Once thought of as a pristine environment it is now all too apparent that the Arctic is a sink for pollutants transported northwards over long distances in the atmosphere and oceans and is also likely to be subject to major climate change as a result of global warming‎.‎ Many ecologists are currently seeking to further our understanding of how Arctic ecosystems function and to detect and predict anthropogenic changes which may occur within them‎.‎ This book‎,‎ resulting from a British Ecological Society Special Symposium‎,‎ addresses these issues‎.‎ Early chapters provide a background to the soils and periglacial processes of the Arctic and to the role of microbial and plant communities in ecosystem function‎.‎ The following chapters consider the relationship between individual Arctic species and their environment‎,‎ particularly in the context of climate change‎,‎ whilst a further chapter draws together terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems in a consideration of trophic cascades‎.‎ The book ends with four chapters concentrating on man‎'‎s impacts on the Arctic environment‎.‎