Abstract:

The Arctic and part of Antarctic are experiencing significant changes characterized by warming and cryosphere’s shrinkage, which not only profoundly affect the local eco-environment and socio-economy, but also expand to the hemisphere and global scale. The special report on the ocean and cryosphere in a changing climate (SROCC) was issued on 25 September 2019, which systematically presented basic scientific understanding of changes in ocean, cryosphere, ecosystem and their interactions, analyzed the pathway to reduce vulnerability and risk, enhance adaptability and resilience. This article is a brief interpretation of the third chapter of the SROCC, including: (1) the changes in the polar system (such as polar oceans, sea ice, snow cover, freshwater ice, permafrost, polar ice sheets and glaciers) and their impacts on socio-ecological systems, and the links between polar systems and mid-latitude weather; (2) human response to polar changes, such as consequence of climate change, documented responses, key assets and strategies of adaptive and transformative capacity, anticipated future conditions and uncertainty, etc.; (3) assessment of practices and strategies for resilience building.

Key words: Polar system, SROCC, Impacts, Resilience