As part of a team of researchers investigating China’s “Polar Silk Road,” Professor Kathryn Lavelle took a trip to Tromsø, Norway last month as the first of several planned trips to investigate the international efforts to govern the Arctic and China’s growing influence on them. She met with business leaders, politicians, and representatives from the international organizations in order to gauge their sense of China’s role.

The team includes Professor Lavelle, Dr. Liselotte Odgaard of the Danish Foreign Ministry and Hudson Institute, and Dr. M. Taylor Fravel of Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Their project is being funded by the Danish Maritime Fund.

Below are some pictures Professor Lavelle took during her trip.

The harbor in Tromsø, Norway. Many of the early polar explorers took off from here.

The Fram Center. Many of the international organizations and non-governmental organizations that work on the Arctic are headquartered here. Arguably, the most important is the secretariat for the Arctic Council.

The logos for many of the organizations that work on the Arctic.