SPIA Co-hosts Conference on Implications of Diminishing Arctic Sea Ice
The University of Maine School of Policy and International Affairs and the Maine Army National Guard will co-host a conference May 20–21 to explore challenges and emerging opportunities in the Arctic.
The free conference, titled “Leadership in the High North: A Political, Military, Economic and Environmental Symposium of the Arctic Opening,” will be held from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. both days at the Maine Army National Guard Regional Training Institute in Bangor. Speakers will address global, national and state issues and implications related to diminished sea ice in the Arctic, including the changing environment, trade, geopolitics and policy.
Scheduled speakers include: Gen. Charles Jacoby, commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command and United States Northern Command; Rear Admiral Jonathan White, oceanographer and navigator of the Navy, director of Task Force Climate Change; Paul A. Mayewski, director of the UMaine Climate Change Institute; Major-General Christopher Coates, deputy commander, Canadian Joint Operations Command, National Defence and Canadian Armed Forces; Philippe Hebert, director of Policy Development for Canadian Department of National Defence; and John Henshaw, executive director of Maine Port Authority.
Officials from the U.S. Army Mountain Warfare School will share experiences and display cold-weather operations equipment.
For more information, call Lt. Col. Darryl Lyon, 207.430.5888. The symposium is free but seating is limited and tickets are required to attend. For tickets, contact Peter Fandel, peter.fandel@maine.edu.