Posted on May, 07 2013

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The Arctic Council Ministerial meeting in Kiruna, Sweden, in May 2013 completes the first full rotation of circumpolar countries chairing the Council since its creation in 1996. Much has changed in the far north since then. This next cycle will be a time to look at how the Arctic Council functions as a regional process, the new challenges and new realities the Arctic faces.

This edition of The Circle explores some of these issues. Authors delve into the readiness of Arctic nations to use the Council to provide environmental stewardship; they reflect the huge responsibility circumpolar countries are feeling towards the people locally and globally who will be affected by the council’s successes or failures while others scrutinize the political will and commitment to balancing sustainable development with protecting and preserving this unique place on the globe.