About
Arctic States Canada The Kingdom of Denmark Finland Iceland Norway The Russian Federation Sweden The United States
Permanent Participants Aleut International Association Arctic Athabaskan Council Gwich'in Council International Inuit Circumpolar Council Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North Saami Council
Working Groups Arctic Contaminants Action Program Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna Emergency Prevention, Preparedness and Response Protection of the Arctic Marine Environment Sustainable Development Working Group
Observers Non-Arctic states Intergovernmental and interparliamentary organizations Non-governmental organizations
About Arctic Council Secretariat Task forces and expert groups Icelandic Chairmanship Past chairmanships Jobs
Our work
Topics Arctic peoples Biodiversity Climate Ocean Pollutants Emergencies
How we work Agreements and cooperation Data and knowledge Monitoring Assessments Recommendations
Projects Circumpolar Oil Spill Response Viability Analysis (COSRVA)Marine Biodiversity Monitoring Arctic Migratory Birds Initiative (AMBI)Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP)Integrated Ecosystem Assessment (IEA) of the Central Arctic Ocean Actions for Arctic Biodiversity 2013-2021 Arctic Biodiversity Data Service Underwater noise in the Arctic Protection from Invasive Species Regional Action Plan on Marine Litter See all
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The Arctic CouncilProjects

Actions for Arctic Biodiversity 2013-2021

Implementing the recommendations of the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment.

Lead Working Groups

Lead Arctic States & Permanent Participants

Engaged observers

Northern Forum (NF)
Germany
Japan
The Netherlands
People's Republic of China
Poland
Republic of India
Republic of Korea
Republic of Singapore
Spain
Switzerland
United Kingdom
France
International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES)
North Atlantic Marine Mammal Commission (NAMMCO)
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
Arctic Institute of North America (AINA)
Association of World Reindeer Herders (AWRH)
International Arctic Science Committee (IASC)
World Wide Fund for Nature, Arctic Programme (WWF)

Start

2013

End

2021

Status

On track

Get Arctic updates

Arctic Council Secretariat
Fram Centre
Postboks 6606 Langnes
9296 Tromsø
Norway
acs@arctic-council.org
Contact staff members

Key documents

Agreement on Enhancing International Arctic Scientific Cooperation (2017)

Agreement on Cooperation on Marine Oil Pollution Preparedness and Response in the Arctic (2013)

Agreement on Cooperation on Aeronautical and Maritime Search and Rescue in the Arctic (2011)

Ottawa Declaration (1996)

Who we are

Arctic States

The eight Arctic states are permanent members of the Arctic Council.

Permanent Participants

Observers

Working Groups

The Council's activities are conducted in six Working Groups.

Arctic Council Secretariat

The Arctic Council Secretariat (ACS) supports the Chair of the Arctic Council.

Task forces and expert groups

Icelandic Chairmanship

Together towards a sustainable Arctic

Past chairmanships

Previous Arctic Council Chairmanships and meetings

Jobs

How we work

Agreements and cooperation

The establishment of the Arctic Council was considered an important milestone enhancing cooperation in the circumpolar North. In the Ottawa Declaration, the eight Arctic States established the Council as a high-level forum to provide means for promoting cooperation, coordination and interaction among the Arctic States – including the full consultation and full involvement of Arctic Indigenous communities and other Arctic inhabitants.

Data and knowledge

At any given time the Council’s subsidiary bodies – the Working and Expert Groups – are engaged in close to 100 projects and initiatives.

Monitoring

As the Arctic continues to experience a period of intense and accelerating change it has become increasingly important to have better information on the status and trends of the Arctic environment.

Assessments

Through the ever-growing body of assessments produced by its six Working Groups, the Arctic Council serves as knowledge broker and global advocate for Arctic topics. The Working Groups’ assessments have been instrumental in bringing Arctic issues to a global arena through policy recommendations and international cooperation.

Recommendations

The strong knowledge base produced by the Arctic Council’s Working Groups and other subsidiary bodies feeds into recommendations for informed decision-making.

What we do

Arctic peoples

The Arctic is home to almost four million people today – Indigenous people, more recent arrivals, hunters and herders living on the land, and city dwellers.

Biodiversity

The Arctic is home to more than 21,000 known species of highly cold-adapted mammals, birds, fish, invertebrates, plants and fungi and microbes.

Climate

The temperatures in the Arctic continue to rise at more than twice the global annual average.

Ocean

The Arctic States hold a responsibility to safeguard the future development of the region and to develop models for stewardship of the marine environment.

Pollutants

The Arctic environment carries the traces of human-induced pollution – from soot to plastics, from methane to pesticides.

Emergencies

Harsh conditions and limited infrastructure in much of the Arctic increase risks and impacts and hinder response activities.

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