The Arctic Biodiversity Congress, December 2-4, 2014

First call for program content!  

The Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), the biodiversity Working Group of the Arctic Council, is seeking individuals and organisations to provide presentations, organise sessions and submit posters that will encourage a dialogue on Arctic biodiversity among scientists, indigenous peoples, policy makers, government officials, northerners and industry representatives at the Arctic Biodiversity Congress.

Please submit program content proposals via the online submission system by April 30, 2014.

The Arctic Biodiversity Congress will be held in Trondheim, Norway on December 2-4, 2014. The purpose of the Congress is to promote the conservation and sustainable use of Arctic biodiversity through dialogue among scientists, indigenous peoples, policy-makers, government officials, industry representatives and civil society. The Congress is also a key response to the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA).

Congress themes:

1. Climate change: Arctic biodiversity, resilience and adaptation
2. Mainstreaming biodiversity: linking Arctic ecosystems to society
3. Understanding cumulative effects and managing impacts on biodiversity

Learn more about the Arctic Biodiversity Congress program.

PLEASE USE OUR ONLINE SUBMISSION SYSTEM TO SUBMIT PROPOSALS FOR SESSIONS, PRESENTATIONS OR POSTERS THAT ADDRESS AT LEAST ONE OF THE THREE CONGRESS THEMES BY APRIL 30, 2014

Please visit the Arctic Biodiversity Congress website for more information and the latest updates.

Thank you for your interest in participating and contributing to the Arctic Biodiversity Congress!

NASA satellite witnesses Arctic ice sheet being torn to shreds

See

http://ca.news.yahoo.com/blogs/geekquinox/nasa-satellite-witnesses-arctic-ice-sheet-being-torn-150953074.html

Arctic Rising initiative

In the last 30 years, we’ve lost as much as three-quarters of the floating ice cap at the top of the world. The volume of that sea ice measured by satellites in the summer, when it reaches its smallest, has shrunk so fast that scientists say it’s now in a ‘death spiral’.

  

For over 800,000 years, ice has been a permanent feature of the Arctic ocean. It’s melting because of our use of dirty fossil fuel energy, and in the near future it could be ice free for the first time since humans walked the Earth. This would be not only devastating for the people, polar bears, narwhals, walruses and other species that live there - but for the rest of us too.

  

The ice at the top of the world reflects much of the sun’s heat back into space and keeps our whole planet cool, stabilising the weather systems that we depend on to grow our food. Protecting the ice means protecting us all.

  

To save the Arctic, we have to act today. Sign now at: http://www.savethearctic.org/

Here is a video trailer to the Arctic Rising initiative:

http://vimeo.com/44317362

Arctic Sea Ice Declining

GNU Free Documentation License

December 4, 2011 — A recent study published in a top scientific journal says sea ice coverage in the Arctic has declined more in the last 50 years than it has declined at anytime in the last 1,450 years.

ARCTIC SEA ICE DECLINE

According to the National Snow and Ice Data Center arctic sea ice has declined at a rapid pace through the first half of July.  The rapid decline in the past few weeks is related to persistent above-average temperatures and an early start to melt.  Snow cover over Northern Eurasia was especially low in May and June, continuing the pattern seen in April.  Check out http://nsidc.org/arcticseaicenews/