Arctic Connections: 29th Polar Libraries Colloquy

Tromsø offers a good selection of hotels and other types of accommodation. Most hotels are located in the city centre, while some of the AirBnB locations are more scattered around the town and the nearby area.  

Accommodation is not covered by the delegate fee, so all participants must book their own accommodation. Tromsø is a popular tourist destination, so we recommend that you book your hotel well in advance. Feel free to book the accommodation type you prefer, but if you want to stay at a hotel, PLC2024 have two hotel deals on offer, see conference codes for each hotel. 

A number of hotel rooms have been reserved for the conference participants from June 9–14, 2024.

Individual reservations and payment. The reservation must be guaranteed with a credit card. 

Scandic Ishavshotell 

Conference prices (breakfast included) :

• NOK 1490 per room per night for a single room
• NOK 1790 NOK for a double room

Booking code: BUIT090624

Booking must be made before May 4th. Free cancellation before May 21st.  

Rooms can be booked through online booking (booking code applied) or call hotel customer service +47 23 15 50 00.

Smarthotel Tromsø 

Conference price (breakfast included):

• NOK 975 NOK per night for a single room

Booking code: PLC2024

Booking must be made before May 4th. Free cancellation before May 8th. 

Rooms can be booked through email joachim.olaussen@smarthotel.no or call hotel customer service + 47 415 36 500.

Restaurants

There are so many, here is just a quick selection.
The great thing is that these are all in walking distance in and around town centre.

• Skarven [The cormorant] is central and traditional, with several departments:
  Ground floor has pub, with outdoor terrace, and evening bar.First floor has two fine restaurants, one seafood (Arctandria) and one beef house.
• Fiskekompaniet. Popular seafood restaurant
• Café Sånn [Café like that]. Nice place inside the local culture house.
• Art Café Bistro. Small cosy place with both cakes and dinner served.
• Suvi. Popular sushi/Asian restaurant.
• Skirri. Restaurant in the “Coast Food House” with a sunny terrace.
• Maskinverkstedet. [Machinery hall]. Fine restaurant under the bridge, ten minutes walk from town centre.
• Bardus. [Sudden]. Interesting restaurant with evening bar next door.
• Svermeri. [Infatuation]. Redesign café / coffee shop
• Huken Brygg. Bar in main street, dinner also served.
• Amtmandens. [The governor]. Nice wine bar
• Ølhallen [Beer Hall]. Brewpub where the ice breaker takes place on Sunday evening.
  Close to the venue at Fram Centre.

Bus

The venue on Tuesday is UiT: the university campus, which is located outside of town centre. The bus ride is no more than 15 minutes (one zone).

It is possible to pay cash on the bus, but we recommend the app:
https://fylkestrafikk.no/menu/tickets-and-fares/troms-billett-tickets-app/?sprak=3

It is also convenient to buy two single tickets at the Wi-To kiosk, located in Storgata 68, which is in the southern part of the pedestrian street.

Take bus route 20 or 34 from town centre, see map.

On Saturday the 14th you will have the opportunity to go on a fjord- and fishing cruise!

This is scheduled from 09 to 13, and will take us out to the islands outside Tromsø.

You will have the opportunity to catch fish, which the boat crew will then serve as the freshest, most delicious snack you can imagine.

This is not part of the colloquy program itself, and will cost approximately NOK 1500

(depends on the number of participants).

The participant fee for the colloquy in Tromsø will be NOK 7000 for the whole colloquy. This includes the Thursday banquet, but not the optional boat excursion on Saturday. Early bird discount: The fee is NOK 6000 if you register before March 1^st.  The price for single-day registration will be NOK 1500.

Should you need financial support to help pay for travel and participation, you may apply funding from the Hubert Wenger Award.

We invite librarians, scholars and other information professionals to submit their abstracts to Polar Libraries Colloquy 2024, which takes place in Tromsø, Norway June 9 – 14.

Conference themes include, but are not limited to:

• Minorities and indigenous peoples in the north
• Polar libraries, archives and information matters
• Polar and indigenous research data management and open access publishing
• Polar ecology, climate and environment management
• Polar politics and history
• The Arctic/Antarctic in teaching and learning

Presentation formats

Submissions are invited for paper presentations/best practice presentations or round table discussions.

• 25-minute presentations, including time for questions. These are reports on projects, studies or best practices that you want to share.
• 55-minute round table discussions. These are structured discussion sessions on relevant topics and/or challenging issues. As a round table leader, you are expected to present the topic, lead the discussion, and facilitate participation.

Abstract must contain a maximum of 250 words and must be submitted no later than 9 November 2023.

The submitted abstract should preferably be in the form of a .docx file and sent to the following e-mail address: mariann.lokse@uit.no

One traditional PLC feature is the auction. This includes both a silent auction, where the participants can bid on items during the week, as well as a live auction during the Thursday banquet.

The money from the auction goes directly to the  the Hubert Wenger Award.
The purpose of this award is to provide financial assistance to one or more delegates who might otherwise be unable to attend a PLC meeting.

So remember to bring items with you from your institution or country that can be included in the auction.