Climate change has been and will continue to alter vulnerable polar regions, with many questions arising about the microbial responses within these dynamic systems and the impact it will have on a global scale. Glacial and ice sheet habitats are among the most fragile, but remain some of the most difficult places to study because of their challenges: extreme environmental conditions, largely low biomass loads, and limited accessibility. I will share how we have tackled some of these challenges through multidisciplinary collaborations to better understand microbial communities found on and under ice and present findings from studies that have been conducted to date. Additionally, I will touch on future research directions and discuss barriers that remain.

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify some of the different microbial habitats found in icy ecosystems         

2. Describe key logistical and environmental challenges encountered in conducting polar microbial research. 

3. Explain how multidisciplinary approaches have advanced our understanding of microbial communities in polar environments and discuss future research needs.