Behind the scenes of the Arctic Permafrost Atlas

There are only 18 months left until the official launch of the Arctic Permafrost Atlas, and work is well underway. On October 7th, draft maps and graphics from the first introductory chapter were presented at the 5th Online General Assembly. Project participants shared their work using gather.town, an online tool for building and hosting conferences in an interactive game-like interface. Dedicated virtual rooms were created to allow participants to present their research via digital posters, and engage with other attendees in real time when their avatars were near each other.

The following week, five science writers from GRID-Arendal gathered to work on the text of all chapters of the Arctic Permafrost Atlas. First drafts of the Atlas’ introductory chapter and chapter five on permafrost beyond the Arctic, including mountain permafrost and Antarctica, will soon be complete.

On October 27th, the first introductory meeting with the Advisory Board for Cartography and Design took place. The Board was put in place earlier this year, with the goal to advise and help us improve the overall visual quality of the Atlas. The board includes of five skilled cartographers and graphic designers with expertise in the world of map making, publishing, and communicating science and stories to broad audiences.

Dr. Margaret Wickens Pearce is Citizen Potawatomi and a cartographer in Maine, USA. She has a Ph.D. in geography and was a university geography faculty member for 15 years before becoming an independent cartographer. In 2017, Dr. Pearce created Coming Home, a map honouring Indigenous place names in Canada. Her expertise working with narrative and numerical data, especially for representing Indigenous geographies, will help us visualise the social science permafrost research throughout the pages of the atlas. Hear her speak about a new project for an Indigenised map of the Mississippi River here.

Alex Tait holds the official title of “The Geographer” at National Geographic. Tait serves as the authority for geographic policy decision for the organization and functions as an ambassador for National Geographic to outside groups on all matters involving geography and mapping. His expertise in communicating science, especially through maps and atlases, will help make sure the Arctic Permafrost Atlas reaches as many people as possible. Hear him speak about his 2019 experience leading a team to map climate change on Mount Everest here.

Adolfo Arranz helps run the South China Morning Post infographics and illustration department. Their team has won many awards for their incredible illustrations and infographics, some of which focused on environmental issues. His experience transforming all kind of data in rich visual stories for print and web format will help elevate the aesthetic quality of the atlas. Read more about Arranz’s great work in this news article, and follow him on twitter to see how he produces breath-taking illustrations.

Oliver Uberti, former senior design editor for National Geographic, is the author of 3 award winning atlases: London, The Information Capital, Where the Animals Go, and the recently published Atlas of the Invisible. Uberti’s knowledge of colours, fonts, engaging design, and the creative work required to put together complex and impactful print atlases will help us think innovatively on how we approach individual spreads in the atlas, but also the production of the atlas as a whole. Hear him speak about design at TEDxNASA 11 years ago in a presentation titled Smash the Design Button.

Lauren C. Tierney works as a Graphics Editor of mapping, weather, and natural disaster coverage at The Washington Post. Tierney previously worked as a Graphics Editor at National Geographic Magazine, and is actively involved in the world of mapping, having worked as a board member of the North American Cartographic Information Society, and an editor of the Atlas of Design. Working for a newspaper, she has experience communicating complex information to a large audience. As the other 4 members of the Advisory Board for Cartography and Design, Tierney will advise on ensuring the visuals in the atlas are meaningful and impactful. Hear Tierney speak about her mapping experience at the 2020 Portland Cartography Symposium.

We are very excited, and thankful, for this talented team to follow us through the production of the Arctic Permafrost Atlas, and to help communicate the importance of permafrost to people living in the Arctic and beyond. Having an Advisory Board specifically dedicated to cartography and design underlines the importance to mobilize design and the creative process to inspire readers, increase awareness about permafrost, and inspire climate change action.

This is part of the “Nunataryuk Behind the Scenes” series, a collection of stories about the making of the Arctic Permafrost Atlas.