The effects of climate change are being felt all over the world, resulting in flooding, sea level rise, changing rainfall patterns, temperature increases and so on, and this impact is considered to be twice as strong in the Arctic. When assessing current mitigating efforts and their preliminary results, scientists point out that the 2 °C target will not be met, let alone the more stringent target of 1.5°C. There is a clear need for a new binding, more stringent global climate agreement, but that takes time, time which we do not have. Particularly for the Arctic, fast action is urgently needed and could possibly be achieved by targeting black carbon, a short-lived climate forcer with a possibly great potential to slow down climate change. This paper will discuss, in short, the current scientific knowledge on black carbon, with a particular focus on the Arctic. Pointing to shipping as one of the large contributors, this article will address current efforts within the International Maritime Organization to deal with black carbon.