Arctic Governance: Volume 1


Book Description

The Polar North is known to be home to large gas and oil reserves and its positionholds signifi cant trading and military advantages, yet the maritime boundaries of the region remain ill-defined. In the twenty-first century the Arctic is undergoing profound change. As the sea ice melts, a result of accelerating climate change, global governance has become vital. In this first of three volumes, the latest research and analysis from the Fridtjof Nansen Institute, the world's leading Arctic research body, is brought together. Arctic Governance: Law and Politics investigates the legal and political order of the Polar North, focusing on governance structures and the Law of the Sea. Are the current mechanisms at work effective? Are the Arctic states' interests really clashing, or is the atmosphere of a more cooperative nature? Skilfully delineating policy in the region and analysing the consequences of treaty agreements, Arctic Governance's uncovering of a rather orderly 'Arctic race' will become an indispensable contribution to contemporary International Relations concerning the Polar North.




The Yearbook of Polar Law Volume 1 2009


Book Description

The Yearbook of Polar Law, based at the Faculty of Social Sciences and Law at the University of Akureyri in Iceland, covers a wide variety of topics relating to the Arctic and the Antarctic. These include: - human rights issues, such as autonomy and self-government vs. self-determination, the rights of indigenous peoples to land and natural resources and cultural rights and cultural heritage, indigenous traditional knowledge, - local and national governance issues, - environmental law, climate change, security and environment implications of climate change, protected areas and species, - regulatory, governance and management agreements and arrangements for marine environments, marine mammals, fisheries conservation and other biological/mineral/oil resources, - law of the sea, the retreating sea ice, continental shelf claims, - territorial claims and border disputes on both land and at sea, - peace and security, dispute settlement, - jurisdictional and other issues re the exploration, exploitation and shipping of oil, gas and minerals, bio prospecting, - trade law, potential shipping lines through the northwest and northeast passages, maritime law and transportation law, and - the roles and actual involvement of international organizations in the Polar regions, such as the Arctic Council, the Antarctic Treaty System, the European Union, the International Whaling Commission, the Nordic Council, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, and the United Nations, as well as NGOs. This first volume contains the presentations made at the first Symposium on Polar Law organised at the University of Akureyri in Iceland in September 2008.




Research Handbook on Polar Law


Book Description

This timely Research Handbook explores the concept of polar law as a coherent body of law and as a set of rules and principles that applies to both the Arctic and Antarctic. It captures the evolution of polar law and policy, identifying future directions for research in this emerging and growing field.




Select Proceedings of the European Society of International Law, Volume 4, 2012


Book Description

This is the fourth in the Series of Select Proceedings of the European Society of International Law (ESIL) featuring the most important and interesting papers presented at the Fifth Biennial Conference on 'Regionalism and International Law', organised by ESIL and the University of Valencia in 2012. As usual, the best papers from that conference have been re-written, edited and drawn together by the two editors to present a perspective on what is a flourishing forum for the discussion of new ideas and scholarship on international law.




Environmental Security in the Arctic Ocean


Book Description

The North Pole is being transformed from a sea-ice cap to a seasonally ice-free sea within the next few decades. This fundamental shift in the boundary conditions of the Arctic Ocean will create a new natural system with different dynamics than anything previously experienced by humans in the region. With the diminishing ice cover, interests are awakening globally to take advantage of extensive energy, shipping, fishing and tourism prospects in the Arctic Ocean. A range of states, including the major Arctic powers, are increasingly asserting their sovereignty seawards. National security policies are being declared and nuclear-capable states are adjusting their strategic deployments in the Arctic Ocean. There are forums for international cooperation in the Arctic, most notably the Arctic Council, but peace in the Arctic Ocean has yet to be explicitly established as a common interest because of the long-standing military presence. Risks of political, economic and cultural instabilities are inherent consequences. This volume proposes environmental security as providing a holistic framework to assess these security risks and then identify the appropriate adaptation and mitigation responses. Only after shared risk assessment and understanding of the appropriate responses, will there be sufficient clarity about the governance paths to pursue within the international legal framework of the law of the sea.




Arctic Law and Governance


Book Description

The objective of this book is to identify similarities and differences between the positions of Finland (as an EU Member State) and China, on Arctic law and governance. The book compares Finnish and Chinese legal and policy stances in specific policy areas of relevance for the Arctic, including maritime sovereignty, scientific research, marine protected areas, the Svalbard Treaty and Arctic Council co-operation. Building on these findings, the book offers general conclusions on Finnish and Chinese approaches to Arctic governance and international law, as well as new theoretical insights on Arctic governance. The book is the result of a collaboration between The Northern Institute for Environmental and Minority Law (Arctic Centre, University of Lapland) and researchers from Wuhan University.




Antarctic Security in the Twenty-First Century


Book Description

The Antarctic Treaty (1959) was adopted for the purpose of bringing peace and stability to Antarctica and to facilitate cooperation in scientific research conducted on and around the continent. It has now been over fifty years since the signing of the treaty, nevertheless security continues to drive and shape the laws and policy regime which governs the region. Antarctic Security in the Twenty-First Century: Legal and Policy Perspectives assess Antarctic security from multiple legal and policy perspectives. This book reviews the existing security construct in Antarctica, critically assesses its status in the early part of the Twenty-First century and considers how Antarctic security may be viewed in both the immediate and distant future. The book assesses emerging new security threats, including the impact of climate change and the issues arising from increased human traffic to Antarctica by scientists, tourists, and mariners. The authors call into question whether the existing Antarctic security construct framed around the Antarctic Treaty remains viable, or whether new Antarctic paradigms are necessary for the future governance of the region. The contributions to this volume engage with a security discourse which has expanded beyond the traditional military domain to include notions of security from the perspective of economics, the environment and bio-security. This book provides a contemporary and innovative approach to Antarctic issues which will be of interest to scholars of international law, international relations, security studies and political science as well as policy makers, lawyers and government officials with an interest in the region.




Coexistence, Cooperation and Solidarity (2 vols.)


Book Description

This Liber Amicorum, dedicated to Judge Rüdiger Wolfrum of the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, highlights paradigmatic changes in international law, a body of law which moved during the 20th century from a law of coexistence to one of cooperation and which is now about to reflect notions of solidarity going even beyond cooperative undertakings. This leitmotif of Rüdiger Wolfrum’s academic research and judgeship is represented in a comprehensive collection of essays by eminent scholars and practitioners of international law covering specific aspects of international law, including law of the sea, human rights, international environmental law, international dispute settlement, peace and security, global governance and domestic law. With its multifaceted and comprehensive overview of the evolution of international law in recent years and detailed study of current challenges this collection is a unique source of insight for all those interested in this fascinating field of law.




United Nations Protection of Humanity and Its Habitat


Book Description

This book is a study of the future of international law as well as the future of the United Nations. It is the first study ever bringing together the laws, policies and practices of the UN for the protection of the earth, the oceans, outer space, human rights, victims of armed conflicts and of humanitarian emergencies, the poor, the vulnerable and the disadvantaged world-wide. It reviews unprecedented dangers and challenges facing humanity such as climate change and weapons of mass destruction, and argues that the international law of the future must become an international law of security and of protection. It submits that the concept of international security in the UN Charter can no longer be restricted to situations of armed conflict but must be given its natural meaning: whatever threatens the security of humanity. It calls for the Security Council to perform its role as the guardian of the security of humankind and sees a leadership role for the UN Secretary-General in analysing and presenting challenges of international security and protection to the Security Council for its attention. Written by a seasoned scholar / practitioner of international law and the United Nations, who has served in key policy, peacemaking, peacekeeping and human rights positions in the United Nations, this book offers indispensable new vistas of international law and policy, and the future role of the United Nations.




The Rights of Indigenous Peoples in Marine Areas


Book Description

The question of what rights might be afforded to Indigenous peoples has preoccupied the municipal legal systems of settler states since the earliest colonial encounters. As a result of sustained institutional initiatives, many national legal regimes and the international legal order accept that Indigenous peoples possess an extensive array of legal rights. However, despite this development, claims advanced by Indigenous peoples relating to rights to marine spaces have been largely opposed. This book offers the first sustained study of these rights and their reception within modern legal systems. Taking a three-part approach, it looks firstly at the international aspects of Indigenous entitlements in marine spaces. It then goes on to explore specific country examples, before looking at some interdisciplinary themes of crucial importance to the question of the recognition of the rights of Indigenous peoples in marine settings. Drawing on the expertise of leading scholars, this is a rigorous and long-overdue exploration of a significant gap in the literature.