Give

Science to Policy: Arctic Biodiversity Assessment

The Arctic Species Trend Index: Migratory Birds Index
Photo: Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna, Akureyri, Iceland.

By Tom Barry, Executive Secretary, CAFF International Secretariat and
Courtney Price, Communications Manager, CAFF International Secretariat

In 2013, the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), the biodiversity working group of the Arctic Council, released the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA).

This was a landmark achievement in delivering a report which would contain the best available science informed by traditional ecological knowledge on the status and trends of Arctic biodiversity and which would also have accompanying policy recommendations for biodiversity conservation. The assessment explored the potentially dramatic consequences of climate change and other factors that adversely affect species and their habitats in the Arctic, providing critical information to policy makers. It found that large tracts of the Arctic remain relatively undisturbed, providing a unique opportunity for proactive action that can minimize or even prevent future problems that would be costly or impossible to reverse.

The Arctic Council ministers agreed to implement the seventeen  recommendations articulated in the ABA Report for Policy Makers. At the April 2015 Arctic Council ministerial meeting, the Arctic states were presented with an eight-year implementation plan Actions for Biodiversity 2013–2021, an action plan that has been informed by discussions with Arctic Council countries, indigenous organizations, observer organizations and countries. This will act as the key guide to the Arctic Council biodiversity conservation in the coming years.

Although actions to implement the ABA recommendations are aimed primarily at the Arctic Council, its member states’ and permanent participants’ success in conserving Arctic biodiversity depends on actions by non-Arctic states, regional and local authorities, industry, and all who live, work and travel in the Arctic. The ABA recommendations, therefore, also provide a guide for biodiversity conservation action for authorities and organizations beyond the Arctic Council.

 

Graphic: 10% shorebird decline in the Americas flyway, 40% shorebird recovery in the African Eurasian flyway, 70% shorebird decline in the East Asian Australasian flyway

Table of Contents

  1. Letter from the Editor in Chief

    By Outi Snellman

  2. 20 Years of Peaceful Cooperation

    By Børge Brende

  3. Celebrating 20 Years of the Arctic Council

    By David Balton

  4. International Cooperation for Arctic Prosperity

    By Sergey Lavrov

  5. Minister Greetings: Finland

    By Timo Soini

  6. Minister Greetings: Iceland

    By Gunnar Bragi Sveinsson

  7. Setting the Stage for Arctic Cooperation

    By Eirik Sivertsen

  8. It All Started in Rovaniemi

    By Markku Heikkilä

  9. Interview with Mary Simon

    By Stig Brøndbo

  10. Interview with Thorvald Stoltenberg

    By Stig Brøndbo

  11. Interview with Alona Yefimenko

    By Stig Brøndbo

  12. Interview with Sheila Watt-Cloutier

    By Stig Brøndbo

  13. The Role of the Working Groups in the Work of the Arctic Council

    By David Stone and Lars-Otto Reiersen

  14. The Arctic Council: A Model for Cooperation

    By Timo Koivurova

  15. The Arctic Council: A Victory for Soft Law & Soft Security

    By Heather Exner-Pirot

  16. The Arctic Council: Maintaining Peace Through Cooperation

    By Michael Byers

  17. Arctic Human Development

    By Joan Nymand Larsen and Gail Fondahl

  18. Towards Revival of Arctic Cooperation

    By Olli Rehn

  19. The Arctic Economic Council: Connecting with the Business Community

    By Tara Sweeney

  20. Love & Peace

    By Else Berit Eikeland and Gunn-Britt Retter

  21. Working Inside the Arctic Council: Arctic Change and World Reindeer Herders

    By Mikhail Pogodaev and Anders Oskal

  22. Observer States in the Arctic Council: A Way Forward to Better Cooperation

    By Justin Kim

  23. The Arctic: A Place for the Miraculous

    By Chen Yitong

  24. The Arctic Council Adapting to the Future

    By Arild Moe, Svein Vigeland Rottem and Olav Schram Stokke

  25. The Way Forward for the Arctic Council

    By Oran R. Young

  26. Student Profiles

    By students from Arctic states

Back