Swedish Chairmanship 2011-2013
Sweden’s Chairmanship Programme for the Arctic Council 2011–2013
For the region’s inhabitants, developments in the Arctic are a source of both challenges and opportunities. Climate change affects the cultures of the indigenous peoples and their traditional trades, such as reindeer husbandry, hunting and fishing. At the same time, the business community’s increasing interest in Arctic areas may create opportunities for economically more advantageous living conditions.
During its chairmanship, Sweden will promote negotiation by the Arctic States of a tool for prevention, preparedness and response when extracting oil in the Arctic in order to safeguard the region. To justify development in this sensitive area, it is important that it takes place in accordance with the conditions that are characteristic of the region. Sweden will therefore lead the work on drafting guidelines for responsible entrepreneurship in the Arctic, which are based on existing internationally agreed guidelines on corporate social responsibility (CSR). Responsible entrepreneurship means that companies freely assume responsibility – beyond what is required by applicable legislation – on how their activities affect the environment, labour law conditions, human rights and the prevalence of corruption in their markets of operation. The aim is to create a platform for dialogue and cooperation on sustainable enterprise.
