It’s north to Alaska, for Meinhardt

Associate Prof. Daniel Meinhardt of biology and Human Biology will be traveling to the far reaches of Alaska next week for a visit to the Inupiaq village of Shishmaref. Located about 20 miles south of the Arctic Circle and just 100 miles east of Siberia, on a barrier island in the Chukchi Sea, the little settlement has garnered outsized attention recently. The town site is rapidly eroding into the sea, with global climate change a prime suspect, and village leaders are investigating the possibility of relocation. Meinhardt will accompany a colleague who runs a sustainable development consulting company in Anchorage. Meinhardt will meet with residents and village leaders, and assist with photographs, analysis and reporting for a new magazine that intends to profile the situation in its debut issue. He will also consult with other Environmental Science and Policy graduate faculty here at UW-Green Bay for the article. He returns Sept. 4. If you’re interested in Shismaref and the potential challenges of relocation to a suitable site that will maintain the community’s subsistence lifestyle, visit the website.