Abstract
Starting with a collaborative workshop hosted by the Norwegian Institute for Air Research in October 2007, the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC), the Land-Ocean Interactions in the Coastal Zone (LOICZ) Project and the International Permafrost Association (IPA) decided to jointly to initiate an assessment of the state of the Arctic coast. The Report is now also co-sponsored by the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) Working Group of the Arctic Council.
The goal of this report is to draw on initial findings regarding climate change and human dimensions for the Arctic as a whole provided by the ACIA and AHDR reports to develop a comprehensive picture of the status and current and anticipated changes in the most sensitive Arctic coastal areas. The assessment takes a social-ecological approach that explores the implications of change for the interaction of humans with nature. The report is aimed to be a first step towards a continuously updated coastal assessment and to identify key issues seeking future scientific concern in an international Earth system research agenda.
