From lethargy to leadership: America's origins and obligations as an arctic nation
At present, temperatures in the Arctic are rising twice as fast as the global average. This drastic increase has been the catalyst for a number of vicious cycles that exacerbate climate change, such as the melting of both permafrost and ice sheets. New waterways, opened due to melting ice, have prov...
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Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science
2021
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ftmontanastateu:oai:scholarworks.montana.edu:1/16279 2023-05-15T14:32:24+02:00 From lethargy to leadership: America's origins and obligations as an arctic nation Kramer, Samuel Charles Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Brett Walker United States Arctic regions 2021 application/pdf https://scholarworks.montana.edu/xmlui/handle/1/16279 en eng Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science https://scholarworks.montana.edu/xmlui/handle/1/16279 Copyright 2021 by Samuel Charles Kramer Territory National History Leadership Responsibility Climatic changes Natural resources Thesis 2021 ftmontanastateu 2022-07-30T22:40:20Z At present, temperatures in the Arctic are rising twice as fast as the global average. This drastic increase has been the catalyst for a number of vicious cycles that exacerbate climate change, such as the melting of both permafrost and ice sheets. New waterways, opened due to melting ice, have provided access to once impossible to reach resources and brought competing ambitions of both Arctic and non-Arctic nations to the forefront. The prospect of easily accessible resources such as oil, natural gas, and minerals has amplified the issues of territory and ownership in the Arctic with many nations responding with an increase in nationalism and militarization. Outcomes of this geopolitical competition will have consequences that reach far beyond the Arctic. Equally as important are the effects that these rivalries will have on the indigenous groups that live and subsist in the Arctic --many of which have been victims of systematic disenfranchisement and racism. As a result of the purchase of Alaska in 1867, the United States belongs to an exclusive company of nations that own or oversee territory in the Arctic. These eight nations, the United States, Canada, Russia, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark (via Greenland), despite sharing the designation of being an Arctic nation, all possess distinct ambitions and interests in the far North. Cooperation, however, is imperative to address the myriad challenges that the Arctic faces in the twenty-first century. In order for the United States to become, and remain, a responsible Arctic ally, I argue, we must first reexamine our origins as an Arctic nation and recognize the connection between the purchase of Alaska and the conquest of the American West. Acknowledging the continued existence of exploitation and colonialism in Alaska is a necessary step the United States must take on the path towards responsibility in the Arctic. Thesis Arctic Climate change Greenland Ice Iceland permafrost Alaska Montana State University (MSU): ScholarWorks Arctic Canada Greenland Norway |
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Montana State University (MSU): ScholarWorks |
op_collection_id |
ftmontanastateu |
language |
English |
topic |
Territory National History Leadership Responsibility Climatic changes Natural resources |
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Territory National History Leadership Responsibility Climatic changes Natural resources Kramer, Samuel Charles From lethargy to leadership: America's origins and obligations as an arctic nation |
topic_facet |
Territory National History Leadership Responsibility Climatic changes Natural resources |
description |
At present, temperatures in the Arctic are rising twice as fast as the global average. This drastic increase has been the catalyst for a number of vicious cycles that exacerbate climate change, such as the melting of both permafrost and ice sheets. New waterways, opened due to melting ice, have provided access to once impossible to reach resources and brought competing ambitions of both Arctic and non-Arctic nations to the forefront. The prospect of easily accessible resources such as oil, natural gas, and minerals has amplified the issues of territory and ownership in the Arctic with many nations responding with an increase in nationalism and militarization. Outcomes of this geopolitical competition will have consequences that reach far beyond the Arctic. Equally as important are the effects that these rivalries will have on the indigenous groups that live and subsist in the Arctic --many of which have been victims of systematic disenfranchisement and racism. As a result of the purchase of Alaska in 1867, the United States belongs to an exclusive company of nations that own or oversee territory in the Arctic. These eight nations, the United States, Canada, Russia, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Iceland, and Denmark (via Greenland), despite sharing the designation of being an Arctic nation, all possess distinct ambitions and interests in the far North. Cooperation, however, is imperative to address the myriad challenges that the Arctic faces in the twenty-first century. In order for the United States to become, and remain, a responsible Arctic ally, I argue, we must first reexamine our origins as an Arctic nation and recognize the connection between the purchase of Alaska and the conquest of the American West. Acknowledging the continued existence of exploitation and colonialism in Alaska is a necessary step the United States must take on the path towards responsibility in the Arctic. |
author2 |
Chairperson, Graduate Committee: Brett Walker |
format |
Thesis |
author |
Kramer, Samuel Charles |
author_facet |
Kramer, Samuel Charles |
author_sort |
Kramer, Samuel Charles |
title |
From lethargy to leadership: America's origins and obligations as an arctic nation |
title_short |
From lethargy to leadership: America's origins and obligations as an arctic nation |
title_full |
From lethargy to leadership: America's origins and obligations as an arctic nation |
title_fullStr |
From lethargy to leadership: America's origins and obligations as an arctic nation |
title_full_unstemmed |
From lethargy to leadership: America's origins and obligations as an arctic nation |
title_sort |
from lethargy to leadership: america's origins and obligations as an arctic nation |
publisher |
Montana State University - Bozeman, College of Letters & Science |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
https://scholarworks.montana.edu/xmlui/handle/1/16279 |
op_coverage |
United States Arctic regions |
geographic |
Arctic Canada Greenland Norway |
geographic_facet |
Arctic Canada Greenland Norway |
genre |
Arctic Climate change Greenland Ice Iceland permafrost Alaska |
genre_facet |
Arctic Climate change Greenland Ice Iceland permafrost Alaska |
op_relation |
https://scholarworks.montana.edu/xmlui/handle/1/16279 |
op_rights |
Copyright 2021 by Samuel Charles Kramer |
_version_ |
1766305820096593920 |