Strengthening Arctic Health Preparedness

Strengthening Arctic health preparedness through collaboration between healthcare, communities, and civil society

Norway (North Norway Regional Health Authority - Helse Nord) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (Norwegian Red Cross) developed a project in EPPR that analyzed challenges and opportunities for strengthening health preparedness in the Arctic region. The project investigated current and future challenges to health preparedness in the region, looking at emerging challenges and response activities that combine capacities from states and civil society to fully maximise all relevant response capacities in the event of an emergency.

A main objective for the project was to examine how resources from civil society and Indigenous Peoples, volunteer organisations and other relevant actors – can assist emergency medical teams and healthcare personnel both directly and indirectly in the event of a major accident or crisis occurring in the Arctic, predominantly by looking at scenarios where it is likely that a lot of people require medical aid and support simultaneously.

The project analysed current trends and developments in the Arctic region, looking specifically at how these trends risk challenging health preparedness in the region

Main objectives included:

• Establishing a common situational awareness across Arctic States and other relevant stakeholders in the area (such as civil society organisations, Indigenous Peoples, and volunteer organisations) about the challenges the region faces, specifically in relation to health preparedness, and establish a mutual understanding of what the key challenges are
• Based on a mutual understanding of the key challenges, investigating opportunities for strengthening health preparedness in the region through the maximisation and utilisation of all relevant resources, in particular resources from civil society.
• Strengthening the overall health preparedness in the region through information-sharing and more insight into available capacities in the region

The project had two main components, Arctic Health Preparedness Conference, hosted in Oslo in January 2025, with a published conference report, and a Photo Voice study conducted with Red Cross volunteers in Finnamrk, Norway. Summary report "Arctic Health Preparedness: the Way Forward" is published in Arctic Council Open Access Repository and by Norwegian Red Cross.

You can read an article about the project on EPPR's website via the link here.