World politics in the 2020s seems to consist of two realities. People are concerned about ecological catastrophe, as pollution kills millions and climate change threatens societies. States and their elites, in contrast, concentrate on other issues as substitutes for environmental protection and climate change mitigation. These realities are global by nature and affect the Arctic region. This lecture on security studies discusses traditional (national, competitive, military) security vis-a-vis comprehensive security (including environmental & human security) in the context of world politics and that of the Arctic, highlighting great power rivalry.
Speaker:
Dr. Lassi Heininen is Professor (emeritus) of Arctic Politics at the University of Lapland (Finland), Editor of Arctic Yearbook, Chair of (traveling symposium) Calotte Academy, and Leader of UArctic’s Thematic Network on Geopolitics & Security. His research fields include IR, Geopolitics, Security Studies, Environmental Politics, Northern European Studies, and Arctic Studies. He lectures at, and supervises PhD candidates from, Finnish & foreign universities, speaks regularly in international conferences, and chairs the GlobalArctic Mission Council of the Arctic Circle. Among his recent publications are “Climate Change and the Great Power Rivalry in the Arctic” in Insight Turkey; “The Post-Cold War Arctic” in Global Arctic (Springer); “Arctic Geopolitics from Classical to Critical Approach” in Geography, Environment, Sustainability Journal; Arctic Policies and Strategies – Analysis, Synthesis, and Trends (with Everett, Padrtova & Reissell, IIASA); and Climate Change and Security. Searching for a Paradigm Shift (with Exner-Pirot, Palgrave Pivot).
Moderator:
Robert Orttung is a Research Professor at IERES and the Director of Research for Sustainable GW. He is editor of Demokratizatsiya: The Journal of Post-Soviet Demokratization and co-editor of the
Russian Analytical Digest. His research focuses on issues of urban sustainability in the Arctic.