Research Professor

Arctic Centre

By training, Kamrul is a researcher in the field of international law. He has been working on a diverse range of Arctic issues for the last fifteen years. The main focus of his research currently lies in international environmental law that applies to the Arctic and human rights law, particularly concerning the rights of the indigenous peoples, with a focus on the Arctic. Over the years, Kamrul has extensively published in all areas of Arctic governance (climate change; marine environment, maritime delimitation and law of the sea; human activities in the Arctic such as shipping and resource extractions, onshore and offshore oil and gas developments; marine biodiversity conservation; and human rights and human security dimensions) highlighting legal, institutional and policy perspectives.

Postdoctoral Researcher

Arctic Centre

Nadezhda’s background is in political science and international relations. Her research areas include Arctic governance, urban sustainability, climate adaptation, waste management, and circular economy. She has been involved as an expert in international Arctic-related research projects in the Nordic countries and the USA.

Senior Researcher

Marlene’s research concentrates on international environmental law, climate change law, human rights and Arctic governance. Her approach to research is interdisciplinary and transnational in essence, with an emphasis on socio-ecological justice, climate litigation, corporate responsibility and ‘green’ transition issues. Marlene’s current research addresses the legal and political aspects related to the development of a planetary (ecological) approach to international law and governance, with a focus on the Arctic region. Marlene holds a PhD from the University of Liverpool. She currently works for the project ICE BRIDGE – Bridging Ice Climate Technologies and Governance for Biodiversity in the Arctic.

Trainee

Arctic Centre

Nagisa Mochizuki is currently pursuing a master’s degree in Tourism at the University of Lapland. She is working as an intern at the Arctic Centre. Her research focuses on tourism experiences in Arctic destinations, with particular attention to environmental and cultural ethics.

Visiting Researcher

Dawid is a legal philosopher and works on law and philosophy in the Arctic. He conducts cross-disciplinary research (law, philosophy, anthropology, language, politics, economy, etc.). He leads the sub-group of philosophy of law in the Arctic Law Thematic Network at UArctic. He is especially interested in the theory of legal pluralism and indigenous customary laws/rights in the Arctic. He has co-edited e.g. “Philosophies of Polar Law” (Routledge 2020; paperback in 2023). He is Professor at State University of Applied Sciences in Wloclawek (Poland), Associate Member in the Las Casas Institute for Social Justice at Oxford University, Lecturer at the University of Guyana and Visiting Lecturer in the University of Eastern Finland (UEF) School of Theology. He did PhD in legal theory in Poland (2009) and postdoctoral research at UEF. He has been a Docent at the Arctic Centre since 2022.

University Researcher

Faculty of Social Sciences

Leena’s research interests are Indigenous peoples’ rights, including Sámi people’s rights in Finland. International human rights and environmental law as it applies to indigenous peoples. Hansen has a special interest in the Arctic legal co-operation, and she acts as a vice-leader of the University of the Arctic Thematic Network on Arctic Law.

Visiting Researcher

Arctic Centre

Eleni Kavvatha holds a bachelor’s in international, and European studies followed by a master’s degree in Environmental Governance and Sustainable Development, from Panteion University in Athens, Greece and a master’s degree in Governance and Entrepreneurship in Northern and Indigenous Areas from UiT in Tromso, Norway. She works as a Researcher in Arctic and EU Relations for the Centre of Research in Political Science and the Institute of European Studies at UCLouvain Saint-Louis Bruxelles. Her research is focused on the impact of EU environmental policies on the Sami Indigenous People in the European Arctic region. For the past three years, she has been conducting research in Belgium, Iceland, Svalbard, Greenland, Norway and the Finnish Lapland. Her research interests revolve around democratic dynamics in the EU external relations in the High North, non-state actors in the Arctic, Indigenous Peoples Organizations, arctic communities, arctic governance, EU Environmental policies, policy complexity and fragmentation and the EU’s green transition.

Visiting Researcher

Juha Saunavaara received his Ph.D. in University of Oulu in 2010 and he holds the Title of Docent at the University of Turku. Saunavaara is an Associate Professor at the Hokkaido University Arctic Research Center. He has published in peer-reviewed journals and edited volumes covering a range of fields, including Arctic and Asian studies, history, geography, international relations, and tourism. His current research focuses on telecommunication and transport infrastructure in the Arctic, subnational governments’ and non-state actors’ international cooperation, and sustainable tourism.