Joint project of twin cities of Petrozavodsk and Dulut
PetrSU has been cooperating with the College of St. Scholastica (Duluth, USA) for over 30 years. This fall, the University is implementing another joint project “Sustainable Global Communities Collaboration” within the framework of the virtual partnership program of the US and Russian universities (UniVIP).
Among the activities of the project, several lectures are planned by Russian and American professors specializing in ecology and sustainable development. The main task of the project is to popularize the ideas of sustainable development for schoolchildren and students, in particular, the creation of multimedia and audiovisual materials based on various technical modern platforms.
On September 30, a lecture was delivered by Professor of the Institute of Biology, Ecology and Agricultural Technologies, Doctor of Biological Sciences Sergienko Lyudmila Aleksandrovna Sergienko. Foreign colleagues briefly got acquainted with the concept of “Arctic”, and also learned what problems are currently facing scientists studying the ecology of the Arctic region. The lecture touched upon the issues of physical, geographical and biotic features of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation.
The report briefly outlined the environmental risks experienced by the nature of the Arctic in the context of global climate change, and showed the corresponding maps of the distribution of coastal communities along the coast of the Russian Arctic.
The melting of Arctic ice, pollution of the waters of the northern seas by oil and chemical runoffs, as well as by sea transport, a decrease in the populations of Arctic animals and a change in their habitat … The Arctic is entering a new phase of economic development, and a new arena for large-scale industrial projects, primarily related to with the production and transportation of hydrocarbons, most likely, will be the coasts of the Arctic seas, where life is concentrated – a kind of nodal areas of ecosystems. These coastal ecosystems, salt marshes on muddy coastal drylands and in the estuarine zones of all Arctic rivers, are inhabited by specific plant communities with a unique structural and functional integrity,
– said L.A. Sergienko.
The audience was also introduced to the work that the Department of Botany and Plant Physiology has been conducting for more than 20 years on the study of the ecosystems of the White Sea.
The lecture aroused great interest of American colleagues: questions were asked – are there so-called “green tides” in the estuaries of Arctic rivers, caused by the rapid bloom of green algae. They also asked about the participation of the indigenous small-numbered peoples of the North in regulating the environmental load on the tundra communities. Many questions were also asked about the Arctic Council and about the council’s group engaged in the study and conservation of the biota of the Arctic shores. Since prof. L.A. Sergienko is the representative from the Russian Federation in this group, she was able to briefly familiarize foreign colleagues with the main problems that this working group solves.
We all face the same problems, and therefore now more than ever it is important to unite efforts to preserve our planet for posterity,
– the participants of the meeting consider.
The lecture used the materials of the grants “Analysis of gaps and barriers in the conservation of coastal water ecosystems of the Arctic region of the Arctic region” (Kolarctic-KO5004), “Towards the sustainability of bog ecosystems in the Arctic through integral management and restoration” (RFBR 20-54-71002).