International Secretariat

Tom Barry is the Executive Secretary for the Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), which is the biodiversity working group of the Arctic Council. The CAFF Secretariat is based in Akureyri, Iceland. Tom has a broad range of experience at national and international levels dealing with strategic planning and organizational development, a primary focus of which has been Arctic issues, where he works with a diverse range of stakeholders throughout the Arctic. Tom was heavily involved in the Arctic Biodiversity Assessment, which creates a baseline for use in global and regional assessments of biodiversity and provide a basis to inform and guide future Arctic Council work. Tom is also closely involved in the implementation of the Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Programme (CBMP), which is working to facilitate more rapid detection, communication and responses to the significant biodiversity-related trends and pressures affecting the circumpolar world.