The Antarctic and Southern Ocean are hotspots for contemporary endeavours to oversee 'the last frontier' of the Earth. The Handbook on the Politics of Antarctica offers a wide-ranging and comprehensive overview of the governance, geopolitics, international law, cultural studies and history of the region. Four thematic sections take readers from the earliest human encounters to contemporary resource exploitation and climate change. Written by leading experts, the Handbook brings together the very best interdisciplinary social science and humanities scholarship on the Antarctic and Southern Ocean.

A subglacial and highly technological world, almost a complete unknown, reigns under millions of tons of ice. A small, prosperous kingdom in a desert region of Africa occupied by a myriad of peoples and ethnicities, whose legends are _ lled with magic and mystery. A majestic ancient cave in Ethiopia, atop steep and abrupt mountains, where a strange community lives, preserving its myths, knowledge, and a gnosis that sets it apart from the civilized world. At the Australian Embassy in Antarctica, in the Nevada Crater, a sailor comes across a series of enigmatic events such as the unsolved kidnapping and murder of athletes by an Ice wizard in the unique and strange African kingdom, linking obscure worlds in a plot that will involve queens, princesses, detectives, sorceres, giants, and monsters. In this work, the author takes us into a world of fantasy and science fiction, through an original plot that involves jealousy, passion, struggle, and power, creating a gripping story and maintaining suspense from beginning to end.

Proceedings of a conference whose multidisciplinary approach provide an overview of the debate about appropriate future environmental protection of Antarctica, particularly in relation to possible exploitation of its little known mineral resources.

Publisher description

Antarctica, one of the world's last great wildernesses, presents special challenges for international law. Fears that Antarctica would become a front in the Cold War catalysed agreement on the 1959 Antarctic Treaty which neither legitimised nor challenged the existing sovereign claims to the continent. The unique Antarctic Treaty System has provided the foundation for peaceful, harmonious and effective governance. There are, however, new anxieties about the frozen continent and the Southern Ocean. Antarctica already feels the effects of climate change and ocean acidification. Claimant states assert rights to the Antarctic continental shelf and interest in Antarctic resources grows. Tourism brings new environmental and safety risks. China and other powers are increasing their activities, with some questioning the consensus of the 'Antarctic club'. Security concerns are increasingly discussed, despite Antarctica's dedication to peaceful purposes. This book brings together the main primary international materials concerning the regulation and governance of Antarctica, including multilateral and bilateral treaties, United Nations materials, 'soft laws' and judicial decisions. It covers the spectrum of Antarctic issues from environmental protection to scientific cooperation to tourism. As it shows, Antarctic law has constantly adapted to meet new challenges and is a sophisticated, inclusive, dynamic and responsive regime.

The Antarctic Treaty, set up in 1961 to provide a means for managing international relations in Antarctica, was reviewed in 1991. The book considers the question of the region's future with the ever growing international interest in the area as a source of important mineral resources. In this survey, a study group, brought together by the David Davies Memorial Institute of International Studies, looks at the political and environmental questions raised by the potentially conflicting interests in the Antarctic. What are the stresses, internal and external, on the Antarctic Treaty System and can it develop to cope with these? Could these stresses be resolved in a new instrument? If not, what is the likely political outlook for Antarctica? This book does not describe the components of the Antarctic Treaty System. These are discussed in The Antarctic Treaty Regime, edited by Gillian Triggs. Together, the two books will form an authoritative basis for the study of the Antarctic Treaty and its future.