Directions of research at the institute of socio-economic and energy problems of the North of the Komi Science Centre, Ural Branch, RAS

The paper is written in connection with the 30th anniversary of the Institute of So- cio-Economic and Energy Problems of the North. The subject of socio-economic re- search of the Institute is considered in two directions: 1) reflecting what is happening in the North; 2) defining the essential characteristics of the North as a specific object of interdisciplinary research. The first one has become traditional and provided with scientific and organizational planning; the second one is in the area of interests of individual employees and requires additional creative efforts for its formation. De- tails of these directions are made on the example of the Komi Republic, where the Arctic (tundra and forest-tundra) and taiga territories can serve as a benchmark for the formation of management rules in extreme and difficult climatic conditions. The first direction is presented in the form of a summary of theoretical and applied study of population, environmental management, formation of economic systems and me- chanisms of regulation of socio-economic processes. The second direction captures the attention of researchers on such characteristics of the Northern territories as climate discomfort, high natural-resource and ecological potential, specific space of socio- economic activities and the high role of territorial management