Ban in Antarctica, 2007. © BBC.
At the end of August, United Nations Secretary General Ban-Ki Moon will visit Svalbard on a fact-finding mission to learn about the effects of global warming in the Arctic. He will travel to the northerly Norwegian island accompanied by Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg and Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre. Ban will also stop by a joint Norwegian and Korean research station on Ny Alesund and see the Global Seed Vault during his visit.
Stoltenberg remarked, “The fact that Ban’s first visit to Norway as UN Secretary-General focuses on climate challenges is of special importance now, when the world society is preparing to gather on a new climate agreement in Copenhagen in December.”
Ban has personally called for a “New Green Deal,” believing that it is imperative the world reach a global consensus on sustainable development before it is too late. In that regard, he has gone on several missions and tours to better understand the linkages between humans and the environment. This is not the first time that Ban has traveled to the ends of the earth to learn more about global warming. In October 2007, the Secretary General visited Antarctica to examine melting ice first-hand, making him the first UN head to visit the continent at the bottom of the earth.
The United Nations as a whole has also been concerned with the effects of global warming on the indigenous peoples of the Arctic. In March 2009, UNESCO held a four-day meeting in Monaco where the U.N. organ discussed how to pursue a strategy of sustainable development in the Arctic in order to meet the needs of local people. Among other measures, the meeting recommended establishing “a working/advisory group to develop dialogue and strategy on the challenges of climate change for circumpolar indigenous peoples, including safeguarding intangible heritage and building synergies between indigenous and scientific knowledge.”
While there are no indigenous people living on Svalbard, Ban’s visit confirms that the U.N. is increasingly concerned with Arctic affairs at large, whether related to social, environmental, or political domains.
News links
Norwegian Foreign Ministry Press Release (in Norwegian)
“UN Secretary-General on climate trip to Norway and Svalbard,” Barents Observer
A few months ago, I wrote about the early stages of the conflict in Ukraine through the lens of Sun Tzu’s The Art of War. While it appears likely that the war will carry on into the foreseeable future, enough time has passed for us to make an honest assessment of each side’s relative […]
The Ukrainian Army has made dramatic strides in the last few weeks. Ukraine’s tactical commanders have outfoxed their Russian counterparts, and by issuing a feint towards the south the UA has been able to earn substantial gains in the north of their country. The impact of these efforts have been compounded by the steady stream […]
In mid-May the Irish political party, Sinn Féin, won the plurality of seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly. Many American readers might not fully understand the significance of Sinn Féin’s political victory- but rest assured that subjects of the United Kingdom and a wide range of political movements the world over have heard the message […]
The first wave of the Russian offensive in Ukraine has fallen short of Russian autocrat Vladmir Putin’s ambitions. Most analysts deduced that Putin had hoped to achieve a decapitation strike of the Ukrainian government- taking Kiev and replacing Ukrainian President Vladimir Zolinski with a pro-Kremlin voice. Kiev has been threatened repeatedly through the course of […]
On the weekend of March 26th, the notorious MS-13 gang went on a massive killing spree in El Salvador which left more than 70 people dead by Sunday. Even for a country where powerful gangs hold massive sway, this recent tragedy stands out considering that it was the bloodiest day on record since the civil […]
