1. Status: to
determine the present environmental status of the polar
regions;
2. Change: to
quantify and understand past and present natural
environmental and social change in the polar regions and
to
improve projections of future change;
3. Global linkages:
to advance understanding on all scales of the links and
interactions between polar regions and the rest of the
globe, and of the processes controlling these;
4. New frontiers:
to investigate the frontiers of science in the polar
regions;
5. Vantage point:
to use the unique vantage point of the polar regions to
develop and enhance observatories from the interior
of the Earth to the sun and the cosmos beyond;
6. The human dimension:
to investigate the cultural, historical and social
processes that shape the sustainability of circumpolar
human societies and to identify their unique
contributions to global cultural diversity and
citizenship.
(Excerpt from "The
Scope of Science for the International Polar Year
2007-2008"
See link to entire document)
