The article summarizes some of the research that is coming out of the ongoing International Polar Year studies:

The IPCC may also have been too cautious on Greenland, assuming that the melting of its glaciers would contribute little to sea-level rise. Some studies found that Greenland’s glacial streams were surging and surface ice was morphing into liquid lakes, but others made a strong case that those surges and melts were aberrations, not long-term trends. It seemed to be a standoff. More reliable data, however, such as satellite measurements of Greenland’s mass, show that it is losing about 52 cubic miles per year and that the melting is accelerating. So while the IPCC projected that sea level would rise 16 inches this century, “now a more likely figure is one meter [39 inches] at the least,” says Carlson. “Chest high instead of knee high, with half to two thirds of that due to Greenland.” Hence the “no idea how bad it was.

52 Cubic Miles per year? Yikes. That’s like dropping big ice cubes in the ocean….. sure to raise water levels.

Will the Greenland Ice Sheet actually disappear?

The test of whether the nations of the world care enough to act will come in December, when 192 countries meet in Copenhagen to hammer out a climate treaty. Carlson vows that IPY will finish its Arctic assessment in time for the meeting, and one conclusion is already clear. “A consensus has developed during IPY that the Greenland ice sheet will disappear,” he says. Cue the Jaws music.

Angaangaq, Kalaallit Elder hosting this event said, “This gathering will unite people from around the world and give Elders a unique opportunity to share their teachings and address the spiritual significance of the Melting of the Big Ice.”

At a time when the world governments are planning for the upcoming Climate Summit in Copenhagen this December, this event serves to:

• Raise awareness of the dramatic escalation of the melting icecap in Greenland in recent years and its implications for the world.
• Bring together forward-thinking minds and respected indigenous leaders to examine the impact of the melting of the Big Ice.
• Add the voices, ancient knowledge and teachings of the people who have lived on the ice for thousands of years to recent scientific findings.
• Preserve the ancient teachings and the knowledge of the Elders for coming generations.

The Sacred Fire Ceremony is a three-day cross-cultural gathering of deliberation, ceremony, and celebration addressing the welfare of the world.

Ashes from fires that have been burning for up to 10 000 years, fires from the Americas, fires from Buddhist Temples, Celtic fires, fires from the heart of Africa are being sent to Greenland to be used as the foundation for the Sacred Fire at the top of the world. These ashes contain the prayers of our ancestors, the prayers of the Four Directions, our prayers, the prayers of humankind.

On July 18 the Ancient Voices Council will meet, sharing prophecies and stories about Mother Earth, discussing issues about climate change. The ceremony on July 19 symbolizes the spiritual significance of climate change, expressing the unity of the Sacred Fire coming home and the Melting of the Big Ice. As the trees stand tall again in Greenland, the ice is melting. What does it all mean for people all over the world?

During the three days of ceremony Sacred Fires from around the world will being sparked connecting to each other and to the Sacred Fire at the Top of the World creating a global circle of Fire.

For further information regarding Sacred Fires from Around the World or to follow the event webcast from Greenland: Visit: http://www.fireandiceceremony.ning.com/

Todd Lucier reported on the G20 Summit in London this past April on his blog http://www.climatecafe.org and interviewed Angaangaq about the Fire Ceremony in Greenland.  He will be posting video, photos and stories on this blog throughout the event.

For more information about the Sacred Fire Ceremony, visit: http://www.icewisdom.com/calendar/greenland/

‘The easiest ice to be melted is the ice on the ground, the hardest ice to be melted is the one in the heart of man.’ The teachings of the ice help us all to recognize our common humanity and gain a new perspective from the melting of the Big Ice.

Part 1:

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Part 2:

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Part 3:

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Please join the social network in support of this important event which embraces the spiritual significance of the melting of the big ice.
In this three part interview, uncle shares the significance of Fire and Ice and invites people from all over the world to join the social site at http://fireandiceceremony.ning.com and to:

• come to Greenland for the Fire and Ice Ceremony
• hold their own ceremony in concert with the Greenland event in July 2009
• to support the indigenous elders from around the world who need financial support to attend this event.
• to follow Fire and Ice online

The elders of Greenland say, “I am the first one that put the footsteps on the big ice and I will be the last one to put footsteps on the big ice.”  As a people, the elders of Greenland know more about ice than most scientific experts on the matter of climate change impacts on the glacier.

The elders of Greenland want it to be evidently clear that the changes required to combat climate change are not from the people in the front – the global leaders, but by the ideas and actions of the people in the back, you and I.

Before boarding my flight for London and the G20 Summit, I sat down with Angaangaq (Uncle) to receive messages from the Indigenous elders on Greenland.

Angaangaq is the runner for the elders on Greenland and he has been circling the globe meeting with communities and leaders to share information about an important climate change event happening this summer on Greenland – the Fire and Ice Ceremony.

This is really the most significant climate change gathering on earth.  This is the first time the elders of the people who live with the big ice have offered their input into the debate on climate change.

Angaangak says, “The people of London and other major cities around the world are under a real threat from climate change and no government on earth is prepared to deal with the rising waters and climate change that are already underway.”

“People know, but they don’t want to change.”

Climate changes are clearly evident on the island of Greenland

“Robins are now being born on Greenland, but the people do not have names for them.”  The different kinds of fish and mussels they are catching are different than those that have been harvested for millennium.  Trees are growing that the traditional people do not have names for.  They are unfamiliar to generations.

We have plants that come up and we say, “Welcome home, but who are you?”

Negotiations are generally approached with each party attending to meet their own needs

The indigenous people on Greenland are beginning to surface for the first time and tell others of the changes that are happening on earth.  They are the first ones to see the manifestations of climate change and they are calling on people to change their provincial – me first mind-view and join them in acting for the benefit of all people on earth.

Angaangak begs us to use our knowledge and wisdom wisely.  What will we do with the many millions of people who will be displaced by climate change?  Who will pay for the relocation of these people?

Greenland becomes a Rose Garden

The elders of Greenland want the world to know, “We’re going to be O.K., Greenland is going to become a rose garden.”  But others around the world are going to be significantly impacted.  The elders are thinking of others first.  They don’t want the millions and millions of people to be left behind.

The elders of Greenland are perhaps the first community in history that have recognized the global implications of climate change.  They recognize that while they stand to gain an improvement in their environment, many others will see their homeland diminished in its ability to support human life.  The elders of Greenland are calling on all the nations of the world to stop and change, for the wellbeing of all.