Technological Innovations for a Sustainable Arctic

south Korea is in a unique position to help address a host of needs in the region.

Given its standing as a global leader in innovation, the Republic of Korea is in a unique position to assist in the application of advanced technologies to address a host of needs in the Arctic region. With this in mind, the Korea Maritime Institute developed and conducted an initial survey to identify how innovative technologies adopted in the Arctic so far are perceived and what additional developments are expected in the near future.

THE ARCTIC region is often seen as the barometer of climate change, a place where threat and opportunity coexist. There are limitations imposed by extreme weather conditions, the risk of shipping accidents, pollution of the marine environment and isolated living conditions that make building communication networks and infrastructure difficult. But as global warming accelerates the melting of sea ice in the

Arctic Ocean, the once-frozen space has become more accessible and conducive to the development of resources and the use of sea routes. This is changing the region’s industry, economy, society and culture.

Particularly in the last decade, changes have been drastic. The minimum extent of sea ice was recorded in 2012, and glaciers in Greenland are melting at an unprecedented rate. Rising temperatures, melting permafrost and acidification of the Arctic Ocean are all impacting flora and fauna and the livelihoods of the region’s peoples. Simultaneously, Arctic states and their global business partners have invested in mega oil and gas developments, infrastructure projects and other logistic efforts. Growing human activities, including tourism, have raised environmental risks and increased economic impacts on local communities.

The 2010s were marked by international co-operation as the Arctic Council, the highest intergovernmental forum in the Arctic, produced rules-based agreements on search and rescue, marine oil pollution and scientific co-operation. These agreements together with the Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement all emphasize science as the common language of Arctic governance.

Non-arctic states, including China, Japan and the

Republic of Korea (referred to below as South Korea), were approved as observers in the Arctic Council in 2013. They have all increased their Arctic activities through bilateral and multilateral co-operative mechanisms. Needless to say, the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 has produced socio-economic impacts in the Arctic. These have accelerated complexity and increased risks and challenges.

To reduce and manage these risks, we should consider the use of technology based on sustainable principles. In this regard, the innovative technologies associated with what is known as the fourth industrial revolution have the potential to help meet these challenges in a harmonious and practical way.

Innovative Approaches to the Arctic

The global economic value of innovative technologies is increasing, gaining attention as a means of reducing risks, and expanding opportunities in the Arctic and elsewhere.

Factors such as the extreme climate and the unique nature of Arctic biodiversity increase vulnerability and make the need for advanced ICT technologies greater than in other regions. To protect the environment and ecosystems, the demand will be high for a combination of technologies including monitoring technologies that use Big Data to predict and forecast climate change and data collected by drones to manage Arctic biodiversity and ecosystems. Potential areas for the application of fourth industrial revolution technologies include the development of ports and related infrastructure to make sea routes safe and efficient. As climate change leads to resource and infrastructure development, demand seems certain to grow for high-tech innovative technologies attuned to the Arctic’s unique features.

Against this backdrop, this essay seeks to highlight the perceived level of current innovative technology in the Arctic and future needs from a Korean perspective. Innovative technologies could help address significant issues related to the supply of labor, which is an important matter for the development of the Arctic. While development in the Arctic is expected, led by natural resources and infrastructure, the working population needed to support such development is insufficient.

According to Guggenheim Partners, investments in Arctic infrastructure are expected to reach US$1 trillion over the next 15 years.1 In comparison, the Arctic population is expected to increase only from 4,050,000 in 2010 to 4,200,000 in 2030, a mere 4 percent increase over 20 years compared to the projected 29 percent increase in global population during the same period.2 Therefore, the future demand for innovative technologies that use automation and unmanned systems is expected to be high. Arctic industries driven by such innovative technologies will play an important role in achieving sustainable development in the Arctic.

Levels of Innovation and Their Priority

No comprehensive study of the level of innovative technologies adopted so far in the Arctic and the need for additional ones has yet been conducted. Also, since the areas of application and types of innovative technologies vary greatly, it is difficult to produce a comprehensive assessment. With this in mind, the Korea Maritime Institute developed and conducted an initial survey to identify how innovative technologies of the fourth industrial revolution adopted in the Arctic so far are perceived and what additional developments are expected in the near future.3 Based on this analysis, we have tried to draw some implications regarding the role of innovative technology in the achievement of sustainable development in the Arctic. The survey featured a structured questionnaire conducted both through online and in-person interviews. A total of 75 Korean experts on the Arctic took part.

On whether fourth industrial revolution technologies are needed in the Arctic, 93.1 percent of the respondents said yes. Those who answered that they were highly familiar with these technologies ranked the need for them in the Arctic highest, demonstrating a correlation between awareness about innovative technologies and the perception of their necessity. Comparing the level of these technologies used in the Arctic at the moment with the level thought to be needed in the future, 66.7 percent of the experts perceived the current level as low, with an average score of 32.9 on a scale of 1 to 100. In specific sectors, the current use of fourth industrial revolution technologies was considered lowest in the ports and logistics sector

and highest in the ocean observation and prediction sector. Whereas experts saw a high need for fourth industrial revolution technologies in the Arctic, they perceived that the current level of use is low, indicating a significant gap between the perceived demand and reality. This shows the potential for such technologies in the Arctic and suggests the need to adopt policies to harness that potential.

On the question of conditions considered necessary to spur the development of these technologies, a majority of the survey respondents viewed strengthening international co-operation as the greatest need, followed by the development of a policy framework and then the establishment of infrastructure for the utilization of these technologies.

Among 30 types of technologies applicable to eight categories of ocean uses and fisheries, survey participants responded that priority areas for the application of these technologies include:

•Ocean energy development and utilization; •Predicting and managing ocean environmental change and mitigating marine pollution; •Fundamental marine bioengineering; •Oceanographic observation and monitoring systems; •Ocean equipment and exploration;

•Port operation information systems;

•Advanced, automated maritime traffic and safety; •Fishery resources survey and aquaculture production management.

Gaps and Challenges

The survey results indicate that the perception of the need for innovative technologies for various Arctic issues is high, whereas the perception of the actual

use of these technologies is low. Also, there is a gap between current and future levels of their use as seen through the eyes of experts.

To reduce the gap, policy initiatives and international co-operation must go hand in hand. There is a need to increase investments in R&D relating to innovative technologies. This could produce a socio-economic ripple effect through the industrial network, including the environmentresource-infrastructure-shipping-logistics network. Also, consideration should be paid to expanding technological exchange and co-operation, including joint research with other technologically advanced countries. According to the World Economic Forum, for example, South Korea ranked as the most innovative country among some 200 countries surveyed.4 All Arctic states ranked within the world’s top 25, with Sweden, Finland and Denmark ranked second, seventh, and eighth, respectively. South

Korea and the Arctic countries are all leaders in innovation, and this shows that there is potential for South Korea among the non-arctic States to make contributions in applying innovative technologies to industries in the Arctic, thereby contributing to sustainable and responsible development.

Still, it is difficult to say that a satisfactory analysis has been conducted by just considering perceived levels of current innovative technologies as applied in the Arctic based on one simple survey of Korean experts. The role and importance of technologies will differ across applicable areas and types of technology. In future studies, additional analysis will be needed according to different technology types, applicable areas and the level of technology currently in use in order to arrive at a more comprehensive and accurate picture. Nevertheless, this study is valuable as a point of departure for future research.

Innovative technologies are making significant impacts around the world, across a wide range of industries and spaces. The Arctic is seen as one of the regions that will have the greatest need for innovative technologies to overcome environmental and human resource limitations and to eliminate social costs.

It is predicted that Arctic states will actively seek to promote policies encouraging the adoption of innovative technologies and enhancing co-operation with states that possess such technologies.

In the meantime, the Covid-19 pandemic is further isolating the Arctic region due to its extreme climate, geographical isolation, low population density and infrastructure deficits. In response, solutions designed to address the impacts of Covid-19 in the Arctic are developing rapidly. The emergence of “un-tact” technologies is accelerating, as the time needed for commercialization of these technologies is becoming shorter.5 Whereas before the outbreak of Covid-19, the usefulness of innovative technologies sometimes seemed low due to the high price of development compared with likely benefits, the pandemic has caused a rapid rise in demand for innovative technologies, making them realistic solutions to specific problems.

Finally, in adapting innovative technologies for use in the Arctic, it is essential to consider extreme climatic conditions. There is some question whether innovative technologies can function as well under extreme weather conditions as they do in more temperate climate zones. “Winterization” of innovative technologies will be needed in the Arctic, further strengthening the focus on the importance of research and development.

While the potential and the demand for innovative technologies in the Arctic to help ensure sustainable development is clear, there are differences in approach among the Arctic states with regard to their policies, investments and existing uses of innovative technologies. It is time to search for ways to safeguard the Arctic region from the adverse impacts of global warming by encouraging the development of co-operative initiatives to make use of innovative technologies. South Korea is ready to play an active role in this effort.

Jong Deog Kim is Vice President for Research at the Korea Maritime Institute. Sungwoo Lee is Director General of the institute’s General Policy Research Division. Minsu Kim is Director of the institute’s Northern & Polar Regions Research Department. Jeehye Kim is Senior Researcher in the Northern & Polar Regions Research Department. the Korea Maritime Institute is a government-affiliated research organization under the umbrella of the National Research Council for Economics, humanities and Social Sciences in South Korea.