ESHS/HSS Annual Meeting

Science Diplomacy as a Site of on-going Contestation: Negotiating Greenland’s Critical Raw Materials and Developing Digital Infrastructure

• In Event: Science Diplomacy: Cooperation, Competition and Crisis 4

English Abstract

In the past century, there has been multiple significant shifts in the control of Greenland’s critical raw materials (CRMs). With this historical legacy in mind, this paper argues that science diplomacy functions less as a neutral tool of cooperation and more as a site of contestation and ongoing negotiation. Given current circumstances, this is becoming increasingly apparent. As global demand for these materials rise alongside the strategic importance of emerging technologies, tensions between national and international interests in Greenland’s resource potential intensifies and the control of its CRMs gains renewed salience. These tensions are also playing out in efforts to develop and control Greenland’s digital infrastructure, which are significantly shaped by Danish security interests. While Denmark continues to play a central role in Greenlandic affairs, Greenland is asserting its authority at a level unprecedented in history. In doing so, Greenland finds itself negotiating its own national interests, managing its historically-loaded relationship with Denmark as well as the renewed threat and opportunities posed by the involvement of other (international) actors in harnessing the potential of its CRMs and developing digital infrastructure. Considering these dynamics, this paper highlights that science diplomacy is inherently an arena of negotiation wherein questions of autonomy, authority and competitive advantage are continuously being teased out.

Author

• Lise Andersen, Institute of Security and Global Affairs at Leiden University