wtR4VOdqbL

research by the influential Davos business forum: What is needed in the Arctic?1 This publication aims to teach the interested person, or rather: the important politician and northern decision-maker, what misunderstandings they need to rid themselves from, and with what political goals in mind the future of the Arctic should be governed. It lists some common misunderstandings about the Arctic

and announces remedies to those, not least by telling the universities what prioriЭТОЬ ЭСОв ЬСШЮХН СКЯО ТЧ ЭСОТr ЧШrЭСОrЧ аШrФ. TСО ШНН СОКНТЧРЬ ШП ЭСО ХОКПХОЭ’Ь

brief chapters are:

1.The Arctic needs protection from environmental damage, resolution on certain global agreements, and new collaborative models to secure sustainable growth.

2.The Arctic needs investment.

3.The Arctic needs measures to better ensure human and environmental safety in the face of increased shipping and offshore activity.

4.The Arctic needs science.

Its executive recommendations overlook all of social sciences and fail to notice that the interpretation and management of most of the matters dealt with in the brochure has since long crucially involved expertise outside business and science such as in macroeconomics, international law, political science, social work, and in the military sector. The issues lumped together in chapter one and three are clearly the outcome of contextual, path-dependent processes and the ways they have been handled nationally and regionally, which in turn depends on the geopolitical outlooks and priorities of those who have been involved in them over time. In contrast the simplistic recommendations of the brief and

catchy second and fourth chapter are only pointing to the need for more invest-

ЦОЧЭЬ КЧН ЧКЭЮrКХ ЬМТОЧМО ТЧ ЭСО ArМЭТМ. TСО pКЦpСХОЭ’Ь СТРСХТРСЭТЧР ШП prТЯКЭО investments and natural science is just an opinionated selection of priorities for the high north stemming from the neoliberal economic outlooks of the World Economic Forums and the individual inclination of the councillors and more or less anonymous writers who happened to be the ones behind this publication.

No individual, organisation or policy-maker is immune to analytical fads,

intellectual conformism, fashions in opinions, bias and the influences of self-

ТЧЭОrОЬЭ, ЧОТЭСОr ЭСО ЮЧТЯОrЬТЭТОЬ’ РШЯОrЧТЧР ЛШНТОЬ ЧШr ЭСО ЯКrТШЮЬ ЧКЭТШЧКХ Шr Тn- ternational research funding councils. The example of the above mentioned publication demonstrates among other that multidisciplinarity sits tight and that socioeconomic research is not given the credit it deserves in its on-going research and educational work on the Arctic. The dominant idea in the public understanding of northern matters, and among the governors of state funding to subarctic and polar research and education, is that the high north is a world which should be managed based on the expert advice of natural scientists. Nevertheless three out of the five major myth about the Arctic that are listed further on in the World

1 World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council, Demystifying the Arctic (Geneva, 2014).

211

EМШЧШЦТМ FШrЮЦ pКЦpСХОЭ ШЧ ЭСО ArМЭТМ, ЬЮМС КЬ ЭСО ПТrЬЭ ШЧО “TСО ArМЭТМ ТЬ КЧ ЮЧТЧСКЛТЭОН, ЮЧМХКТЦОН ПrШЧЭТОr аТЭС ЧШ rОРЮХКЭТШЧ Шr РШЯОrЧКЧМО”1 has been

demonstrated wrong, and was never believed true, in socio-political research. Yes, we need to sort out misconceptions and misunderstandings of the Arctic and focus the real issues but more than science and business is needed, and used already, to do that.

There is use for natural science in delimiting the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZ) of the arctic costal states towards the abyssal depths of the Arctic Ocean because bathymetrical criteria have been accepted by the signatory nations of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) for establishing that particular question, but there is no scientific fix to the larger issue of drawing the main parts of the lines of demarcation of the EEZs namely those between the neighbouring states over the continental shelves. These are instead matters of negotiation to be solved among the states involved based on several other border-settling-principles of international law and tradition2.

Thanks to the emphasis on natural science in polar research we today know a lot about its climate and the ice-conditions to be expected in different arctic seas throughout the seasons, and we have all heard of the probability for this to alter in the future. In the policy-making on northern shipping the need to put in large resources for setting up a proper search and rescue organisation along newly opened sea-links in the Arctic is consequently well understood already. Environmental research is prioritised in the north and attracts major research funding for analysing why we need to avoid oil spills at sea and in the sea-ice of the Arctic. More science monitoring is needed in the future to get extended time-series of weather data to enable even more confident forecasting on

climate change. But less often is mentioned the fact that to handle resulting mat-

ЭОrЬ ХТФО О.Р. НОМrОКЬТЧР pОrЦКПrШЬЭ, ЧОа “МШХН ЭОМСЧШХШРв” ЦЮЬЭ ЛО ЬpОМТКХХв developed and tested on location in the Arctic as history knows few simple cases of transfer of new technology (such as aviation) from the south into the high north – its lack of infrastructure, sparse population and many unique physical conditions have proved consistent challenges to southern technological entrepreneurship3.

1 World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council, Demystifying the Arctic (Geneva, 2014), 15.

2SОО ПШr ОбКЦpХО: UNCLOS CШЦЦТЬЬТШЧ ШЧ ЭСО LТЦТЭЬ ШП ЭСО CШЧЭТЧОЧЭКХ SСОХП, “SЮЦЦКrв of the recommendations of the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf in regard

to the submission made by Norway in respect of areas in the Arctic Ocean, the Barents Sea

КЧН ЭСО NШrаОРТКЧ SОК ШЧ 27ЭС NШЯОЦЛОr 2006”, 27ЭС MКrМС, 2009, p. 2.

3Pete Capelotti, By Airship to the North Pole: An Archaeology of Human Experience (New

Brunswick, 1999); David Burke, Moments of Terror: The Story of Antarctic Aviation (Ken-

ЬТЧРЭШЧ, 1994); HОЧrТФ SОРОrМrКЧЭг, “IМОЛrОКФОrЬ: TСОТr HТЬЭШrТМКХ КЧН TОМСЧТМКХ DОЯОХШp- ment”, Interdisciplinary Science Reviews 14 (1989), pp. 77–85; AХПrОН S. MМLКrОЧ, “TСО

EЯШХЮЭТШЧ ШП ЭСО ArМЭТМ SЮЛЦКrТЧО”, Journal of Navigation 37 (1984), pp. 380–397.

212

Ethnography and anthropology are the most developed disciplines of arctic social science. From the 18th century on polar exploration has incorporated an interest to study the native peoples of the north inside its mainly geopolitical, economic and scientific agendas. In recent years a post-colonial transformation of the patronising research agendas of colonial ethnography has been too rashly declared accomplished; this issue has proved unexpectedly complex to deal with as it is entangled with basic epistemological conditions of Western research. On the other hand the scholarly discussion regarding post-colonialism has helped in developing our understanding of many arctic issues including those of the proper conduct of field science1.

One recent example within northern research illustrating both the pitfalls of lingering colonial attitudes and naïve belief in science as a model for social analysis is the attempt to transfer to scholarship the scientific concept of resilience. In natural science resilience refers to the ability of an ecological system to withstand or accommodate change without major destruction. The reason to bor-

row it into social science, like many other scientific concept before it, by the МШЧМОpЭ “ЬШМТКХ rОЬТХТОЧМО” ТЬ pКrЭ ШП ЬШ-called positivism – an old and ongoing

trend to attempt to raise the political standing of social science and the humanities by emulating science so as to make scholarship (appear) more advanced, quantitative and objective. After a period of initial enthusiasm feedback from humans framed by the concept, and from epistemological research, have proved it laden with the old colonial idea that northern minorities, typically indigenous populations, need to be somehow conserved and protected from social change, failing to observe that any human individuals and societies possess the right to change and to develop upon whatever lifestyle they have2. The idea of social resilience derived from the way science discuss populations of animals and illustrates that attaining post-colonialism in scholarship is an ongoing challenge. Social resilience is a dubious concept also because all northerners, like all humans

in the world today, are inside the same global economy. In northern Scandinavia

КЧН NА RЮЬЬТК SКЦТ ТЧНТРОЧШЮЬ pОШpХО’Ь ХОКНОrЬ ХТФО AТХТ KОЬФТЭКХШ, ЭСО prОЬi- НОЧЭ ШП ЭСО NШrаОРТКЧ SКЦТ PКrХТКЦОЧЭ ЬЭКЭОЬ: “TСОrО КrО ЧШ, КЧН ЭСОrО never аОrО КЧв pХКЧЬ аСКЭЬШОЯОr ПШr К ЬОpКrКЭО SКЦТ ЬЭКЭО”3.

Academic research has by now provided a fair amount of knowledge on the need and alternatives for northern industry to show environmental and social responsibility. State institutions can and have already developed regulation in

1UrЛКЧ АrфФЛОrР КЧН KКrТЧ GrКЧqЯТЬЭ, “DОМШХШЧТгТЧР TОМСЧШЬМТОЧМО ТЧ NШrЭСОrЧ SМКЧНi-

navia: The Role of Scholarship in Sámi Emancipation and the Indigenization of Western

SМТОЧМО”, Journal of Historical Geography [in press] 2014.

2Melissa Leach (ed.), Reframing Resilience: A Symposium Report, STEPS Working Paper 13 (Brighton, 2008); John N. Parker and Edward J. HКМФОЭЭ, “HШЭ SpШЭЬ КЧН HШЭ MШЦОЧЭЬ

ТЧ SМТОЧЭТПТМ CШХХКЛШrКЭТШЧЬ КЧН SШМТКХ MШЯОЦОЧЭЬ”, American Sociological Review 77

(2012), pp. 21–44.

3 AТХТ KОЬФТЭКХШ, “FrвФЭОЧ ПШr ЬКЦОЧО”, Sør-Varanger Avis 22nd February 2014, p. 9.

213

line with this advice and state agencies exercise environmental control and issue permits for mining and other raw-material industry to operate in most nations. In many nations industry certification and the adoption of international standards have proved equally or more efficient. Either one or both systems are engaging

most major industrial enterprises in the Arctic1. When and where environmental

КЧН ЬШМТКХ rОЬpШЧЬТЛТХТЭв НШОЬЧ’Э аШrФ ЭСО prШЛХОЦ ТЬ ЧШЭ ЮЧТЯОrЬКХ Шr ЬШЦОЭСТЧР inherent in raw material and fuel producing industry but a local or national problem, like those of the oil industry of the Niger delta in Africa – such devastating environmental and social problems as those of that industry must to be addressed on-site, in the context where they occur, and not be generalised and projected on the Arctic where in most places state regulation and monitoring, and the industry itself have proved able to function commercially and environmentally reasonably well unless of course your vision of the north is that of a vast nature reserve.

Some seldom discussed issues of the Arctic

There are several other, less well-researched and seldom discussed con-

temporary issues or myths about the Subarctic and Arctic beside those presented

ТЧ ЭСО АШrХН EМШЧШЦТМ FШrЮЦ’Ь prОЯТШЮЬХв ЦОЧЭТШЧОН pЮЛХТМКЭТШЧ. MШЬЭ ШП these need to be viewed in a multidisciplinary scope in order to be properly understood.

For one: are the compromises and recommendations of the Arctic Council (AC) the best solution to most arctic problems? This is in effect a widely held belief among policy-makers, journalists and academics in several countries. But there are some rather obvious drawbacks of the AC. At its decisive core it consists in the closed group of the Arctic Rim States with an additional representation of northern indigenous peoples. But there are of course other humans living and/or working in the high north who are not represented in the AC and therefore their interests are less likely to be addressed. Some major countries, which are, and may become no more than observers in the AC can only monitor their interests by making comments on decisions made by others while geo-economi- cally they have a lot of potential to contribute to the major investments that the Arctic seems to need. The status of the observers to the AC is unclear, admittance is slow and sometimes the topic for prolonged dispute within the council.

The AC is not very transparent to the media and thus to the general public. It has a strong environmental focus. The dilemma of the relationship between multilateral governance and the principles of national sovereignty remains pressing in much of its doings. Serious consideration should be given to the apparent-

1Thomas Thurner and LТХТКЧК N. PrШЬФЮrвКФШЯК, “OЮЭ ШП ЭСО CШХН – the Rising Importance

of Environmental Management in the Corporate Governance of Russian Oil and Gas Pro-

НЮМОrЬ”, Business Strategy and the Environment (2013) DOI: 10.1002/bse.1787; Nigel

BКЧФОЬ, “OТХ КЧН GКЬ КЧН MТЧТЧР DОЯОХШpЦОЧЭ ТЧ ЭСО ArМЭТМ: LОРКХ IЬЬЮОЬ”, in: Natalia

Loukacheva (ed.), Polar Law Textbook, vol. 1, Tema Nord 538 (Copenhagen, 2010), pp. 101–124.

214

ly taken for granted idea that technocratic coordination is always the right way forward in facing northern challenges. The approach of allowing different groups and organisation to follow alternative routes, under a more general international or national framework of law, in their attempts at living in and develop-

ing the Arctic, to compare the economic and environmental results of the various approaches later, is not in line with the AC system ШП ОЬЭКЛХТЬСТЧР “ЛОЬЭ prКМЭТМОЬ” ПШr ЦШЬЭ ЭСТЧРЬ Лв КppШТЧЭТЧР КЧ ОбpОrЭ pКЧОХ КЧН аКТЭ ПШr ТЭЬ rОМШm-

mendation. The regional development perspective is having a weak position at the AC, thus the delay to find proper representation in it of a relevant northern organisation like the multilateral, economic growth-oriented Barents Euroarctic Council.

Based on simplistic application of socioeconomic stage-theory many observers have put forward the idea that we are now since a couple of decades witnessing a shift in all advanced industrial nations from mass-production of standardised goods to an apparently different, knowledge-based Postfordist society where the economy is characterised by a growing importance of the service industry and of small-scale flexible production. The coming of this postindustrial society draws on the idea of the necessity of so-called Neo-Schumpeterian dramatic shifts in the world economy. The raw material industry, which is typical

of the resource-rich and sparsely populated circumpolar north, is often dismissed in this socio-ОМШЧШЦТМ ЬМОЧКrТШ КЬ К ХОЬЬ КНЯКЧМОН ЛrКЧМС ШП “СОКЯв” ОЧРТЧООr-

ing, a kind of aging industry that will become a thing of the past, or at least it will play a marginal role in a future based on white-collar work in IT, in nanotechnology and in the expanding service and entertainment industries. But the shift to short series of specific models and designs in e.g. car-making has arguably been running in parallel with continued fine-tuned mass production; some trends towards short and custom made production may have to do with increasing demand for luxury and exclusivity that could be explained by the growing income inequality over the same last decades in many countries. Massproduction in the original version of Fordism was of course conceived as a rationalised technology to cut prices and enable the common customer to buy a quite advanced but not exclusive product to an affordable price. The new branches of expertise and business in the serviceand knowledge-society will certainly develop further and be important in the future, but in the modern economy all successful industry changes by adjusting to shifts in the preferences of its customers, by technological innovation and by step-wise improved productivity.

To manage productive, competitive and environmentally friendly mining and fuel extracting industry in the high north is a very complex undertaking. Running a productive, non-wasteful and safe mine draws on cutting edge technoscience, advanced training of all involved and expert skills of many kinds. Raw material industry is made even more sophisticated by the large scale it often needs to have in order to be competitive. Thus its success also depends on the ability of its owners to raise major capital for its investments. The most ad-

215

vanced industry anywhere on the planet considering all this is found in the demanding setting of arctic off-shore hydrocarbon extraction.

In a sound global economy the demand for products and services would not be falling but rising. The living standard of a growing world population are dependent on increasing tonnages of basic products like iron, stainless steel, including its alloys nickel and chrome, and copper for the continued electrification of society. None of these items, like any chemical and most material substances for input in further production in modern industry, are delivered with variable composition and in an undefined physical state. They are produced with precision according to rigid specifications on a host of sophisticated parameters. These circumstances are oddly absent in the public understanding of raw material industry. This industry provides the world with so-called rare earth elements which are crucial to advanced electro-technical industry and produced not least at metallurgical plants on the Russian Kola Peninsula and at some plants in Scandinavia1. More research in so-called Science and Technology Studies and industrial economy is motivated to give a better basis for the teaching at the northern university on the contemporary challenges of large-scale and raw material industry in the high north.

The global issues of the Arctic

Following forecasts of dwindling amounts of sea ice in the Arctic Ocean during the summers half of the year there has been considerable alarmist speculation in an imminent global scramble for the natural resources of the Arctic. This has so far been overblown in terms of geopolitics but this line of thinking is correct in the way it relates the economic value of the high north to the global economy and its demand for goods and transport. World economic trends need to be monitored and interpreted in terms of their northern ramifications in all strategic decision-making on the Arctic.

In the wake of the world financial crisis of 2008 there is one important trend worth noticing and that is the slowing phase of economic globalisation. Although a recovery in the international movement of capital has been recorded it is still nowhere near its pre-2008 levels. Despite their memberships in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) most major and many smaller countries are applying various policies that officially aim to further e.g. global climate goals, domestic employment, domestic technological modernisation or the national

need to secure access to critical resources, while in effect all such measures

ЦОКЧЬ ПКЯШЮrТЧР ЭСО pКrЭТМЮХКr ЧКЭТШЧ’Ь НШЦОЬЭТМ ТЧНЮЬЭrв. TСТЬ ФТЧН ШП prШЭОc- tionist policy by other means in many countries is regarded to have a considerable restraining effect on globalisation by its damping of movements across na-

1OЧ ЭСО ТЦpШrЭКЧМО КЧН ПЮЭЮrО pШЭОЧЭТКХ ШП EЮrШКrМЭТМ ЦТЧТЧР ЬОО: PКЬТ EТХЮ, “MОЭКХХТМ MТn- eral ResШЮrМОЬ ШП FОЧЧШЬМКЧНТК”, ТЧ: KОТУШ NОЧШЧОЧ КЧН PОФФК A. NЮrЦТ (ОНЬ.), Geosci-

ence for Society 125th Anniversary Volume, Geological Survey of Finland Special Paper 49 (Espoo, 2011), pp. 13–21.

216

tional borders of capital, labour and goods. It is characteristic of the expanding economies of the BRICS countries: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa1.

Among the so-called petrostates we find important state-owned or statedominated mega hydrocarbon companies which follow a politically more sophisticated long-term strategy than just the neoliberal principle of maximum profit making. This phenomenon is not limited to the major energy exporting economies, not either to the major manufacturing economies, also the large importers of energy and goods are applying policies that in practice restrict the cross-border movements of capital and products, and these policies are regarded favourably by most voters in the democratic countries involved2.

This development has been seen as part of current anti-globalisation trends and criticised as a dangerous hidden revival of protectionism, but this political practise seems here to stay. It has great impact on arctic affairs. Public opinion and politicians in many countries like e.g. Russia distrust of foreign direct investments; legislation has been put in place against foreign ownership of property and of concessions for raw material extraction. In several of the LatinAmerican countries experiences of aggressive hedge funds and international speculations against their currencies have fostered creative national policymaking around WTO rules to guard against future exchange turmoil.

Much of this seems only rational and just. But some of the ideology and outlooks behind it are worthy of scrutiny and criticism; protectionism has a murky past characterised by technocracy, state centralism, labour unfriendly state-industry corporatism, failed economic policy based on doctrines of import substitution, too general ideas that any developing nation accepting foreign ownership of domestic industry will be robbed of its natural wealth. Here it seems relevant to jump in the scale of reasoning and extrapolate the mechanism of poverty from the individual to the nation by asking whether poverty is not more often the result of not having and offering anything valuable for sale, and thus staying in limbo as an unattractive business partner, than the result of being tricked in business deals? But in the old distrustful doctrines of geopolitical Realism all of geo-economics and international trade is seen as war by other means. Based on this xenophobic but still influential outlook a transparent winwin deal is seldom at hand in business negotiations, nor has anyone but a fool ever offered such a thing at the diplomatic table.

Recent developments in Crimea and the perils of an economically destabilised Ukraine are currently acted out in ongoing politics and not possible to evaluate in detail, but any events with ramifications on global affairs of the

1The Economist 12th October 2013, Special Report: World Economy. In particular the arti-

МХОЬ: “TСО GКЭОН GХШЛО”, “TСО HТЬЭШrв ШП GХШЛКХТЬКЭТШЧ: RКТХrШКНЬ КЧН HОРОЦШЧЬ”, “Fi- ЧКЧМТКХ FrКРЦОЧЭКЭТШЧ: TШШ MЮМС ШП К GШШН TСТЧР”, “CКpТЭКХ: JЮЬЭ ТЧ CКЬО” КЧН “PrШЭОc-

ЭТШЧТЬЦ: TСО HТННОЧ PОrЬЮКНОrЬ”.

2RКаТ AЛНОХКХ, “TСО PrШПТЭЬ ШП PШаОr: CШЦЦОrМО КЧН RОКХpШХТЭТФ ТЧ EЮrКЬТК”, Review of International Political Economy 20 (2013), pp. 421–456.

217

magnitude of that crisis deserves full attention and has potential to impact the Arctic. One unfortunate linkage between these parts of the world is the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). Russian foreign and security politics has since long regarded it as a threat. A rise in its doings in the Subarctic or Arctic has been anathema to Russian northern policy-making, so if this will be part of, or follow from, increased activity of the NATO for other reasons then there is cause for pessimism, a pessimism that should be countered by persistent dialogue and well-informed policy-making, most importantly among all the Arctic Rim Countries1.

Conclusions

Social science is often too compartmentalised when applied in the Arctic, and it lacks priority in the strategic agendas of universities claiming expertise on northern issues. Nevertheless such research has already provided northern poli- cy-making with several useful observations and ideas:

•Cold War Realistic geopolitics have been modified by geo-economic outlooks

•Policy-making on the Barents Euroarctic Region has been provided with several modernism and new ideas on the de-securitisation of many issues developed in post-Cold War critical geopolitics. This and other academic communities have evaluated and advised on various ways to liberalise, from the top down, regional policies facilitating local cross-border partnerships in the public sector, in people-to-people contacts and in business furthering northern development and life-quality

•Partnership models like: the industry cluster, special economic zones, and so-called twin town cross-border collaboration have been elaborated on in

several research disciplines, and taken up in foreign policy and applied regionally2.

There was some consternation in Norway in 2012 when its oil and gas major Statoil left the Gazprom-Total-Statoil, Russian-French-Norwegian business consortium formed in 2008 to develop the Shtokman mega-deposit of natural gas and hydrocarbon condensate in the Barents Sea. Given that internal processes and information on this business undertaking remain secret the evaluation of what is to be expected in the future calls for a scope of investigation that is profoundly multidisciplinary. Along with falling gas prices in the wake of the financial crisis of 2008 and the coming of shale gas as an important unconventional source of energy, especially in North America, there are also factors like

1RШЛ HЮОЛОrЭ, “HШа RЮЬЬТК’Ь MШЯО ТЧЭШ CrТЦОК UpОЧНОН CКЧКНК’Ь ArМЭТМ SЭrКЭОРв”, The Globe and Mail 2nd April 2014; HОХРК HКПЭОЧНШrЧ, “NATO КЧН ЭСО ArМЭТМ: IЬ ЭСО AЭХКЧЭТМ

Alliance a Cold War Relic in a Peaceful Region Now Faced with Non-Military Challeng- ОЬ?”, European Security 20 (2011), pp. 337–361.

2AЧЬЬТ PККЬТ, “TСО RОЬЮrРОЧМО ШП ЭСО ‘RОРТШЧ’ КЧН ‘RОРТШЧКХ IНОЧЭТЭв’: TСОШrОЭТМКХ PОrЬpОc- ЭТЯОЬ КЧН EЦpТrТМКХ OЛЬОrЯКЭТШЧЬ ШЧ RОРТШЧКХ DвЧКЦТМЬ ТЧ EЮrШpО”, Review of International Studies 35 (2009), pp. 121–146.

218

the opportunity to negotiate tax-cuts with the Russian state to look into for anyone interested to understand what turned priorities in Russia towards its on-land hydrocarbon resources on the Yamal Peninsula now developed by Gazprom, Novatek and Total.

Other interesting issues of the arctic fuel economy refers to the development of the known and potential finds of hydrocarbons below the seabed of the Norwegian EEZ in the Barents Sea after the settling in 2010 of its demarcationline with Russia. In forecasting on this, and especially if comparing with the large deposits known on the Russian side of that continental shelf , one may easily underestimate the benefit to industry of the fine-tuned and internationally open business approach of the Norwegian State, despite its relatively high level of taxation on off-shore enterprise. The transparency and predictability of its supervising and regulatory system are crucial to motivate the large investments needed and already begun in the Norwegian Barents Sea. Running a national regime on the bidding for concessions and on the regulation and monitoring of industry operations that is prone to change, and/or is difficult to analyse and manage for foreign firms, might be feasible in countries with rich or unique natural assets, but the extra costs of unpredictability may tip the balance away from a go-ahead when it comes to the major investments and the cutting edge technology needed in arctic off-shore. Both the know-how and the ability to raise capital on the scale needed are held uniquely by international mega oil and gas companies and their expert subcontractors.

Contrary to established neoliberal economic politics in contemporary Scandinavia, and given its abhorrence for state enterprise, there is probably a lot to learn in Scandinavia from the Russian way of developing its northern industry on the Yamal Peninsula and in Yakutia – the Russian Sakha Republic. In these vast regions large private and public investments are pooled to cover the huge infrastructural costs of accessing remote natural resources1. Given the differences in geographic scale between subarctic Scandinavia and Yakutia these Russian state-private investment programmes, partly based on Asian capital, nevertheless demonstrate the need for strategic state initiatives and mergers with private investors to move ahead in a manner all but taboo in contemporary Scandinavia. The brokers of the large Norwegian State retirement funds, the so-called oil funds, were recently mildly criticised for investing some of their funds into

opening new coal mines in Australia, thereby facilitating the Australian coal

МШЦpКЧв’Ь МШЦpОЭТЭТШЧ аТЭС NШrаОРТКЧ prШНЮМОrЬ ШП ЧКЭЮrКХ РКЬ – a fuel that emits much less carbon dioxide to the atmosphere than coal per energy unit produced. The same Norwegian oil funds are likewise not instructed to invest anything into e.g. railway construction in the north of the Fennoscandia Peninsula

1AХОбКЧНrК CСЮЯКrКвКЧ, “Public Private Partnership as an Instrument of Economic Regional Development: The Example of the Hydropower Sector”, ТЧ: UrЛКЧ АrфФЛОrР (ОН.), Futures of Northern Cross-Border Collaboration (Tromsø, 2013), pp. 93–107.

219

something which would strategically improve the competitiveness and economic growth of all the north Scandinavian nations1.

Joint or synchronised private-public investments may have potential as a macroeconomic tool in times of recession and provide synergy and integration in the whole of the Barents Euroarctic Region. The need for educated professionals in an expanding number of functions in the north is seen by the leaders of all northern universities. Opening for research approaches that may continue to contribute ideas for debate and possible uptake in future policy-making needs to be strategically facilitated by opening lee-way for a wider scope of research which can provide alternative routes for developing the life-quality and sustainable economic growth in the high north while simultaneously contributing wealth to the global economy.

Literature

1.AЛНОХКХ, RКаТ, “TСО PrШПТЭЬ ШП PШаОr: CШЦЦОrМО КЧН RОКХpШХТЭТФ ТЧ EЮrКЬТК”, Re- view of International Political Economy 20 (2013), pp. 421–456.

2.BКЧФОЬ, NТРОХ, “OТХ КЧН GКЬ КЧН MТЧТЧР DОЯОХШpЦОЧЭ ТЧ ЭСО ArМЭТМ: LОРКХ IЬЬЮОЬ”,

in: Natalia Loukacheva (ed.), Polar Law Textbook, vol. 1, Tema Nord 538 (Copenhagen: Norden, 2010), pp. 101–124.

3.Burke, David, Moments of Terror: The Story of Antarctic Aviation (Kensington: New South Wales University Press, 1994).

4.Capelotti, Pete, By Airship to the North Pole: An Archaeology of Human Experience (New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 1999).

5.CСЮЯКrКвКЧ, AХОбКЧНrК, “Public Private Partnership as an Instrument of Economic Regional Development: The Example of the Hydropower Sector”, ТЧ: UrЛКЧ

Wråkberg (ed.), Futures of Northern Cross-Border Collaboration (Tromsø: Tromsø University Munin Open Research Archive, 2013), pp. 93–107.

6.EТХЮ, PКЬТ, “MОЭКХХТМ MТЧОrКХ RОЬШЮrМОЬ ШП FОЧЧШЬМКЧНТК”, ТЧ: KОТУШ NОЧШЧОЧ КЧН

Pekka A. Nurmi (eds.), Geoscience for Society 125th Anniversary Volume, Geolog-

ical Survey of Finland Special Paper 49 (Espoo: Geological Survey of Finland, 2011), pp. 13–21.

7.Gahr Støre, Jonas, Marianne Marthinsen and Torstein Tvedt Solberg, Representantforslag fra stortingsrepresentantene Jonas Gahr Støre, Marianne Marthinsen og

Torstein Tvedt Solberg om å utrede Statens pensjonsfond utlands investeringer i kullselskaper, Dokument 8:16 S (2013–2014), 19. December 2013.

1Representantforslag fra stortingsrepresentantene Jonas Gahr Støre, Marianne Marthinsen

og Torstein Tvedt Solberg om å utrede Statens pensjonsfond utlands investeringer i kullselskaper, Dokument 8:16 S (2013–2014), 19th December 2013 [Motion of the Norwe-

gian Social Democratic Party, Parliamentary Papers of the Norwegian Storting]; Morten RЮЮН КЧН TШrТХХ UЬЭКН SЭКЯ, “VТХХ frakte gull til norskekysten: Finland ønsker at Norge skal bruke av oljefondet for å bygge ut jernbane fra Nordvest-FТЧХКЧН ЭТХ ЧШrЬФОФвЬЭОЧ”, NRK Nordnytt 19th May 2011, http://www.nrk.no/nordnytt/1.7640281.

220