Alumni Expedition: Arctic Circle Assembly 2023 Recap

SOI team members, Lynda and Kira, gave us some great tips on how to network at the Reception and the upcoming conference, as well as how to use the Iceland 2023 Expedition as a conversation starter with other fellow delegates. The Welcome Reception went well—many of the SOI alumni team members became very eager to use their new networking skills and spent the entire evening mingling with other Canadian delegates. Our team met for a meal at a nearby restaurant after the reception and had a debrief before heading back to the Airbnb to get some well-needed rest, before another long, exciting day at the assembly.

On the first official day of the Arctic Circle Assembly, our team was up bright and early to head to the Harpa Concert Hall for registration. The Arctic Circle Assembly is held every October in Reykjavik, Iceland, at the Harpa Concert Hall and Conference Centre and is the largest annual international gathering on the Arctic. With this year being the Assembly’s 10th Anniversary, we knew we would be in for an exciting few days ahead of us. The Conference is attended by over 2000 participants, spanning from over 60 countries. Once registered, some of our crew went to explore the Harpa Hall to get a better sense of where everything was and to do some more networking, while others went to their first panel of the Conference. The group reconvened for lunch to have a short debrief on how the morning went, and SOI staff members let the rest of the team know about the youth room in the Edition hotel – in case anyone was overwhelmed and needed a quiet space. Once lunch was over, the group headed to the Opening Plenary together. Past Icelandic President, Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson, welcomed everyone and set the tone for the rest of the opening session. We heard from many incredibly knowledgeable speakers, such as the Prime Minister of Iceland, and other ministers involved with climate and the environment. It was such a pleasure to witness the knowledge and wisdom that these individuals held.

In the evening, some of our more competitive team members attended the Arctic Trivia Night with some other SOI alumni who were also attending the Conference; others attended a screening and panel discussion with Aaju Peter, writer and focus of the film, “Twice Colonized.” Although team SOI did not win the Arctic Trivia, it was an incredible evening of competition, connection, and laughs. Sarah, one of our team members who attended the Movie Night, expressed how powerful the film was and recommended that everyone who gets a chance to see the movie do so.

The morning of day two went smoothly as we already knew what to expect. Our team gathered with other session attendees and spent the morning engaging with new acquaintances, fellow delegates, and even panelists. The 2023 Arctic Circle Assembly had over 700 speakers for more than 200 sessions. There were so many amazing panels and discussions during the Arctic Circle Assembly which covered a range of topics that impact the Arctic. Panel topics included: Climate Change, Food Security and Sovereignty, Education and Research, Sustainable Economic Development, Indigenous Knowledge, Youth Engagement, and more.

The team received an invitation from Ocean Visions to join them for lunch on Friday, so once the morning panels were over, the team reconvened at the front entrance to head for lunch. As a pleasant surprise, our team had the pleasure of reconnecting with old friends from Canada’s Ocean Supercluster, who were hosting the luncheon. The meal was delicious, and once everyone was finished eating, Ocean Visions Chief Executive Officer, Brad Ack, and Senior Program Officer, Kerry Nickols, said a few words to the group about Ocean Visions. Ocean Visions is a non-profit organization that catalyzes innovation at the intersection of the ocean and climate crises. The organization facilitates collaborations within their network and beyond, working with research institutions, the private sector, and public-interest organizations to explore and advance responsible and effective ocean-based climate solutions. Ocean Visions staff explained that the organization’s strategy includes the four R’s:
Reduce- Maximizing Ocean-Based Pathways to a Low-Carbon Economy;
Remove- Advancing Ocean-Based Pathways for Cleaning up Carbon Pollution;
Repair- Exploring Interventions to Prolong Health of Critical Marine Ecosystems; and,
Reach- Building a Global Ocean-Climate Solutions Community.

Once Ocean Visions staff were done speaking, they gave everyone else in the room a chance to stand up and introduce themselves. Once introductions were done, it was time to mingle. SOI alumni, Dan and Misty, were asked to have a quick chat with members from Ocean Visions so that SOI media team member Théo could take a video of the interaction on his 360-degree camera. The interactions that Théo has been capturing are going to be excellent reminders of our time in Iceland and will help us relive our experience at the conference. The group spent the next 40 minutes or so getting to know each other and building connections before heading back to the Harpa Hall for the afternoon.

Once the afternoon panels were complete, the SOI team grabbed a quick evening meal and met to do some prep work for the panel that the youth would be sitting on the following day. The group began to panic once they found out that introductions should be roughly 5-7 minutes – thinking there was no way they could talk for that long! To get the group thinking about what they could say for their introductions, SOI team member, Lynda, told the group to think of the story of them, the story of us, and the story of now– “who you are and where you come from, how you got connected with SOI, and how you got to be here in Iceland.” As a group with strong ties to the North, we were all able to relate with one another in many different ways; however, our personal life stories of how we all got here today were so unique. This exercise gave us time to reflect on our lives and on this incredible opportunity, something we may not have done on our own.

SOI team member, Kira, started us off with a mock introduction and the group felt relieved after as the five minutes seemed to fly by! The group was given 15 minutes or so to jot down some notes on what they would say before reconvening to begin their practice introductions. As each person gave their introductions, SOI team member Lynda took some notes, expressed what she liked, and offered suggestions on things the team could add or take out. Although the group had spent over a week with each other at this point, it wasn’t until the practice introductions that the group felt that they really knew each other. Once the introductions were complete, SOI team member Lynda gave the group some questions to think about during the panel. Our team thought of some answers together and felt prepared for the exciting day ahead of them.

In the evening, half of the group went back to the Harpa Hall for more panels and activities, while the rest of the group decided to stay back to keep practicing for our own session. As a way to wind down and relax, the team also got together to watch the movie “Eurovision,” which was filmed in Iceland. There were lots of laughs as we recognized filming locations from our time exploring Iceland for the past week.

On the morning of the 21st, the nerves were starting to kick in as we were anxiously awaiting our panel “Vision for the Arctic: Young Leaders’ Perspectives on Community Needs & Policy Shifts”. Through innovative outreach and awareness-raising activities, the SOI Foundation has been engaging and inspiring Arctic and Indigenous young people to learn about and inform international Arctic policy. The SOI alumni youth who spoke on the panel included Ocean Pottle-Shiwak, Daniel Guhl,  James Thomas, Danica Taylor, Brenden Angotingoar, and myself; with SOI team member, Lynda Brown as the moderator. All of the SOI team members for the 2023 Iceland Expedition were from the North and impacted by Arctic policies. Our preparation both during our expedition, and time at the conference paid off, as our team applied what we had learned, spoke well, and captivated our audience.

View the photo gallery here.