The Arctic Institute of North America is a

multi-disciplinary Interdisciplinarity or interdisciplinary studies involves the combination of multiple academic disciplines into one activity (e.g., a research project). It draws knowledge from several other fields like sociology, anthropology, psychology, ec ...

research institute A research institute, research centre, research center or research organization, is an establishment founded for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research. Although the term often i ...

and educational organization located in the

University of Calgary The University of Calgary (U of C or UCalgary) is a public research university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The University of Calgary started in 1944 as the Calgary branch of the University of Alberta, founded in 1908, prior to being ins ...

. It is mandated to study the North American and

circumpolar Arctic The Arctic Circle is one of the two polar circles, and the most northerly of the five major circles of latitude as shown on maps of Earth. Its southern equivalent is the Antarctic Circle. The Arctic Circle marks the southernmost latitude at w ...

in the areas of

natural science Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...

social science Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soc ...

, arts and the humanities. In addition, it acquires, preserves and disseminates information on environmental, physical, and social conditions in the north. The institute was created in 1945 by a Canadian

act of Parliament Acts of Parliament, sometimes referred to as primary legislation, are texts of law passed by the Legislature, legislative body of a jurisdiction (often a parliament or council). In most countries with a parliamentary system of government, acts of ...

as a

non-profit A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

membership organization, and also incorporated in the state of New York.

History

The idea of the institute began in the early 1940s when a group of Canadians discussed ways that Canada could increase administrative, scientific and technical expertise in the

Arctic The Arctic ( or ) is a polar regions of Earth, polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth. The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Canada (Yukon, Northwest Territories, Nunavut), Danish Realm (Greenla ...

. By 1944, a binational organization that included Canada and the United States, with room for Greenland, Newfoundland, and Labrador was established. Offices were opened at

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, Canada.

Geophysicist Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' som ...

Laurence McKinley Gould Laurence McKinley Gould (August 22, 1896 – June 21, 1995) was an American geologist, educator, and polar explorer. He made expeditions to both the Arctic and Antarctic, and was chief scientist on Richard Evelyn Byrd's first Antarctic expeditio ...

was selected as acting director, replaced in 1945 by Lincoln Washburn. The initial budget was $10,000.MacDonald, p. 441 One of the most important programs of the AINA was to establish a library. In 1955, there were over a 1,000 acquisitions. In 1961, there were over 4,800 volumes and 476 serials. There were 7,500 volumes in 1966. Another notable program was the 1948 launch of the journal ''Arctic'' which published three issues annually until 1951, after which it became a quarterly publication. In 1975, the institute moved to the

where it has remained. Dr.

Karla Jessen Williamson Karla Jessen Williamson (born 1954 in Appamiut, Maniitsoq, Greenland, Kingdom of Denmark) is an assistant professor of educational foundations at the University of Saskatchewan. Formerly, she was the executive director of the Arctic Institute of ...

became its first woman and first

Inuit Inuit (; iu, ᐃᓄᐃᑦ 'the people', singular: Inuk, , dual: Inuuk, ) are a group of culturally similar indigenous peoples inhabiting the Arctic and subarctic regions of Greenland, Labrador, Quebec, Nunavut, the Northwest Territories ...

executive director in 2000. Dr. Maribeth Murray, a social scientist and leading arctic researcher, is the current executive director of the institute, appointed in 2013 and reappointed in 2018.

ASTIS database

This database is produced by the Arctic Institute of North America. The focus of the ''Arctic Science and Technology Information System (ASTIS)'' database is references for publications and research projects about northern Canada. It contains 70,000 records. Geographic subject coverage encompasses the three territories, the northern parts of seven provinces and the adjacent marine areas. Format coverage includes abstracts, indexed subject terms, geographic terms, and links to 16,000 online publications.

Academic journal

The Arctic Institute of North America publishes a peer reviewed, scientific journal, entitled ''

''. The journal publishes scholarly articles, book reviews, and notable people on all topics related to the polar and subpolar regions of the world.

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control McGill University University of Calgary 1945 establishments in Quebec Arctic research Organizations established in 1945

History

ASTIS database

Academic journal

Archives

See also

References

External links