Activities

Investigating the role of environmental conventions and treaties in the greater Arctic.

An integrated ecosystem management approach to conserve biodiversity and minimise habitat fragmentation in three selected model areas in the Russian Arctic, funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF). Activities in this project include education and training, monitoring of indicator species, habitat assessments, socio-economic monitoring, analysis of policy and legislation, codes of conduct for industry, and conflict resolution. The project is scheduled to be completed by mid-2009. The role of the UNEP Key Polar Centre is to provide project management and provision of expert advice.
Read more on the ECORA web-site

The Arctic and Small Island Developing States (SIDS) have been identified as regions where impacts of climate change are already occurring and where coastal environments and coastal residents are particularly vulnerable to these impacts. This programme is a collaboration that will support people in these two regions to have their voices heard at the local, regional, and international levels.
Visit the website at www.manystrongvoices.org

Activities in this programme are the preparation of case study reports, stakeholder tours, learning materials and workshops.

The International Polar Year is a major burst of international, multi-disciplinary research being for the two-year period starting in March 2007. The UNEP Key Polar Centre is participating in several initiatives, as well as on the International Data Policy and Management Subcommittee.
Read more about the polar year and UNEP Key Polar Centre activities.

This project, lead by the UNEP Division of Environmental Policy Implementation (DEPI) and implemented by Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North (RAIPON) and the UNEP Key Polar Centre, is based on structured interviews with reindeer herders, hunters, fishers and gatherers in the Nenets and Kamchatka regions of Arctic Russia. Knowledge was documented on extreme weather events such as blizzards and heavy fogs, as well as floods, earthquakes, volcanoes and tsunamis. The project is linked with a project on indigenous knowledge in disaster management in Africa.

The UNEP Key Polar Centre represents the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) in the Arctic Council as an observer. In addition the centre works with the different Arctic Council working groups, such as AMAP, CAFF and SDWG (pollution, conservation and sustainable development). Examples of specific activities are the participation in the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Programme (CBMP), the coordination of spatial data management (including the Arctic Portal) and the development of plans for follow-up to the Arctic Climate Impact Assessment.

The UNEP Key Polar Centre is a full member of the network institution University of the Arctic, and the director, Lars Kullerud, is currently hosted at the UNEP/GRID-Arendal office.

Together with Norwegian and Russian indigenous organizations and the University of the Arctic, the UNEP Key Polar Centre has established a course on Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). The course will empower indigenous people to influence the pace and nature of industrial development in their regions in ways that will conserve ecosystems and bring lasting local benefits. The course delivery started in the fall of 2006 at the Saami University College.

Polar View is the Arctic and Antarctic component of the Global Monitoring for Environment and Security Service Element (GSE) initiative of the European Space Agency and the European Union. It is a collaborative project involving about 20 partners, including research institutes, government agencies and private sector technology, environmental and engineering firms.

One of the main tasks of UNEP/GRID-Arendal, and the UNEP Key Polar Centre, is to provide decision makers and the international community with assessments on the past, current and future state of the environment.

In bridging the gap between science and decision making, a main focus of UNEP/GRID-Arendal and the UNEP Key Polar Centre is to communicate and making the results from research accessible, relevant and understandable. Means to achieve this are maps and graphics, overview assessments, tours on-site and easily accessible publications and web-sites. See also the interactive Arctic map - Arcric Environment Atlas.

UNEP/GRID-Arendal is providing services for the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), University of the Arctic, Arctic Council Action Plan (ACAP) of the Arctic Council, The Conference of Parliamentarians of the Arctic Region (CPAR), the Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North (RAIPON) and many more.