Where One Health Meets the Arctic Climate Resilience Reality Op-ed: The Arctic is warming at about 3.5 times the global average, reshaping food systems, infrastructure, and posing a significant health risk for more than four million people. The One Health approach offers a path forward, but only if it moves beyond coordination and delivers protection on the ground, writes Hassan Alzain.
Whispers in the Wind: Aerosols as the Arctic’s Urgent, Unseen Ally Op-ed: Aerosols are reshaping the Arctic in ways that greenhouse gases alone cannot explain. A dedicated management program could turn this hidden climate driver into a lever for immediate action, writes Hassan Alzain.
Ice Melt Drives Earth's Sea Level Rise "Reducing black carbon emissions would help slow the meltdown", says Kay Brown, Arctic Policy Director at Pacific Environment.
Zero Emissions Day in the Arctic: A 24-Hour Stress Test for the Planet Op-ed: The 21st of September is Zero Emissions Day. The High North could make it a one-day trial, transforming it into a global call to act now rather than later, Hassan Alzain writes in this op-ed.
Trump Administration’s Securitization of Arctic Affairs and Its Implications for U.S. Federally Funded Research The Trump Administration is in the process of securitizing Arctic affairs. "That will almost certainly have a significant impact on the future of U.S. federally funded research related to the Arctic", says Michael Walsh, researcher atthe University of the Witwatersrand.
Arctic Council Chairship Handover: “We Must Move Forward With Courage,” Says Greenlandic Foreign Minister Tromsø, Northern Norway (High North News): The Kingdom of Denmark, spearheaded by Greenland, has taken over the chairship of the Arctic Council. The eight Arctic states have also agreed on a joint statement. "The Council must continue to be the foremost forum for cooperation in the Arctic," underlines Greenland's foreign minister.
Tree Planting Is No Climate Solution in the Arctic Planting trees is a simple and efficient way to mitigate climate change. However, new research shows that planting trees in the Arctic could have the opposite effect and, in fact, increase global warming.
Focus on Arctic Challenges at COP29 The UN's climate conference 2024, better known as COP29, is now taking place in Baku, Azerbaijan. The Arctic is yet again on the agenda, this time focusing on the cryosphere and wildfires, particularly from an Indigenous perspective.
The Dark Oxygen Research Is Misleading, Says Climate Advisor Researchers who believe they have found evidence of oxygen production on the deep seabed without the help of sunlight are now facing stark criticism. Climate Advisor Tore Killingland believes WWF exaggerates the findings in its fight against seabed mining in Norwegian ocean areas. Gina Gylver of WWF Norway says it is unsurprising that the industry is trying to discredit the research.
The Dark Oxygen Research Is Misleading, Says Climate Advisor Researchers who believe they have found evidence of oxygen production on the deep seabed without the help of sunlight are now facing stark criticism. Climate Advisor Tore Killingland believes WWF exaggerates the findings in its fight against seabed mining in Norwegian ocean areas. Gina Gylver of WWF Norway says it is unsurprising that the industry is trying to discredit the research.
Wants International Ecocide Law to Deter and Stop Environmental Crimes in the Arctic Reykjavik, Iceland (High North News): Politicians, legal practitioners, and researchers are currently working to establish an international ecocide law to prevent environmental crimes in the Arctic and globally. "We see ourselves as separate from nature," says Jojo Mehta, Co-Founder and CEO of Stop Ecocide International.
State of the Climate Report 2023: The Fourth Warmest Year on Record for the Arctic Climate change continues to snowball in the Arctic region, including warmer air and sea temperatures, melting sea ice, thawing permafrost, and loss of ice sheets and glaciers. A new report sheds light on the state of the climate in 2023.
Scientists Assemble High-Resolution Dataset of 149 Glaciers in Svalbard Using AI Scientists used artificial intelligence to analyze 125,000 satellite images of glaciers in Svalbard to learn more about the seasonal melt patterns and ice mass loss of marine-terminating glaciers. Their work will help predict glacier dynamics and their contribution to future sea-level rise as other regions experience increased warming.
New Lifecycle Assessment for Greenhouse Gases from LNG Spells Bad News for Emissions from Arctic Projects Liquefied natural gas may not be as clean as previously thought, a new study finds. While liquefied gas is often heralded as a less dirty alternative to coal, its lifetime emissions exceed those from coal, the new data suggest. The report gives special emphasis to methane emissions from the transport of liquefied natural gas, a finding relevant to Arctic LNG projects.
New Lifecycle Assessment for Greenhouse Gases from LNG Spells Bad News for Emissions from Arctic Projects Liquefied natural gas may not be as clean as previously thought, a new study finds. While liquefied gas is often heralded as a less dirty alternative to coal, its lifetime emissions exceed those from coal, the new data suggest. The report gives special emphasis to methane emissions from the transport of liquefied natural gas, a finding relevant to Arctic LNG projects.
Researchers Witness Clear Changes with Significant Consequences for the Barents Sea The Barents Sea, as we knew it, is no more, according to a new scientific publication from Norway's largest collaborative project: The Nansen Legacy.
Greenland Joins the Paris Agreement on Climate Change The Parliament of Greenland, Inatsisartut, has decided that the island will join the Paris Agreement on climate policy and design a national climate strategy. "I am proud that we are taking joint responsibility and acting in the face of the climate crisis," says the Greenlandic Minister of Energy and Environment.
Norwegian Government Criticized for Failing to Support Joint Climate Statement Storting representative for the Norwegian Socialist Left Party, Lars Haltbrekken, questions what he calls "Norway's lack of support" for a joint climate statement during the One Planet Polar Summit in Paris recently.
PM of Iceland: We Have Suffered a Climate Backlash Reykjavik (High North News): At the Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavík, the Prime Minister of Iceland, Katrín Jakobsdóttir, emphasized that COP 28 in November must succeed in order to slow down rapid climate change.
As Era of “Global Boiling” Commences, Slowing the Arctic’s Meltdown Becomes More Urgent "G20 leaders should take action to protect the Arctic and significantly slow climate change", says Arctic Policy Director Kay Brown at the Environmentalorganization Pacific Environment.
Arctic Sea Ice Likely Irrevocably Lost Norwegian Scientists Conclude Researchers have identified the mechanism leading to the rapid collapse of sea ice extent between 2005 and 2007. More ocean heat in ice formation areas in Siberia resulted in weaker ice, which was more prone to being ejected from the Arctic Basin through the Fram Strait. This ice loss is likely irreversible, the study concludes.
Biden Administration Extends Arctic Protections While Simultaneously Granting Oil Drilling Permits The US government greenlit a controversial oil and gas project in Arctic Alaska but also greatly expanded areas in Alaska’s National Petroleum Reserve that will remain off limits to future hydrocarbon development.
Scientists Find High Levels of PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Svalbard Ice Cap A new study finds high levels of “forever chemicals” in a Svalbard ice core. Seasonal ice melt subsequently washes the toxic compounds into the fjords and surrounding ocean where they enter the food chain.
Bellona Closes its Offices in Russia Bellona was active in Russia for more than 30 years. Now those activities have ceased, and Bellona has established a new office in Vilnius, Lithuania, where Bellona’s experts, relocated from Russia, will continue their work.
The war, he said, will pass. The real crisis involves the climate (Commentary) Not long ago, I sat together with European researchers and politicians on a stage in Rome and discussed security policy in the Arctic. We had come to a point in the program where it was time to let the audience comment and ask questions.
A Proposed Observatory in Canada’s Arctic Could Provide a Long-Range Look at Climate Change Funded by Canadian Foundation for Innovation and the Quebec government, the $4.2-million initiative will be housed in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut.
Important Arctic Research Could Be Lost in the Wake of Russia's War It is not only the ice that is disappearing in the Arctic while the war in Ukraine rages on. Climate scientists also believe that knowledge will be lost if it is not shared and protected. "The research suffers and it will take time to recover," says the Secretary General of the Norwegian Scientific Academy for Polar Research, Thor S. Larsen.
Climate Change Forces Arctic Whales North New research shows that the narwhale, bowhead whale and beluga are moving north. Rising temperatures in the ocean is to blame and scientists warn against the consequences this will have for other species in Arctic waters.
“The Arctic Climate Disappears” What decades ago would the odd poor winter up north has become the new normal. “The future Arctic will not be the Arctic we know today”, say climate researchers at the University of Tromsø.
Norwegian Climate Minister: The Foundation for Norwegian High North Policy is Radically Changed “The Green Shift will be the new engine in the Arctic”, says Norwegian Climate and Environment Minister Espen Barth Eide (Labor). Now, the Norwegian government directs its eyes towards cooperation with the EU and wants to enter into dialogue about the EU’s ban on exploiting oil and gas in the Arctic.
WMO Recognizes New Arctic Record Temperature of 38⁰C A temperature of 38°C in the Russian town of Verkhoyansk on 20 June 2020 has been recognized as a new Arctic temperature record by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).
Using Robots to Investigate Ice Melting in Svalbard Robots operating both on the sea surface as well as under water are to provide scientists with answers as to how glaciers in Svalbard are melting. A new science mission set out from Ny-Ålesund last Friday.
Oldest permafrost in Siberia discovered While determining the age of a permafrost layer in Siberia, an international team foundt that at its deepest point, the soil is at least 650,000 years old.
Alaskan Tribes applaud protection of the Northern Bering Sea Alaskan Tribes offers the Biden Administration their appreciation and gratitude for reinstating the Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience Area. "The people of the Bering Sea deserve to be part of decisions that affect our lands", says Director of the Bering Sea Elders Group, Mellisa Johnson.
“New U.S. Administration will Lead to New Demands for Denmark in the Arctic” Denmark as well as other small states in the Arctic should prepare for a broader and more extensive American engagement in the region, says Senior Researcher Kristian Søby Kristensen at the University of Copenhagen.
Integrated Ocean Management: Five Success Stories of Ocean Health and Wealth "A business-as-usual approach will not deliver the long-term ocean health and wealth we need. What’s required is a balance between production and protection, people and ocean, and an improved response to the needs of all ocean users, now and in the future", says Jan-Gunnar Winther, Minhan Dai, Eliza Northrop and Ines Aguiar Branco at World Recourses Institue.
Russia Unveils Climate Change Adaptation Plan The Russian government takes a major step to join the world community in recognizing the threat of climate change.
New Oil and Energy Minister in Norway: - Has Been One of the Country’s Most Famous Climate Deniers A year ago, she very nearly led to the fall of the Norwegian government with a Facebook post. Today, Sylvi Listhaug (Progress party) was nominated for one of the most important ministerial posts in the Norwegian government.
UN Warns Against Impact of Climate Change on Oceans and Arctic in New Report The UN Climate Change body releases first-ever report on oceans and the Arctic. Scientists warn that the world’s oceans are in great distress and that their ability to protect the planet from the impact of climate change is ending.
Young Scientists Pour Into the Svalbard "Climate Lab". But Their Engagement is not Reflected Amongst Decision-Makers Svalbard is growing wetter, warmer and greener. Fortunately, an increasing amount of young people flock to the island to conduct field studies of the changes. Unfortunately their interest is not reflected amongst decision-makers.
Doctor Warrants Norwegian Engagement With Arctic Issues - We are destroying the brain capacity of the next generation and that is an important message. Politicians and bureaucrats should realize that, says gynecologist and scientist Jon Øyvind Odland.
Loss of Arctic Sea Ice Affects Weather in Europe and North America Arctic loss of sea ice is connected to changes in the weather in Europe and North America and lower latitudes in general. However, the political reaction still seems weak.
Parliamentary Delegation Visits Norway to address Climate Change A delegation of parliamentarians from the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe visits Nothern Norway this week.
MP Argues That Pompeo Provoked Unnecessarily – Fears for High North Cooperation The fact that the Arctic Council could not agree on a joint declaration is embarrassing and will make it more difficult to cooperate in the High North in the future, argues the Chair of the Norwegian parliament’s Delegation for Arctic Cooperation.
USA’s Climate Skepticism Causes Concern Prior to Arctic Council Ministerial Meeting The Trump administration’s reluctance to acknowledging climate changes as a real problem is at present frustrating a series of climate efforts in the Arctic – efforts that most of the other Arctic states, including the Nordic countries, want to prioritize.
Working in the 11th Hour to Agree On Joint Declaration Less than two weeks to go before the Arctic Council Ministerial Meeting, there is still much diplomatic work that remains before there is agreement on a ‘Rovaniemi declaration’.
