A climate scientist explains what the melting Arctic means for the world

Jan 23, 2020

A polar bear swims underwater in the St-Felicien Wildlife Zoo in St-Felicien, Quebec October 31, 2011. According to Environment Canada, Canada is home to around 15,000 of the estimated 20,000 polar bears in the world. The U.S. (Alaska), Russia, Denmark (Greenland) and Norway are the other four countries where polar bears can be found. REUTERS/Mathieu Belanger (CANADA - Tags: ANIMALS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY) - GM1E7B1128O01

The loss of Arctic ice imperils many species - including homo sapiens. Image: REUTERS/Mathieu Belanger

Robin Pomeroy

Podcast Editor, World Economic Forum

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Arctic regions are burning – and it should set alarm bells ringing

Historical variations in the monthly areal extent (106 km2) of seasonally frozen ground (including the active layer over permafrost) for the period from 1901 through 2002 in the NH. The positive anomaly (blue) represents above average monthly extent, while the negative anomaly (red) represents below-average extent

Permafrost is melting. Image: IPCC

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