(24rus.ru) - On December 12-13, the XIV International Forum “The Arctic: Present and Future” in honor of A. N. Chilingarov will be held in St. Petersburg. Andrey Mikhailovich Grachev, Vice President of the International Public Organization “Association of Polar Explorers” spoke about what the participants of the event could expect.
The event will be attended by the representatives of regional and federal authorities, business community, scientific, educational and non-profit organizations, as well as foreign experts.
The key topic of the forum this year is “Human-Centered Arctic as a Priority", what is this connected with?
As is known, the Arctic is one of the last untouched ‘treasuries’ of the world. For a long time, the macroregion was considered primarily as a raw material base where the local population was engaged in mining minerals in related fields of activity.
At our forum, we have repeatedly emphasized that the development of the Arctic is closely connected to how comfortable it is for its residents to live, work, have rest, create families, and so on. The forum’s core topic is based on the idea that the legislation on the Arctic should be devised and the Arctic projects should be developed taking into account the needs of the people living and working in the Far North.
What are the key trends in the development of the Arctic zone of the Russian Federation today and how are they reflected in the forum’s program?
Now, the need to update the strategic documents determining the development of the Russian Arctic has become a priority. The Strategy for the development of the Arctic Zone of the RF and other fundamental documents were developed and approved in a different international reality and need an upgrade today. Therefore, in each session of the forum, sections of the Strategy will be analyzed and proposals for their updating will be put forward. One of the forum’s results will be a Draft Resolution with the initiatives put forward by the participants. After making additions by the constituent entities of the Russian Federation, the Final Resolution will be sent to the federal government.
What current topics are in focus of the forum’s program?
The responsible businesses focused on the tasks of preserving the culture and way of life of indigenous peoples.
For the first time, the forum will consider the creative industries at several events at once, and a session will be held on developing the film and theater industries as business and leisure.
How is the concept of key reference settlements of the Arctic zone of the RF currently developing?
Vladimir Putin has ordered the allocation of about 100 bn rubles for the implementation of draft master plans for the Far Eastern and Arctic cities of Russia. The forum will be an event where the master plans can be discussed before their final approval expected early next year. Therefore, several sessions will be devoted to the implementation of this urban development tool and the creation of a comfortable environment in populated areas.
The Northern Sea Route is under development as a global transport corridor - what attention is given to the main trans-polar passage in the forum’s program?
A separate conference on the development of the Northern Sea Route will traditionally be held at the forum. The importance of the trans-polar passage increases year on year not only for the northern residents, but also for the entire country and world shipping industry as a whole. Therefore, the main topic at the conference is “The Northern Sea Route. More than the Arctic”. The conference will consist of three parts dedicated to the development of the economy and infrastructure, safety and predictability of navigation and shipping traffic, as well as the modernization of the Arctic fleet.
