The Arctic plays host to a vast array of biodiversity, including many globally significant populations. Included among these are more than half of the world´s shorebird species, 80% of the global goose populations, several million reindeer and caribou, and many unique mammals, such as the polar bear. During the short summer breeding season, 279 species of birds arrive from as far away as South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and South America to ...

Protected areas have long been viewed as a key element for maintaining and conserving Arctic biodiversity and the functioning landscapes upon which species depend. Arctic protected areas have been established in strategically important and representative areas, helping to maintain crucial ecological features, e.g., caribou migration and calving areas, shorebird and waterfowl staging and nesting sites, seabird colonies, and critical components of ...

Multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs) are a main component of international environmental governance. The number of MEAs created in response to global environmental challenges has risen steadily since the UN Conference on the Human Environment (UNCED) in 1972.

The Arctic plays host to a vast array of biodiversity, including many globally significant populations. Included among these are more than half of the world´s shorebird species, 80% of the global goose populations, several million reindeer and caribou, and many unique mammals, such as the polar bear. During the short summer breeding season, 279 species of birds arrive from as far away as South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and South America to ...

In November 2009, in an attempt to preserve the forests and slow deforestation, the Governments of Guyana and Norway signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation on issues related to combating climate change, protecting biodiversity and improving sustainable development, with a particular focus on reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation in the framework of REDD-plus. Within the region, Panama, the Plurinational State ...

Biodiversity is vitally important to human well-being as it provides ecosystem services on which humans depend. For many species that are sensitive to even small variations in climate, their primary threat is climate change. Variations in climate affect different species of flora and fauna differently, producing, in some cases, a disruption in food chains and/or in reproductive patterns. It is therefore necessary to reduce or control greenhouse g...

Estimates of the marginal costs of emissions reduction for Central America show that decarbonization options should be directed towards energy efficiency in the residential and services sectors, mainly arising from savings due to reduced energy consumption. Similarly, the mitigation strategy should be focused towards reducing deforestation and degradation, with additional benefits for biodiversity and water supply. Sectors like transportation and...

El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO) is a natural phenomenon that has occurred for centuries. Ocean and atmospheric conditions in the Pacific tend to fluctuate between El Niño (warming) and a drop in temperature in the tropical Pacific known as La Niña. The fluctuations are rather irregular, but tend to appear every three to six years. A more intensive phase of each event may last for about a year. A warming climate may contribute to an increase i...

Human activities influence the environment and reduce the value of forests, tundra and plains in terms of original biodiversity and habitat. Primarily larger mammals are hit by the fragmentation caused by roads and pipelines. The GLOBIO methdology has modeled the future impact of human activities in the Arctic, as seen in this map. Infrastructure and settlements are used as proxies for human activities. The scenario used in this map is the 'Marke...

Human activities influence the environment and reduce the value of forests, tundra and plains in terms of original biodiversity and habitat. Primarily larger mammals are hit by the fragmentation caused by roads and pipelines. The GLOBIO methdology has modeled the current impact of human activities in the Arctic, as seen in this map. Infrastructure and settlements are used as proxies for human activities.

Climate change poses a threat to wildlife because as climatic conditions change, many species may be unable to tolerate the changes. This graphic shows the numbers of mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians and fish species that are critically endangered, endangered and vulnerable in various regions of Africa and in Africa as a whole, as of 1998.

The rendeer population of the Barents region is broken down into 5 distinct groups to show and their range. The 5 types are: Svalbard, wild, wild forest, domesticated and wild, and domesticated or semi-domesticated. (Please note that the The Barents Euro-Arctic Council has expanded the membership since 1998)

Distribution and spawning areas of arctic cod, polar cod, herring and capelin in the Barents Sea region. The Barents region is in the Arctic and covers the area of Western Russia and the northern areas of Finland, Sweden and Norway.

The Barents region is a highly explored area for gas and oil. The corresponding areas of oil exploration and sea bird colony proximity are clearly shown on the map. The disputed area between Norway and Russia is also highlighted. (Please note that the The Barents Euro-Arctic Council has expanded the membership since 1998)

The map shows the range of fourteen different ecosystem types across Russia. The Barents region is in the Arctic and covers the area of Western Russia and the northern areas of Finland, Sweden and Norway. (Please note that the The Barents Euro-Arctic Council has expanded the membership since 1998)

Worldwide there are thought to be 22,000-27,000 polar bears (Ursus maritimus)in 20 separate populations. They can be found in the United States, Canada, Russia, Greenland and on the Arctic islands of Norway.

Climate simulations suggest continued rapid loss of Arctic sea-ice. The observations of indigenous peoples also indicate unprecedented change. The loss of the Arctic sea-ice will have vast impacts on climate, livelihoods and biodiversity.

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In a World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) study, experts identified 200 periority terrestrial ecoregions - defined as large scale ecological systems with characteristic flora, fauna and climate with high priority for conservation. Furthermore, as presented in this map, the 200 ecoregions were ranked based on their current and future threats and conservation status. From the study - 47% of the terrestrial ecorgions are considered critical or endan...

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