Recommendations

CHALLENGE It can be difficult for researchers to understand Traditional Knowledge and Wisdom, how it is validated, how to best apply it, especially elder wisdom, and how to effectively partner.

POTENTIAL ACTIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES Encourage equal partnerships and participation throughout biodiversity assessment projects that affect Indigenous peoples.

Reduce stressors on migratory species range-wide, including habitat degradation and overharvesting on wintering and staging areas and along flyways and other migration routes.

a. Pursue or strengthen formal migratory bird cooperation agreements and other specific actions on a flyway level between Arctic and non-Arctic states with first priority given to the East Asian flyway.

b. Collaborate with relevant international commissions, conventions, networks and other organizations sharing an interest in the conservation of Arctic migratory species to identify and implement appropriate conservation actions.

c. Develop and implement joint management and recovery plans for threatened species with relevant non-Arctic states and entities. d. Identify and advance the conservation of key wintering and staging habitats for migratory birds, particularly wetlands.

CHALLENGE There is no consistent approach to working with Traditional Knowledge and Wisdom.

POTENTIAL ACTIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES Create best practices through demonstration projects and on-the-ground work, including an evaluation of past projects and analysis of what worked and what didn’t.

Advance and advocate ecosystem-based management efforts in the Arctic as a framework for cooperation, planning and development. This includes an approach to development that proceeds cautiously, with sound short and long-term environmental risk assessment and management, using the best available scientific and traditional ecological knowledge, following the best environmental practices, considering cumulative effects and adhering to international standards.

3.1. Provide information (including traditional knowledge) to Arctic Council initiatives that include, or are developing, an ecosystem approach including the principles for incorporation of biodiversity (Action 4.3).

3.2. Ongoing activities based on the revised Terms of Reference of the Joint Ecosystem Approach Expert Group (marine), including preparation of reports on Status of Setting Ecological Objectives, Work on Integrated Ecosystem Assessments of Arctic LMEs, Status of Implementation of the Ecosystem Approach to Management in the Arctic, a scoping document on the use of information on identified areas of heightened ecological and cultural significance for assessment and management purposes within LMEs.

3.3. Follow-up to the Ecosystem-Based Management Expert Group work on advancing ecosystem based management in the work of the Arctic Council.

3.4. Prepare an implementation plan for the Arctic Marine Strategic Plan 2015-2025.

3.5. Continue to promote collaboration among Arctic states as they implement the Polar Code (AMSA IIB).

Implementation plan for ABA recommendations (Actions for Arctic Biodiversity).

a. Prepare, track, and update biennially the plan.

b. Review and update actions in plan by all Working Groups and Task Forces related to ABA recommendations.

c. Evaluate progress on implementing the ABA recommendations and produce recommendations for follow-up work.

d. Encourage states to develop national implementation plans consistent with this implementation plan for the ABA recommendations as an essential adaptation measure.

Reduce stressors on migratory species range-wide, including habitat degradation and overharvesting on wintering and staging areas and along flyways and other migration routes.

a. Pursue or strengthen formal migratory bird cooperation agreements and other specific actions on a flyway level between Arctic and non-Arctic states with first priority given to the East Asian flyway.

b. Collaborate with relevant international commissions, conventions, networks and other organizations sharing an interest in the conservation of Arctic migratory species to identify and implement appropriate conservation actions.

8.1. Establish an Arctic Migratory Bird Initiative (AMBI) to cooperate on the conservation of migratory Arctic birds and prepare collaborative flyway based work plans.

8.2. Broker commitments by non-Arctic countries to safeguarding important Arctic migratory bird habitats outside the Arctic, as part of the AMBI.

c. Develop and implement joint management and recovery plans for threatened species with relevant non-Arctic states and entities.

8.3. Identify species that could benefit from, but are not covered by, range-wide adaptive management strategies and follow-up as appropriate.

8.4. Inventory on-going seabird projects and develop a common reporting template for all seabird conservation strategies.

8.5. Continue implementation of existing species conservation strategies and develop others as appropriate (Black-legged Kittiwakes, caribou).

8.6. Investigate the impact of shipping and off-shore development on seabirds.

d. Identify and advance the conservation of key wintering and staging habitats for migratory birds, particularly wetlands.

Promote public training, education and community-based monitoring, where appropriate, as integral elements in conservation and management.

15.1. Update CAFF’s strategy and guidelines for community-based monitoring, including tools and exploration of how to better integrate this type of monitoring with existing monitoring and ways to use it in early warning systems to detect changes.

15.2. Increase engagement of youth and early career scientists in the activities of CAFF to train the next generation of conservation leaders.

Promote the sustainable management of the Arctic’s living resources and their habitat.

a. Improve circumpolar cooperation in data gathering and assessment of populations and harvestand in the development of improved harvest methods, planning, and management. This includes improving the use and integration of traditional ecological knowledge and science in managing harvests and in improving the development and use of community-based monitoring as an importantinformation source.

10.1. Improve data and assessments on populations, harvest and harvest management, including both traditional knowledge and science, as foundation for harvest management (e.g., Arctic Geese).

10.2. Further develop community-based monitoring as a tool to aid in tracking populations, harvest and harvest management.

b. Develop pan-Arctic conservation and management plans for shared species that are, or will potentiallybe, harvested or commercially exploited that incorporate common monitoring objectives, population assessments, harvesting regimes, guidelines for best practices in harvest methodology and consider maintenance of genetic viability and adaptation to climate change as guiding principles.

10.3. Develop range-wide adaptive management strategies for those harvested species identified under Action 8.3.

c. Support efforts to plan and manage commercial fisheries in international waters under commoninternational objectives that ensure long-term sustainability of species and ecosystems. Encourage precautionary, science-based management of fisheries in areas beyond national jurisdiction in accordance with international law to ensure the long-term sustainability of species and ecosystems.

10.4. Provide biodiversity and ecosystem information to the proposed US Chairmanship priority of developing a Regional Seas Program for the Arctic Ocean.

d. Support efforts to develop, improve and employ fishing technologies and practices that reduce bycatch of marine mammals, seabirds and non-target fish and avoid significant adverse impact to the seabed.

10.5. Update CAFF reports on incidental take of seabirds in commercial fisheries in the Arctic.

e. Develop and implement, in cooperation with reindeer herders, management plans that ensure thesustainability of reindeer herding and the quality of habitat for grazing and calving.

10.6. Maintain and further develop sustainable and resilient reindeer husbandry (EALLU Arctic Indigenous Youth Climate Change and Food Culture).

CHALLENGE Fragmented research, lack of people working across disciplines.

POTENTIAL ACTIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES Traditional Knowledge and Wisdom can provide information that may indicate connections between phenomena; it can assist the scientists and researchers in developing ecosystem approaches to monitoring, research, and management.

Advance the protection of large areas of ecologically important marine, terrestrial and freshwater habitats, taking into account ecological resilience in a changing climate.

a. Build upon existing and on-going domestic and international processes to complete the identification of ecologically and biologically important marine areas and implement appropriate measures for their conservation.

b. Build upon existing networks of terrestrial protected areas, filling geographic gaps, including under represented areas, rare or unique habitats, particularly productive areas such as large river deltas, biodiversity hotspots, and areas with large aggregations of animals such as bird breeding colonies, seal whelping areas and caribou calving grounds.

5.1. Provide input and assist with international processes underway to complete the identification of ecologically and biologically important Arctic areas and promote measures for their conservation as appropriate.

5.2. Develop and follow-up on a framework for a Pan-Arctic Network of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) that sets out a common vision for regional cooperation in MPA network development and management.

5.3. Analyse existing Arctic protected areas data to identify gaps and priorities, including identification of the most climate-change resilient Arctic areas, connectivity gaps, and missing buffer zones, making use of new information and new analytical tools.

c. Promote the active involvement of indigenous peoples in the management and sustainable use ofprotected areas.

5.4. Develop guidelines for including Arctic indigenous and community values into protected areas planning and management, including exploring how best to promote and facilitate multiple values.

5.5. Analyse the results of ICC’s review of global protected areas schemes that promoteindigenous management practices, strong co-management schemes and supportindigenous food security for consideration by CAFF.

Continue to improve and make available information and data.

a. Review, evaluate, and update the CBMP and its monitoring plans, including the parameters and attributes, sampling methods, data management, and reporting in accordance with the CBMP Strategy. External review every 10 years, starting in 2020.

b. Continue implementation the CBMP and its ecosystem-based biodiversity monitoring plans.

c. Establish, develop and maintain the ABDS as the supporting framework to facilitate long-term data sharing and as a source of data for modelling and ecosystem-based management.

d. Develop and apply standards of the Arctic Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) and further develop use of remote sensing.