Meeting locals. ArcSolution and sister proejcts presented finding and involved locals in discussion on various topics.Photo: Adam Maciej Stepien
During the week of 17–21 August 2026, the project team conducted a field visit to Longyearbyen in Svalbard, one of ArcSolution’s case study areas. The visit was intensive and highly productive, bringing together a range of research and stakeholder engagement activities.
The week began with a scenario workshop organised by a sister project, ICEBERG, aimed at discussing with researchers and community members multidimensional drivers of current and expected changes, and exploring plausible developments and challenges up to 2050.
The workshop was followed by a community meeting, during which researchers from three Horizon Europe sister projects, ArcSolution, ICEBERG and ILLUQ, presented progress and recent findings on local pollution issues and facilitated a dialogue with community members regarding their perceptions of, experiences with, and responses to environmental pollution.
During the week, researchers from Nord University and Nordland Research Institute continued their fieldwork, conducting interviews and discussions focused on trust in information about pollution, community responses to environmental challenges, and broader reflections on local perspectives and adaptive strategies.
The ArcSolution team also discussed opportunities and plans for citizen science collaboration with local schools, further strengthening engagement between researchers and the local community.
Overall, the field visit provided valuable opportunities for knowledge exchange, stakeholder engagement and data collection, contributing to a deeper understanding of local experiences and responses to pollution in Longyearbyen.
