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Navigating the North: Perspectives on sustainable development in the Arctic

The workshop aims at gathering practitioners, policy makers and scholars of all disciplines and all career stages to discuss how global cooperation and international law can ensure sustainable development in the Arctic region. 

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Photo: Privat

About the workshop

The Arctic region has undergone rapid changes with far-reaching and profound consequences on many areas. One key driver for this is climate change, but others include technology development (e.g. deep-sea mining), migration, tourism, demographic changes, and changes in the geopolitical situation. In addition, this region is experiencing a rush for resources including for critical minerals.

The interest in critical minerals has been accompanied by extensive norms production at the national and international level. Access to the Arctic Ocean is also changing rapidly with potential new access and longer seasons of navigation. In this context where conditions are rapidly changing, one main concern is how global cooperation, and international law can ensure sustainable development in the Arctic region. The workshop aims at discussing various approaches and perspectives to sustainable development interrogating the various interrelated aspects of ‘sustainability’ in the Arctic. General themes to be explored include:

  • The roles, rights and influences of the various actors of the Artic on sustainable development;
  • Regime interactions: interaction between international, regional and domestic legal regimes regarding sustainability in the Arctic;
  • International economic law and sustainable development in the Arctic;
  • Challenges and opportunities pertaining to a human rights approach to sustainability in the Arctic region;
  • Sustainable Arctic Ocean governance;
  • Environmental protection in the Arctic region (including for example, climate change, protection of biological biodiversity, sustainable management of natural resources);
  • Indigenous and critical perspectives (including for example, degrowth, postcolonial critique) to sustainable development in the Arctic region.

We particularly welcome innovative, critical, theoretical, empirical, and interdisciplinary approaches relevant to the overarching theme. Practitioners, policy makers and scholars of all disciplines and all career stages are welcome to apply.

Call for papers

Submission Procedure

Programme

Practical details

The workshop will take place on 28-29 August 2025 at the University of Inland Norway (Lillehammer, Norway) and will be held in English. Participants are expected to cover their accommodation and travel expenses by their own means. Online participation will also be considered. A special issue in a journal with a selection of papers is considered.

Contact information

For questions, please contact:

Picture of Laura Létourneau-Tremblay
Associate Professor
Email
laura.letourneautremblay@inn.no
Phone
+47 62 51 72 09
Portrett Charles Codère

Charles Codère, 
Postdoctoral Researcher, 
charles.codere.1@ulaval.ca

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Published Feb. 4, 2025 10:46 AM - Last modified Aug. 20, 2025 8:30 AM