IGO

IGO

Historical Background and Purpose.

The Arctic Council was formed in 1996 to contribute more to the protection of the environment and cultural needs in the northern region. All this is geared towards achieving sustainable socio-economic development. The need to protect the natural and cultural heritage in the northern area led Canada to start regular dialogues with other countries in the region. The Arctic Environmental Protection Strategy was signed into action in 1991. Later in 1996, the member states created the Arctic Council. The Council regularly produces comprehensive and cutting edge environmental, ecological and social assessments through its working groups.

Structure and type of IGO

The Arctic Council is regional, as only member states of the arctic region are members. Some member countries are members of other regional blocs such as the European Union. Their purpose and functions, therefore, can intertwine. The IGO is multipurpose in that it aims to promote the security of the environment and the community and well as cohesion among member states.

The member states are Canada, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Russia, Norway, Sweden, and the United States. Indigenous communities in the region are also among the members. They include the Inuit Circumpolar Conference, Saami Council, the Russian Association of Indigenous Minorities of the North, Aleut International Association, Gwich’in Council International, and Arctic Athabaskan Council. The headquarters of the Council changes every two years to be accommodated by one of the member states. Iceland is the chair for the year 2019-2021. Decisions of the Council and the subsidiary bodies are arrived on by consensus.

Function.

As discussed, the chair of the Council changes every two years to accommodate all states. The Council conducts meetings every six months in the chair country for the Senior Arctic Officials (SAO) meetings. The officials are representatives from the member states and act as ambassadors to coordinate programs and staff in their counties. To respond better to the challenges in the region, a permanent Arctic Council Secretariat was established. Its functions include providing administrative support, communications, and organizational functions such as planning for meetings, providing and receiving reports to and from the member states. The Council, however, does not include military security in its functions. Every member state, therefore, has to enforce its guidelines and recommendations.

The Council is funded majorly by the host country, which contributes almost half of the budget and the remaining shared among the remaining member countries. The Arctic Council is a forum; it has no programming budget. One or more members, therefore, sponsor Their projects and initiatives. Some projects will receive support from other entities.

Problems/Challenges.

Over the last few decades, climate change has been a significant issue of concern around the world. This, coupled with globalization, has led to transformations at the Arctic. The arctic sea ice is rapidly melting, thus easing access to natural resources and opening up new routes in the region. This leads to possibilities of commerce opportunities. Opening up the area to the rest of the world could lead to issues of peace and stability. Global warming has also significantly contributed to the change in lifestyle in the arctic. Over the years, we have seen the increase in the rate at which the ice caps melts. The changes in climatic conditions could see an increase in human activities, which could, in turn, increase the damage to the Arctic ecosystem. The indigenous populations of the regions may experience economic growth as a result, but the offshore and onshore commercial activities could endanger the culture and lifestyle of the community. These problems are severe. They endanger the very thing the Council intends to protect; the environmental and cultural aspects of the member states.