Future development in the Arctic and Subarctic region requires careful attention to the possible consequences of the development activities themselves, in relation to their environmental, socioeconomic and cultural impacts. A more thorough understanding of the impact of future activities, however, demands the dissemination and confrontation of results from different regions and different scientific traditions. This requires scientific cooperation, not only across disciplines but across borders. Primarily it requires both consensus and innovations in regard to methods. This text confronts such differences in approaches and methods in relation to the analysis of socioeconomic and environmental consequences of large-scale mineral and energy development activities in the Arctic and Subarctic, establishing the common ground upon which future research activities can be based.