• Also view:
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• Sami me — Sami you
• Talking North
• Talking Barents
• Barents Travel Diaries, Murmansk
• Sami-Salami
• Borders - Control or Rock-n-Roll?
• Border-Crossing Exercises
• Barents 2058 - Scenarios for the Pomor Zone
• New East-West Security: Northern Perspectives
• Barents Travel Diaries
• Border-Crossing Art and Life
• Transborder Concert
• Russia 2008 - Between Elections: Duma elections in December and Presidential elections in March
• Kirkenes and Nikel – Art and Ore
• Kirkenes – a Town in Oslo
• Cultural engagement - contact or contract?
• What's Happening in Northern Norway?
• Det bor flere folk i Barents
• Art and Politics Across Borders
• Artistic borderology

• « Transborder Café

Barents 2058 - Scenarios for the Pomor Zone

How can, will, should or should not the Barents Region be transformed during the coming five decades? Through scenario techniques, we search for different future possibilities. The intention is to illustrate the future consequences of the ongoing political discussions. There is an infinite number of stories that we could tell; our purpose is to tell those that matter, that lead to better decisions. Since we work with cities on both sides of the border, the comparative element and correlations between the cities, people and landscapes are important elements.
www.barents2058.com

The following scenarios will be presented and concluded with a discussion focusing on how these scenarios reflect today´s foreign politics and economy of Norway and Russia.

Scenario 1: DEAR OIL 
Norway is a post-oil society with an economy based on green energy. Russia is the oil superpower of the world with an automated remotely controlled industry. The Barents mainland is still a scarcely populated place. The population has declined. The inhabitants of the Norwegian-Russian border region live mainly of a reindeer industry and reindeer bi-products, as well as small-scale fishing. They can cross the border freely under high-tech digital surveillance.

Scenario 2: FISHY BUSINESS
In 2058 we see a cooperative Norwegian-Russian border region by the Barents Sea. United by a common new infrastructure and economic agreements, the countries collaborate on trading and industry, as well as guarding the seas from illegal fishing, piracy and refugees. After the global food crisis, the area focuses on large-scale aquaculture instead of mining and oil.
With a 2 C higher sea temperature, Varangerfjord today is better suited for fish production. Artificial production islands and coral reefs have been built to support the aquaculture. However, depending mostly on one industry leaves the area vulnerable to ecological and economical changes.
The towns and production areas form an urban network, interconnected by the high-speed Pomorail and common energy and waste facilities. The towns have different profiles and they provide a wide range of services for the inhabitants and visitors of this Arctic Pomor Region of the 21st century.

Scenario 3: THE MELTING POT
The Melting Pot is a scenario where global warming has lead to increasing melting of the ice in the Arctic, Antarctic and Greenland. Leaving large areas of the world flooded and in lack of fresh water.
New sea-routes are important for the north-west and north-east trading and climate refugees have moved north to a more stable future, making the Barents Region a multicultural society.
Another consequence of the climate change is that carbon gas taxes and the need for new energy technology has made oil a non-profitable industry.
Norway has established a big industry harbour in Kirkenes – for international cargo vessels, Norwegian and Russian fishing boats, and maintenance and supply for them.

The Transborder Cafe arranged in cooperation with Bergen School of Architecture.