Arctic Council Working Group Recommendations
| Project | Type | # | Outcome | Report | Year | FEC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) | Key finding | 5 | Changes in Arctic biodiversity are creating both challenges and opportunities for Arctic peoples. | Arctic Biodiversity Trends 2010 – Selected indicators of change | 2010 | |
| Key finding | Biodiversity underpins sustainable development in the Arctic, including economic, social, cultural, and environmental dimensions. Although there is widespread understanding of the importance of economic development for the well-being of Arctic peoples, there is less understanding of the importance of biodiversity for human well-being, including livelihoods, food security and ecosystem services. Economic development in the Arctic should proceed within the constraints of ensuring the long term sustainability of biodiversity and the ecosystem services it provides. | Arctic Biodiversity Congress 2014, Co-Chairs Report | 2014 | |||
| Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) | Key finding | 4 | Increase financial and other support for indigenous peoples and organizations to actively engage in research and science initiatives and to effectively address their concerns. | Arctic Traditional Knowledge and Wisdom: Changes in the North American Arctic | 2017 | |
| Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands (RAW) | Key finding | The ways in which public opinion influences the development and implementation of wetlands restoration and stewardship in the Arctic are important, but largely unresearched. | Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands Phase 2 Report | 2021 | ||
| Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands (RAW) | Key finding | 13 | There are numerous models for providing financial support to conservation or restoration of wetlands. Each of the Arctic states has developed ways to provide financial support for wetlands conservation and restoration efforts. While some of the particular strengths and benefits of each set of policies, program or model are country context-specific, many lessons are generalizable and therefore useful for expanding collaboration across the Arctic states. A systematic review of these national-level restoration financing initiatives would provide valuable insights into development of effective tools. | Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands: Key Findings and Recommendations | 2021 | |
| Arctic TEEB | Key finding | 3.7 | Governance: Key Finding 3.7. The Arctic Council, as a leader in bringing together knowledge across the circumpolar North, has an important role to play for further work on Arctic ecosystem services. These ecosystem services are recognized through the values assigned to them from the perspectives of key Arctic stakeholders and rights holders. | The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) for the Arctic: A Scoping Study Executive Summary | 2015 | |
| CBMP Terrestrial Biodiversity Monitoring | Key finding | Most estimates derive from total counts of all individuals, 8 populations combine some form of capture-mark-recapture approach (almost exclusively in North America) but 15 populations are based upon expert opinion, mostly in East and Central Asia. Less than half of the estimates for all populations were thought to fall within 10% of the true totals. | A Global Audit of the Status and Trends of Arctic And Northern Hemisphere Goose Populations | 2018 | ||
| Key finding | 7 | Community observations from local and traditional experts have much untapped potential as ‘early warning systems’ | Project Summary: Bering Sea Sub-Network II | 2015 | ||
| CBMP Marine Biodiversity Monitoring | Key finding | Increasing numbers and diversity of southern species are moving into Arctic waters. In some cases, they may outcompete and prey on Arctic species, or offer a less nutritious food source for Arctic species. | State of the Arctic Marine Biodiversity: Key Findings and Advice for Monitoring | 2017 | ||
| CBMP Terrestrial Biodiversity Monitoring | Key finding | Changing frequency, intensity and timing of extreme and unusual weather events due to climate change are affecting some species, with unknown effects on populations. | State of the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity: Key Findings and Advice for Monitoring | 2021 | ||
| Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) | Recommendation | 15 | Promote public training, education and community-based monitoring, where appropriate, as integral elements in conservation and management. | Arctic Biodiversity Assessment: Report for Policy Makers | 2013 | |
| Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands (RAW) | Recommendation | 9 | Wetland policy should recognize the legacy and future importance of Indigenous Peoples’ stewardship and the need for collaborative, integrated management of Arctic wetlands. As outlined in the Arctic Wetlands and Indigenous Peoples Study, develop pilot studies on comanagement practices to support meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples in future Arctic wetlands projects, and encourage indigenous participation in developing wetlands inventories covering traditional use areas. | Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands: Key Findings and Recommendations | 2021 | |
| Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) | Recommendation | 8 | Reduce stressors on migratory species range-wide, including habitat degradation and overharvesting on wintering and staging areas and along flyways and other migration routes. a. Pursue or strengthen formal migratory bird cooperation agreements and other specific actions on a flyway level between Arctic and non-Arctic states with first priority given to the East Asian flyway. b. Collaborate with relevant international commissions, conventions, networks and other organizations sharing an interest in the conservation of Arctic migratory species to identify and implement appropriate conservation actions. 8.1. Establish an Arctic Migratory Bird Initiative (AMBI) to cooperate on the conservation of migratory Arctic birds and prepare collaborative flyway based work plans. 8.2. Broker commitments by non-Arctic countries to safeguarding important Arctic migratory bird habitats outside the Arctic, as part of the AMBI. c. Develop and implement joint management and recovery plans for threatened species with relevant non-Arctic states and entities. 8.3. Identify species that could benefit from, but are not covered by, range-wide adaptive management strategies and follow-up as appropriate. 8.4. Inventory on-going seabird projects and develop a common reporting template for all seabird conservation strategies. 8.5. Continue implementation of existing species conservation strategies and develop others as appropriate (Black-legged Kittiwakes, caribou). 8.6. Investigate the impact of shipping and off-shore development on seabirds. d. Identify and advance the conservation of key wintering and staging habitats for migratory birds, particularly wetlands. | Arctic Biodiversity Assessment: Report for Policy Makers | 2013 | |
| Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands (RAW) | Recommendation | 2 | Actively support efforts to maintain or strengthen natural ecosystem capacity for climate change mitigation, primarily through conservation and restoration measures in Arctic and Boreal wetlands. | Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands: Key Findings and Recommendations | 2021 | |
| Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands (RAW) | Recommendation | 18 | Inventory, harmonize and pool knowledge about financial models and frameworks being used to support restoration and conservation and investigate potential pan-Arctic or transboundary initiatives, with a particular focus on engagement by local and Indigenous Peoples. | Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands: Key Findings and Recommendations | 2021 | |
| Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) | Recommendation | 4 | Target resource managers when communicating research, monitoring and assessment findings. Increase efforts to communicate results of research and monitoring relevant to conservation of sea-ice associated biodiversity. Focus particularly on meeting the information needs of those making on-the-ground wildlife conservation decisions on, for example, conditions of development permits or fish and wildlife harvest regulations. Available information, including from recent Arctic Council assessments, may be hard for managers to sift through or to know what is most relevant to them. Work in this area should engage users of the information in designing content and delivery and should consider methods beyond print media. It should take into account time and resource constraints of the users and considerations such as keeping information up to date. Communication may best be delivered at a national or regional level, but benefits and efficiencies of collaboration through Arctic Council could be explored. | Life Linked to Ice: A guide to sea-ice-associated biodiversity in this time of rapid change | 2013 | |
| Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) | Recommendation | 1 | Actively support international efforts addressing climate change, both reducing stressors and implementing adaptation measures, as an urgent matter. Of specific importance are efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to reduce emissions of black carbon, methane and tropospheric ozone precursors. | Arctic Biodiversity Assessment: Report for Policy Makers | 2013 | |
| Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) | Recommendation | 17 | Develop communication and outreach tools and methodologies to better convey the importance and value of Arctic biodiversity and the changes it is undergoing. | Arctic Biodiversity Assessment: Report for Policy Makers | 2013 | |
| Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands (RAW) | Recommendation | 11 | Support research on how public opinion, in national, regional, local, and Indigenous communities as well as societal interests’ policy and advocacy networks affect development and implementation of Arctic wetlands policy, restoration efforts, and management. | Resilience and Management of Arctic Wetlands: Key Findings and Recommendations | 2021 | |
| Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) | Recommendation | 10 | Promote the sustainable management of the Arctic’s living resources and their habitat. a. Improve circumpolar cooperation in data gathering and assessment of populations and harvest and in the development of improved harvest methods, planning, and management. This includes improving the use and integration of traditional ecological knowledge and science in managing harvests and in improving the development and use of community-based monitoring as an important information source. b. Develop pan-Arctic conservation and management plans for shared species that are, or will potentiallybe, harvested or commercially exploited that incorporate common monitoring objectives, populationassessments, harvesting regimes, guidelines for best practices in harvest methodology and considermaintenance of genetic viability and adaptation to climate change as guiding principles. c. Support efforts to plan and manage commercial fisheries in international waters under common international objectives that ensure long-term sustainability of species and ecosystems. Encourage precautionary, science-based management of fisheries in areas beyond national jurisdiction inaccordance with international law to ensure the long-term sustainability of species and ecosystems. d. Support efforts to develop, improve and employ fishing technologies and practices that reduce bycatch of marine mammals, seabirds and non-target fish and avoid significant adverse impact to the seabed. e. Develop and implement, in cooperation with reindeer herders, management plans that ensure the sustainability of reindeer herding and the quality of habitat for grazing and calving. | Arctic Biodiversity Assessment: Report for Policy Makers | 2013 |