The majority of residents in cities in the Russian Arctic are not indigenous to the area (approx 95%), mostly migrating from the south and west. They are not used to Arctic ecosystems and the Arctic climate with lower temperatures, permafrost, less rich soil and having to adapt to differing light with polar days and nights….
Category: Russian North
Algae at the Baltic seaside
Scientists from Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University, Kemerovo State University and Shirsov Institute of Oceanology at Russian Academy of Sciences analysed the algae biomass and what they might do with it. Increased concentration of algae is becoming more common on coastlines around the world. They release greenhouse gases , smell unpleasant and make beaches less…
Building a national permafrost picture benefits everyone
Up until now, multiple institutions across Russia monitor permafrost and focus on local results. Oil and gas industries do not share their permafrost results with each other. Human impact from energy industries has cumulatively increased permafrost temperature which further affects their infrastructure. The researchers recommend a new state monitoring system which can be linked to…
Eco efficiency adds up in Russian regions
Researchers found eco efficiency grew between 1998 and 2017 except some northern and Siberian regions with lower populations, less technology and investmental potential. They noticed GDP growth with eco efficiency provides a sustainable development model. They used data from RosStat (Russia’s national statistics service). They calculated efficiency using data envelopment analysis (DEA). To assess the…
Green shoots not yet visible in the forestry economy
Forest companies are the chief exploiters of forest resources, and their actions may have a major impact on the global sustainable development. Russian companies have a special place in this regard as Russia is the most forested country in the world and the forest industry there has a global impact. Researchers from the University of…
How to stop drilling holes through indigenous rights in the Russian Arctic
Liobov Sulayandziga discusses the issues between indigenous people of the Russian Arctic and extractive industries. She looks at the authentic communities in four Arctic regions: Komi Republic, Sakhalin, Sakha Republic and Khanty-Mansiysk Autonomous Area She concludes that indigenous opinions are often ignored in areas where resource extraction is prioritized. The communities receive significant opposition from…
Idols and rabbits in the Urals – designing Arctic ecotourism
Researchers from Ural State University of Architecture and Art proposed an innovative approach for developing tourism in Russian Arctic destinations where holidaymakers commonly avoid travelling. Tough climate, remoteness and non-existing hospitality services make it a challenge to tempt any tourist. Attracted by wilderness, endangered fauna, melting icebergs and glaciers, vanishing indigenous cultures, endangered mega-fauna has…
Nothing goes to waste: sustainable practices of re-use among indigenous groups in the Russian North
Do the main inventions in current environmental sustainability practices always come from the metropolitan research centres? Could they also be of ‘non-Western’ origin? To answer and challenge these questions, Siragusa and Arzyutov explored waste practices among two indigenous communities in the Russian North – Nenets and Veps as part of ethnographic fieldwork since 2009. They highlight…
Human fatprints in the Arctic snow
Anthropogenic pollution of the Arctic atmosphere is of great interest due to the vulnerability of the Arctic ecosystems, as well as the processes of global transport and industries under cold climate conditions. Researchers from Lomonosov State University (Moscow) and Lomonosov Northern (Arctic) Federal University brought the first results on snow pollution in the least explored…
Detecting a methane rush over the Arctic seas
The Arctic is warming twice as fast compared to the rest of the World. The Arctic ocean contains gigatons of organic carbon and methane hydrates. Warming may induce liberation of this methane into the atmosphere. This greenhouse gas would start a positive feed-back: the warmer water – the faster methane emission, the higher concentration the…
Russian Climate Research 