The Arctic This Week Take Five: Week of March 28, 2022
High North Dialogue 2022: The Final Countdown
Less than one week remains until the start of The High North Dialogue 2022 Conference taking place on April 6 and 7. The conference will be hybrid, taking place both in person in Bodø, Norway and virtually with the support of the Arctic Institute, Nord University, Nordland County Council, Equinor, Lukoil, Innovation Norway, and Stormen. The conference theme this year is “Business in the Arctic – The Great Shifts.” Panels include the issues of green, governance, and ocean technology shifts, among other topics. Registrations for the conference are still open. (High North Dialogue)
Take 1: Going beyond just an exchange between two individuals, dialogue can spread across many people, languages, and spaces. This communication is needed more than ever to find ways to rekindle and continue the much-needed work for a sustainable Arctic. A conference full of excitement over the exchange of ideas and knowledge can provide just the platform from which we can build this sustainable future. From the marine industry to community development, this year’s High North Dialogue Conference is highly relevant- especially in light of the recent growing geopolitical tensions that risk spilling over into the Arctic. Especially now that the Arctic Council has paused all activities with Russia, the High North Dialogue Conference provides an important opportunity for researchers, policymakers and others to come together and think of new ways to collaborate- even while missing half of the Arctic. Only a few days are left until the launch of the conference, but it’s not too late to register. See you there!
Bikini Season at the Poles: Record Breaking Temperatures Now The Norm?
As reported by Arctic Today on March 25, record-breaking heat waves have hit the Poles: both the Antarctic and Arctic. Respectively, temperatures have reached 47 degrees and 30 degrees Celsius above the season-normal. (Arctic Today)
Take 2: The correlation of these heat waves between the two poles remains under evaluation. While the full scale of climate change’s role in this extreme event is still being discussed, it is making polar heat waves like this much more common and severe. The Arctic is warming three times as fast as other regions of the world, a change severely impacting both the land and its ecosystems. In turn, it hinders the possibility of safe and sustainable life in the High North and the Arctic. Melting permafrost and fragmented wildlife populations are impacting both livelihood opportunities and infrastructure: not only are the costs of construction exorbitantly high, but the new environmental conditions also make existing infrastructure at risk of collapsing. These worsening living conditions exemplify this double-burden: not only are economically fragile local communities in the Arctic not the main drivers of pollution and climate change, but they are facing some of the most severe impacts of climate change. Once forced to leave because of a lack of job opportunities, now communities might be forced to relocate because of the struggles of adapting to unstable environmental conditions. (Arctic Council, Reuters)
Truth, Justice and Healing: The Vatican Facing its Responsibilities?
As reported by North Shore News on March 28, Métis and Inuit delegates are meeting with Pope Francis to discuss the need for an official apology from the Catholic Church over its colonial involvement. The apology comes in the context of the discoveries of unmarked mass graves at Canadian residential schools managed by the Church’s officials. (North Shore News, Nunatsiaq News)
Take 3: Residential schools have perpetuated some of the worst human rights abuses in Canada. From infanticide to sexual abuse, generations of Indigenous peoples have been marked by these traumatic experiences. More than 20 years after the closure of the last residential school, intergenerational trauma is still severely impacting community and family dynamics – fueling problems from substance abuse, to mental health issues. In Nunavut for example, multiple mental health commissions, associations and organizations are now targeting intergenerational reconciliation in an effort to help address the region’s youth suicide epidemic. The journey Inuit and Métis delegates have taken to demand apologies from the Catholic Church is one of these steps towards ‘truth, justice and healing’. However, the Pope has still to issue an official apology. The fact that Inuit and Métis delegates have had to travel so far to demand an apology is also puzzling. Once again, the responsibility for healing and demanding justice lies on the shoulders of the victims, while the perpetrators are still free. To this day, Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami president Natan Obed has called for French priest Reverend Johannes Rivoire to serve his sentence for assaulting Inuit children in the 1960s. He now resides freely in France. This is just one of the many human rights abuses in which the Catholic Church has played a role and for which apologies are needed for a “new relationship” to begin. (Embrace Life Council, Nunatsiaq News)
Greenland, Minerals and the Green Revolution: A ‘Secure Western Jurisdiction’
As reported by Global Mining Review on March 28, Bluejay Mining and KoBold Metals have announced the start of mining explorations in Disko-Nuussuaq in Greenland. With the two two companies partially funded by Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates, the goal of the joint venture will be to deliver key materials for the production of electric vehicles. (Arctic Today, Global Mining Review, High North News)
Take 4: Commenting on the exploration project, the CEO of Bluejay Mining announced that they “hope to bring the world’s attention to the significant potential that Disko [-Nuussuaq] has… as a significant global supplier of many of the key metals required for the Green Energy Transition, from a secure western jurisdiction.” The use of the term ‘secure western jurisdiction’ hints strongly at the ongoing insecurity and unstable territory Russian Arctic mining and drilling projects now find themselves in. With western companies deciding to leave Russian territory and drop their ongoing investments, and with sanctions rolling in by the day, Greenland will become a very attractive destination for mining- even more so than it already is. The Green Revolution depends on the key minerals that Greenland is rich in. At the same time, Greenland is also on its way towards independence from Denmark. Achieving this goal requires economic independence, an ambition which a flourishing mining industry certainly serves well. The mining project shows how geopolitical tensions outside of the Arctic have direct repercussions on the region’s economy, but with the situation changing rapidly, the full extent of this will only become clear with time. (Aljazeera, CBC, Reuters)
Keep Cold and Carry On: the UK in the Arctic
As reported by The National Post on March 29, the British government is seeking to increase its military presence in the Arctic. The decision comes after increasing security concerns among NATO members about potential Russian aggression in Northern seas and oceans, such as the North Atlantic. (National Post)
Take 5: The United Kingdom is not part of the Arctic and yet, increasingly present in Arctic affairs. From world renowned research centers to questions of security and diplomacy, the British government is evidently keen on maintaining its Arctic presence. Indeed, the political and economic sanctions by the government in reaction to the recent conflict in Ukraine could also be interpreted as a move for this country to place itself on the geopolitical chessboard of Arctic politics and development. Increasing military presence and reinforcing collaboration with circumpolar NATO members is also a way to ‘matter,’ to position itself as a useful and key partner. With the UK attempting to reinstate itself as a key Western power after the Brexit debacle of Brexit, the Arctic serves as a useful platform for both these hard and soft security aims. For instance, the University of Cambridge Scott Polar Research Institute serves as an international and circumpolar magnet for scientific research and exchange. As the situation develops in Ukraine, and as Russia’s relationship vis-à-vis the West changes in the coming months and years, it will be interesting to see how the British government will continue its moves on the Arctic geopolitical chessboard. After all, whether Russia is excluded from the Arctic Council or not, it remains a key geographical part of the Arctic; how the UK positions its relations with Russia will influence its policies regarding Arctic security, economy, and science in the future. (British Antarctic Survey, High North News, University of Cambridge)