Climate Change in the Arctic: Perspectives on Adaptation

The consequences of climate change are felt earlier and more intensely in the Arctic region than in the rest of the world. Climate change causes melting of the Arctic Ocean sea ice, which has profound implications for the Arctic ecosystem and the geopolitical position of the Arctic region. In this new situation, understanding of the interplay between environmental change and human activities is more important than perhaps ever before. This presentation is based on my doctoral dissertation, which remains to be finalized. The aim is to add perspectives on adaptation and environmental change to this discussion from a historical point of view. In my doctoral dissertation, I investigate how two Northern societies have responded to challenges caused by the interplay between environmental, political, and/ or socio-economic change throughout their history. In this presentation I have chosen to describe some perspectives on adaptation in the history of Greenland.