BRAHMAPUTRA AND ITS TRIBUTARIES

Arctic Region and Arctic Council

The Arctic is a polar region located at the northernmost part of Earth.
The Arctic consists of the Arctic Ocean, adjacent seas, and parts of Alaska (United States) , Finland, Greenland (Denmark), Iceland, Northern Canada, Norway, Russia, and Sweden.
Land within the Arctic region has seasonally varying snow and ice cover, with predominantly treeless permafrost (permanently frozen underground ice) containing tundra.
Arctic seas contain seasonal sea ice in many places.
The Arctic region is a unique area among Earth’s ecosystems. The cultures in the region and the Arctic indigenous peoples have adapted to its cold and extreme conditions.
Life in the Arctic includes zooplankton and phytoplankton, fish and marine mammals, birds, land animals, plants and human societies.
Arctic land is bordered by the subarctic.
The Arctic’s climate is characterized by cold winters and cool summers.
Arctic vegetation is composed of plants such as dwarf shrubs, graminoids, herbs, lichens, and mosses, which all grow relatively close to the ground, forming tundra.
Trees cannot grow in the Arctic, but in its warmest parts, shrubs are common and can reach 2 m (6 ft 7 in) in height; sedges, mosses and lichens can form thick layers.

About Arctic Council:
- The eight Arctic nations (Canada, Kingdom of Denmark [Greenland & The Faroe Islands], Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Russia, and USA) are all members of the Arctic Council, as are organizations representing six indigenous populations.
- The Council operates on consensus basis, mostly dealing with environmental treaties and not addressing boundary or resource disputes.
- No country owns the geographic North Pole or the region of the Arctic Ocean surrounding it.