Ivan V. Evdokimov, Alexander S. Khaluimov, Nikita V. Sokolov & Sergey E. Golokhvastov
In the Arctic conditions of northern Siberia, the IT-industry represents an important platform for providing globally competitive employment. Hence, evaluation of the expenses related to IT-development is a highly important question for the information community of the Arctic. Nowadays, software solutions provided by the 1C company are leading in the fields of public administration, municipal board and business in the aforementioned region. Adequate assessment of the cost and development time has an important role in the software development. In the field of information technology (IT) specialists often use different metrics based on the software functionality – function-oriented metrics. The models used for evaluation contain a number of parameters. Each of these parameters has a special coefficient, which is based on the company standard. Their values have a direct impact on the software developing cost calculation. Among all of the functionally-oriented assessing methods we can give a special credit to the Function Points (FP) method. The basis of its use is the correlation of parameters of future programming with tables which include special coefficients. To calculate the number of function points, the cost, and the time of IT project development we use special formulas which are based on varieties of the COCOMO model and FP-tables. A special feature of the FP method is a table including coefficients of the empirical complexity for each programming language and IDE, based on the number of operators for one function point. Consequently, this method allows us to estimate the value of the product development not only in terms of its functionality, but also in terms of applied tools. Thus, the subject of this research will be the definition of the value factors which are used to calculate the FP-evaluations on the 1C v.8.3 platform. It will be based on statistical analysis of several regional IT projects. To improve the adequacy of FP-models, we will consider stakeholders of the 1C-based IT-projects as objects of our research. Recent software engineering developments allow us to move away from clichés about the High North, which has been considered only as a supplier of natural resources for many years.
Carina Ren & Rasmus Kjærgaard Rasmussen
This article explores how Arctic Winter Games 2016 (AWG), held in Nuuk, Greenland, enacted possible futures through specific policies and practices pertinent to societal innovation in contemporary Greenland. We see the event as a futuring device which engenders possible futures and ties in with current and emerging political and societal agendas. We use the two-year preparation phase of the AWG to explore how it created effects beyond the event proper. Drawing on various discourses and practices of the event, we analyze three central sites where it i) rehearses capacity building and upskilling models, ii) showcases Arctic competences and iii) attempts to mobilize a new culture of volunteering. We argue that the AWG 2016 can be seen as “future games” playing out an Arctic nation in the making, thus adding a new understanding to events as a locus of societal innovation.
Diana Dushkova, Tatyana Krasovskaya & Alexander Evseev
The consequences of global climate change are mostly portrayed as negative for environment and society, due to the warming in temperatures. However, there are certain benefits from this process as well. One of them is the opening of a polar shipping route between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The Northern Sea Route may cut travel time from Europe to Asia by 40% and allow Russia to export its vast natural resources much faster. Some expert assessments point out that remote northern Russian towns which have been experiencing economic depression in the transition period may turn to economic and social revival. But this process may entail new risks for fragile Arctic ecosystems and traditional nature management by Indigenous populations. Most discussions about Russia’s Northern Sea Route focus on shipping traffic, sea ice assessments and expected socio-economic benefits. However, assessments of the impact of further industrialization for the adjacent coastal zone ecosystems and northern residents are still inadequate. Thus, this paper is aimed not only at analyzing the Russian Arctic zone development strategy connected with the Northern Sea Route, but also to highlight the broad spectrum of human and environmental consequences of these activities. Among them, impacts on the economy (national and regional), the environment and population (effects caused by navigation activity and industrialization as well as risks for the coastal ecosystems and Indigenous people) will be assessed.
Troy J. Bouffard
The Barents Sea has long been a testing ground for cooperation between Russia and Norway. Driven by mutual economic interests, the two states have worked together in previous decades to oversee a shared commercial fishery. More recently, off-shore oil production has become a Russo-Norwegian focus. Emerging petroleum production provides an opportunity to assess environmental stewardship in the region. In particular, this study explores the differences and influences in Norwegian and Russian offshore oil-spill prevention policy in the Barents Sea. The study focuses on how each state’s national and economic strategic objectives translate into domestic policy, and how such influences are reflected in operational mandates and behavior. Principal-agent (a.k.a. agency) theory and case studies provide the framework for this study through a defined view of the contractual relationships between the governments (principals) and industry (agents). Findings indicate that 1) there is no mutual policy for the shared environment, 2) there should be, and 3) divergent issues can be identified and potentially overcome. Additionally, the approach to prevention policy by Russia’s governmental authorities yields concerns regarding operational intent while Norway’s public-sector principles likely instill more confidence in outcomes. As the Barents Region continues to foster a convergence of bilateral (and multilateral) interests, this study helps identify relevant prevention policy decision-making factors while contributing to further understanding and expectations for activities in the Barents Sea.
Jesper Zeuthen
Western governments frequently perceive Chinese investors in natural resources as driven by strategic state interests to a much larger extent than investors from Western countries, who supposedly operate according to market economic norms without states pulling them in particular directions. This article studies a potential Chinese investment in mining minerals which are strategically important to China in a region that is widely argued to be of strategic importance to China. By making a content analysis of Chinese language articles on mining, and through interviews with some of those involved in organizing Chinese investment in the rare earth elements (REE) and uranium mining project at Kvanefjeld near Narsaq, Southern Greenland, the article studies how country specific Chinese priorities and a sector specific political economy affect a Chinese enterprise investing in the Kvanefjeld project. The article seeks to 1) add substance to the many speculations on Chinese intentions in Greenland that have dominated discussion in the Danish media, and to some extent also politics and academia, and to 2) add understanding to how state and market interact in Chinese REE mining projects overseas. The article shows that while much Chinese state attention is clearly directed towards the supposedly strategically important investments in Greenland, and state incentives play a large role, the amount of coordination and strategic focus is very limited.
Juha Saunavaara
While changes in the Arctic evoke many concerns, they also serve to raise hopes and inspire plans that are being incorporated into the policies of nations far from the shores of the Arctic Ocean. This study considers Hokkaido as an example of a region in which development has been linked to new Arctic possibilities by both public and private actors. The main issues under discussion are the Northern Sea Route and the submarine communications cables that pass through Arctic waters. Proponents of the former have concentrated on the concept of ‘geographical advantage,’ suggesting that it is possible for Hokkaido to become the East Asian hub of the Northern Sea Route due to its favourable geographical location. The latter issue has received less attention from the public and various economic interest groups, though actors involved in the data center and cloud network industries have demonstrated particular interest in submarine cables. The debate surrounding potential new opportunities has also contributed to the (re-)emergence of demands for tighter direct connections between Hokkaido and other northern regions. This study also demonstrates the significance of having a small number of local opinion leaders, maintaining close ties between actors representing both the public and private sectors and considering existing demands for greater concreteness in terms of plans. In other words, utilizing the vocabulary of knowledge phase literature, it can be concluded that calls to advance from the exploration and examination phase to the exploitation phase have been made in Hokkaido.
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