Within weeks of its registration as a charity in May 2021, the Foundation has reached out to Polar Capital, an early corporate supporter of Pen Hadow’s Catlin Arctic Survey in 2009. The management team swiftly decided to support the vision and work of the nascent 90 North Foundation. However the consequences of COVID-19 throughout the UK economy has delayed the launch of the Foundation’s first major initiative, its Central Arctic Ocean biodiversity research programme, by one year to mid-2022. So the Foundation is especially appreciative of Polar Capital’s patience as we get underway.

NB. Catlin Arctic Survey was undertaking sea-ice thickness measurements, working with Prof Peter Wadhams (Dept of Applied Mathematics & Theoretical Physics, Cambridge University) to assess the volume of sea-ice cover on the Arctic Ocean, and thereby fine-tune forecasts for sea-ice loss.