This lecture will  draw attention to three island settlements in the Arctic that are undergoing significant changes relating to a warming climate.  These changes include less ice, more extreme weather events, increased occurrences of geohazards, thawing permafrost and the way in which environments are used. This has impacted on the way people in these regions carry out their daily tasks along with the repercussions these changes have on local infrastructures. This challenges us to think and ask questions about the future of these settlements and how design can play a role in dealing with such changes. The lecture will be composed of two parts. Firstly, an overview of changes relating to climate in three Arctic settlements. And secondly, a short description of the work I am doing in the Arctic which questions how designers can generate new site-specific knowledge through different sensory means.

Eimear is an Irish landscape architect and holds a Master of Landscape Architecture from both University College Dublin and The Oslo School of Architecture and Design. She has previously practiced as a landscape architect in Dublin, Bergen and Tromsø (Norway) over a ten year period and is an affiliated member of the Irish Landscape Institute. From 2015 to 2017 she taught at the Tromsø Academy of Landscape and Territorial Studies and has been leader for two studio courses on the topics of Arctic heritage and landscape representation in the Arctic. Since then she has been a PhD research fellow at The Oslo School of Architecture and Design.