This volume brings together multiple perspectives on both the changing Arctic environment and the challenges and opportunities it presents for the shipping sector. It argues for the adoption of a forward-looking agenda that respects the fragile and changing Arctic frontier. With the accelerated interest in and potential for new maritime trade routes, commercial transportation and natural resource development, the pressures on the changing Arctic marine environment will only increase. The International Maritime Organization Polar Code is an important step toward Arctic stewardship. This new volume serves as an important guide to this rapidly developing agenda. Addressing a range of aspects, it offers a valuable resource for academics, practitioners, environmentalists and affected authorities in the shipping industry alike.

Polar law describes the normative frameworks that govern the relationships between humans, States, Peoples, institutions, land and resources in the Arctic and the Antarctic. These two regions are superficially similar in terms of natural environmental conditions but the overarching frameworks that apply are fundamentally different. The Routledge Handbook of Polar Law explores the legal orders in the Arctic and Antarctic in a comparative perspective, identifying similarities as well as differences. It points to a distinct discipline of "Polar law" as the body of rules governing actors, spaces and institutions at the Poles. Four main features define the collection: the Arctic-Antarctic interface; the interaction between global, regional and domestic legal regimes; the rights of Indigenous Peoples; and the increasing importance of private law. While these broad themes have been addressed to varying extents elsewhere, the editors believe that this Handbook brings them together to create a comprehensive (if never exhaustive) account of what constitutes Polar law today. Leading scholars in public international and private law as well as experts in related fields come together to offer unique insights into polar law as a burgeoning discipline.

This eBook is a collection of articles from a Frontiers Research Topic. Frontiers Research Topics are very popular trademarks of the Frontiers Journals Series: they are collections of at least ten articles, all centered on a particular subject. With their unique mix of varied contributions from Original Research to Review Articles, Frontiers Research Topics unify the most influential researchers, the latest key findings and historical advances in a hot research area! Find out more on how to host your own Frontiers Research Topic or contribute to one as an author by contacting the Frontiers Editorial Office: frontiersin.org/about/contact.

Provides comprehensive coverage of basic and contemporary issues of the law of the sea in a systematic manner.

A wide variety of marginal basins, ranging from polar to equatorial regions, and a few sizeable enclosed basins, can all be included among the Asian Seas. The Arctic Ocean shelf seas off Siberia; the sheltered basins along the Pacific Ocean’s western rim; the coastal seas of the northernmost Indian Ocean, including the semi-enclosed Red Sea and Persian Gulf; the Caspian Sea, the remnants of the Aral Sea and a score of brackish or freshwater lakes, such as Lake Balkhash and Lake Baykal; all exhibit a multiplicity of environmental features and processes. Understanding the peculiarities of such a large and varied collection of marine and coastal types requires integrated observation systems, among which orbital remote sensing must play an essential role. This volume reviews the current potential of Earth Observations in assessing the many Asian seascapes, using both passive and active techniques in diverse spectral regions, such as measuring reflected visible and near-infrared sunlight and surface emissions in the thermal infrared and microwave range, or surface reflection of transmitted radar pulses in the microwave range. An in-depth evaluation of the available spectral regions and observation techniques, as well as of novel multi-technique methods, ensures that suitable tools are indeed accessible for exploring and managing the wealth of resources that the Asian Seas have to offer.

Shipping in Inuit Nunangat is a timely multidisciplinary volume offering novel insights into key maritime governance issues in Canadian Arctic waters that are Inuit homeland (Inuit Nunangat) in the contemporary context of climate change, growing accessibility of Arctic waters to shipping, the need to protect a highly sensitive environment, and the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The volume includes policy, legal and institutional findings and recommendations intended to inform scholars and policymakers on managing the interface between shipping, the marine environment, and Indigenous rights in Arctic waters.

Climate—Change is Inevitable is the theme of the twenty-first edition of the Georgetown Journal of International Affairs. This issue confronts one of humanity’s most consequential challenges head-on in pursuit of a better world. With insights from practitioners, experts, and academics from around the globe, this edition provides a full and robust picture of the intersecting impacts of climate change—from business to security to culture and beyond. The Georgetown Journal of International Affairs (GJIA) is the flagship, peer-reviewed academic journal of the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. GJIA goes beyond the headlines in identifying and discussing trends that will shape the world, pairing the foresight of students with the wisdom of accomplished thinkers. Each print edition provides readers with a diverse array of timely, peer-reviewed content that brings unique insight to the broader international relations dialogue. The Journal features a Forum section that offers focused analysis on the theme at hand, along with seven regular sections: Business and Economics, Conflict and Security, Human Rights and Development, Society and Culture, Dialogues, Global Governance, and Science and Technology.

Global warming has had a dramatic impact on the Arctic environment, including the ice melt that has opened previously ice-covered waterways. State and non-state actors who look to the region and its resources with varied agendas have started to pay attention. Do new geopolitical dynamics point to a competitive and inherently conflictual “race for resources”? Or will the Arctic become a region governed by mutual benefit, international law, and the achievement of a widening array of cooperative arrangements among interested states and Indigenous peoples? As an Arctic nation Canada is not immune to the consequences of these transformations. In Canada and the Changing Arctic: Sovereignty, Security, and Stewardship, the authors, all leading commentators on Arctic affairs, grapple with fundamental questions about how Canada should craft a responsible and effective Northern strategy. They outline diverse paths to achieving sovereignty, security, and stewardship in Canada’s Arctic and in the broader circumpolar world. The changing Arctic region presents Canadians with daunting challenges and tremendous opportunities. This book will inspire continued debate on what Canada must do to protect its interests, project its values, and play a leadership role in the twenty-first-century Arctic. Forewords by Senator Hugh Segal and former Minister of Foreign Affairs and of National Defence Bill Graham.

This book examines the growing interest by Asian states, which are normally considered as ‘outsiders’ in the Arctic governance system. Whilst existing research asserts that Asian states are mostly interested in the economic aspect of the changing Arctic, including its mineral and fossil sources and the opening up of new sea routes, the book argues that the relation between Asian states and the Arctic is much more complex and dynamic, grounded in their unique perspective on national security and the role of economic development in securing their national interests.

The Arctic's environment, economics and politics are changing rapidly, and the conflicting interests among stakeholders mean that it lacks sustainable political and military cooperation. States bordering the Arctic — Russia, Canada, the United States, and the Nordic countries — as well as those further afield — such as China and Japan — all recognize the economic benefits of the region, but struggle to address the security challenges and the potential environmental impact of activities conducted there. This book provides a snapshot of the subject areas connecting transport, environmental security, resource development, and military security, featuring new material written after Russia's second invasion of Ukraine.