The main regulatory instrument aimed at the protection of the Mediterranean marine and coastal environment is the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment and the Coastal Region of the Mediterranean (Barcelona Convention) which entered into force in 2004. The Barcelona Convention’s main objectives are "to prevent, abate, combat and to the fullest extent possible eliminate pollution of the Mediterranean Sea Area" and "to protect and...

Ringed seals are the 'classic' Arctic seal in many regards, being found as far north as the Pole because of their ability to keep breathing holes open in ice that can reach 2 metres in depth. This species is certainly one of the most vulnerable of the high-Arctic seals to the declines in the extent or quality of sea ice because so many aspects of their life-history and distribution are tied to ice. Ringed seals also require sufficient snow cover...

The Barents Sea ecoregion - the part of the World Ocean north of the Nordic countries and Northwest Russia, has a unique environment with major sea bird colonies, rich benthic and plankton fauna and many major sea mammal species. To identify priority areas for conservation, thirty experts delineated sea areas based on ecological criteria in a WWF study.

Bird species that migrate to the Arctic coasts and wetlands arrive from nearly every corner of the planet. During the summer, the sun never or nearly never sets, resulting in a short but intensive breeding season when millions of migratory birds arrive in the Arctic to breed. The majority of these birds seek the wetlands and coastal shores of the tundra plains. No other place on Earth receives so many migratory species from nearly all corners of...

Namibia case study locator map, with protected areas network

The Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna is a working group under the Arctic Council, for the countries of Russia, Denmark, USA, Canada, Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Finland and indigenous peoples. Monitoring, assessment, protected areas and conservation strategies are all tasks under this working group. The area that the working group primarily addresses is presented in this map.

The Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna is a working group under the Arctic Council, for the countries of Russia, Denmark, USA, Canada, Sweden, Iceland, Norway and Finland and indigenous peoples. Monitoring, assessment, protected areas and conservation strategies are all tasks under this working group. The area that the working group primarily addresses is presented in this map.

This map may be used to show areas in which biodiversity is threatened. Areas where high poverty and high population density coincides with high biodiversity may indicate areas in which poor people likely have no other choice than to unsustainably extract resources, in turn threatening biodiversity. The map has been produced from three primary data sources – stunted growth data collected on first level administrative units from FAO (FAO 2004), po...

The Arctic region has varying levels of protected areas that correspond to different vegetation zones. This is from a report by Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), Habitat Conservation Report No. 2.

Identifies the transboundary protected areas of the Nordic region. Also contains information on other protected areas and proposed protected areas of the region. Part of the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), Habitat Conservation Report No. 2.

In 1996 several areas were already protected by various agreements and several more were proposed, some were very early in construction as size and exact boundaries were not known. The area covers Northern Norway, Sweden, Finland and Northwest Russia.

This graphic includes marine protected areas and protected areas with major or minor marine components. This was part of the the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), Habitat Conservation Report No. 2.

The areas that were protected in 1996 are shown on a complete map of the circumpolar area of the world along side with the proposed protected areas. The countries inclused in the information are: Canada, Finland, Greenland/Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and USA.

Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), Habitat Conservation Report No. 2 shows the areas in the Arctic which have been protected by various governmental treaties and declarations (As of 1996 IUCN classification).

Distribution of major vegetation zones and level of protection in the Arctic is shown based on the percentage of area covered. This is part of a report by the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF).

Includes Marine Protected Areas and Protected Areas with Major or Minor Marine or Coastal Components. Prepared for the the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), Habitat Conservation Report No. 2.

In 1996 there was serious proposals to increase the area of protected land in Iceland. This graphic was part of the Habitat Conservation Report number 2, 'Proposed Protected Areas in the Circumpolar Arctic 1996.

These projections of biodiversity loss from 2000 to 2050 were produced by the GLOBIO consortium for UNEP's Global Environment Outlook 4. Across the GEO scenarios and regions, global biodiversity continues to be threatened, with strong implications for ecosystem services and human well-being. All regions continue to experience declines in terrestrial biodiversity in each of the scenarios. The greatest losses are seen in Markets First, followed by ...