19 August 2025

University at Sea: Imagining the Future of the Arctic

The One Ocean Expedition was unable to sail through the Northwest Passage as planned. However, this has not deterred the students on board from using their minds as a laboratory to tackle complex challenges.

Climate change, geopolitics, and the global economy are significant drivers of transformation in the Arctic. Today, we stand at a critical crossroads, where the decisions we make now will radically shape both societies and the natural environment in the High North.

The students participating in the course Arctic Future Pathfinders aboard the Ocean Expedition are being guided to envision the direction we should steer towards in the future. This approach equips them to prepare for challenges that cannot be addressed by single disciplines alone.

“We cannot simply focus on what is – we must explore what could be and what we aspire to achieve,” explains Melania Borit, Professor of Knowledge Integration at UiT and the coordinator of the Arctic Future Pathfinders course.

Read more about the course.

Text / Photo : Karine Nigar Aarskog / UiT

Published: 19 August 2025

Updated: 19 August 2025

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