Heïdi Sevestre is a consultant for the International Cryosphere Climate Initiative in collaboration with CCAC and UN Environment.

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Consultant - ICCI Initiative

TEDxTALK LaRochelleWomen: Heïdi Sevestre, Pour une science climatique plus propre et plus accessible (French)

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TEDxTALK Heïdi Sevestre (French)

Heidi Sevestre

Heïdi is a Glaciologist and Researcher who advises governments all over the world on questions regarding melting glaciers and climate change.

Heïdi Sevestre

Cascadia

Four women explore science in the high arctic

AtlasObscura

An Elegy for Colombia’s Tropical Glaciers

Stories by parajumpers - Heïdi Sevestre

Vanity fair

Heidi Sevestre, alle Isole Svalbard per fare il «medico del ghiaccio» (Italian)

Smithsonian Magazine cover

What the surging glaciers of Svalbard are telling us about the future of rising seas

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An Ice Shelf Is Cracking In Antarctica, But Not For The Reason You Think

phys-dot-org

Glaciers on Svalbard behave differently

Donate to Heïdi - A Glaciologist Protecting Glaciers

Heidi is a glaciologist and one of the founders of Climate Sentinels. An all female, climate neutral expedition on Svalbard to study the effects of micro pollution on the glaciers. She talks to governments on her insights to promote sustainable policies.

SDG 13 Climate Action

Clean Our Planet

## In short
Heïdi is a Glaciologist set out to complete the first ever carbon-neutral science expedition in the Arctic and gather invaluable information on micro-particles, which could be a key in stopping glaciers from further melting and sea levels from rising. She advises governments all over the world on questions regarding glaciers and climate change and is also researching tropical glaciers. 

**Incredible environments**
I grew up in the French alps, and I’ve always been completely in love with the mountains. I was curious about in what ways they were important to us. When I started studying, I tried to choose a path that would teach me more about these incredible environments. 

**99,9 % of all glaciers are melting**
Glaciers react very quickly to climate change. At this moment, 99.9 % of all glaciers are melting, contributing to our most significant threat – sea level rise. Over 700 million people will be directly affected by this. Indirectly, massive streams of refugees will increase population density, diseases, and conflict dramatically. 

**Climate Sentinels*
My work involves researching glaciers and ice sheets to study climate change, and I analyze the vast amount of information they hold about our climate. I’m also part of Climate Sentinels, a group of scientists who will go on the first ever modern science expedition in the Arctic that’s carbon-neutral, in April 2021. With Climate Sentinels, we want to raise awareness amongst a younger generation, the general public and decision-makers about what’s happening in the Arctic due to pollution. 

## My organization
The organization Climate Sentinels stems from the fact that we wanted to change the way that science in the polar region is being done. It’s typical to use snowmobiles, helicopters and ships that pollute when you collect data on arctic pollution, which is really ironic. 

Climate Sentinels is a group of four scientist (me, Heïdi Sevestre together with Alia Khan, Silje Smith-Johnsen and Dorothée Vallot) who decided that change starts with us. The project group will go on an expedition to Svalbard in April 2021, which will be the first ever carbon-neutral modern science expedition in the Arctic and in Svalbard in particular. We will collect data on arctic pollution during four to five weeks via collecting snow samples. They will help us measure the concentrations of fine particles that are being emitted, such as black carbon, a catalyzer to the melting of the arctic. 

The plan is to travel on skis to cover around 450 km, pulling all our scientific equipment, food and tents behind us on pulkas which is like little sleads. 60 % of the Svalbard’s territory is covered in ice which makes it a fantastic lab for us to study what’s happening in the Arctic. It’s also the place on Earth that is warming the fastest, twice as fast as the rest of the world, and it receives all the pollution that’s being emitted in the US, Europe and Asia.

The project encompasses a lot more than just the expedition. We will also go to schools to meet the younger generations and tell them about why the Arctic is important in regulating our climate. We’re gonna be building censors and weather stations together with students, that we’ll bring with us to Svalbard. Once we’re in the field we will try to interact with the schools as often as possible via satellite phones, live calls, blog posts and footage. 

**What we want to achieve**
After the expedition we’ll go back to the schools and look at the data that we have collected. With that data, we’ll be able to identify what the source of pollution is. 

With Climate Sentinels we want to alert and raise awareness amongst the general public and decision makers. We want to make sure that it is known to everyone that pollution from their city/area can travel as far as the Arctic. We also wish to empower young people, and especially girls, to become future scientists and researchers and to push the boundaries of what science has been until today. That is climate sentinels in a nutshell. 

In short
Heïdi is a Glaciologist set out to complete the first ever carbon-neutral science expedition in the Arctic and gather invaluable information on micro-particles, which could be a key in stopping glaciers from further melting and sea levels from rising. She advises governments all over the world on questions regarding glaciers and climate change and is also researching tropical glaciers.

Incredible environments
I grew up in the French alps, and I’ve always been completely in love with the mountains. I was curious about in what ways they were important to us. When I started studying, I tried to choose a path that would teach me more about these incredible environments.

99,9 % of all glaciers are melting
Glaciers react very quickly to climate change. At this moment, 99.9 % of all glaciers are melting, contributing to our most significant threat – sea level rise. Over 700 million people will be directly affected by this. Indirectly, massive streams of refugees will increase population density, diseases, and conflict dramatically.

*Climate Sentinels
My work involves researching glaciers and ice sheets to study climate change, and I analyze the vast amount of information they hold about our climate. I’m also part of Climate Sentinels, a group of scientists who will go on the first ever modern science expedition in the Arctic that’s carbon-neutral, in April 2021. With Climate Sentinels, we want to raise awareness amongst a younger generation, the general public and decision-makers about what’s happening in the Arctic due to pollution.

My organization
The organization Climate Sentinels stems from the fact that we wanted to change the way that science in the polar region is being done. It’s typical to use snowmobiles, helicopters and ships that pollute when you collect data on arctic pollution, which is really ironic.

Climate Sentinels is a group of four scientist (me, Heïdi Sevestre together with Alia Khan, Silje Smith-Johnsen and Dorothée Vallot) who decided that change starts with us. The project group will go on an expedition to Svalbard in April 2021, which will be the first ever carbon-neutral modern science expedition in the Arctic and in Svalbard in particular. We will collect data on arctic pollution during four to five weeks via collecting snow samples. They will help us measure the concentrations of fine particles that are being emitted, such as black carbon, a catalyzer to the melting of the arctic.

The plan is to travel on skis to cover around 450 km, pulling all our scientific equipment, food and tents behind us on pulkas which is like little sleads. 60 % of the Svalbard’s territory is covered in ice which makes it a fantastic lab for us to study what’s happening in the Arctic. It’s also the place on Earth that is warming the fastest, twice as fast as the rest of the world, and it receives all the pollution that’s being emitted in the US, Europe and Asia.

The project encompasses a lot more than just the expedition. We will also go to schools to meet the younger generations and tell them about why the Arctic is important in regulating our climate. We’re gonna be building censors and weather stations together with students, that we’ll bring with us to Svalbard. Once we’re in the field we will try to interact with the schools as often as possible via satellite phones, live calls, blog posts and footage.

What we want to achieve
After the expedition we’ll go back to the schools and look at the data that we have collected. With that data, we’ll be able to identify what the source of pollution is.

With Climate Sentinels we want to alert and raise awareness amongst the general public and decision makers. We want to make sure that it is known to everyone that pollution from their city/area can travel as far as the Arctic. We also wish to empower young people, and especially girls, to become future scientists and researchers and to push the boundaries of what science has been until today. That is climate sentinels in a nutshell.

The Earth’s glaciers are melting. Heïdi is leading the first ever, all women, carbon neutral expedition on Svalbard to study air pollution.

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