Contemporary Political Opportunities and Challenges in the Arctic

Contemporary Political Opportunities and Challenges in the Arctic is a new section within the ECPR network. Research on the special conditions of the Arctic region and Arctic politics has expanded over recent decades, with an increased interest in various actors and processes. A driving force behind this trend is climate and environmental changes with strong impact on the Arctic region. These changes have created new potentials for extraction of oil, gas and minerals as well as new shipping lanes in the Northern Sea Route (NSR), shortening the route between the Atlantic and the Pacific. Alongside with these opportunities, challenges of various kinds arise. The Arctic has always been subjected to external powers and forces who have divided the region into various political systems. On the one hand there are several sovereign states situated in the high North (Canada, USA, Russia, Norway, Sweden, Finland and Iceland) and the indigenous communities in the Artic which have been divided and spread across different states within the region. On the other hand there are several sub-national jurisdictions belonging to states which might not otherwise be linked to the Arctic, such as Greenland and the Faroe Islands belonging to Denmark. Furthermore, in recent years, the strategic interest in the Arctic has increased among other states, especially the new observer states in the Arctic Council such as China, South Korea, Japan and India. The interplay between these different actors creates a complex and challenging political environment due to their often conflicting interests and goals within the Arctic region. There are the various indigenous communities claiming for self-determination and in some cases statehood as a long-term goal and the sovereign-states’ and the multinational companies striving for economic gain in the region. The interplay includes issues related to both the climate issue and the search for natural resources in the region, as well as the challenges of increased tourism, demand for self-determination, and increased trade. Within the section of Contemporary Political Opportunities and Challenges in the Arctic we seek to gather a stimulating mix of panels and scholars who share thematic interests in a variety of areas within Arctic relations. The themes include security policy, capacity building and nation-building, governance in the Arctic, climate change and risk management, and natural resources both offshore and onshore. Security policy departs from the increased strategic importance of the region. It includes the interplay between the states situated in the Arctic, the indigenous people living in the region, and states outside the Arctic with an interest in the region. Capacity building includes political, demographic, social welfare, and educational responses. This could also include related issues such as the effects of an increased tourism, and increased trade and shipping. Governance in the Arctic focuses on the political organization of the Arctic region and the individual Arctic societies, the indigenous communities and the issue of nation-building. It also includes the striving for self-determination and in some cases independence and the implications this movement has had on the communities and their relations to the surrounding communities. Climate change and risk management focus on the implications of the changing climate and the identification of risks related to this. It also includes different issues related to environmental politics. Natural resources also relates to climate change. The global heating is likely to create new opportunities for the region but it will also imply consequences. , e.g. the implications of extractive industries along with the development of corresponding infrastructures and the opening of the Arctic sea routes that are likely to take place. Contributions of theoretical, empirical or methodological orientation are welcome and we which to engender contributions that a novel approach towards studies in the field, in particular conceptualizing overlapping and complementary aspects that contribute to the generation of new research agendas. We further expect that panels will involve an eclectic mix of scholars both in terms of seniority and the countries that are represented.