8th Symposium on the Impacts of an Ice-Diminishing Arctic on Naval and Maritime Operations
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Event Co-Sponsors
Overview
On July 17 and 18, 2019, the US Arctic Research Commission, US National Ice Center, and Wilson Center鈥檚 Polar Institute hosted the 8th Biennial Symposium on the Impacts of an Ice-Diminishing Arctic on Naval and Maritime Operations (IDA). Speakers discussed a wide array of issues currently facing the Arctic region, including: marine transportation; federal, state, local, and international operations; security; scientific research; infrastructure and investments; policy implications in the region; and much more. Please click here for the program booklet, complete with the agenda, speaker bios, and other pertinent information.
To communicate the findings of and discussions at IDA, the co-hosts will curate a collection of materials: a topic-by-topic breakdown of videos of each panel and presentation; a series of in-depth interviews with select speakers and attendees, and; a proceedings document to summarize the symposium. A table of contents is listed below, with links to the panel videos, agenda, and pictures; the interviews and proceedings will be posted in due time. Interested parties will be able to navigate this collection to interact with IDA鈥檚 discussion and continually refer to the day鈥檚 findings. This webpage serves as the main nexus for these materials.
Table of Contents
Quotes from Speakers
Senator Angus King听 (Maine)
鈥淭here鈥檚 no structure to deal with security issues [in the Arctic Council]. I think that鈥檚 something we really need to think and talk about. I understand that the Council is this entity that avoids those issues, and, therefore, is able to accomplish great things in a cooperative way. But if we don鈥檛 have somebody thinking and talking about 鈥楬ow do we resolve security conflicts?鈥 it seems to me that鈥檚 going to be a significant challenge going forward. Remember, the basic question is: How do we discover the Arctic without the Peloponnesian War? And I hope that we鈥檙e at a place in our progress in civilization that we can do that. But there鈥檚 no certainty on that issue.听
Senator Lisa Murkowski (Alaska)
鈥淭he Arctic today is not the Arctic of generations past.鈥
鈥淚 was part of a follow-on discussion [at the Arctic Council], and we were reminded by the Finnish minister, who said: 鈥業t鈥檚 not like we can really put a Do Not Disturb sign on the Arctic.鈥 We can鈥檛 do that. The investment is happening. The activity is already occurring. And so this is our reality. Whether you like it or not.鈥
Senator Dan Sullivan (Alaska)
鈥淚 would say certainly that in my 4 and a half years in the Senate, you can feel a shift where the people talking about the Arctic initially 鈥 I felt 鈥 were [Senator Lisa Murkowski], me, [Representative] Don Young - and that鈥檚 not the case anymore. You see members, Democrats, Republicans, Senate, House talking about this important area of the world, and important national interest of the United States, and that鈥檚 continuing, and that鈥檚 really, a really positive trend.鈥
Admiral Charles W. Ray, Vice Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard
鈥淲e鈥檝e talked about the energy perspectives in the Arctic, and the challenges that associate with increased access by tourism and by cruise ships鈥nd we are certainly leaning into those. But we also see other nations seeking to shape the security environment to their own advantage. That鈥檚 the nature of nations of the world. They seek their own interest. Certainly Russia and China鈥ave demonstrated a tendency to be more aggressive in promoting their national interests there. And, therefore, our work and our presence there is all the more important.鈥澨 听
Deputy Secretary Dan Brouillette, U.S. Department of Energy
鈥淭o help address this high cost of electricity in Alaska, DOE has worked with Alaskans to deploy renewables through grants provided by the DOE鈥檚 Office of Indian Energy, and through R & D projects that translate discovery into real-world impact 鈥 and very specifically. We are collaborating with communities in the Arctic to understand how micro-grids can become platforms for integrated energy systems, bringing together renewable sources with energy storage to decrease energy costs and emissions as well.鈥
Wayne Westlake, President & CEO, NANA Regional Corporation
鈥淲ith our experience in the Arctic from an industrial development standpoint鈥e feel we are a significant partner in working with the rest of the country and the rest of the world when it comes to the Arctic.鈥
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Hosted By
Polar Institute
Since its inception in 2017, the Polar Institute has become a premier forum for discussion and policy analysis of Arctic and Antarctic issues, and is known in Washington, DC and elsewhere as the Arctic Public Square. The Institute holistically studies the central policy issues facing these regions鈥攚ith an emphasis on Arctic governance, climate change, economic development, scientific research, security, and Indigenous communities鈥攁nd communicates trusted analysis to policymakers and other stakeholders.听 Read more
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