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The Circumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program, CBMP, Terrestrial Plan, www.caff.is/terrestrial, is a framework to focus and coordinate monitoring of terrestrial biodiversity across the Arctic. The goal of the plan is to improve the collective ability of Arctic traditional knowledge (TK) holders, northern communities, and scientists to detect, understand and report on long-term change in Arctic terrestrial ecosystems and biodiversity. This presentation will outline the key management questions the plan aims to address and the proposed nested, multi-scaled approach linking targeted, research based monitoring with survey-based monitoring and remotely sensed data. The CBMP Terrestrial Plan intends to build upon and expand existing monitoring networks, engaging participants across a range of capacity and interests. The presentation will summarize the recommended focal soil ecosystem components and attributes to monitor in the plan related to soil invertebrates. Focal Ecosystem Components (FECs) of the soil decomposer system include the soil living invertebrates such as microarthropods, enchytraeids and earthworms and the functions performed by microorganisms such as nitrification, decomposition, and humification (moisture and nutrient retention). As monitoring capacity is limited, we suggest requiring the monitoring of the mesofauna with collembolans at the species level, as this group hitherto is the most feasible concerning availability of expertise and equipment. DNA metabarcoding in conjunction with taxonomic studies are under development to become an invaluable tool in future monitoring efforts, and sample archives may be useful to provide baselines of soil ecosystem conditions.

Drought has had a significant impact on civilization throughout history in terms of reductions in agricultural productivity, potable water supply, and economic activity, and in extreme cases this has led to famine. Every continent has semiarid areas, which are especially vulnerable to drought. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has noted that average annual river runoff and water availability are projected to decrease by 10 percent-13 percent over some dry and semiarid regions in mid and low latitudes, increasing the frequency, intensity, and duration of drought, along with its associated impacts. The sheer magnitude of the problem demands efforts to reduce vulnerability to drought by moving away from the reactive, crisis management approach of the past toward a more proactive, risk management approach that is centered on reducing vulnerability to drought as much as possible while providing early warning of evolving drought conditions and possible impacts. Many countries, unfortunately, do not have adequate resources to provide early warning, but require outside support to provide the necessary early warning information for risk management. Furthermore, in an interconnected world, the need for information on a global scale is crucial for understanding the prospect of declines in agricultural productivity and associated impacts on food prices, food security, and potential for civil conflict. This paper highlights the recent progress made toward a Global Drought Early Warning Monitoring Framework (GDEWF), an underlying partnership and framework, along with its Global Drought Early Warning System (GDEWS), which is its interoperable information system, and the organizations that have begun working together to make it a reality. The GDEWF aims to improve existing regional and national drought monitoring and forecasting capabilities by adding a global component, facilitating continental monitoring and forecasting (where lacking), and improving these tools at various scales, thereby increasing the capacity of national and regional institutions that lack drought early warning systems or complementing existing ones. A further goal is to improve coordination of information delivery for drought-related activities and relief efforts across the world. This is especially relevant for regions and nations with low capacity for drought early warning. To do this requires a global partnership that leverages the resources necessary and develops capabilities at the global level, such as global drought forecasting combined with early warning tools, global real-time monitoring, and harmonized methods to identify critical areas vulnerable to drought. Although the path to a fully functional GDEWS is challenging, multiple partners and organizations within the drought, forecasting, agricultural, and water-cycle communities are committed to working toward its success.

The Conservation of Arctic Flora and Fauna (CAFF), the biodiversity working group of the Arctic Council, established theCircumpolar Biodiversity Monitoring Program (CBMP) to address the need for coordinated and standardized monitoringof Arctic environments. The CBMP includes an international network of scientists, conservation organizations, governmentagencies, Permanent Participants Arctic community experts and leaders. Using an ecosystem-based monitoring approachwhich includes species, ecological functions, ecosystems, their interactions, and potential drivers, the CBMP focuses ondeveloping and implementing long-term plans for monitoring the integrity of Arctic biomes: terrestrial, marine, freshwater,and coastal (under development) environments.The CBMP Terrestrial Expert Monitoring Group (CBMP-TEMG) has developed the Arctic Terrestrial Biodiversity Monitoring Plan(CBMP-Terrestrial Plan/the Plan) as the framework for coordinated, long-term Arctic terrestrial biodiversity monitoring. Thegoal of the CBMP-Terrestrial Plan is to improve the collective ability of Arctic traditional knowledge (TK) holders, northerncommunities, and scientists to detect, understand and report on long-term change in Arctic terrestrial ecosystems andbiodiversity. The CBMP-Terrestrial Plan aims to address these priority management questions:1. What are the status, distribution, and conditions of terrestrial focal species, populations, communities, andlandscapes/ecosystems and key processes/functions occurring in the Arctic?2. How and where are these terrestrial focal species, populations, communities, and landscapes/ecosystems and keyprocesses/functions changing?3. What and how are the primary environmental and anthropogenic drivers influencing changes in biodiversity andecosystem function?4. Where are the areas of high ecological importance including, for example, resilient and vulnerable areas (related tothe FECs) and where are drivers having the greatest impact?

The latest clinical trials indicate better performance of aromatase inhibitors, compared to tamoxifen, in adjuvant hormonotherapy of breast carcinoma. The identification of molecular markers, predicting resistance to tamoxifen, could help to identify patients, which are most likely to benefit from aromatase inhibitors in up-front adjuvant hormonotherapy.Tissue microarrays were constructed from archival paraffin blocks of primary tumors of 179 patients with estrogen receptor positive operable breast carcinoma in stage I-III, subsequently treated with tamoxifen for five years or until relapse, with at least 7 years follow up available. The amplifications of Her-2 and cyclin D1 genes were evaluated by fluorescence in-situ hybridization. The level of progesterone receptor (PR) and Ki67 were estimated by immunohistochemistry.54 of above patients recurred during follow up. In univariate analysis of disease free survival, the presence of more than three nodal metastases (RR=4,5 p0,001), grade 3 (RR=2,3 p=0,035), cyclin D1 (RR=3,06 p0,001) and Her-2 (RR=3,06 p0,001) amplifications were identified as significant risk factors, together with the negativity of PR (RR=2,1 p=0,013). In multivariate analysis, only clinical stage III (RR=2,6 p=0,003), cyclin D1 (RR=2,7 p=0,001) and Her-2 (RR=2,1 p=0,014) amplifications proved significant. In 77 patients who received adjuvant chemotherapy no statistically significant risk factor was identified. In multivariate analysis of 102 patients without adjuvant chemotherapy only stage III (RR=6,9 p=0,001) and Her-2 amplification (RR=4,5 p=0,001) were confirmed.The advanced clinical stage, cyclin D1 and Her-2 gene amplifications represent factors, predicting the failure of adjuvant tamoxifen treatment, but their predictive value is much lower in patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy. This fact indicates, they can reflect the common biological aggressiveness of tumor and need not to be tamoxifen specific.