MARIT REIGSTAD

MARIT REIGSTAD Project Leader And Marine biologist

What part of the Nansen Legacy are you looking most forward to?

What I look most forward to is working with a so big and inspiring group of people, as well as contributing to a good function of this group. Likewise, I look forward to learning a lot of new things and to get started with the research activities within this project.

What is your specific role in the project?

As a project leader, my role is to have the overview, see and communicate the goal, motivate and facilitate the great potential of this huge research project. To succeed we need to integrate and develop research, innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration, education, better use of technology and numeric models. In this way, we will strengthen and increase our knowledge of todays and future Arctic seas.

Which scientific question do you hope to answer at the end of the project?

How will the future northern Barents Sea ecosystem function? Including the more specific; will more or less primary production reach the sea floor in a warmer Arctic?

If you had to choose another discipline within the Nansen Legacy, which one would you choose?

If I hadn’t had the role I have today, I would definitely have been more engaged in my key research focus which is more directed to plankton, production and vertical flux related processes in the research.

The Arctic, what fascinates you the most?

The nature that makes us humans small and humble. And the adaptation of all organisms that live under tremendous varying and extreme physical conditions.

What is the first thing you think off when hearing the name, Fridtjof Nansen?

A great and visionary person with remarkable many talents. A person who challenged and crossed many boarders and who succeeded due to his dedicated work, will and collaborations.

Which book/film/music has made the largest impression on you lately?

The “Heaven and Hell” -trilogy by Jón Kalman Stefánsson. It portrays how man are shaped by and survive extreme environmental settings, the importance of solidarity and friendships, the beauty of literature, and how a life by the sea impact humans.

Appreciate