MBARI President and CEO Antje Boetius recently participated in the 2026 Arctic Circle Assembly, held October 8 to 10 in Reykjavik, Iceland. She brought her extensive experience in polar sciences to international discussions about the challenges facing Arctic environments and communities.

Hosted by the Arctic Circle network, the Arctic Circle Assembly is the largest annual international gathering focused on the Arctic, bringing together governments, organizations, businesses, universities, and Indigenous communities for international dialogue and cooperation on the future of this vulnerable region.

Boetius was invited to participate in the assembly’s final plenary session, “Science in the Play of Power and Politics,” a panel discussion moderated by H.E. Katrin Jakobsdottir, former Prime Minister of Iceland (2017–2024) and chair of the Arctic Circle’s Polar Dialogue. With fellow panelists Edward Parson from the UCLA School of Law and Karen Hallberg from the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs, Boetius discussed how science is providing tools and information that Arctic nations and communities need to guide decision-making about their future. She also presented in a session organized by the British Antarctic Survey, “Major Change in the Arctic Marine Ecosystem and What it Means.” 

During the assembly, Boetius participated in several meetings as a member of the Arctic Circle Polar Dialogue Advisory Board. She also met a number of polar leaders to coordinate activities for Antarctica InSync—an integrated science program for observing life across Antarctica and the Southern Ocean—as well as the upcoming Fifth International Polar Year in 2032–2033 and the United Nations Decade of Action for Cryospheric Sciences.

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