Spatial Development Institutions of the Russian Arctic Zone

Abstract

The paper presents the results of a study into the institutional foundations of the Russian Arctic zone spatial development, provided both by Russian normative documents and state programs and by international treaties and agreements. Institutional foundations are represented not only by formal institutions, but also by informal ones (the culture and traditions of the Arctic peoples). It should be noted that informal institutions for regulating social relations among the peoples of the Arctic are of greater importance than formal institutions, which is the basis for developing the concept of strategic socioeconomic development of the Arctic. Spatial economic development should to a greater extent be based, according to the authors, on informal institutions – no efforts are required by the authorities to embed these institutions, since society is already ready to build economic and legal relations on the basis of already embedded informal institutions. Here lies the possibility of both successful spatial development and potential conflicts between local informal institutions and federal formal institutions.