The Scott Polar Research Institute, established in 1920 as part of the University of Cambridge, is a centre of excellence in the study of the Arctic and Antarctic. Research covers both the natural and social sciences and is often interdisciplinary. The Institute also houses the World's premier Polar Library, extensive archival, photographic and object collections of international importance on the history of polar exploration, and a Polar Museum with displays of both the history and contemporary significance of the Arctic and Antarctic and their surrounding seas. The Institute is a sub-department of the Department of Geography.
SPRI's mission is to enhance the understanding of the polar regions through scholarly research and publication, educating new generations of polar researchers, caring for and making accessible its collections (including its library, archival, photographic and object collections), and projecting the history and environmental significance of the polar regions to the wider community for public benefit.
Collections
The Library offers a collection developed since the 1920s with over 700 current journals and over 250,000 printed works covering all subjects relating to the Arctic, the Antarctic, and to ice and snow wherever found.
Staff and students
SPRI's staff publish regularly in a range of leading journals, and attract research funding from a wide variety of sources.
Open Cambridge event in SPRI Library - Friday 11th September
26th August, 2015
Explore behind the scenes at the Library at the Scott Polar Research Institute. The Library at the Scott Polar Research Institute is known as the place to find research on Polar Regions, but beyond the science and history lurks the fiction these factual records have inspired. For Open Cambridge 2015, there will be polar-based fiction from all genres on display all day with library staff on hand to answer any questions. there will also be a talk given by Library Assistant, Martin French, on the subject of Polar Fiction. For more information on this and other Open Cambridge 2015 events and for details on how to book, please visit the Open Cambridge website.
This workshop, on Wednesday June 10th 2015, is concerned with the issue of 'poor' parenting in cross-cultural perspective, and particularly a UK comparison with post-Soviet countries. Taken at face value, the concept of 'poor' parenting may look very different in countries with different political, ideological and socio-economic structures such as liberal democracies of the UK and the US, yet one study has revealed some (tentative) similarities in child welfare practices. This workshop problematizes the concept of 'poor' parenting by making it an analytical concept and placing it in a comparative context, asking three main questions: (1) What constitutes 'poor' parenting in a particular country? (2) What are the underlying concepts of childhood and parenthood this relies on? (3) What are the similarities in child welfare practices, and how do we account for these?
The Scott Polar Research Institute is pleased to offer high quality prints from our unique collection. Images are available in various sizes, framed or unframed. Visit SPRIPrints.com.
The Polar Museums Network: Connecting polar collections around the world
7th May, 2015
SPRI is pleased to announce the launch of the Polar Museums Network (PMN), a new initiative which brings together polar museums and collections around the world to strengthen and spread the knowledge of polar history, science and exploration. The PMN will foster greater cooperation and collaboration amongst polar museums in the key areas of exhibitions, research, outreach and learning, documentation and conservation. The Polar Museum at SPRI is one of the six founding members of the network.
Perspectives on the Nepal earthquake
1st May, 2015
Typical Nepal mountain hazards were made worse by the recent earthquake. Senior Lecturer Dr Ian Willis, and PhD student Evan Miles contemplate the fate of people in a remote part of the country, where they have been doing research for the past two years.
© 2015 University of Cambridge
Scott Polar Research Institute
