Features of the Arctic Policy of the United States and Canada and the Contribution of Their Northern Universities in Its Implementation

The United States and Canada, along with Russia, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Finland and Sweden, are the so-called "official" Arctic countries. In the 21st century, The United States and Canada have begun to implement national Arctic strategies and updated them. The accepted documents have both similarities and differences. The United States and Canada are active members of the Arctic Council and view it as a platform for negotiations on a wide range of issues related to the development of the Arctic. The United States has come a long way in the Arctic, including in terms of regulation. Unlike other Arctic countries, the United States has a minimal area of access to the Arctic Ocean, their strategy as a whole is turned “outward”. The first Canadian strategy for the development of the Northern Territories (2013) is addressed directly to the development of the northern periphery of the country, formulates tasks for its sustainable socio-economic development, the development of indigenous peoples, and the support of sovereignty. In 2019, the updated strategy presented already combined national and international goals for the development of the Arctic and the North. To advance national interests in the Arctic, the US and Canada have developed and funded a geographically, infrastructure, stakeholder, and thematically differentiated Arctic research policy in which higher education institutions play an important role and are used to reinforce their geopolitical aspirations. The purpose of the article is to characterize the features of the Arctic strategies of the USA and Canada, as well as to analyze the contribution of universities and colleges in Alaska (USA) and the northern territories and provinces of Canada to the implementation of research policy in the Far North and the Arctic. The practical significance of the paper is in the possibility of its use in the educational process, as well as for the analysis and updating of international aspects of research activities by universities in the Arctic zone of Russia.