In a special lecture for NArFU’s PhD students Professor Heininen presented the results of his own research published in the book “Arctic Strategies and Policies: Inventory and Comparative Study”. He portrayed the contemporary Arctic as a global space of growing political interests of different countries. At the same time the Arctic is an example of successful cooperation in the international arena. He also underlined the increasing interest and influence of non-governmental actors in the Arctic region, such as NGOs and business.

In his lectures Professor Heininen emphasized that the Arctic is our common future, and to contribute to the sustainable development of the region we should take care of it and learn more about it. We should understand which actors play on the political arena in the Arctic region, and what their interests and their strategies are. To all students interested in the Arctic issues, Lassi Heininen recommended to read Arctic Yearbooks – international and interdisciplinary publications dedicated to the analysis of Arctic geopolitics. These books are available at www.arcticyearbook.com.

In the framework of his visit Professor Heininen also took part in the Parliamentarian Forum –III “Humans in the North dimension” and met with representatives of NArFU’s departments: Innovation and Technology Centre of Arctic oil and gas laboratory studies, Department for International Cooperation, UArctic Research Office, and Integrated Safety Institute.