In May 2014 Siberian Federal University became a member of the University of the Arctic (UArctic) with over 170 member institutions and scientific organizations in Russia, Norway, Denmark, Sweden, Finland, the USA, Canada, Greenland, Iceland, and non-Arctic countries. UArctic membership promotes collaboration among UArctic members in norther research via Thematic Networks to enhance northern research and science cooperation, improve opportunities for students to be integrated into framework for development of UArctic education and research which provides an optimal structure for increasing the knowledge generation and sharing across the North by means of educational programmes of the partner universities within the "North2North" Student exchange programme.
In 2015 SibFU became a partner of the Russian Geographic Society in the projects "Barneo Expedition" and 'Duglas' land lease plane evacuation from Taymyr crash scene". University faculty and students got an opportunity to visit the Arctic drifting ice station, located a hundred kilometers from the North Pole.
SibFU endeavours an integrated approach to the Arctic region exploration. Main fields of study:
- Developing means for defence and security, and proper operation of life-support systems
- Ocean bottom seismic survey on Arctic shelf and mineral exploration, seafloor survey of the Arctic ocean by submersible
- Geology, geologic exploration
- Mechanical engineering
- Energy Industry and energy efficiency
- Development of nanocomposite UHMWPE-based materials for slip coating in the Far North
- Social, economic and engineering support of northern regions
- Humanitarian aspects, legal support of sustainable territorial development of the North
- Modern educational technologies, continuous lifetime learning, aiming at development of multicultural education and tolerance in the Russian Federation
- Preservation and regeneration of traditional culture of minor indigenous peoples of the North
- Ecology