Actors

Soft institutions in Arctic governance—who does what?

“…Arctic Frontiers was established in 2006 and was held for the first time in 2007. The purpose of the conference was to contribute to sustainable social and business development in the Arctic and to fulfil the need for an arena that could promote knowledge-based policymaking and information exchange across different disciplines (Steinveg, 2023, p. 28). In that context, it has been important to bring together actors from different levels of government—national, regional and local political representatives—as well as researchers, academics, business representatives, indigenous peoples and civil society for the conference held in Tromsø, Norway.…”

“…The launch of Arctic Frontiers coincided with the Norwegian government’s ambition to promote an active Arctic strategy and position itself internationally after the end of the Cold War (Steinveg, 2023, p. 28). The Norwegian government’s overall goal in 2005 was to ensure the political stability and sustainable development of the northern regions, safeguard Norwegian interests, involve Norwegian business in cooperation with Russia and ensure that the indigenous population participates in decision-making processes that concern them (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 2005).…”

“…The Norwegian authorities are however also concerned that the Arctic Council should retain its status as the central meeting place in the region and have expressed concern that parallel meeting places will arise (Norwegian Ministries, 2017, p. 16). The Arctic Frontiers has always supported this view, as it gives primacy to the Arctic states and holds a more restrictive view of who might be legitimate participants in the discussion of developments in the Arctic than the view promoted at the Arctic Circle Assembly (Steinveg, 2023, p. 89).…”

“…At the same time, an indicator of these conferences being more than merely networking arenas is how they serve a function for the vested interests of their host states: Norway and Iceland. They help to promote the states’ economic and geopolitical interests and to put Reykjavik and Tromsø on the map—the former as an “Arctic Hub” linking North America, Europe and Asia, and the latter as the “Arctic Capital” (Steinveg, 2023, pp. 131-132).…”

“…However, while the Arctic Council is the foremost international forum for cooperation in the Arctic, it is increasingly challenged by a growing stakeholder pool, bidding for a more meaningful position in the region. These non-state and non-Arctic actors actively use conferences to promote their interests in and priorities for the Arctic (Steinveg, 2023, pp. 84-91; 94-99).…”