This special issue welcomes innovative inter- and transdisciplinary contributions that draw insights from diverse fields and ways of knowing to address how research diplomacy can bridge and rectify (geo)political, social, and epistemological disparities in the polar regions.  With what Mia Bennett and Klaus Dodds (2025) have called the “end of Arctic exceptionalism,” traditional avenues for Arctic governance face unprecedented challenges. In the Antarctic, the governance regime known as the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) has faced certain challenges and shortcomings in recent years in domains where decisions affect access, environmental protection, authority, and beyond. Based on this, some scholars are of the opinion that the conditions that sustained the Antarctic legal and governance regime since 1959 are no longer reliable. Despite geopolitical obstacles, polar climate and environmental changes continue to impact and thereby unify the global scientific and civil community. While discussions continue regarding the ethics, feasibility, and practical aspects of geoengineering, as well as the distribution of burdens and opportunities arising from climate change and the complexities of a widespread "polycrisis," there remains an opportunity to explore the achievements of ongoing research diplomacy in its varied and multilevel forms.

The issue focuses on broadening the understanding of science diplomacy into research diplomacy, specifically how investments in cross-community dialogue and, where legitimate, the integration of knowledge systems and disciplines, can contribute to the practical aims of diplomatic stability and peace-building. It welcomes contributions on diverse instances of collaboration and cooperation among states, Indigenous Peoples, civil society, and research institutions that focus on shared values, even when political ties are strained.

This collection highlights how collaborative scientific endeavors, such as the Fifth International Polar Year (IPY-5) in 2032–2033, can holistically address the polycrisis, foster cooperative international relations, support the elevation of Global South (Global Majority)and Indigenous Peoples’ views, build trust, and lay the groundwork for enhanced geopolitical stability in the Arctic, transcending current political divides. Relevant to the current geopolitical climate, where traditional mechanisms for cooperation are limited, this issue offers a forward-looking perspective on how integrated research networks can forge new pathways for meaningful and effective engagement. We invite contributions that center practices, processes, and challenges in facilitating transdisciplinary collaboration among natural scientists, social scientists, legal scholars, policymakers, Indigenous knowledge holders, representatives of international NGO’s, artists, musicians, youth, and others.

Theoretical Contributions and Research Opportunities

Studying research diplomacy under conditions of institutional strain offers unique opportunities to advance international relations, legal, and organizational theory. We welcome contributions that build upon, test, or extend frameworks, including but not limited to:

● Transdisciplinarity

● Adaptive Environmental Governance Theory

● Post-Normal Science and Co-Creation of Knowledge

● Critical Infrastructure Studies

● Theories of the Commons

● Indigenous Diplomacies, Knowledges, Methodologies, and Cosmopolitics

● Regime Theory and Institutionalism

● Philosophy of Science, including Critical Indigenous, Feminist, and Anti-Oppressive Perspectives

● Planetary Health, Global Cooperation

● Enhanced representation of the Global South and emerging states

Objectives of the Special Issue

This Special Issue aims to:

1. Critically evaluate the contemporary landscape of Polar research diplomacy in relation to interactions among knowledge systems and across political boundaries, development and enforcement of policies and plans, data sharing and mobility, research funding and project foci.

2. Examine the institutional design of IPY-5 (2032–2033) as a forward-looking vehicle for international, intercultural, and intergenerational trust-building.

3.  Theorize relationships among Indigenous and non-Indigenous knowledge systems within international research diplomacy efforts.

4. Explore the multiple scales and memberships of polar institutions from the local to the planetary.

5. Deliver actionable, policy-relevant knowledge to research coordinators, regional rightsholders, and international governance bodies.

6. Explore the cooperative pathways of funding agencies in polar research.

Suggested Themes and Topics for Submission

We encourage conceptual, empirical, theoretical, methodological, legal, governance, and policy-oriented papers on topics including, but not limited to:

Institutions, Governance, and Dialogue

● Informal, non-state, and academic research networks as diplomatic space.

● The role of Arctic Council Working Groups and Indigenous Permanent Participants.

● Research diplomacy as a framework for environmental governance and evidence-informed decision-making.

● The role of Antarctic governance frameworks (ATCM, CCAMLR, Environmental Protocol, etc.)

● The role of external yet relevant institutions such as BBNJ,

The Road to IPY-5 (2032–2033)

● Retrospective lessons from IPY-4 (2007–2008) applied to a fragmented global landscape.

● Equitable and cross-border funding, logistics, and shared infrastructure models.

● Agenda-setting, values-based practice, and safeguarding of common research goals.

● Collaborative capacity building for Early-career researchers.

Sovereignty & Indigenous Representation

● Co-production (co-creation) of knowledge as research diplomacy.

● Indigenous-engaged research diplomacy.

● Data sovereignty, ethics, and intellectual property rights in collaborative research.

Global Interdependence & Extra-Regional Actors

● Polar internationalism, observer states, and divergent interests

● Mid–Low and High Latitude Connections: Comparative science diplomacy between the Mid/low-Latitude regions and the Arctic.

Submission Instructions

Target Volume

The special issue targets a published scope of 10 to 15 papers. The issue will be introduced by a guest-authored Editorial. 

Timetable

● Submission Open Date: July 20, 2026

● Title &Abstract Deadline: September 15, 2026

● Full Manuscript Submission Deadline: October 15, 2026

● Final Acceptance Deadline: July 15, 2027

● Online Publication Date:  Continuous refresh

● Printed Journal Issue Date: September 30, 2027

Guidelines for Authors

● Word Count Limits: Maximum 8,000 words including references for standard research articles and reviews

● Citation and Reference Format: References must be cited in the text as (Author, Year). The bibliography has to be listed alphabetically by author surname, and then chronologically.

● Footnotes: Not allowed. All explanatory material must be integrated into primary prose.

● Manuscript Template: An official journal Word template is not strictly enforced at the initial submission stage

● Portal Submission Instructions: When uploading the manuscript to the publisher's online portal, authors should answer ‘Yes’ to the question regarding submission for a specific call for papers and explicitly select "Polar Science Diplomacy as a Catalyst for Geopolitical Stability" from the drop-down menu.

Guest Editors

Dr. Alexandra Middleton, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland

Dr. Heather Sauyaq Jean Kwamboka Gordon, Sauyaq Solutions, Anchorage, AK, USA

Dr. Nicholas Parlato, Centre for Sami Studies, UiT, Norway

Dr. Zia Madani, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba, Japan

Dr. Susana Hancock, International Cryosphere Climate Initiative, Vermont, USA

Dr. Beixi Deng, Polar Research Institute of China