SANDRA ENGSTRAND tate Learning and Playing Role S State Learning and Role Playing ECOLABEL 3041 0903 Lund 2018 NORDIC SWAN Printed by Media-Tryck, International environmental cooperation in the Arctic Council How do states learn of environmental norms? This is the theme of this disserta- tion, which turns towards the Arctic to give an illustration. Here, the effect from global warming is big and ice-melting rapid, while economic opportunities State Learning and Role Playing grow as natural resources, like oil and gas, are lying increasingly bare. The theme is addressed in a case study of the Arctic Council, and more specifically International environmental cooperation in the Arctic Council through two negotiation processes dedicated to Arctic oil spill prevention and reduction of short-lived climate pollutants. It is suggested that (the potential SANDRA ENGSTRAND for) international cooperation on environmental protection has its base in more LUND UNIVERSITY AND MALMÖ UNIVERSITY things than a recognized value of environmental norms per se. The author sheds light on how interacting states, through engaging in arguing and com- munication, learn about their social roles, as well as their ‘wants’. Not only national ideas and interests are here important, but others’ expectations. In this book, it is explored how wishes to preserve its social role in a group, and to be perceived as an Arctic ‘cooperator,’ are also drivers for state learning of environmental norms. LUND UNIVERSITY Faculty of Social Sciences Lund Political Studies 190 ISBN 978-91-7753-618-5 ISSN 0460-0037 MALMÖ UNIVERSITY Faculty of Culture and Society Malmö Studies in Global Politics 4 ISBN 978-91-7104-908-7 9 789177 536185 State Learning and Role Playing International environmental cooperation in the Arctic Council Sandra Engstrand Lund Political Studies 190 Malmö Studies in Global Politics 4 1 Copyright Sandra Engstrand Cover photo: Jökulsárlón, Iceland (by S. Engstrand) Lund University⏐Faculty of Social Sciences⏐Department of Political Science Malmö University⏐Faculty of Culture and Society⏐Department of Global Political Studies ISBN, Lund University: 978-91-7753-618-5 (print), 978-91-7753-619-2 (pdf) ISBN, Malmö University: 978-91-7104-908-7 (print) 978-91-7104-909-4 (pdf) ISSN: 0460-0037 Printed in Sweden by Media-Tryck, Lund University Lund 2018 2 Till Mattias, August och Nils 3 Table of Contents Acknowledgement .............................................................................................................. 7 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................... 9 What the reader should expect .................................................................................... 9 Situating the project ................................................................................................. 10 Objective, aim, and research questions ...................................................................... 18 Learning in International Relations ........................................................................... 20 Contributions ........................................................................................................... 25 2. Methodology and research design ................................................................................. 29 The theatrical act of cooperation ............................................................................... 29 Introducing the setting: the Arctic Council ............................................................... 30 Selection of cases ...................................................................................................... 34 Methods of text analysis and interviewing ................................................................. 37 Conclusion ............................................................................................................... 45 3. Investigating learning by theorizing roles ...................................................................... 47 States know what they want, do they? ....................................................................... 47 Roles: a tracking tool for learning ............................................................................. 51 Symbolic Interactionism ........................................................................................... 57 Learning through (common) understanding ............................................................. 60 4. Cooperation and role performance in the Arctic Council .............................................. 65 Learning – movement with direction ........................................................................ 65 Arctic Council development: three time periods ........................................................ 72 Period I – 1996-2005: Science as a regional attention maker ........................... 74 Period II – 2006-2013: Political cooperation ................................................... 75 Period III – 2014-present: Cooperation under insecurity ................................. 78 Conclusions: on course for Arctic cooperation? ............................................... 81 Understanding patterns of behavior as role performance ........................................... 82 Canada – Protector ......................................................................................... 85 Denmark – Kid-brother realist ........................................................................ 90 Finland – Reserved team player ....................................................................... 94 4 Iceland – Follower with ambitions .................................................................. 97 Norway – Restless know-how leader .............................................................. 101 Russia – Responsive informant ...................................................................... 107 Sweden – Teacher on demand ....................................................................... 113 The United States – Innate leader ................................................................. 118 The stability of roles in the Arctic Council cooperation ........................................... 124 5. Negotiating oil spill prevention – higher expectations, lower ambitions ...................... 127 Preventing oil spills through an exchange of experiences ......................................... 127 Oil pollution and AC cooperation on its prevention: a background ............... 128 TFOPP: reaching a consensus through (avoiding) arguing ...................................... 134 Common understanding on the need for cooperation .................................... 135 Arguing, and the many different worldviews of oil pollution prevention ........ 139 Continuity and change in role performances ........................................................... 147 Confirmative role behavior by Finland and Sweden ....................................... 147 A Canadian attempt for alter-casting? ............................................................ 148 Norwegian role incoherence, or, ‘who should do the role – is it Me or Me?’ ... 151 Conclusion: a process dedicated (to show) cooperativeness ...................................... 153 6. Reducing black carbon and methane – high ambitions, lower expectations .................. 155 The AC as oriented toward actions on emission reductions ..................................... 155 A background on the Arctic Council’s climate change work .......................... 156 Introducing black carbon and methane ......................................................... 159 TFBCM: reaching a consensus through arguing ...................................................... 162 Common understanding on soot, as well as ‘staying put’ ............................... 162 Arguing on commitment, sector reductions, and the AC dramaturgy ............ 166 Continuity and change in role performances ........................................................... 172 When Me confirms I: the leaders – Norway, Sweden and the U.S. ................ 172 A problematic situation allowing for Denmark’s I to decide .......................... 175 Feeling misunderstood? Two territorial giants reconsidered ........................... 177 Conclusion: a process attentive to climate prescriptions .......................................... 181 7. Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 183 Roles and their uncovering potential for learning .................................................... 184 Roles are stable, but flexible ........................................................................... 185 Understanding – the mechanism activating role-flexing ................................. 188 The correlation between roles and learning .................................................... 192 Learning about the Arctic environment: restrained progression ............................... 195 What is there to learn then? .................................................................................... 200 References ...................................................................................................................... 203 Appendix ........................................................................................................................ 237 5 List of abbreviations AC Arctic Council ACIA Arctic Climate Impact Assessment AEPS Arctic