This EAGER project explores whether a new conceptual model of social coordination, developed by PI Arthur Mason using data from North American energy companies, can effectively identify new forms of innovation for assessing uncertainty in Russian arctic natural gas development. Previous research in organizational anthropology by PI Arthur Mason illuminates the ways in which North American energy companies culturally define uncertainty in U.S. and Canadian arctic natural gas development; these include (1) reliance on redefined relations between government and industry; (2) reliance on consultant expertise; (3) reliance on future descriptions that catalyze perceptions about risk. The PI theorizes that these three contexts establish "communities of interpretation" among government and industry leaders for how industry operates and thus have implications for the way society will produce, control, allocate and use arctic energy resources.
In order for the PI to test his hypothesis of "communities of interpretation" across the Arctic there is the need to gain access and explore these ideas among Russian energy companies. This EAGER project will facilitate (1) identifying access to written empirical data on Russian arctic natural gas development, including history of technology transfers, energy demand forecasting, energy policy, market integration and liberalization (2) identifying access to collaborative and field research opportunities in Russia among government officials, industry leaders, community stakeholders and academic institutions. The research addresses a major formative force of our time, the politics of energy markets, and the way emerging transnational networks of expertise are embroiled in the constitution of imagined futures that impact on developments in the energy sector. The research project will potentially determine the effectiveness of applying core anthropological theories and methods to new and challenging research fields often associated with other disciplines.
