As permafrost melts, landslides become more likely and may threaten areas that have been relatively safe from these hazards in recent memory in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic. Addressing these hazards requires collaboration to share information about past and current potential hazards and ways to mitigate their impacts to people, communities, and infrastructure.

​

During this workshop we will be bringing together researchers, Native Americans, local residents and businesses, land managers, agencies, and other stakeholders, and together we will consider:

​

#1: What do we know about landslide risk in areas of degrading permafrost? How can the collective memory of our residents share the stories of other landslide events?

#2: What can we do to mitigate this hazard to communities, and what resources do we need?

#3: What are the gaps in our scientific understanding of the problem and the priority research needs to inform better hazard communication and mitigation?

​​

The regional focus area for this workshop is the geology along the Glenn Highway, extending from Anchorage to the Copper Basin. This work will relate to many areas of Alaska and elsewhere.

 

Workshop results will be summarized in a report intended to inform future actions to mitigate landslide hazards in degrading-permafrost terrains in Southcentral Alaska. The collaborative results from scientists, agency members and community members will be made available to the public and also shared in known areas facing similar hazards such as northern and southeast Alaska, Iceland, Greenland, and the Andes.

 

Seed funding for the workshop is provided by the International Arctic Science Committee. Endorsement of the workshop has been provided by: Corax LLC., Davis Laboratory, Icelandic Meteorological Office, Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys, University of Alaska Fairbanks Geophysical Institute, National Research Council (Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche), Geological Survey of Denmark and Greenland, University of Iceland, and Nuka Research.