Dr Lecturer in Security and Intelligence Studies

Abstract

Climate change has accelerated the melting of ice in the Arctic region, leading to the reconfiguration of the Arctic geographical “space.” Consequently, the Arctic region has witnessed a flurry of economic and military activities, with profound implications for Indigenous communities’ rights to sustainable development. This article examines the energy security calculations of the Arctic states to understand the emerging energy geopolitics in the Arctic region. The article elucidates that energy geopolitics is reconfiguring the Arctic region as a “space” for power projection, thereby exacerbating the deterioration of the Arctic environment and raising concerns for the livelihoods of Indigenous communities. It demonstrates that energy geopolitics within a patchy regulatory framework of the Arctic is detrimental to the Indigenous peoples' human rights.