Donald R. Rothwell (ANU): Arctic Ocean Choke Points and the Law of the Sea. Wei-en Tan (National Chengchi) and Yu-tai Tsai (National Chung Cheng): After the Ice Melts: Conflict Resolution and the International Scramble for Natural Resources in the Arctic Circle. Unfreezing Arctic Assets: A bloc of countries above the 45th parallel is poised to dominate the next century — welcome to the New North. Melting and thinning ice in the Arctic has proceeded so rapidly that new sea routes are opening up, infrastructure is being imagined, and countries like Canada are working to assert their sovereignty in the north (and more). The solutions to the complex challenges of the "New Arctic" will lie in the intricate games — strategic dances — among states, companies, Indigenous peoples, NGOs, international organizations and other dynamic interests. A review of The Future History of the Arctic by Charles Emmerson and The Scramble for the Arctic: Ownership, Exploitation and Conflict in the Far North by Richard Sale. As climate change alters Greenland, the country has a chance to profit and gain independence from its longtime colonial ruler, Denmark — but at what cost? Greenland is happy to be the new oil frontier. Perhaps Canadian bellicosity is not the best posture to adopt right now, given that Canada, Russia, and all the other Arctic nations are in the process of determining the actual national boundaries of the Arctic, especially on the seabed, which holds valuable oil deposits. Thawing Fortunes: Amid disappearing ice shelves, the world's top powers fight over new territory in the Great North. Arctic politics are getting warmer: a new scramble for territory? A review of The World in 2050: Four Forces Shaping Civilization's Northern Future by Laurence C. Smith. A review of The Flooded Earth: Our Future in a World without Ice Caps by Peter D. Ward.
