DEVELOPING RENEWABLE ENERGY IN ARCTIC AND SUB-ARCTIC REGIONS AND COMMUNITIES

A Message from Lead Scholars
Dr. Ross Virgina and Dr. Mike Sfraga
The Arctic faces complex sustainability challenges that are critical to the social and
economic well-being of its communities. There is a critical need for more interdisciplinary
research designed to inform policy decisions in areas such as community health, energy
development, environmental protection, climate change response, infrastructure, and
governance.
The work presented here is an outcome of the Fulbright Arctic Initiative sponsored by
the U.S. State Department’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. This initiative
was created in 2015 to initiate new research broadly supportive of the U.S. Arctic Council
Chairmanship (2015-17) priorities in the focal areas of improving economic and living
conditions for Arctic communities; Arctic Ocean safety, security and stewardship; and
addressing the impacts of climate change. The Fulbright Arctic Initiative brings together
19 scholars in diverse fields from the 8 Arctic nations to work on individual research
projects and in teams on energy, water, health, and infrastructure problems. The scholars
were organized into thematic research teams with the goal of creating interdisciplinary
dialog and diversifying international perspectives on solutions to pan-Arctic problems.
The research of the Energy Group focuses on understanding the impacts of extractive
industries and the transition to renewable energy in the Arctic. The tensions between
economic, energy, and environmental security continue to be central to the future
development of energy resources in the Arctic, and continue to make the transition to
renewables difficult. The Energy Group drew upon respective national perspectives,
comparative research exchange experiences, the literature, as well as each scholar’s past
research and diverse disciplinary strengths, to collaboratively identify a set of significant
policy recommendations to support the development and deployment of renewable
energy in the Arctic and Sub-Arctic regions. The primary goal of these recommendations
is for the Arctic Council to consider establishing guidelines to facilitate the development
of renewable energy in Northern areas.
The Fulbright Program was established in 1946 “to increase mutual understanding
between the people of the United States and the people of other countries.” The work
produced by the Fulbright Arctic Initiative demonstrates the power of international
cooperation and interdisciplinary collaboration to create policy relevant research to
solve problems facing the Arctic and the world.
Ross A. Virginia is the Myers Family professor of environmental science in the
Environmental Studies Program and director of the Institute of Arctic Studies at
Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH, USA. He is co-lead scholar of the Fulbright Arctic
Initiative and co-director of the University of the Arctic Institute for Arctic Policy.
Michael Sfraga is Vice Chancellor for University and Student Advancement and professor
of arctic policy in the School of Natural Resources and Extension at the University of
Alaska Fairbanks, USA. He is co-lead scholar of the Fulbright Arctic Initiative and codirector
of the University of the Arctic Institute for Arctic Policy.