Assessments of the Consequences of Climate Variability and Change and the Effects of Increased UV in the Arctic Region

Climate variability and change, and more recently, notable increases in UV radiation, have become important issues in the Arctic region over the past few decades. These issues have also prevailed in the international scientific and political scene for over a decade through major programs of scientific research (e.g., WCRP), through intergovernmental assessments (e.g., AMAP, IPCC, and WMO), and through international treaties, protocols and conventions.

The results of scientific research and indigenous knowledge have increasingly documented climatic changes that are more pronounced in the Arctic region than in other regions of the world or are critical to our understanding of global-scale climatic processes. Observations from indigenous cultures of the Arctic indicate that the physical environment, as well as the flora and fauna, has been changing.

It is most essential that a penetrating analysis of these observations and studies be carried out in order to ascertain more specifically to what extent these represent natural variability over years and decades, and, on the other hand, how many are indicators of long-term changes due to human activi- ties. Only then will we be able to tell what future changes can be foreseen and which impacts on life in the North may be expected.

See ACIA Assessment Reports, Workshop Reports, and other documents