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ACEP contributes to Arctic security discussion

The Alaska Center for Energy and Power at ���Ųʿ��������¼��ʷ was one of about 50 invited participants to bring diverse perspectives to the discussion on Arctic security at a recent workshop for Arctic Edge.

Arctic Edge is the premier annual Arctic field training exercise between the U.S. and Canada to develop and strengthen homeland defense plans. It is focused on enhancing joint force capabilities, ensuring effective operations between the forces and how to effectively execute comprehensive homeland defense operations in the extreme Arctic environment.

“Deepening Understanding, Expanding Collaborations,” the inaugural workshop in a series, was held in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Dec. 12-13. It brought decision-makers together with representatives of American and Canadian forces, think tanks and academia to collaborate and create a shared understanding for a safe and secure Arctic region.

At the workshop, ACEP’s Director Jeremy Kasper and Deputy Director for Strategic Initiatives Vanessa Raymond provided insight into Alaska’s energy context. They also shared details about the data challenges for understanding and assessing Alaska’s energy capabilities and gaps.

“Providing reliable heat and energy in the Arctic is extremely challenging and costly. This is true in both the civilian and security contexts,” Kasper said, emphasizing the importance of collaborative efforts.

“Through this workshop series, ACEP learned about the needs of Arctic security actors, and we can begin to understand the potential for application of dual-use technologies and knowledge (technologies and knowledge that can be used for both civilian and military applications),” he said.

The Homeland Defense Institute, the Center for Arctic Study and Policy and the Ted Stevens Center for Arctic Security Studies hosted the workshop to support North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command’s Arctic Edge exercise.

The workshop provided an overview of U.S. and Canada defense policy, Arctic priorities and challenges and objectives of the Arctic Edge exercise related to homeland defense and operations. Final outcomes of the Arctic Edge three-part workshop series will include a journal publication on Arctic security.