scholarly journals Is It Time for a Reset in Arctic Governance?

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (16) ◽  
pp. 4497 ◽  
Author(s):  
Oran R. Young
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
The United States ◽  
Global Scale ◽  
Peripheral Region ◽  
Great Power ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Arctic Council ◽  
Ground Zero ◽  
Regime Complex

Conditions in the Arctic today differ from those prevailing during the 1990s in ways that have far-reaching implications for the architecture of Arctic governance. What was once a peripheral region regarded as a zone of peace has turned into ground zero for climate change on a global scale and a scene of geopolitical maneuvering in which Russia is flexing its muscles as a resurgent great power, China is launching economic initiatives, and the United States is reacting defensively as an embattled but still potent hegemon. This article explores the consequences of these developments for Arctic governance and specifically for the role of the Arctic Council. The article canvasses options for adjusting the council’s membership and its substantive remit. It pays particular attention to opportunities for the council to play a role in managing the increasingly complex Arctic regime complex.

The Global Commons through a Regional Lens: The Arctic Council on Short-Lived Climate Pollutants

2016 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sabaa A. Khan
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Black Carbon ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Current Status ◽  
Arctic Council ◽  
Global Commons ◽  
Ice Melt ◽  
Global Action ◽  
Arctic Atmosphere

AbstractThe regulation of short-lived climate pollutants (SLCPs) is widely seen as an important dimension of global atmospheric pollution control and climate change governance. SLCPs emitted outside the Arctic influence the Arctic atmosphere, Arctic communities, and the rate of ice melt. As an intergovernmental forum that brings together three of the world’s major petroleum producers (Russia, the United States, and Canada), the Arctic Council has a pivotal role in reducing the rate of Arctic warming through SLCP mitigation. This article explores the Arctic Council’s approach to SLCP mitigation. It begins by addressing the current status of black carbon and methane in international legal instruments, and goes on to explore the important regime linkages that are set in place through the Arctic Council’s Framework for Action on Enhanced Black Carbon and Methane Emission Reductions. The article suggests that the Arctic Council provides an experimental platform that may catalyze SLCP regulation not only in Arctic jurisdictions but also in Arctic Council observer states, such as China and India. The transnational and inclusive character of the Arctic Council’s constitutional framework and knowledge-generating mechanisms enables new pathways for global action on climate change and air pollution governance.

scholarly journals Constructing the “New” Arctic: The Future of the Circumpolar North in a Changing Global Order

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 6-24 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. R. Young
Keyword(s):  
International Society ◽  
Peripheral Region ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Arctic Council ◽  
Global Issues ◽  
Socially Constructed ◽  
History Of ◽  
Circumpolar North ◽  
The Cold War

Like all spatially delimited regions in international society, the Arctic is socially constructed. Political and economic considerations play prominent roles as determinants of the region’s boundaries, the identity of those states regarded as Arctic states, and the nature of the interactions between the Arctic and the outside world. From this perspective the recent history of the Arctic divides into two distinct periods: the late 1980s through 2007 and 2007 to the present. As the cold war faded, the Arctic became a peripheral region of declining importance in global political calculations. No one challenged the dominance of the eight Arctic states in regional affairs, and the Arctic Council focused on regional concerns relating to environmental protection and sus tainable development. Today, by contrast, the ‘new’ Arctic is a focus of intense glo bal interest, largely because climate change is proceeding more rapidly in this region than anywhere else on Earth with global consequences and because the increasing accessibility of the Arctic’s natural resources has generated enhanced interest on the part of outside actors. As a result, Arctic issues have merged into global issues, making the region a prominent arena for the interplay of geopolitical forces. Cooperative arrangements established during the first period (e.g. the Arctic Council) may require adjustment to operate effectively in the ‘new’ Arctic. Treated as a case study, the Arctic story provides an illuminating lens through which to analyze the forces that shape thinking about the nature of regions in international society and the role of cooperative arrangements at the regional level.

scholarly journals U.S. Goals for Arctic Council Include Focus on Climate Change

Eos ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 96 ◽  
Author(s):  
Randy Showstack
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Arctic Council ◽  
Arctic Communities

As chair of the Arctic Council, the United States is prioritizing climate change and ocean issues and improving the conditions for Arctic communities.

scholarly journals The United States and the making of an Arctic nation

Polar Record ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-107 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annika E. Nilsson
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
United States ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Regional Cooperation ◽  
Global Climate ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Arctic Council ◽  
The Us ◽  
Over Time

ABSTRACTThe United States has sometimes been called a reluctant Arctic actor, but during its chairmanship of the Arctic Council (2015–2017) the US engaged as an active proponent of Arctic cooperation, using the region as a showcase for strong global climate policy. This paper places US Arctic policy development during the Obama presidency within a longer time perspective, with a focus on how US interests towards the region have been formulated in policies and policy statements. The paper uses frame analysis to identify overarching discourses and discusses the extent to which certain themes and political logics recur or shift over time. It highlights economic development and national competitiveness as a prominent recurring frame, but also that the policy discourse has moved from nation-building and military security towards a broader security perspective, with attention to energy supply for the US, and more recently also to the implications of climate change. Over time, there is a clear shift from reluctance towards Arctic regional cooperation to embracing it. Moreover, it highlights how different stands in relation to climate change have affected Arctic cooperation in the past and may do so again in the future.

The Role of International Governance Systems in Protecting the Arctic Environment: Examining Climate Change Policy

2012 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 561-581
Author(s):  
Md Waliul Hasanat
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Climate Change Policy ◽  
Arctic Region ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
International Governance ◽  
Arctic Council ◽  
Change Policy ◽  
Governance Systems ◽  
Arctic Climate Change

Abstract Since the 1990s, various international governance systems have been active in promoting the wellbeing of the northern part of the globe. The Arctic Council, the Barents Euro-Arctic Council, and the Northern Forum – three profound forms of governance – are in vogue in addressing the challenges faced by peoples residing in the Arctic. Climate change touches upon almost every issue connected to the wellbeing of the Arctic region. It also affects the primary goals and objectives of these governance systems. Over time, each initiative has developed its own climate policy. This article focuses on the climate policies of three soft-law governance systems and examines their role in addressing climate change in the Arctic.

Public perceptions of who counts as a scientist for controversial science

2019 ◽  
Vol 28 (7) ◽  
pp. 797-811 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brianne Suldovsky ◽  
Asheley Landrum ◽  
Natalie Jomini Stroud
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Media Coverage ◽  
Political Ideology ◽  
Genetically Modified Organisms ◽  
The United States ◽  
Public Perceptions ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Us ◽  
Science Media

In an era where expertise is increasingly critiqued, this study draws from the research on expertise and scientist stereotyping to explore who the public considers to be a scientist in the context of media coverage about climate change and genetically modified organisms. Using survey data from the United States, we find that political ideology and science knowledge affect who the US public believes is a scientist in these domains. Our results suggest important differences in the role of science media attention and science media selection in the publics “scientist” labeling. In addition, we replicate previous work and find that compared to other people who work in science, those with PhDs in Biology and Chemistry are most commonly seen as scientists.

scholarly journals How Does the Arctic Council Support Conservation of Arctic Biodiversity?

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (12) ◽  
pp. 5042
Author(s):  
Tom Barry ◽  
Brynhildur Daviðsdóttir ◽  
Níels Einarsson ◽  
Oran R. Young
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Protection ◽  
Indigenous Communities ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Arctic Council ◽  
National Interests ◽  
Conflicting Demands ◽  
Agent Of Change ◽  
Insight Into

The Arctic Council is an intergovernmental forum promoting cooperation, coordination and interaction among Arctic states, indigenous communities, and peoples on issues of common importance. The rising geo-political importance of the Arctic and the onset of climate change has resulted in the Council becoming a focus of increasing interest from both inside and beyond the Arctic. This has resulted in new demands placed on the Council, attracting an increasing number of participants, and instigating a period of transformation as Arctic states work to find a way to balance conflicting demands to improve the Council’s effectiveness and take care of national interests. This paper considers whether, during this time of change, the Council is having an impact on the issues it was formed to address, i.e., environmental protection and sustainable development. To provide answers, it looks at how the Council reports on and evaluates progress towards the implementation of recommendations it makes regarding biodiversity, how it identifies where activities have had impacts and uncovers the mechanisms through which they were successful, to provide an insight into how the Arctic Council can be an agent of change.

scholarly journals Arktisk råds rolle i polarpolitikken

Nordlit ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Torbjørn Pedersen
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Arctic Ocean ◽  
The United States ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Arctic Council ◽  
The Third ◽  
The Arctic Ocean ◽  
Foreign Policies

This article discusses what role(s) member governments want the Arctic Council to have in Arctic affairs. It compares the foreign policies of the five littoral states of the Arctic Ocean: Canada, Denmark, Norway, Russia, and the United States. It identifies and examines three determining debates on a ministerial level over the Arctic Council and the issues it might address: The first debate preceded the Arctic Council's creation in 1996; the second thrived as the five Arctic littoral states convened in Ilulissat, Greenland in 2008; and the third followed a political shift inthe United States in 2009.

The Role of the Arctic Council from an International Law Perspective: Past, Present and Future

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 349-374 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yoshinobu Takei
Keyword(s):  
International Law ◽  
Essential Role ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Arctic Council ◽  
Treaty Negotiations ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Law Making

Established in 1996, the Arctic Council has played an essential role in promoting pan- Arctic cooperation on various issues concerning the Arctic. Increasingly, its activities have contributed to the development of international law relating to the Arctic in terms of law-making and implementation. Recent developments make it pertinent to investigate the possibilities and challenges faced by the Arctic Council in developing legally binding instruments and otherwise contributing to the development of international law relating to the Arctic. How has the Council been engaged in activities that contribute to the development of international law? What factors have affected these activities? This article describes the structure of the Arctic Council and its status under international law; analyzes important developments relating to this issue in the period before the 2009 Ministerial Meeting held in Tromsø, Norway; examines the processes in which two legally binding instruments were negotiated and eventually adopted as well as elements common to these agreements; and discusses Arctic Council processes relevant to the development of international law other than treaty negotiations under its auspices.

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