About the Polar Law Master Program
The University of Akureyri is offering a Master Program in Polar Law, commencing in September 2008. Emphasis is placed upon relevant areas of public international law, such as environmental law, the
law of the sea, questions of sovereignty and boundary disputes on land and sea, natural resources law, the rights of indigenous peoples in the north, self-government and good governance, and land and
resources claims in the polar regions. Closing date for student applications May 5th 2008.
In connection with this Master Program, the University of Akureyri will work closely with the universities in Tórshavn, Nuuk and Rovaniemi. It will also cooperate with the University of the
Arctic and with universities in Canada, Alaska and Russia. Plans are also being made for cooperation with the universities in Copenhagen, Lund, Oslo, Tromsø and Aabo. The University of
Akureyri will cooperate with the University of Iceland and the Reykjavík University when possible.
The Master program will provide a unique focus on polar law. It comes about in a timely fashion when climate changes are having a dramatic effect on the Arctic and Antarctic regions, when the opening
of the northwest and northeast passages is becoming possible, when current and potential boundary disputes on land and sea remain unresolved, when issues and questions of national and local
governance are moving forward on national and international agendas, and not least, when multiple threats to the environment are raising serious danger signals and calling for urgent measures. One of
the interesting areas of study, that the Master program can contribute to, concerns the possible lessons that the legal regime for the Antarctica could provide for solutions in the Arctic region, for
example concerning the environment.
The Master program is designed for both lawyers (leading to an LLM-degree) and non-lawyers (leading to an MA-degree), preparing them for work in both the public and private sectors, with roles in
national and local governments, with international organizations, with indigenous peoples of the Circumpolar North, with academic institutions and non-governmental organizations, and with national
and transnational corporations.
Before graduating, students have the option to carry out research for and write a master thesis, comprising 10 education credits, An academic expert in the relevant field of law supervises the preparation of the thesis that should constitute an individual and independent effort in a chosen area of specialization within Polar Law.
