Susan Carruth & Julia Martin were Young Researchers at the 2013 Northern Research Forum.
Briefing Note
Themes & Highlights from the 2013 NRF Open
Assembly
Susan Carruth & Julia Martin
“Climate Change in Northern Territories”
Every second year the Northern Research Forum (NRF) holds an Open Assembly aiming to bring
together researchers, politicians, educators, business leaders and other stakeholders. These
assemblies provide a space and time for discussion and networking across disciplinary and
institutional borders. The most recent NRF Open Assembly was held from 22nd – 23th August
2013 in Akureyri, Iceland. The central themes of the conference focused upon territorial challenges
arising from the effects of climate change in the Arctic. They invited contributions addressing the
territorial socio-economic impacts of climate change, new methodologies for assessing socio-
economic impacts, and examples for adaptation strategies responding to climate change in regions
and local communities.
The Northern Research Forum has a history of bringing together the arts and the sciences, a priority
continued at this year‘s assembly. This commentary, written by authors from the architectural and
artistic fields, has a particular interest in such cross-fertilisation between conventions and disciplines,
particularly where such practices can be fruitful in transforming research into action, allowing
communication with the greatest audience possible. There were two stand-out highlights from the
assembly that pertain to such interests: