Knowra Arctic Council Arctic Council The Arctic Council is an intergovernmental forum where Arctic states, Indigenous organizations, and other participants cooperate on environmental protection and sustainable development in the Arctic.
Arctic states : The eight countries with territory north of the Arctic Circle are Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Russia, Sweden, and the United States. These eight governments are the Council’s members and make its decisions.
Arctic Council working groups : Expert bodies that conduct assessments and projects under the Arctic Council’s mandate. They produce much of the Council’s scientific and technical work.
Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy : A 1991 agreement among Arctic states that established cooperation on environmental protection before the Arctic Council existed. It provided the institutional and political foundation for the Council’s creation.
Arctic Climate Impact Assessment : A major 2004 assessment of observed and projected climate change across the Arctic, produced under Arctic Council auspices. It brought Arctic climate evidence to global attention and informed policy debate.
Barents Euro-Arctic Council : An intergovernmental forum for regional cooperation in the European Barents area, established in 1993. Unlike the circumpolar Arctic Council, it focuses on the European north and includes subregional cooperation.
Permanent Participants : Six Indigenous organizations hold Permanent Participant status in the Arctic Council, with full consultation rights in its work. Their status gives Indigenous organizations a formal role distinct from member states.
Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme : An Arctic Council working group that monitors pollution and climate change and assesses their effects in the Arctic. Its assessments provide evidence used in Council discussions and international policy.
Rovaniemi Process : The diplomatic process that led Arctic states to adopt the Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy in 1991. It launched the regional cooperation that later developed into the Council.
Arctic Biodiversity Assessment : A 2013 circumpolar assessment of Arctic biodiversity, trends, and conservation priorities produced by the Council’s biodiversity working group. It links Council science to regional conservation priorities.
Nordic Council : A forum for parliamentary cooperation among Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and associated territories. Its Nordic membership and parliamentary structure differ from the Arctic Council’s circumpolar state-and-Indigenous format.
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