Arctic Biodiversity Trends

Arctic warming, with its many and increasing impacts on flora, fauna, and habitats, has heightened the need to identify and fill the knowledge gaps on various aspects of Arctic biodiversity and monitoring. This need was clearly identified in the 2005 Arctic Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA) which recommended that long term Arctic biodiversity monitoring be expanded and enhanced [1]. The CAFF Working Group responded to this recommendation with the implementation of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program. Following the establishment of the CBMP, the CAFF Working Group agreed that it was necessary to provide policy makers and conservation managers with a synthesis of the best available scientific and traditional ecological knowledge (TEK)1 on Arctic biodiversity. This initiative, the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA), was endorsed by the Arctic Council in 2006.

The aim of the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) is to provide a much needed description of thecurrent state of the Arctic's ecosystems and biodiversity,create a baseline for use in global and regional assessments of biodiversity, and provide a basis to inform and guidefuture Arctic Council work. In addition, it will provideup-to-date scientific and traditional ecological knowledge,identify gaps in the data record, identify key mechanisms driving change, and produce policy recommendationsregarding Arctic biodiversity. The first deliverable of theABA is the overview report, Arctic Biodiversity Trends 2010:Selected Indicators of Change which presents a preliminaryassessment of status and trends in Arctic biodiversityand is based on the suite of indicators developed by the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Programme.
The ABA is led by Finland, Greenland, Sweden and the United States. Greenland/Denmark is the current Chair of the ABA Steering Committee. The Chair rotates and next in line to take the Chair will be Finland in 2011. Members include Greenland/Denmark, Canada, Sweden, UNEP GRID Arendal and UNEP WCMC, the Gwich´in Council International, the Arctic Athabaskan Council and the CAFF Secretariat. Its Chief Scientist is provided by Greenland/Denmark.

Category:

Education

Tags:

• Biodiversity
• CAFF
• Arctic Council
• Nature
• Carsten Egevang