Event Date: December 10, 2020 - 1:00pm to 4:00pm
Location: Webinar

Video of webinar available here:

Presented by OPSA, NAADSN and CIPS

The emergence and management of COVID-19 has dominated headlines in 2020. The pandemic has been experienced differently across the globe, generating various geopolitical, economic and social consequences. The Arctic region has seen relatively low case counts but many Arctic communities are isolated and are facing an infrastructure deficit.

This conference will gather Arctic experts in order to describe and analyse significant developments that impacted the Arctic region in 2020. It will also provide a glimpse as to what 2021 has in store for the region.

The Arctic Region in 2020 represents the second edition of an annual review of Arctic developments published by the Observatory on Politics and Security in the Arctic (OPSA), in partnership with the North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (NAADSN) and the Centre for International Policy Studies (CIPS).

Panel 1 (in English): 1:00 – 2:15

• Navigation: Frédéric Lasserre, Full professor, Department of Geography, Laval University.
• Military operations and acquisitions: Adam MacDonald, Ph.D candidate in political science, Dalhousie University, and Thomas Hughes, Ph.D candidate in political science, Queen’s University
• North American defence relationship: Troy Bouffard, full-time faculty instructor, University of Alaska Fairbanks and P. Whitney Lackenbauer, Canada Research Chair in the Study of the Canadian North, Trent University.
• Natural resources: Pauline Pic, Ph.D candidate in geography, Laval University

Panel 2 (in French): 2:30 – 4:00

• Diplomacy: Mathieu Landriault, director of the Observatory on Politics and Security in the Arctic (OPSA)
• Connectivity: Michael Delaunay, Ph.D candidate in political science, Université de Versailles Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines
• Human security: Magali Vullierme, post-doctoral researcher, North American and Arctic Security and Defence Network (NAADSN).
• Economy: Jean-François Payette, scientific director of the Observatory on Politics and Security in the Arctic (OPSA).