Arctic PASSION Recommendations Towards a Sustained Arctic Observing System

The scientific, societal, economic, and environmental challenges associated with the changing Arctic are immense and require a coordinated approach towards observing and data collection. The EU funded project Arctic PASSION (“Pan-Arctic observing system of systems: Implementing observations for societal needs) aims to overcome the still existing challenges, such as fragmentation and lack of tailoring of observations to user needs, by co-creating a more integrated pan-Arctic observing system in international collaboration, including Indigenous Peoples and local communities. It shall allow access to unrestricted, high quality, science-based Earth observation information as well as consented Indigenous Knowledge and Local Knowledge. It shall be better tuned to the needs of society, allow monitoring environmental changes, reduce uncertainly in predictions, and support decision-making. With a consortium consisting of 43 partners, the Arctic PASSION project put together the diverse expertise and formulated 10 recommendations on what is needed for a better coordinated and integrated, more useful and more equitable Arctic Observing System and seeking ways to sustain it.