Geographical Information Management in Polar Regions: Mediation, Data Sharing and Interoperability, Volume 7, reflects on and critically evaluates the historical development of polar data management and information systems, with a particular focus on activities under the recent International Polar Year (2007-2009) and beyond. This historical analysis provides a foundation for a proposed holistic model that considers the complexity of the polar information domain, combining many kinds of data, information and knowledge mediation under an integrated social-environmental-technical construct to support improved understanding and use of the Earth system as a whole.