[Bcma-l] (Fwd) Royal BC Museum to participate in national polar forum

[bcma-l@museumsassn.bc.ca]

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Subject:	Royal BC Museum to participate in national polar forum
Date sent:	Tue, 18 Nov 2008 09:05:46 -0800
From:	"News, RBCM RBCM:EX" 
<RoyalBCMuseumNews@RoyalBCMuseum.bc.ca>
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For Immediate Release
Nov. 18, 2008

Royal BC Museum to participate in national polar forum

VICTORIA, BC - Canadian Arctic experts come to the Royal BC Museum
(RBCM) next week to help raise awareness about the impact of climate
change. 

Polar Perspectives 2008 Speakers Series and Youth Forum, an
International Polar Year activity, will be staged at 15 venues across
Canada this year, reaching into every province and territory. On Nov.
24, the RBCM - the only venue in British Columbia participating in this
project - presents a free lecture and discussion session on climate
change. 

"Global warming is a real concern for everyone in this province," says
RBCM CEO Pauline Rafferty. "As leaders in research and education, we at
the Royal BC Museum give top priority to this subject through our
exhibitions, research and everyday activities. In fact, one of the noted
experts in climate change - Dr. Richard Hebda - is a member of our
staff. It is an honour to have him and his colleagues come together for
this event at the Royal BC Museum next week. We hope participants go
home with new ideas about how their actions can benefit our province." 

Hebda, curator of botany and earth science at the RBCM, will open the
evening's program with a discussion on climate change and its ecological
impact on the province. Eddy Carmack, climate research oceanographer
from the Institute of Ocean Sciences, follows with a presentation on the
relationship between the polar oceans and global climate system.  

The free session will take place 6:30 - 9 p.m. in the Newcombe
Conference Hall at the Royal BC Museum. Doors open at 6 p.m.

Earlier in the day, the RBCM welcomes pre-selected secondary school
students to an all-day educational forum, at which students from British
Columbia and the Arctic will connect via videoconference to share their
thoughts, stories and perspectives on polar issues.  

International Polar Year, the largest-ever scientific research program
dedicated to the polar regions, continues until March 1, 2009. Polar
Perspectives is presented in partnership with the Alliance of Natural
History Museums of Canada and Students on Ice. 

As the provincial museum and archives, the Royal BC Museum preserves and
shares the stories of British Columbia - onsite, offsite and online -
through its research, collections, exhibitions and educational programs.
Its two-hectare cultural precinct also includes a number of historically
significant buildings and First Nations sites.    
For more information on the Royal BC Museum's latest activities, events
and exhibitions, visit www.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca or call 1-888-447-7977.  
-30-


Contact:	Diane Dakers, Communications Manager
	Royal BC Museum
	(250) 387-2101
	                      ddakers@royalbcmuseum.bc.ca



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