Category: Publication

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China and Great Power Responsibility for Climate Change

Read a new post on Aleksanteri Institute website about Sanna Kopra’s new book China and Great Power Responsibility for Climate Change, published this July.

Based on the premise that great powers have unique responsibilities, this book explores how China’s rise to great power status transforms notions of great power responsibility in general and international climate politics in particular. The author looks empirically at the Chinese party-state’s conceptions of state responsibility, discusses the influence of those notions on China’s role in international climate politics, and considers both how China will act out its climate responsibility in the future and the broader implications of these actions. Alongside the argument that the international norm of climate responsibility is an emerging attribute of great power responsibility, Kopra develops a normative framework of great power responsibility to shed new light on the transformations China’s rise will yield and the kind of great power China will prove to be.

The book presentation will take place on 7th of August at Tiedekulma at the panel discussion ”Suurvaltojen ilmastovastuullisuus”, where Sanna Kopra, Anna Kronlund (John Morton -centre, Turku university) and Veli-Pekka Tynkkynen will participate. The panel will be moderated by Emma Hakala (Finnish Institute of International Affairs). The event has free admission, but please fill in the registration form in advance.

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Russia’s Far North available online

The book “Russia’s Far North. The Contested Energy Frontier” has been made available online.

The Russian Far North is immensely rich in resources, both energy and other resources, and is also one of the least developed regions of Russia. This book presents a comprehensive overview of the region. It examines resource issues and the related environmental problems, considers the Arctic and the problems of sea routes, maritime boundaries and military build-up, assesses economic development, and considers the ethnic peoples of the region and also cultural and artistic subjects. Overall, the book provides a rich appraisal of how the region is likely to develop in future.

Get the electronic version here.

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Winland policy brief

Winland released a new policy brief titled “Riskienhallinta, kestävyys ja vastuullisuus –  Yritysten arvoketjut energia-, ruoka- ja vesiturvallisuuden ytimessä” (Risk management, sustainability and accountability – Firm’s value chains in regard to energy, food and water security) – a set of recommendations for Finnish companies to achieve better sustainability in their entrepreneurial activity.

What do global crises of energy, food and water mean to Finnish companies? Our latest policy brief for companies was released in the morning seminar on June 14th.
Firm’s value chains are the most important structures for energy, food and water production and consumption. Risk management, sustainability and accountability of value chains should be seen as an inseparable part of each other and a prerequisite for continuity management.

Read the brief here (in Finnish).

 

 

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New book on the Arctic-Barents region with a chapter co-written by Hanna Lempinen

A new volume on the Arctic-Barents region was published in the series Routledge Explorations in the Environmental Studies in the end of May. The book titled  “Society, Environment and Human Security in the Arctic Barents Region” is edited by Kamrul Hossain and Dorothée Cambou. Researcher from our group Hanna Lempinen wrote a chapter “Energy security in the Barents Region: A focus on societal perspectives” for it, together with Dorothée Cambou.

The Arctic-Barents Region is facing numerous pressures from a variety of sources, including the effect of environmental changes and extractive industrial developments. The threats arising out of these pressures result in human security challenges.

This book analyses the formation, and promotion, of societal security within the context of the Arctic-Barents Region. It applies the human security framework, which has increasingly gained currency at the UN level since 1994 (UNDP), as a tool to provide answers to many questions that face the Barents population today. The study explores human security dimensions such as environmental security, economic security, health, food, water, energy, communities, political security and digital security in order to assess the current challenges that the Barents population experiences today or may encounter in the future. In doing so, the book develops a comprehensive analysis of vulnerabilities, challenges and needs in the Barents Region and provides recommendations for new strategies to tackle insecurity and improve the wellbeing of both indigenous and local communities.

This book will be a valuable tool for academics, policy-makers and students interested in environmental and human security, sustainable development, environmental studies and the Arctic and Barents Region in particular.

The book is available for purchase on Routledge website.

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Paper “China, Great Power Management, and Climate Change: Negotiating Great Power Climate Responsibility in the UN” published

Sanna Kopra’s paper “China, Great Power Management, and Climate Change: Negotiating Great Power Climate Responsibility in the UN”, that won the Outstanding Research Paper Award was published as a chapter in the volume “International Organization in the Anarchical Society The Institutional Structure of World Order” edited by Tonny Brems Knudsen and Cornelia Navari. This volume is a part of Palgrave Studies in International Relations.

 

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Article in Yliopisto-Lehti

The University newspaper Yliopisto-Lehti published a new article “Riip­pu­vuus Ve­nä­jän energiasta on on­gel­ma myös il­mas­ton kan­nal­ta” (Dependence on Russian energy is also a problem for the climate) with comments from Sakari Höysniemi. Höysniemi reflects upon this dependence from the perspective of supply security and climate politics. Read the full article here.

 

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Climate Denial Revisited (Re)contextualising Russian Public Discourse on Climate Change during Putin 2.0

Professor Veli-Pekka Tynkkynen published a new article “Climate Denial Revisited (Re)contextualising Russian Public Discourse on Climate Change during Putin 2.0” in Europe-Asia Studies, that he co-wrote with Nina Tynkkynen.

In this article we examine Russia’s recent public discourse on climate change, with a special focus on the arguments denying anthropogenic climate change. We scrutinise the ways in which denial arguments presented in the media are tied to the changing Russian political and economic context, especially the increasingly authoritarian turn in governance during President Vladimir Putin’s third term in office (Putin 2.0). We conclude that the Russian discourse on climate change emphasises Russia’s Great Power status, identifying its sovereignty and fossil energy as the basis of this status. This discourse refers to key categories, including Russia’s national identity and the spatial–material characteristics of the Russian state.

 

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Popularized version of Hanna Lempinen’s and Lassi Heininen’s article published in Versus

A popularized version of “Paikallisten elämäntyylit, alkuperäiskansojen kulttuurit? Kulttuuri ja sen kestävyydet arktisten valtioiden strategioissa.” article by Hanna Lempinen  and Lassi Heininen was published in Versus online research forum. The piece is titled “Ovatko kulttuurit vain välineitä arktisille valtioille?” (Are cultures only instruments for the Arctic states?).

In the article the question of what the Arctic states mean by culture and how they talk about their cultures, their meaning, and their future in their Nordic strategies. You can read the full article and the comments written by Artic researchers on it at the Versus website.

 

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Sakari Höysniemi’s new blog post for Winland project

Read a new blog post for the Winland project, written by Sakari Höysniemi and titled “Energiahuollosta kohti energiaturvallisuutta” (From Energy Supply to Energy Security).

There is little talk about energy security in Finland. Instead, the concepts of energy security or security of supply are usually used. These definitions may exclude from the discussion the questions of fairness, responsibility, comprehensive security, or the many tight connections that the energy has in relation to other natural resources, writes Sakari Höysniemi from the University of Helsinki.

The full post is available on the Winland website.

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Professor Tynkkynen’s comments on the Hanhikivi 1 plant

“Finland Project Management Roundup” by Jouko Vaskimo was published in PM World Journal. In the report Professor’s Tynkkynen’s comments about the Hanhikivi 1 plant are given:

The plant is expected to generate approximately 10% of Finnish electricity demand.
Rosatom has 34% ownership of the plant, which translates to Rosatom supplying 3% of
Finland’s electricity production according to Veli-Pekka Tynkkynen, professor of
Russian energy politics at University of Helsinki. Professor Tynkkynen argues Russia
may use its ownership of the plant to attempt manipulating Nordic power prices, or use
it to leverage political disputes the same way Russia is already using its gas supply in
disputes with neighboring countries such as Ukraine.