On 5 February, a seminar was held at the University of Oslo, where Gabrielle Emma Kleber — a postdoctoral researcher at the Arctic University of Norway — was presented with the award. This year’s awardee has shown exceptional talent and dedication as a scientist. She has published several scientific papers, many as first author, including one in Nature Geoscience. She is heavily involved in Arctic field campaigns, and also contributes to teaching and outreach.
The award committee also acknowledges her previous training as an engineer and her activity in the Circumnavigators Club Foundation.
Gabrielle Kleber expressed her gratitude for receiving the 2025 award. She described it as an honor to receive an award named after Professor Else‑Ragnhild Neumann, the first female professor of geology, and that Neumann’s career was very inspiring to her.
Kleber is now a postdoctoral researcher at the Arctic University of Norway, based at the Centre for Ice, Cryosphere, Carbon and Climate (iC3) in the Department of Geosciences. Her research focuses on methane release from deglaciating landscapes — both terrestrial and marine — and the implications of this release for climate change.
Ongoing release of methane in the Arctic
At the event Kleber delivered a lecture about "Ice, shale and methane: field studies of methane release from glacial catchments on Svalbard."
In her talk she emphasized that rapidly rising air temperatures in the Arctic trigger cascading effects because high‑latitude environments are especially temperature‑sensitive.
Glacier melt and permafrost thaw initiate feedback loops that can increase natural methane emissions from the groundwater and the bedrock. Methane is a powerful greenhouse gas, thereby amplifying the warming trend. Gabrielle Kleber’s field‑based research focuses on methane release from deglaciating landscapes — both terrestrial and marine — and the implications of these releases for climate change.
The well‑prepared presentation included several photos from her fieldwork at Svalbard, graphs and films, and even exciting videos of glacier calving and methane burning from the ground. It was followed by several questions from the audience. Overall, the event was a success, with an engaging presentation and an interested audience.
About the Else-Ragnhild Neumann Award
The Else-Ragnhild Neumann Award for Women in Geosciences goes to women who have made a significant contribution to geosciences in their PhD or postdoctoral research. Else-Ragnhild Neumann is Norway's first female professor of geology.