The humanities and social sciences study the way humans make meaning of and relate to themselves and the world. In Antarctica, the only continent without an indigenous population or permanent human settlement, the humanities and social sciences address a series of important questions. What kinds of narratives and images do we create to make ourselves at home in a place with such a short human history, and how do these then affect our ongoing interactions with the region? How do we govern it? Who should be able to visit it, and under what conditions? How do people behave in such an isolated and hostile environment? How can we meet the many challenges facing us in our future interactions with the region?
Research by the humanities and social sciences community is becoming increasingly important within Antarctic research and has been part of the SCAR landscape for well over a decade. In 2005, a group looking at the history of the institutionalisation of Antarctic research held the first of its annual meetings. But it wasn't until the International Polar Year 2007-08, which included “human dimensions” as a major theme, that social sciences began to emerge within the Antarctic community. A social sciences group was established in 2010 and became the Humanities and Social Sciences Expert Group (HASSEG) in 2014. The History Group was granted expert group status in 2011.
From 2013, the two groups held joint meetings, organising workshops and conference sessions at SCAR's Open Science Conferences (OSCs), and holding joint conferences in the intervening years (see the Humanities and Social Sciences Meetings page for full details). In 2018, the two groups officially merged. Recognising the increasing importance of the humanities and social sciences community within Antarctic research, the SCAR Delegates established the Standing Committee on the Humanities and Social Sciences (SC-HASS) in June 2018.
Research Project on COVID-19
The Impact of COVID-19 on Antarctica
SC-HASS is looking into the impact of COVID-19 on Antarctic research and researchers and seeing what the long-term implications of the pandemic might be for Antarctic operations and governance.
Humanities and Social Sciences Action Groups
SC-HASS is in the process of setting up Action Groups to address specific issues.
Action Group on Intrinsic Value in Antarctica (AGIVA)
This Action Group seeks to develop a broad cross-cultural understanding of the intrinsic value of Antarctica in order that the intention of the Madrid Protocol to provide protection to this value can be better understood.
Antarctic Tourism Action Group (Ant-TAG)
This Action Group aims to harness the range of expertise in SC-HASS and related groups on tourism topics, looking at the potential environmental impacts and the effective management of tourism.
Action Group on Public Engagement with Antarctic Research (PEAR)
This Action Group seeks to foster the academic study of public engagement with Antarctica, Antarctic science and Antarctic research more broadly.
Action Group on Resilience and the Future of Science-based Decision-making for Antarctica (Action Group on PoLSciNex)
This Action Group aims to analyze the policy-law-science nexus within the current Antarctic governance framework and to articulate the practical significance of understanding such a nexus, so as to inform stakeholders how science-based decision making relevant to Antarctica is actually operationalized.