Climate change, extractivist infrastructure and environmental conflicts at the Northern Sea-Polar Silk Road intersection

This study employs a political ecology lens to analyze the interconnections between extractive and infrastructural developments, reported climate change impacts and the experiences of affected communities in socio-environmental conflicts along the Northern Sea-Polar Silk Road. Python programming was employed to process Network Common Data Form (NetCDF) datasets, generating density information on ship movements and applying logarithmic scaling to capture both sparse ship activity in remote areas and high concentrations in key traffic zones. The findings reveal a notable increase in infrastructure developments and areas of concentrated maritime traffic, including existing projects such as Yamal LNG or the newly emerging Vostok mega‑carbon complex. This research offers critical insights into the intersections of climate change and infrastructure-led development corridors, with important implications for Indigenous Peoples and local environmental justice organizations. The results underscore the need to address the colonial dimensions of socio-environmental transformations, especially in the context of the climate crisis that is reshaping both the polar region and global systems.