Digital storytelling – using multi-media tools to explore transformation processes in Arctic permafrost landscapes

• Main Authors: Muster, Sina, Pit, M. L., Kaiser, Soraya, Schneider von Deimling, Thomas, Jacobi, Stephan, Langer, Moritz
• Format: Conference Object
• Language: unknown
• Published: 2018
• Subjects: Arctic; Canada; Climate change; permafrost; Alaska
• Online Access: https://epic.awi.de/id/eprint/49126/; https://agu.confex.com/agu/fm18/meetingapp.cgi/Paper/348594; https://hdl.handle.net/10013/epic.01ca92ec-88f9-4a56-91cc-13ce276f3a8e

PermaRisk is a young investigator’s research group that simulates erosion processes in permafrost landscapes under warming climate and conducts risk assessments for ecosystems and infrastructure within the Arctic. Diverse ecological, social, and financial risks are associated with potential damages to ecosystem functions and infrastructure caused by permafrost thaw. Communication with local stakeholders in the Arctic such as the Bureau of Land Management in Alaska or town communities in Canada are integral to the research of PermaRisk. Local indigenous knowledge will help researchers to better understand past and current landscape changes and their impact on local life and infrastructure. PermaRisk promotes a transparent and open communication between research and society. Here, we present the tool of digital storytelling and how it is used to portray both the stories of the research project and the scientists as well as the stories of the people affected by climate change in the Arctic. Digital storytelling allows the combination of photos, videos, sound bites, interviews, graphics, maps, and data into compelling, entertaining, and interactive stories. Research data and materials brought back from fieldwork are used to look into questions like: What drives these scientists to do what they do? How do they do it? Why does it matter? To whom does it matter? How are local communities affected by Arctic climate change? How do they perceive the change and the research? In the final product, the project’s main research findings are translated into accessible storylines about erosion and permafrost and placed within the socio-ecological context of climate change in the Arctic and globally. Finished Stories will be used for community outreach and public relations to advocate science. Furthermore, they will be integrated into teaching at German universities and schools to invite interactive learning and situate the research in concrete, real-life situations and communities.