This week, US president Joe Biden will decide the future of Nuiqsut, a tiny village on the north coast of AlaskaA US state in the extreme northwest of the continent of North America. It is separated from the rest of the USA by Canada. . It is at the heart of a big debate about fossil fuelsFuels made from decomposing plants and animals, including coal, natural gas and oil. These fuels release carbon dioxide, causing global warming. and climate change.

The Willow Project is a plan by the oil company ConocoPhillips to drill near Nuiqsut in the largest area of public wilderness in the United States.

One-third of Alaska is within the Article Circle, where the climate is warming four times faster than the global average. But the state's economy depends on oil. And production has been falling for decades.

The Willow Project could change that. Supporters say it will provide 600 million barrels over 30 years, helping the economy. Opponents say it will add 278 million tonnes of greenhouse gasesGreenhouse gases, which increase the atmosphere's capacity to hold heat, are vital to life on Earth: without them the planet would be freezing. But human activity is disturbing the delicate balance that created the conditions for life as we know it. Carbon dioxide is responsible for 60% of the manmade greenhouse effect, but we also produce smaller quantities of methane, ozone and nitrous oxide, which are even more damaging. to the atmosphere, the equivalent of running two million cars for three decades.

On social media #StopWillow is trending. Over two million people have signed a petitionA formal, written request for change, signed by many people. . But can the Willow Project be stopped?

There is support for the plan in Alaska. Native Alaskans say it will bring jobs and investment to the region. "We are part of the environment," says local campaigner Nagruk Harcharek, as much as bears, birds and caribou.

The plans have already been changed to reduce the impact on wildlife. Experts expect ConocoPhillips to take the US government to court if Biden scraps their proposal.

But the US president may be thinking about his re-election in 2024. Biden promised to end drilling on public land and young voters may abandon him if they feel he has broken his promises.

Some Alaskans say the project is a "carbon bomb" that must be stopped. "Our Native villages are eroding into the sea," says activist Karlin Nageak Itchoak. "Food sources are disappearing."

Last year, a study showed that new oil fields are "incompatible" with current goals to stop global warming. But rising oil prices have forced governments to increase their domestic production.

But campaigners say activism works. In 2021, protests convinced Biden to stop the controversial Keystone XL oil pipeline between Canada and the United States. Nuiqsut is a physical front line in the fight to save the planet. "It makes it feel more real," says activist Jamal Raad.

Yes: President Biden will break his promise to his voters if he approves the Willow Project. So public pressure is essential to keep him true to his word.

No: This is business as usual. Election promises are often torn up. Petitions and protests are ignored. Money runs the world. There is very little we can do to stop Big Oil from drilling in the Arctic.

Or... Politics is about negotiating between interest groups and solving difficult problems. If we oppose the Willow Project, we must offer alternatives to meet people's needs.