May 25, 2020

COVID-19 Impacts in the Arctic

As if ongoing climate and environmental change in the Arctic wasn’t enough, along comes COVID-19, with new challenges to human life, Arctic communities, operations, economic prosperity, and scientific research.

In light of these unprecedented and intersecting challenges, on May 19th & 20th, the US Naval War College, the Wilson Center’s Polar Institute, and the US Arctic Research Commission co-organized and co-hosted a virtual conference on the impacts of COVID-19 in the Arctic.

Over 1,100 attendees participated in the event which included 10 moderated panel discussions involving 46 panelists from all over the world. The panels focused on Arctic community health, economic activities, US Coast Guard Operations, scientific research, international impact, and other topics. A recording of the conference is available on the US Naval War College’s YouTube channel (day 1 and day 2), as is a news article in Arctic Today.