Social and cultural changes in the European Arctic

This report’s overview of the region’s sociocultural landscape includes innovativeand growing Arctic cities, thinning-out rural areas, demographic challenges, anddependence on extractive and primary industries. Indigenous peoples oftenexperience these elements in distinct manners.The EU has a number of programmes that support socioeconomic development and co-operation in the North, as well as relevant transport policies and environmental regulations. When designing and carrying out relevant policies, the EU decision-makers should take into account: the region’s intra-regional and core-periphery connectivity; power structures, social conflicts and cultural diversity; human-nature interactions; as well as the state of innovation, entrepreneurship and education.An EU focus on entrepreneurship and innovation within co-operation and cohesion programmes should be continued and strengthened, with greater attention to gender issues and indigenous peoples. In particular, the activism of dynamic indigenous youth should be supported. Intra-regional accessibility and connectivity, including challenging cross-border projects, must not be neglected in the light of a focus on core-periphery connections within frameworks such as the Trans-European Transport network. The special characteristics and needs of Arctic cities and their importance for regional development need to be taken into account in EU policies and programmes.