Italy boasts over a century of history in the Arctic, dating back to the Duke of Abruzzi’s expedition in 1899 and Umberto Nobile’s missions in 1926 and 1928. During those expeditions, the Royal Navy’s support was significant, both for hydrographic activities and rescue operations. Italy’s connection with the Arctic has continued over time, through the activity of explorers and scientists, including anthropologist Silvio Zavatti, who dedicated himself to studying the peoples of the North, particularly the Inuit, and Guido Monzino, who reached the North Pole by dog sled in 1971. The launch of research activities by the University of Rome in 1990 at the Pituffik (formerly Thule) Arctic Atmospheric Observatory in Greenland and the opening of the “Dirigibile Italia” base in Svalbard in 1997 by the National Research Council (CNR) mark the beginning of Italy’s current presence in the Arctic. Besides the CNR, other Italian research institutes, particularly the National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development (ENEA), the National Institute of Geophysics and Volcanology (INGV), and the National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics (OGS), have also operated in the region over the years, thus creating a well-established presence of high-level scientific expertise.
Such appreciated contribution to Arctic research, along with the economic interest of some major companies, was at the basis of the request to the Arctic Council for obtaining observer status, which was accepted in 2013. To prepare for that request, the Arctic Table – a coordination forum between Ministries, agencies, and companies – was established at the Foreign Ministry. That forum still meets regularly and is the main forum for discussion and interaction between Italian institutional and industrial stakeholders interested in the Arctic. Within the framework of the Arctic Table, a policy document entitled “Towards an Italian Strategy for the Arctic – National Guidelines” was drafted in 2015-2016. The document summarized the origins, evolution, and objectives of Italy’s presence in the Arctic, highlighting its political commitment, environmental and human dimensions, scientific activities, and economic cooperation. In 2016-2017, the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Chamber of Deputies conducted a fact-finding survey into the Italian Arctic Strategy, which included hearings with Italian and EU institutional representatives, foreign ambassadors, and representatives from the scientific and business communities.
The conclusions of that survey reiterated that “Italy’s participation in political cooperation in the Arctic is a strategic priority in light of the changes underway in the region, caused by climate change and the close interaction among major international players in the Arctic.” It was also emphasized that “in the commitment to strengthening research resources, it is urgent that our country recognizes the specific nature of Arctic research by identifying dedicated institutional and financial instruments, necessary to strengthen international scientific cooperation channels and enhance Italian excellence in the sector.” Therefore, in the 2018 Budget Law, the Foreign Affairs Committee itself promoted the establishment of the Arctic Scientific Committee (CSA) and the Arctic Research Programme (PRA), with the aim of providing further support to research institutions and defining a coherent framework for a strengthened commitment by the Italian scientific community. An event was dedicated to the PRA as part of the CNR Centenary on February 9, 2023, and the funded initiatives are reported on the dedicated website www.programmaricercaartico.it.
The new strategic document on the Arctic, entitled “Italy’s Arctic Policy. Italy and the Arctic: the Values of Cooperation in a Fast Changing Region,” is currently being developed through an inter-Ministerial consultation and will be made public in early 2026. The Foreign Affairs Committee of the Chamber of Deputies launched a new fact-finding survey into geopolitical trends and dynamics in the Arctic region in 2025 and established a Permanent Committee on Foreign Policy for the Arctic.
In its approach to Arctic issues, Italy follows some basic principles, in line with the commitments associated with participation in the Arctic Council as an Observer State: respect for the sovereignty of Arctic States and the rules of international law applicable to the Arctic, primarily the Law of the Sea; promotion of the protection of local traditions and cultures and indigenous peoples, as well as international, multilateral and bilateral cooperation on Arctic issues; contribution to the economic development of the Arctic, involving the business community, within the framework of the highest standards of environmental protection and the principles of sustainable development; protection of the marine environment and safety of navigation. Bearing this in mind, representatives were appointed for each of the Arctic Council’s six permanent working groups, as well as for some expert groups.
The relevance of Italy’s contribution to the Arctic Council – with a collaborative approach that leverages the contributions of Ministries (MUR, MASE, Ministry of Defence through the Navy via the Navy Hydrographic Institute (MIT), through the General Command of the Port Authorities); research institutions (particularly CNR, ENEA, INGV, and OGS); universities and training institutions, as well as major Italian companies interested in the Arctic – is highlighted in the report periodically sent to the Arctic Council on its contribution as an Observer State. Italy also participates in other international frameworks dedicated to the Arctic – both institutional ones, primarily the Arctic Science Ministerial Meeting, the third meeting of which was held in Tokyo in May 2021, and conference-based, such as the Arctic Circle. Italy’s contribution to the IMO (International Maritime Organization) in defining the regulations applicable to vessels operating in polar waters (Polar Code) is equally noteworthy.
Scientific research is therefore the driving force behind Italy’s presence in the Arctic, starting with the decisive momentum provided in the 1980s by the aggregation of a “polar community” around the National Antarctic Research Program (PNRA). Therefore, in the 1990s, activities were launched at the “Dirigibile Italia” base in Svalbard (CNR), as well as at Pituffik (formerly Thule) in Greenland, within the framework of the THAAO International Observatory (Sapienza University of Rome, ENEA, and INGV). Since then, much research has been conducted and much is currently underway, often within the framework of international collaborations and EU programmes. The new OGS polar research vessel “Laura Bassi”, mainly deployed in Antarctica, conducted its first Arctic campaign in 2021, enabling the implementation of three projects funded by the PRA (the “Laura Bassi” replaced the “OGS Explora”, which had conducted five Arctic campaigns in addition to those in Antarctica). The most important initiatives – which are also worth mentioning, due to their collaborative nature resulting from the participation of all the main research institutions – include the annual marine geophysics campaigns launched in 2017 by the Italian Navy, through the Hydrographic Institute, as part of the multi-year programme called “High North”, now in its third three-year period (2023-2025).
Several major Italian companies operate in the Arctic, which are fully involved in the Arctic Table’s works, to ensure maximum synergy between the various components of the country system. Their activities in the region leverage a high level of technology to ensure maximum respect for this particularly sensitive environmental context. They also aim to involve local and indigenous populations in their initiatives, as they hold a valuable wealth of knowledge linked to the region and its traditions. These companies include: ENI, which applies cutting-edge operating standards and technological solutions suited to extreme operating conditions on the Goliat offshore platform in the Barents Sea (Norway) and on the North Slope in Alaska, implementing innovative oil spill prevention systems – with the active involvement of indigenous populations; e-Geos, which markets data from the Cosmo-SkyMed satellite system and collaborates with several Norwegian companies and the Finnish Meteorological Institute; Fincantieri, active in the construction of polar navigation vessels in Norway, the United States, and Canada. CNR and ENI signed a Memorandum in March 2019 to establish four research centres in Southern Italy, especially for young researchers, including one in Lecce dedicated to the Arctic and climate change.
Finally, an important aspect is the dissemination of Arctic issues in Italy and the promotion of Italy’s commitment to the Arctic abroad. In December 2014, the international Conference “Climate Change in the Arctic” was organized at the Venice International University, and in 2016, an international Conference entitled “The Arctic Council and the Italian Perspective – The 20th Anniversary of the Ottawa Declaration” was held at the Foreign Ministry. In November 2016, the CNR exhibition “Arctic: An Interactive Journey to the North Pole” was inaugurated at the Palazzo Ducale in Genoa. It then travelled to several Italian cities and, in February 2020, to the CNR headquarters in Rome. In November 2018, the Milan Center for Food Law and Policy organized the Forum “New Arctic, Old Mediterranean – Together For An Extraordinary Destiny” in Genoa. In April 2019, the Italian Navy’s Hydrographic Institute hosted the exhibition “The Italian Navy at the North Pole” in Genoa. In October 2022, the Alpine Troops Command of the Italian Army organized a Conference in Bolzano entitled “The Arctic: The New Great World Game,” while in November 2023, a workshop entitled “The Future of the Arctic: Conflict or Cooperation?” was held at the Center for American Studies in Rome. On February 25, 2025, the Arctic Observatory, an Italian-language online magazine dedicated to the Arctic, organized the fourth symposium entitled “Italy Calls the Arctic” in Bologna.
The establishment of a PhD Programme in Polar Science at Ca’ Foscari University of Venice in 2019, which became a PhD Programme of National Interest in 2023, is particularly noteworthy. The same holds true for the Polar Museum in Fermo, connected to the “Silvio Zavatti” Polar Geographical Institute, which publishes the magazine “Il Polo”.”
Since 2016, the SIOI (Italian Society for International Organization) has offered a Master’s degree in “Environmental and Economic Sustainability Policies: From the Arctic Region to the Global Dimension,” and since 2018, it has organized the annual international symposium “Arctic Connections,” in collaboration with the Royal Norwegian Embassy in Rome and the University of Bodø. Since September 2018 it has been a member of the UArctic – University of the Arctic network, the first Institute from a Mediterranean country to be admitted. The CNR Institute of Polar Science has recently joined the network. With specific reference to initiatives specifically aimed at young people, it organized a simulation of the Arctic Council’s works called “One Arctic” in 2017, and the Zero Hackathon “Ocean and Polar Connections” in 2019. In April 2023, SIOI was an “abroad partner” in the High North Dialogue in Bodø, where it proposed a session entitled “The High North Seen from a Southern Perspective”.
Again on the international level, Italy has participated in Arctic Circle since 2018, also thanks to the support of the Italian Embassy in Oslo. Besides several breakout sessions during subsequent editions, curated by experts from CNR, ENEA, INGV, the Italian Navy’s Hydrographic Institute, Eni, e-Geos, and Fincantieri, in 2018 the Foreign Ministry’s Special Envoy for the Arctic gave a plenary presentation on “Italy’s Engagement in the Arctic,” a topic to which an entire Italian panel was dedicated in 2024. Further significant presentations regarding Italy’s commitment to the Arctic were delivered by the Special Envoy for the Arctic at the 2025 editions of the Arctic Circle Forum held in New Delhi, the Arctic Spirit in Rovaniemi, the EU Arctic Forum in Kittila, and the Arctic Encounter in Anchorage.
In 2026, Italy will host the next Arctic Circle Forum, a format that is part of the initiatives linked to the Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavik. The event, entitled “Arctic Circle Rome Forum – Polar Dialogue. From Glaciers to Seas,” will be held on March 3-4 at the CNR headquarters, organized by the Ministry of University and Research (MUR) in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI). To launch the Forum, the Italian delegation to the Arctic Circle Assembly, held on October 16-18, 2025, was led for the first time at government level by the Undersecretary of Defence, Senator Isabella Rauti, who spoke at the plenary session ending the Conference.