UW Iceland

Photos from the graduation ceremony in Hrafnseyri 🎓

Read more about day itself here: https://www.uw.is/en/news/a-beautiful-haskolahatid-in-hrafnseyri

UW master’s students from the courses “Coastal and Marine Management: Practical Applications and Challenges” and “Tools for Community Development” recently visited Vigur Island as part of their studies.

The field trip provided students with the opportunity to explore a unique island environment, connect course topics with real-world experiences, and learn about Vigur’s history, natural surroundings, and the challenges and opportunities of life in a remote coastal setting.

Thank you to instructors Dr. Maxine Westhead and Dr. John Colton for organising this valuable learning experience outside the classroom. Big thank you to the people of Vigur island for welcoming our students!

The CoLab project, Coastal laboratories connecting people and nature, is a collaboration between diverse disciplines that aims to provide open-access, foundational knowledge to coastal communities. The project supports bottom-up development of local economies and builds bridges that connect people to nature and culture through the lens of sustainability.

CoLab, which started in April, is led by the University Centre of the Westfjords, with partners Fine Foods Islandica ehf, the Academy of Fine Arts in Gdańsk, and the Vilnius Academy of Arts.

As part of the project, a Biomaterials Workshop will take place on July 9 at the Sheep Farming Museum in Strandir. The workshop invites participants to take part in a guided nature walk and hands-on biomaterials session, learning how to turn local natural materials into everyday objects through simple and accessible processes.

CoLab Project Hosts Biomaterials Workshop at the Sheep Farming Museum in Strandir The CoLab project, Coastal laboratories connecting people and nature, is a collaboration between diverse disciplines that aims to provide open-access,

Around the world, marine protected areas are increasingly seen as important tools for addressing the impacts of human use and overuse of marine ecosystems, including commercial and recreational fishing, marine transportation, offshore development, mineral extraction, renewable energy, marine mammal conservation, pollution, and global climate change.

Learning to Think Like Marine Protected Area Managers From May 11 to 22, students at the University Centre of the Westfjords took part in the course Marine Protected Area Management, taught by Dr. Bradley W.

Today UW master’s students and staff gathered for soup and bread to mark the end of the semester.
For some students, this was a chance to say goodbye before heading abroad for their master’s thesis work, while others will stay in Ísafjörður and continue their research here.
The soup and bread were made by UW master’s student Evy, owner of the local café Heimabyggð, which has become a popular spot for students in town.

Director Catherine Chambers has written her Captain's log for may - check it out below.

Captain’s Log: May 2026 Have you noticed a lot of crab-related art around town lately? That’s because of UW! As part of the Púkinn children’s art festival, we organized a project

UW representation at UArctic Congress in Torshavn, Faroe Islands, last week.

UW representation at UArctic Congress in Torshavn, Faroe Islands A very fruitful conference of UArctic (University of the Arctic) took place last week, where 1,400 participants from all over the world met in the Faroe

Some of our students have been in Húsavík lately, taking the course Studying Marine Mammals in the Wild, that is held in partnership between UW and Rannsóknasetur Háskóla Íslands á Húsavík / Húsavík Research Centre

Our wonderful interns, Theresa and Julie, wrote about life in Ísafjörður and their stay here at UW. We miss them already!

Life Beyond the Fjords: Finding Adventure and Community in Ísafjörður Hæ Hæ, we are Theresa and Julie, two students from southern Germany. We are studying Public Administration at the University of Applied Sciences in Kehl. A