Since its inception almost 50 years ago, the Antarctic Treaty System has evolved to provide a stable and remarkably effective regime for management of the coldest, driest and windiest continent on earth. New challenges to this legal regime are now posed by contemporary problems such as climate change, tourism, and fishing and whaling in the Southern Ocean. For State Parties to the web of treaties that make up the Antarctic system of governance, the 21st century brings new demands for environmental protection while ensuring reasonable access for scientists and tourists alike. The papers in this collection were presented at a conference organized by the British Institute of International and Comparative Law and the United Kingdom's Foreign and Commonwealth Office to coincide with the Twenty-Ninth Meeting of the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Parties held in Edinburgh in June 2006.