Abstract

Urban areas in Arctic Russia are experiencing unprecedented social and ecological change. This collection outlines the key challenges that city managers will face in navigating this shifting political, economic, social, and environmental terrain. In particular, the volume examines how energy production drives a boom-bust cycle in the Arctic economy, explores how migrants from Muslim cultures are reshaping the social fabric of northern cities, and provides a detailed analysis of climate change and its impact on urban and industrial infrastructure.

“The contributions to the edited collection… overall provide an effective introduction to some of the key issues facing Russia’s Arctic urban regions over the short- to medium-term. They also provide a useful framework for further work focusing on the area. Orttung’s afterword makes it clear that the region’s future remains uncertain and thus presents an ongoing concern for Russia as well as the global community.” • Slavic Review

“Russia's Arctic Cities are definitely understudied, as are Arctic urban studies in general. Therefore the focus of this volume is timely and well chosen.” • Florian Stammer, University of Lapland

Robert W. Orttung is Research Director at the George Washington University Sustainability Collaborative and Associate Research Professor of International Affairs. He is the author or editor of numerous books about Russian politics and energy policy.