Environment

Working Group on Environment

Climate change, loss of biodiversity and pollution are serious challenges to the environment, societies and communities of the Barents region. The responsibility of the Working Group on Environment (WGE) is to promote environmental cooperation in the region to deal with these environmental challenges.

Important framework agreements for the cooperation are the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its sustainable development goals, the Paris Agreement and other global environmental conventions and acts. Priority areas for cooperation are climate change, environmental hot spots, nature protection, water issues and regional level cooperation. The work of the group is guided by biennial ministerial declarations and the priorities set out by each chair in a work programme.

The Working Group on Environment has two subgroups: Subgroup on Hot Spots Exclusion (SHE) and the Subgroup on Nature and Water (SNW). In addition, the Regional Working Group on environment carries out cooperation projects between the Barents regions and works in close co-operation with the WGE and its subgroups.

WGE Chairmanship 2020-2023 is held by Finland. Finland aims to boost the transition into a carbon neutral circular economy, promote biodiversity protection and find means to reduce the use of black carbon.

Read more about the Finnish Chairmanship of the WGE in the Work Programme in English and Russian.

Meetings and Events:

WGE#58 Video Meeting, February 2021
WGE#57 Video Meeting, October 2020
WGE#56 Video Meeting, June 2020
14th Meeting of Barents Environmental Ministers, Luleå, Sweden, 4-5 February 2020
WGE#55 Telephone Meeting, January 2020
WGE#54 Meeting, Stockholm, Sweden, November 2019
WGE#53 Meeting, Umeå, Sweden, September 2019
WGE#52 Meeting, Stora Sjöfallet, Sweden, March 2019
WGE#51 Meeting, Skellefteå, Sweden, November 2018
WGE#50 Meeting, Piteå, Sweden, May 2018
13th Meeting of Barents Environmental Ministers, Vadsø, Norway, 29-30 November 2017
WGE#49 Meeting, Oslo, November 2017
WGE#48 Meeting, Kjerringøy, Norway, September 2017
WGE#47 Meeting, Tromsø, Norway, February - March 2017
WGE#46 Meeting, St. Petersburg, Russia, September 2016
WGE#45 Meeting, Svanhovh, Norway, March 2016
12th meeting of Barents Environmental Ministers, Sortavala, Russia, 24-25 November 2015
WGE#44 Meeting, Syktyvkar, Russia, November 2015
WGE#43 Meeting, Naryan-Mar, Russia, June 2015
WGE#42 Meeting, Arkhangelsk, Russia, December 2014
WGE#41 Meeting, Petrozavodsk, Russia, April 2014
11th meeting of Barents Environmental Ministers, Inari, Finland, 4-5 December 2013