Toward valuable weather and sea-ice services for the marine Arctic: exploring user–producer interfaces of the Norwegian Meteorological Institute

Abstract

Recognition is growing that valuable weather, water, ice and climate (WWIC) services for marine, Arctic environments can only be produced in close dialogue with its actual users. This denotes an acknowledgement that knowing how users incorporate WWIC information in their activities should be considered throughout the information value chain. Notions like co-production and user engagement are current terms to grapple with user needs, but little is known about how such concepts are operationalized in the practical context of tasks and responsibilities of National Meteorological and Hydrometeorological Services (NMHS). Based on a series of in-depth, qualitative interviews with a diversity of personnel from the Norwegian Meteorological Institute, we describe the shifting dynamics of interactions between WWIC information providers and maritime stakeholders operating in Arctic environments. Three key challenges are discussed, pertaining to both day-to-day and strategic interactions: (1) the importance of knowing how information is used, (2) the increasing automation of meteorological practices and the growing need for user observations, and (3) the need for bridging research-to-operations gaps. We embed these findings in a discussion on how user–producer interfaces are shaped and transforming through an ongoing negotiation of expertise, changing the roles and responsibilities within particular constellations of co-producing WWIC information services.