The Arctic Council’s Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF) working group is organizing the first Arctic Biodiversity Congress to promote the conservation and sustainable use of Arctic biodiversity through dialogue among scientists, policy-makers, government officials, industry, civil society and indigenous peoples.
It is closely linked to the findings and recommendations of the first Arctic Biodiversity Assessment (ABA) released in May 2013.
The Arctic Biodiversity Congress will:
- Present and discuss the main scientific findings of the ABA
- Facilitate inter-disciplinary discussion, action and status updates on the policy recommendations in the ABA
- Provide scientific, policy, management, NGO, academia, Indigenous peoples and industry audiences the opportunity to collaborate around the themes of the ABA
- Advise CAFF on national and international implementation of the ABA recommendations and on the development of an ABA Implementation Plan for the Arctic Council
- Highlight the work of CAFF and the Arctic Council on circumpolar biodiversity conservation and sustainable development
- Contribute to mainstreaming of biodiversity and ecosystem services, ensuring that the recommendations of the ABA are implemented by not just governments, but many organizations and people across disciplines.