An iceberg in the waters of a fjord in Svalbard, Norway, during an expedition of the R/V Kinfish on July 7, 2022. (Image credit: Christopher Prentiss Michel, Artist-in-Residence, National Academies of Sciences, Engineering & Medicine)
Today, NOAA released its Arctic Vision and Strategy — a framework that outlines actions needed to achieve more resilient ecosystems and communities in the region. The strategy depicts NOAA’s priority areas and current activities in the Arctic, while providing five-year strategies to strengthen and expand the agency’s leadership and impact in the region.
The strategy also highlights the importance of partnerships, including state, public and private sector partners and Indigenous communities, which are critical for NOAA to achieve its Arctic vision. These partners and communities are critical to the collection and exchange of environmental data and information needed to make informed decisions about security, protection and economic development in the Arctic.
Through NOAA's Arctic Vision and Strategy, we are aligning our agency's actions and engagements to keep pace with the region's rapid change and national interests.
A dire time for the Arctic
The strategy arrives during a critical transition point for the Arctic, which is warming at approximately three times the global average. In 2024, the Arctic tundra became a net source of carbon dioxide emissions for the first time on record. This results in impacts that have a cascading effect on ecosystems, economies, weather and climate patterns worldwide. That is why NOAA has initiated an effort to align its science, service and stewardship mission to address Arctic challenges, while strengthening community resilience and local economies.
“Businesses and communities — both domestically and internationally — are becoming increasingly invested in the Arctic, from understanding the region's impact on global weather to pursuing sustainable economic development and enhancing national security,” said NOAA Deputy Assistant Secretary for International Fisheries, Kelly Kryc, Ph.D., who also serves as NOAA’s Senior Arctic Policy Lead.
3 pillars: Support, science and stewardship
The strategy organizes NOAA’s efforts into three pillars and seven priority goals to realize the vision of equitable and resilient communities, ecosystems and economies. These include:
- Advancing environmental science, which encompasses goals to strengthen foundational science, monitor and forecast sea ice and provide public and private sector decisionmakers with improved understanding of climate and ecosystem changes.
- Promoting collaborative stewardship to enhance our engagements with international, national, regional and local partners, including those we work with regarding coastal and marine ecosystem stewardship.
- Supporting resilient communities centered on equity and environmental justice. This effort includes working alongside Indigenous and rural communities on efforts to improve infrastructure, emergency preparedness and adaptation planning to advance healthy ecosystems and equitable growth.
“Through NOAA's Arctic Vision and Strategy, we are aligning our agency's actions and engagements to keep pace with the region's rapid change and national interests,” said NOAA Administrator Rick Spinrad, Ph.D. “We stand ready with our partners, including Indigenous and local communities, to provide the science and research that societies need to make important decisions to achieve resilience in the face of extraordinary challenges and opportunities."
The full strategy is available online at arctic.noaa.gov. Learn more about NOAA’s work in the Arctic.
