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100 Years of Scientific Freedom in Arctic Research
Norway, Svalbard, Ny-Alesund research station © picture-alliance / AFP Creative | MARTIN BUREAU
Did you know that a 100-year-old treaty still enables global scientific research in the Arctic — for the benefit of all humanity?
Signed in the aftermath of the Versailles peace negotiations and entering into force on August 14, 1925, the Svalbard Treaty granted Norway sovereignty over the archipelago, while establishing a framework that promotes scientific research free from national restrictions, as long as it is conducted peacefully. This framework allows scientists from all over the world — including countries that were not original signatories — to conduct research in the Arctic.
What makes this treaty truly remarkable is its spirit of solidarity over isolation. Within this framework, institutions like the Alfred Wegener Institute, Germany’s leading polar and marine research institute, work side by side with international teams in a region warming nearly four times faster than the global average. Their research addresses existential questions for the future of all humanity.
A century later, the Svalbard Treaty stands as a powerful example of foresight and international cooperation — values that remain indispensable as we confront today’s global challenges.
Arctic Fox
© picture-alliance / AFP Creative | MARTIN BUREAU
View of the German-French research base AWIPEV in the Spitzberg science village of Ny-Ålesund with the observatory. A laser beam leaves the observatory through the lidar hatch. When it is dark, one can often see a bright green laser beam shooting into the sky above Ny-Ålesund from the AWIPEV observatory. The laser beam is part of a LIDAR system that has been operated by the Alfred Wegener Institute in Potsdam since the 1990s. On clear days, it is used to examine the atmosphere for thin clouds and aerosols, the smallest suspended particles in the air.
© picture alliance / dpa | Rene Buergi
Some Houses in the remote village of Ny-Ålesund in Spitsbergen. The image was taken on one of the rare clear sunny days in spring.
© picture alliance / Bildagentur-online/Protze-McPhot
Scientists in the Arctic Ocean near Ny-Ålesund on Spitsbergen (Norway) in front of the Kongsfjord glacier. German and French scientists have been working at the AWIPEV research base in the former miners' settlement on the Svalbard archipelago since 2003. Scientific work at the Koldewey station includes observations of the north polar stratosphere and studies of life in and around the Arctic Ocean.
© picture alliance / dpa | Jens Büttner
