Saleem H. Ali

Hello. My name is Saleem H. Ali. As an educator and researcher, Antarctica presents a model of planetary cooperation between countries. I have been interested in the continent ever since I worked on a collection of essays for a book titled "Diplomacy on Ice" (Yale University Press, 2015) and had an opportunity to visit the continent in 2022. I am particularly interested in having greater involvement of developing countries on Antarctic research and exploration.

My country of origin, Pakistan, has a small research station (Jinnah station) in Queen Maud Land but without funding has not been able to develop much research on the continent. Those of us Pakistanis who now reside overseas in developed countries (I also have American and Australian citizenship) are eager to build capacity for researchers in our lands of origin to experience the wonders of the Antarctic through science. 

I also serve on the United Nations International Resource Panel which seeks to inform UN member states about the state of the world's natural resources for more effective development planning. With climate change, Antarctica is getting global attention. Managing access with care through "citizen science" and experiential education is important as tourist numbers rise. I also serve on the board of a non-profit organisation called "Adventure Scientists" which aims to link scientists with expeditions for procuring crowd-sourced data.