Connecting Science and Society

The International Polar Foundation was established in 2002 as a foundation for public good and is an operational foundation active in the field of “Science & Society”.

We create and manage projects that focus on research in the polar regions as means to understand fundamental climate mechanisms, and to drive change towards a more sustainable society.

The Foundation seeks partnerships with a broad range of stakeholders to implement its mission of supporting science in the polar regions, meeting the climate change and reaching a low carbon society.

The Foundation will at all times retain its scientific and program orientation independence, and will act according to its statutes and mission statement.

Content of sponsored projects remains the responsibility of the Foundation through approval by its Scientific, Educational and Management Committees.

The International Polar Foundation financial activities are reviewed yearly by certified accountants, in order to guarantee complete transparency.

Our Core
Values

Polar
Sciences

The Arctic and the Antarctic, and the scientific research done in these regions can be used to communicate about climate change and the challenges our societies must meet to mitigate its effects.

Education
& Outreach

Education and communication help world citizens to take informed decisions and move towards more sustainable, low carbon societies. Younger generations will have to be prepared to meet the climate challenge.

Innovation &
Sustainability

Technologies needed to meet the climate challenge are already available today. Building a "Zero Emission" station in one of the most hostile environments on Earth, using existing technologies, is a testament to that vision.

Partner
Testimonials

We are very proud to have worked side-by-side with the teams from the International Polar Foundation on the Princess Elisabeth station, and to have been able to practice our core values: maintaining high standards, engagement, willingness to take risks, and working as a team.

Gerard Mestralet

GDF-Suez - Président Directeur Général

When we were approached by Alain Hubert several years ago, Umicore did not hesitate for long before agreeing to become a partner of the Princess Elisabeth Antarctica project.

Thomas Leyzen

Umicore - CEO

Laborelec has helped the IPF build the first Zero Emission polar research station, but it was also an opportunity for us to develop and test solutions that we can now use in other projects.

Paul Lemmens

Laborelec - Director