Scientific Agenda and Federal Role," examined the research planned for the upcoming International Polar Year (IPY) and the U.S. role in IPY. Including:

• what has been the impact of polar resarch and IPYs on students and the public in the past?
• what education and outreach activities are planned for this IPY?
• what are the goals and expected societal benefits of these activities?

A webcast of the hearing is available.

You can find his recent article on "The 125 Year Legacy of the International Polar Year" on the IPF's SciencePoles website.