Key Pathways to Achieve Sustainable Development Goals in Three Polar Regions

Wang Shijin (), Qiang Wenli () and Liang Qiaoxia
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Wang Shijin: Yulong Snow Mountain Cryosphere and Sustainable Development Observation and Research Station/State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China
Qiang Wenli: College of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, China
Liang Qiaoxia: Yulong Snow Mountain Cryosphere and Sustainable Development Observation and Research Station/State Key Laboratory of Cryospheric Sciences, Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Lanzhou 730000, China

Sustainability, 2023, vol. 15, issue 2, 1-13

Abstract: Due to the local and natural characteristics of high latitude and altitude in the Three Polar Region (TPR)—that is, the Antarctic, the Arctic, and the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau (QTP)—this region has been significantly affected by climate change and related disasters. Thus, the sustainable development pathway for the TPR is different from that of other regions. The Antarctic region, as a public territory, experiences sustainability problems that are mainly the result of the integrated impact of tourism and scientific and commercial fishing activities on the continent and ocean. Understanding how to build a shared, co-built, and co-governed, legally binding and equal international multilateral partnership or treaty, and thereby reducing the impact on water life and on land life, is the key pathway to achieving the Antarctic sustainable development goals (SDGs). The Arctic region has both a high level of development at the national level and a low level of development within the country, including the livelihood of indigenous people. Learning how to effectively deal with the domestic development imbalance in the future is a key pathway to achieving Arctic SDGs. The QTP has a fragile ecology and a single industry. As a relatively poor area in China, the ability to promote ecological protection and improve people’s welfare through ecological policies is a key pathway to achieving the SDGs in the QTP. At the same time, the TPR also needs to enhance its climate resilience through climate action to mitigate the impacts of climate change. On this basis, to fully achieve the SDGs in support of the TPR, it is necessary to establish and pursue multilateral cooperation in science research, infrastructure, commerce, energy, and mining trades. As an important part of the climate system, spatial and temporal changes in the TPR have direct and indirect impacts on the global climate and other spheres (e.g., Anthroposphere) and also affect the global sustainable development process. Therefore, through the TPR’s linkage and multilateral cooperation, the region can simultaneously enter the global sustainable development track.

Keywords: Antarctic; Arctic; Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau; sustainable development; key pathways (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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