Climate Security: High North Dialogue Podcast – Interview with Kristin Halvorsen

Feb 3, 2015 | Andreas Raspotnik, The Arctic Institute
View Original

In our 2^nd podcast for the High North Dialogue 2015 we talked with Kristin Halvorsen, Director of CICERO, Center for International Climate and Environmental Research in Oslo. Kristin Halvorsen was leader of the Socialist Left Party in Norway from 1997 to 2012 and served as Minister of Finance and Minister of Education from 2005 to 2009, and 2009 to 2013, respectively.

During our conversation Kristin delivered one essential and undeniable message: the global climate is changing and its negative effects on the Arctic region increase alarmingly. Consequently, she hopes that future discussions on matters of Arctic security will first and foremost concern the climate aspect of security. One of the concepts that are often referred to with regard to the future of the Arctic is sustainable development. Kristin explicitly emphasised that in order to not end up with an empty concept of sustainable development, it is necessary to actually live up its very meaning. In that regard, she stressed current discussions in Norway on the most recent decision by the Norwegian government to open the south-eastern Barents Sea to oil and gas explorations. According to Kristin, the main task of climate research is the contribution of knowledge to that particular debate. Only interdisciplinary research can tackle the comprehensive problems of climate change and consequently provide scientific support for decision- and policymakers. She further highlighted the positive bilateral relationship between Norway and Russia in the Arctic, which is currently not affected by the Ukrainian unrest and the related problematic relationship between the EU and Russia.