On March 13, PORA will host the Northern Forum on Sustainable Development expert discussion
The Project Office for Arctic Development (PORA) will serve as the venue for the international expert discussion "Northern Cooperation in an Era of Change" as part of the Northern Forum on Sustainable Development. The event will be held across three thematic tracks.
Panel session 1: "Arctic Tourism: Unlocking the Potential Without Losing Uniqueness"
The session will present the draft Concept for Tourism Development in the Russian Arctic Zone through 2035, prepared for submission to the State Council of Russia. Co-organisers: Northern Forum Working Group on Tourism, Russian Union of Travel Industry. Moderator: Vladimir Vasilyev, Executive Director of the Northern Forum.
Panel session 2: "Climate Change in the Arctic: Challenges and Adaptation Measures. A View Towards COP31"
The discussion is timed to the preparations for COP31, to be held in Antalya, Turkey, in November 2026. The Northern Forum holds observer status with the UNFCCC and is well positioned to facilitate effective international dialogue. Russia aims to present a consolidated, science-based position on Arctic climate issues at the conference. Co-organiser: Russian Partnership for Climate Conservation. Moderator: Olga Sanarova, Chair of the Organising Committee.
Roundtable: "Arctic Transport Corridors: Geopolitical Challenges and Technological Solutions"
Participants will examine the shifting map of interests in the Arctic, viable formats for international cooperation, and opportunities for regional integration into global supply chains. Moderator: Maxim Dankin, Director General of PORA.
Speakers include:
- Vladislav Maslennikov — Director, Department of European Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia; Senior Arctic Council Official for Russia
- Ilya Umansky — President, Russian Union of Travel Industry
- Alexander Pilyasov — Director General, Institute of Regional Consulting; Professor, Moscow State University and HSE University \
- Anna Romanovskaya — Corresponding Member, Russian Academy of Sciences; Director, Institute of Global Climate and Ecology
- Alexander Novyukhov — Senator of the Russian Federation; President, Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North, Siberia and the Far East
- Anatoly Nikolayev — Rector, North-Eastern Federal University named after M.K. Ammosov
- Yulia Zvorykina — Professor, International Institute of Energy Policy and Diplomacy, MGIMO University
- Alexander Shestakov — Senior Researcher, MSU Centre for Ocean Studies; Russia's representative in the Arctic Council CAFF Working Group
- Irina Strelnikova — Director, Centre for Arctic Interdisciplinary Research, HSE University
- Elena Bezdenezhnykh — Vice President for Regional Policy and Government Relations, RUSAL
PORA is a partner of the Northern Forum on Sustainable Development — an international expert platform for discussion of Arctic and Northern development challenges and opportunities.