The time has come for us all to unite behind a shared vision for the waters of the Central Arctic Ocean surrounding the North Pole. A sustaining vision that delivers a protective solution for this iconic ‘high seas’ region that facilitates promotion of biodiversity conservation, scientific endeavour, and peaceful international co-operation – and manages the risk of unsustainable commercial activity and military activity.

As proposed by 90 North Foundation, the long-term vision to inspire the necessary international agreements is a North Pole Marine Reserve established for the global public’s benefit.

Gathered this week at the UN Oceans Conference in Nice, France, a growing number of actors, including circumpolar Indigenous Peoples, ocean-focused NGOs, and sovereign states, are expressing ever more publicly their concerns, aspirations and solutions for the Central Arctic Ocean.

Such initiatives like formal pledges open for signature by corporations and citizens, and letters of support from informed communities, are all building awareness, engagement and levels of support for the protection of the Central Arctic Ocean.

In parallel, a conservation-orientated international moratorium on activities that introduce additional risks to the Central Arctic Ocean’s already-stressed unique biodiversity and ecosystem services is offered as a valuable next step.

In photographic terms, a moratorium’s inevitable ‘Don’t Do’ list – covering the highest priority activities like international cargo shipping and deep-sea mining – can be seen as the essential ‘negative’ which, when implemented, reveals the desired ‘positive’, the North Pole Marine Reserve, that makes explicit the benefits to all citizens worldwide.

Such a reserve, while more commonly viewed through the lens of conservation, also embodies the results of a rarely-made-explicit positive peace process. The circumpolar Indigenous Peoples’ example of peaceful and co-operative relations, combined with peaceful co-operation being hard-wired in the Arctic Council’s modus operandi, suggests the Arctic community is well aligned and positioned to facilitate the evolution of global agreements for the Central Arctic Ocean.

It’s not hard to see how a North Pole Marine Reserve becomes a symbol of both sustainability and peace for the global community.