Among the life forms that live in Arctic environments, microorganisms are the major contributors to nutrient and energy cycles, biodiversity and biomass. Although the impact of climate change on microbial communities remains unclear, the unique microbial ecosystems associated with fragile Arctic environments such as glaciers, ice-covered seas and permafrost will surely be adversely affected. Microbial processes underpin Arctic food webs and therefore understanding the dynamics and interactions of this group is vital to understanding the ecology of the biome as a whole, especially in the context of the rapid warming in this region. Changes in microbial communities can ripple throughout food webs and alter the availability and quality of resources collected by Northerners on the land, directly impacting their own microbiomes. Therefore, the response of microbial communities to warming will impact not only ecosystem health, but human health as well. The aim of this session is to advance our understanding of environmental and human microbiomes and how they interact and overlap in the context of a rapidly changing Arctic

Catherine Girard, Alexander Culley