Seite - 8 - in options, Band summer 2020

he Arctic has long been seen as one of the Earth’s most remote frontiers. Today however, the region is important in global governance, geopolitics, and the global economy — and it is changing fast. Temperatures have warmed faster than the rest of the planet; sea ice has dramatically declined in summers; and the exploitation of oil and gas, new (sea) trade routes, tourism, and other economic activities are expanding. At the same time, the region, which is claimed by eight states and inhabited by dozens of groups of indigenous people, has the potential for geopolitical stability and constructive cooperation — a precondition for largely international and multidisciplinary Arctic research. IIASA research, conducted as part of the Arctic Futures Initiative (AFI), has brought a new systemic view on the environmental, social, economic, and political picture of today’s Arctic. The project concluded in 2019 and culminated in a scientific report published in February. It provides a holistic analysis of current policies, strategies, and declarations of Arctic and non-Arctic states with interests in the region, as well as documents of indigenous peoples organizations. The report, which was co-funded by IIASA and the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, considers how different Arctic actors define and address issues around the human dimension, governance, international cooperation, environmental protection, pollution, climate change, security, safety, economy, tourism, infrastructure, and science and education. “This report delivers the first systematic and holistic analysis and synthesis of all the existing policies and strategies of the Arctic states and other relevant stakeholders using quantitative and qualitative methods,” says Lassi Heininen, former leader of the AFI project at IIASA and research director at the Institute for Atmospheric and Earth System Research (INAR) at the University of Helsinki. "As the Arctic is facing severe challenges, and the global Arctic has worldwide implications that affect the rest of the globe, it is important to include existing policies and strategies of non-Arctic states and indigenous peoples organizations in the analysis, and based on that recognize new trends.” New and emerging overall trends identified in the report include ambivalence about development in the Arctic, state domination rather than international cooperation, an increasing focus on science, and a heightened focus on the role of the Arctic in information technologies, satellite communication, and security. The project team members and authors of the report say it is striking that the Arctic states clearly identify the economy and economic development, as well as either climate change or environmental protection, as priorities. By outlining these new and emerging trends of Arctic governance and geopolitics, the report will be useful to policymakers and researchers for further discussion in the context of different images and perceptions, and the dominant narratives of the Arctic. Systems analysis informs Arctic policy © Evgeniy Parilov | Dreamstime Jan Marco Müller: muellerj@iiasa.ac.at Further info: www.iiasa.ac.at/news/arctic-20 Reference: Heininen L, Everett K, Padrtova B, & Reissell A (2019). Arctic Policies and Strategies-Analysis, Synthesis, and Trends. IIASA, Laxenburg, Austria. [pure.iiasa.ac.at/16175] Research undertaken by the IIASA Arctic Futures Initiative highlights new and emerging policy trends in the Arctic, a region on the frontlines of climate change, geopolitics, and global governance. 17 Introduction and Methods In the national strategies of the Arctic states, the ‘Arctic’ is de- scribed as being remote, scattered, and having a sparse pop- ulation. Its ecosystem is considered as vulnerable, fragile, or unique. While there is no strict definition of the (Arctic) region, there is broad agreement that if there is a southern border to the region, it is the 60th parallel north. The ‘Arctic States’ today are group of states located in the cir- cumpolar Arctic around the Arctic Ocean. The countries in the far North, whose territories go beyond the Arctic Circle, are: Canada, Finland, Iceland, Kingdom of Denmark (Greenland), Norway, Russian Federation, Sweden, and the United States of America (Alaska) (see Figure 1. The Arctic States, Permanent Participants, Arctic Council Observer States). These states first came together at ministerial level in June 1991 to sign the Arc- tic Environmental Protection Strategy (AEPS 1991). Since then, they have continued their intensive, mainly functional, cooper- ation on environmental protection in the Arctic region, as well as working together for sustainable development of the north- ernmost regions and communities of the globe. (see Figure 1) EQ UA TO R 30° 90° 60° Arctic Member States: Canada, Finland, Iceland, the Kingdom of Denmark (including Greenland and the Faroe Islands), Norway, Russian Federation, Sweden, United States of America. Arctic Council Observer States: France, Germany, Italy, Japan, The Netherlands, People's Republic of China, Poland, Republic of India, Republic of Korea, Republic of Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom. Permanent Participants:Aleut International Association (AIA) – USA, RUS Arctic Athabaskan Council (AAC) – CAN, USA Gwich'in Council International (GCI) – CAN, USA Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) – CAN, Greenland/DNK, RUS, USA Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North (RAIPON) – RUSSaami Council (SC) – FIN, NOR, RUS, SWE Figure 1. Map of the Arctic States, Permanent Participants, and the Arctic Council Observer States Credit: Daniel R. Strebe for the base map (July 17th 2019) and IIASA for all edits. Arctic Policies and Strategies — Analysis, Synthesis, and Trends Lassi Heininen, Karen Everett, Barbora Padrtova, Anni Reissell 8 Options www.iiasa.ac.atSummer 2020 Science into policy By Katherine Leitzell