At a time of increasing environmental changes and geopolitical tensions, the need for collaboration in the Arctic is greater than ever. Top-down initiatives such as the Arctic Council have contributed to important increased collaboration and science diplomacy. Similarly, bottom-up initiatives have also played a major role in establishing diplomacy among researchers with spin-offs at government levels. We track the rise of science diplomacy achieved by INTERACT. In 2021, this was a network of 90 research stations in 18 countries (including all Arctic nations). It aims to improve the wellness of Indigenous Peoples, other Arctic residents and the global community by facilitating environmental monitoring and research. It supports scientists from around the world and facilitates environmental monitoring for more than 150 international/global networks. INTERACT contributed to science diplomacy until spring 2022 when the invasion of Ukraine by Russia completely changed its pan-Arctic networking over a couple of months. This decrease in INTERACT science diplomacy was due entirely to external constraints related to the current geopolitical circumstances and poses a new reality for INTERACT and its important contributions to environmental monitoring and research in a region where changes have global implications.