Arctic State Identity - by Ingrid A Medby (Hardcover)

About the Book

This book explores what it means for state personnel from Norway, Iceland, and Canada that their country holds a formal title as an 'Arctic state'. It asks what an Arctic state identity might look like through geographies, pasts, futures, and geopolitical relations across different scales, from the international to the personal.

Book Synopsis

This book sets out to answer what it means to hold a formal title as one of the eight 'Arctic states'; is there such a thing as an Arctic state identity, and if so, what does this mean for state personnel? It charts the thoughtful reflections and stories of state personnel from three Arctic states: Norway, Iceland, and Canada, alongside analysis of documents and discourses. This book shows how state identities are narrated as both geographical and temporal - understood through environments, territories, pasts and futures - and that any identity is always relational and contextual. As such, demonstrating that to understand Arctic geopolitics we need to pay attention to the people whose job it is to represent the state on a daily basis. And more broadly, it offers a 'peopled' view of geopolitics, introducing the concept and framework of 'state identity'.

From the Back Cover

With increasing international attention directed northwards, the status of the eight Arctic states has taken on added geopolitical importance. However, a formal title is one thing, while political practice and feelings of attachment are another. This book explores whether there is such a thing as an Arctic state identity, and specifically what this might mean for state personnel. Focusing on three of the eight Arctic states, where identity has been frequently discussed by political leaders--Norway, Iceland, and Canada--the book charts similarities and differences across these diverse state contexts. As becomes clear, there is no singular Arctic state identity, but rather numerous relational articulations of what it means to represent and 'be' Arctic. These identities are narrated as both geographical and historical, yet the ways in which they come to matter are always social, political, and cultural.

The book offers new perspectives and powerful insights from 'inside' the state at a time when Arctic geopolitics is high on the agenda. More broadly, it presents a 'peopled' understanding of geopolitics, charting the rich stories, experiences and reflections of state personnel. Introducing the original concept and framework of 'state identity', the book brings together views of statehood and national identity, showing the human side of representing a state.

About the Author

Ingrid Agnete Medby is a Senior Lecturer in Human Geography at Newcastle University.