This panel discussion focuses on families in the permafrost community with a focus on balancing childcare and work responsibilities, including travel for conducting fieldwork and attending conferences. Join for an engaging discussion on the unique experiences and challenges faced by families conducting permafrost research. The panelists will share their personal experience, insights, and strategies for balancing career aspirations with family life.
The event is free and open to USPA members and non-members. There are a series of optional demographic questions asked during registration that will allow the FCP to better learn about the community.
This event is sponsored by the Institute of Northern Engineering, University of Alaska Fairbanks and is co-organized by the USPA DEI committee and the Polar Science Early Career Community Office (PSECCO).
Caregiver Awards:
Two $500 Caregiver Awards are available for work-related travel occurring in spring and summer 2024. These awards can be used for any additional caregiving expenses related to conducting travel-related work activities. Examples include, but are not limited to: travel and other costs associated with bringing dependents to meetings and field sites, compensation for professional or informal caregivers in the primary caregiver’s absence, travel expenses such as transportation for an alternate caregiver to travel to the dependent’s home or to accompany the primary caregiver and the dependent to the conference/fieldwork, and breast milk or medicine storage and shipping.
Caregiver awards support permafrost-related work for researchers, scientists, and engineers at U.S.-based institutions and companies. Applicants must be USPA members prior to applying. USPA accepts applications for all types of human care (e.g., childcare, sick-care, elder-care) for family members of the permafrost community.
To apply for the award, go to:
Application webform
For more information about FCP, go to:
FCP webpage
For more information and to register for the webinar, go to:
Event webpage
For questions related to caregiver awards or panel event, contact:
Melissa Ward Jones
Email: mkwardjones@alaska.edu