Arctic Connections to Global Warming and Health

The Arctic is warming at double the rate of the rest of the Earth. This is causing rapid biophysical changes that are stressing ecosystems that have evolved to survive the perennially frozen conditions, strengthening positive feedbacks to the global climate system that are accelerating global warming, and challenging the capacity of society to adapt and mitigate the environmental and health effects of a changing Arctic. The Arctic is especially vulnerable because it encompasses most of the Earth’s cryosphere of sea ice, snow, glaciers, and permafrost, which have a definitive tipping point associated with phase change of melting ice. This makes the biome a harbinger for assessing the consequences of global warming on ecosystem and societal health. In this chapter, the importance of the Arctic is examined within a global context by summarizing the rapid environmental and societal changes that are occurring, identifying how changes in the Arctic provide strong feedbacks to the global climate system, and how environmental and health policy is mitigating, or failing to mitigate, the effects of a changing Arctic.