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EU_ARCTYCA: Boosting the EU Arctic Policy: security, safety and sustainability


The Arctic is subject to major and rapid changes in social and economic systems, ecosystems and environmental processes. With the growing interest of the oil and gas sector in the Arctic, it has become clear that there is a high business development potential for Arctic and non-Arctic institutions and corporations. The EU, which is strictly dependent on the Arctic with regard to the import of natural resources, is greatly aware of the importance of the Arctic for its future generations. Among the main risks connected to growing international interest in the Arctic, there are the contamination and over-exploitation of essential resources by multinational corporations, in need of high quality knowledge for sustainable development.

The primary research objects of EU_ARCTYCA aims at analyzing the EU's expanding role in the Arctic and its ecosystem approach to security, safety and sustainability matters in the Arctic. It will identify key issues and possible tools to be adopted for boosting the EU Arctic policy, while seeking to deploy its actions related to the EU regulatory framework of corporate social responsibility (CSR). The CSR will be take into consideration from environmental perspective, that is the corporate environmental responsibility (CER): corporate commitment to assess business compliance with environmental impact and sustainable development thus assuming responsibility of their business operations.

The main project tasks are:

  1. To promote the advancing of the implementation of the EU ecosystem approach to Arctic security, safety and sustainability, while including inputs from stakeholder;
  2. To work with Arctic partners and with the private sector in order to resort to the political economy of CER for enhancing a sustainable environmental protection;  
  3. To enhance the use of environmental impact assessment and its importance as a tool and a channel to put together information for the use of EU decision- and policy-makers and the related legal processes;
  4. To focus on new geopolitics and their impact on the changing Arctic within international security matters in the context of EU external action in the Arctic;
  5. to strengthen communication and outreach within the EU and between the EU and the Arctic community about the contribution the EU is making to address Arctic and security, safety and sustainability issues raised by the rapid development of the Arctic region as a result of economic and climate change

Complementarity other projects: COST ACTION 1105 MARSAFENET: http://www.marsafenet.org/

Founding Member of Maritime Safety and Security Law Journal: http://www.marsafelawjournal.org/



Financial/grant information:

The Project was financed by Marie Curie Actions - FP7 - 2013 - IEF.