Arctic Stories

  • A big win for the planet – and people – in Alaska

    December 22, 2022

    A 44,000-acre conservation easement will protect four of the world's most important rivers for salmon habitat.

    aerial view of school of salmon swimming in Lake Iliamna
  • Protecting my Arctic home

    September 16, 2021

    Alexandria Abuzanuq Ivanoff, who is from Unalakleet, Alaska, a small hunting and fishing community on the northwest coast, discusses how warming waters and increased shipping could impact Indigenous peoples and wildlife. 

     

    Allie Ivanoff looks straight at the camera in a large parka in the snow
  • Protecting wildlife in a northern sanctuary

    WWF Magazine: Summer 2021
    For nearly 2 decades, the proposed Pebble Mine has threatened the irreplaceable ecosystem that is Alaska's Bristol Bay. WWF urges the Biden administration to permanently defend this national treasure.
    Bear catching salmon
  • How would offshore oil and gas drilling in the Arctic impact wildlife?

    April 14, 2021

    How a handful of the Arctic’s abundant wildlife would be impacted by offshore drilling and a potential oil spill in the Arctic.

    Pacific walrus swimming
  • Why the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge needs more permanent protection

    March 04, 2021

    Climate change is rapidly changing the Arctic, and its implications are global. More oil to burn would only fuel the climate crisis and put the Refuge and everything living within it at risk from toxic spills and mishaps. Now is the time for bold action that permanently protects the Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.

    landscape view of frozen icy ground with a snowy mountain range in the background
  • Scientists lead a yearlong expedition to study the changing Arctic

    WWF Magazine: Spring 2021
    Since returning to port last October, researchers have been analyzing atmospheric conditions, rates of sea ice melt and new ice formation, Arctic biodiversity, and other data.
    Ship in ice with crewperson walking outside
  • 5 species that stand to lose the most if the US allows drilling in the Arctic Refuge

    August 17, 2020

    The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is located in one of the largest remaining natural areas on the planet: Alaska. The species that call the refuge home have been protected from the risks of unsustainable development for decades, but now the US government is moving forward with plans to open the coastal plain of the Arctic Refuge to allow for oil and gas drilling.

    polar bears rest on an ice pack
  • Polar bears, climate crisis, and oil and gas drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

    The Arctic Refuge has been a place undisturbed by development. But in 2017 Congress approved opening the Coastal Plain of the Refuge to allow for oil and gas drilling. WWF has been vocal in its opposition for a host of reasons, and there is one significant bit of logic even Fish and Wildlife agrees with—the climate crisis makes the future of the region uncertain. Oil and gas development only compounds the problem.

    Two young polar bears
  • Get a dose of nature without leaving home

    WWF Magazine: Fall 2020
    A new webinar series by WWF and Natural Habitat Adventures offers travel-lovers an inspiring way to explore the world —all from the comfort of home.
    African elephant in tall grass
  • In the Arctic, places once protected are now exposed

    April 21, 2020

    Recent rollbacks mean a dramatic decline in the security of America’s Arctic for both people and nature. Places that are so crucial for Arctic biodiversity, such as the Bering Strait—and the people who live there—are increasingly at risk.

    Arctic ocean
  • orcas in Arctic
  • WWF Ambassador Jeremy Jauncey on seeing (and saving) the world

    WWF Magazine: Summer 2020
    WWF Ambassador Jeremy Jauncey engages his global platform to educate and inspire travel enthusiasts about WWF and sustainable travel.
    Jordan with plane
  • Alaska Resilient and Rising

    A close look at the coastline reveals thawing permafrost oozing over the snow along the Chukchi Sea. The Arctic is warming twice as fast—and quite possibly faster—than any other place on the planet.

    Permafrost thawing in Alaska
  • US failing to meet Arctic protection goals

    April 30, 2019

    Though the US government is meeting some of its commitments in the Arctic, not enough is being done and, in many instances, the government is backsliding, according to a new analysis.

    arctic fox WW266664 Donna Pomeroy
  • Imperiled polar bears face new threat in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

    In some areas of the Arctic, female polar bears are more frequently choosing to build their maternity dens on land, rather than sea ice. The land provides the stability and security that sea ice no longer can—at least until human activity comes into the picture.

    Polar bear and cub
  • WWF's Elisabeth Kruger on polar bears, climate change, and indigenous communities

    WWF Magazine: Winter 2018
    Kruger leads WWF’s efforts to help polar bears and other Arctic marine mammals coexist alongside people in an increasingly warmer and ice-free Arctic.
    Portrait of Elisabeth Kruger
  • Climate change puts the Pacific Walrus population on thin ice

    June 28, 2018

    Throughout the Arctic, melting sea ice is causing Pacific walruses to "haul out" on land in massive groups. To minimize deadly disturbances and minimize human-polar bear conflict, WWF is establishing artificial feeding spots on polar bear routes along the coast of Russia's Chukchi Sea.  

    Polar Bear and Walrus
  • Why we must help Bristol Bay now

    April 02, 2018

    Bristol Bay, Alaska is one of the most productive marine ecosystems in the world and the source of the world's largest wild salmon fishery. Yet its future is in jeopardy from the proposal for Pebble Mine. Now the US Army Corps of Engineers is attempting to fast track the mine's permit application and we must take action now.

    bristol bay aerial
  • Lack of winter sea ice disrupts life in the Arctic

    March 23, 2018

    It’s the second-worst winter for sea ice in the Arctic. As this rapid warming trend continues, entire ecosystems are unraveling and the consequences are impacting daily life in the Arctic as well as life in coastal communities thousands of miles away.

     
    diomede island arctic
  • One Arctic town's very busy polar bear patrol

    February 26, 2018

    In 2007, nine polar bear conflicts were registered in all of Greenland. By 2017, there were 21 conflicts between August and December in the village of Ittoqqortoormiit alone. In almost all of the 21 cases, the local polar bear patrol was called to ensure that the bears were scared away from the community and kept under observation.

    polar bear patrol in Greenland
  • 3 things you should know about January’s record-low Arctic sea ice

    February 22, 2018

    January 2018 brought record-low sea ice cover to the Arctic, according to new data released by the US government. That’s bad news for the ocean, wildlife, and local communities that rely on both for survival.

    Ice melting in Bering Strait
  • A young walrus strays from his herd—and swims close to a photographer

    WWF Magazine: Spring 2018
    In May 2014, a young male walrus arrived at a remote island near where photographer Audun Rickarden lives in Tromsø, in northern Norway. Thus began the strangest wildlife interaction he's ever had.
    walrus spring2018
  • Trump Administration to roll back crucial Arctic protections

    January 05, 2018

    The Arctic Ocean—the pristine home to bowhead whales, gray whales, polar bears, walruses, and other magnificent wildlife, along with many indigenous communities—could potentially lose crucial protections from risky offshore oil and gas drilling.

    polar bears rest on an ice pack
  • What is a walrus haulout and what does it mean for the planet?

    As thousands of walrus come ashore, they congregate in large groups known as “haulouts.” These mass gatherings are dangerous and even deadly for the animals. 

    Pacific walrus (Odobenus rosmarus)