Dr. Lassi Heininen prof. at University of Lapland in Finland and chairman of the Northern Research Forum (NRF) had a presentation called: “New Arctic Geopolitics – toward more global cooperation, or back to national approach?” at the University of Akureyri.

Abstract:
By environmental awakening and international environmental cooperation, and the consequent growing intergovernmental as well as regional cooperation by non-state actors, the Arctic region became a new cooperative region in the early-1990s.

In the beginning of the 21st century the major themes, or trends, of circumpolar geopolitics and IR were increasing circumpolar cooperation by Indigenous peoples’ organizations and sub-national governments; modern region-building with nations as major actors; and a new kind of relationship between the Arctic and the outside world. Ten years later the Arctic is still stable and peaceful, and the last trend plays more important role, since there is a growing global interest, accelerated by climate change, toward the region and its natural resources.

Followed from this, a multifunctional, global and complex change has entered at the Arctic on one hand, and on the other hand, the region plays more strategic role in world politics. This goes beyond classical point of view of state hegemony, and that of conflict – cooperation relationship, and creates more global and critical approaches of geopolitics. Here the Arctic states much prioritize economic and other national interests, as well as the littoral states (of the Arctic Ocean) also emphasize state sovereignty. These states behave like they are hesitating to go further, or are afraid of globalization, or they are simply running out of new ideas.

This presentation describes recent changes in Arctic geopolitics and Northern security based on national strategies and policies (of the Arctic states), and discusses on how security is (re)defined in the entire North. Final, it points that there in Arctic geopolitics is a dilemma: either to go further toward more global and deeper international, multilateral cooperation, or back to the narrow and national(istic) approach of the state-politics. 

More information:
lassi.heininen(at) ulapland.fi

Rethinking rural resilience: Tourism’s future in rural and peripheral development?

Tourism is one sector of the economy purported to benefit rural and peripheral regions. Rural and peripheral communities have been and are still being established as outposts of capitalism and prosper through primary industries such as agriculture, mining, forestry, and fishing. More recently, tourism has reached even the most remote regions (e.g., fly-in only communities of Canada’s high Arctic) with many communities embracing this new economic opportunity. Community outcomes, however, have been mixed. Tourism is not the panacea communities may want to believe it is.

http://www.mun.ca/cag2013/call.php 

The North could benefit from commercially run, year-round greenhouses.That’s the message which Heather Exner-Pirot from the International Centre for Northern Governance and Development at the University of Saskatchewan said came out of a two-day workshop which took place in Saskatoon Nov. 7 and Nov. 8.(Source: Samantha Dawson, Nunatsiaq News). The workshop was organized in connection with the UArctic Thematic Network on Northern Food Security.

• Free access for user groups/users to research facilities and field sites, including support for travel and logistic costs
• Free access to information and data in the public domain held at the infrastructures

The fourth  PhD training course will be held in March 19-23, 2012 at Abisko Scientific Research Station, Sweden. The course is titled "Snowtalks" and will conclude the climate change effects on people and environment in the North where snow is a very important factor. Find out more from the Global Change Thematic Networks page.