ABSTRACT
The Arctic Ocean is surrounded by five coastal states that have stewardship responsibilities in this globally relevant region (Figure 11). There is co-operation among diverse organisations (Table 3) to assess the complexities of the natural system, human impacts and opportunities emerging from the environmental state-change in the Arctic Ocean. There also is commitment to the law of the sea as the umbrella framework to address international interactions in the Arctic Ocean (Figures 12 and 13). While necessary, these elements are insufficient for shared responses to mitigate and adapt to the political, economic and cultural instabilities that will emerge as the permanent seaice cap is transformed into a seasonally ice-free sea at the top of the Earth.
