The Arctic – hot or cold?
conference
House of Sweden
May 19—20, 2015
#arcticconf
Short presentation of speakers
The Arctic – hot or cold? is a conference jointly organised by the Swedish Ministry for
Foreign Affairs, the Swedish Polar Research Secretariat, the Embassy of Sweden in
Washington, DC, and the Centre for Strategic International Studies (CSIS).
This two-day conference will be divided into four distinct but interrelated thematic segments.
The first segment on day one will begin with policy presentations and a dialogue on the
outcomes of the April 2015 Arctic Council Ministerial Meeting in Iqaluit. It will also look
ahead to the US chairmanship of the Council. The second segment will focus on how Arctic
research initiatives and collaborations can support the Arctic Council and the overall
understanding of how climate change and human activity impact the Arctic environment.
The second day will continue on the theme of climate change, starting with an introduction
and illustration by National Geographic photographer Mattias Klum. The final segment of the
conference will focus on the business sector’s role in this very sensitive region and how
commercial interests can support sustainable development in the Arctic. In addition, the
newly established Arctic Economic Council will present its mission.
Speakers and participants will represent a wide range of stakeholders, including Arcticoriented policymakers, researchers, business representatives and NGO’s, and the conference
aims to stimulate discussion and input for further reflection on sustainable development in the
changing Arctic.
A photographic exhibit that depicts the contemporary Nordic Arctic, entitled Steps Forward:
Facing the Arctic Climate, will be featured in House of Sweden during the period May 18 to
mid-August 2015.
polar.se/arcticconf
@polarforskning at Twitter
Mr. Michael Andersson
President and CEO of Saab North America
With over 30 years seniority in the Saab Group, Michael
Andersson is Head of Saab’s Market Area North America
and holds the title of President & CEO of Saab North
America Inc., a subsidiary of the Saab Group. Established in
2010, Market Area North America has overall responsibility
for Saab’s marketing activities, business development and
continued growth in US and Canada.
From 2006 through 2012, Michael held the position of Deputy Head for Saab’s Support and
Services Business Area. Michael Andersson has also held the positions of President, Saab
Support and Services, LLC. (2006-2013) and President for Saab Aircraft AB (2003-2006), as
well as several additional management roles within Saab AB.
Born in 1962, Michael has an Engineering Degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering as
well as post graduate studies in Business Administration. He is a native of Sweden and
currently resides in Virginia.
Mr. Anders Blom
Chair, Protect Sápmi
Mr. Anders Blom has a long working experience
from both business development and issues related
to the livelihoods of indigenous peoples. In the
latter capacity Mr. Blom is internationally engaged
in the Permanent Indigenous Peoples Committee
within the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
Anders Blom is chairing the Protect Sápmi
foundation – an organization with the object to
assist and create capacity to Saami right holders in
their dialogue with competing land interests, e.g.
mining activities, wind mills farms etc.
Anders Blom is also, nominated by the Saami
council, elected as a member of the Arctic Economic Council (AEC). In relation to AEC
Anders Blom is leading a subcommittee aiming at the development of an Arctic Stewardship.
H.E. Sweden's Ambassador to the Arctic, Krister
Bringéus
Krister Bringéus is Sweden’s Senior Arctic Official and
Arctic Ambassador since January 2015.
Born in 1954, Mr. Bringéus has had a long and diverse
diplomatic career with assignments in Europe, Russia,
North America, and East Asia. He is a fluent speaker of
Swedish, English, German, French, and Russian. Since
2000, Mr. Bringéus is a member of the Royal Academy of
Military Sciences in Sweden.
H.E. U.S. Ambassador to Sweden, Mark Brzezinski
Mark Francis Brzezinski was confirmed by the United States
Senate on October 18, 2011 to serve as U.S. Ambassador to
the Kingdom of Sweden.
Mr. Brzezinski has had a distinguished career in both public
service and the private sector.
Mr. Brzezinski served as a Director on the National Security
Council in the White House from 1999 to 2001. During this
time he coordinated interagency policy formulation and
advised the President and the National Security Advisor on
issues relating to Russia, Eurasia and the Balkans, including
regional democracy promotion, international public law, war
crimes accountability, and was responsible for public
diplomacy relating to the region. He helped lead U.S. policy
implementation in relation to NATO enlargement and in response to the Kosovo conflict. He
also coordinated presidential summits in Russia and Ukraine.
Mr. Brzezinski is a member of the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board and the
Council on Foreign Relations. He holds a B.A. from Dartmouth College, a J.D. from the
University of Virginia School of Law and a Doctorate from Oxford University.
He is married to Natalia Brzezinski, a Huffington Post blogger and freelance writer, and they
have one daughter.
Dr. Marcus Carson
Research Fellow, Stockholm Environment Institute
Marcus's research, currently at Stockholm Environment
Institute, focuses on social change processes, with an
emphasis on the social/political drivers and obstacles
involved in developing policy responses to climate
change. Key theoretical elements in his work include
the roles of paradigmatic beliefs, institutional
arrangements, and organizational networks in
influencing policymaking and social change processes.
Marcus brings a diverse background to his work,
including hands-on experience with community
organizing, policy analysis, political and labor
organization, and work as a professional musician.
Prior to coming to Sweden with his family, Marcus was involved for nearly 2 decades in
social change and policy advocacy at the national, state and local level in the US. He received
his PhD in Sociology in 2004 from Stockholm University, where he also earned his Associate
Professorship in 2009.
Mr. Joel Clement
Director of the Office of Policy Analysis, U.S. Department of Interior
Joel Clement is the Director of the US Department of the
Interior’s Office of Policy Analysis, which provides
economic, scientific, and program analysis to support
and promote effective decision-making and policies
across the Department.
He serves as the United States co-Head of Delegation to
the Arctic Council’s Ecosystem-Based Management
Expert Group, U.S. Government representative to the
Arctic Council’s Arctic Resilience Report, and Interior’s
Principal to the U.S. Global Change Research Program.
In 2012 he was appointed by the DOI Deputy Secretary to co-direct a federal interagency
initiative to develop an Arctic management framework that more effectively integrates
cultural, ecological, and economic objectives in the face of rapid climate change.
Ms. Heather A. Conley
Senior Vice President, CSIS
Heather A. Conley is senior vice president for Europe, Eurasia, and
the Arctic and director of the Europe Program at CSIS. Prior to
joining CSIS in 2009, she served as executive director of the
Office of the Chairman of the Board at the American National Red
Cross. From 2001 to 2005, she served as deputy assistant secretary
of state in the Bureau for European and Eurasian Affairs with
responsibilities for U.S. bilateral relations with the countries of
northern and central Europe.
Ms. Conley is a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global
Agenda Council on the Arctic and is frequently featured as a foreign policy analyst on CNN,
MSNBC, BBC, NPR, and PBS.
She received her B.A. in international studies from West Virginia Wesleyan College and her
M.A. in international relations from the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced
International Studies (SAIS).
Dr. Björn Dahlbäck
Director-General, Swedish Polar Research Secretariat.
With Björn Dahlbäck's PhD in microbiology, he has
had different manager positions in research-intensive
industry such as petrochemical and pharmaceutical
industry.
After a period of consultancy in organization and
leadership development, Björn Dahlbäck returned to
academia as research leader at the University of
Gothenburg and Chalmers University of Technology
before joining his present position at the Secretariat.
He can be followed at @polarforskning at Twitter.
Dr. Kelly Falkner
Deputy Head of Polar Programs, National Science Foundation
Ms. Kelly Falkner has been Deputy Head of Polar
Programs at at The National Science Foundation since
January 3, 2011. Ms. Falkner is responsible for NSF
Office of Polar Programs, which manages and
initiates the agency's funding for basic research and
operational support in the Arctic and Antarctic
regions.
The office supports individual investigators, as well as
research teams and United States participation in
multi-national projects. She joined NSF from Oregon
State University after 19 years of experience with it.
In 2007, she took a two-year leave from OSU to serve as the agency's first program director
for integrated Antarctic research. She also has coordinated OSU contributions to the NSFfunded North Pole Environmental Observatory for several years.
Ms. Julie Gourley
U.S. Senior Arctic Official
Julie Gourley is the Senior Arctic Official of the United States and is
the U.S. representative to the Arctic Council. She handles the State
Department’s Arctic portfolio covering the wide range of U.S.
foreign policy interests in the Arctic.
Prior to her current position in the Office of Ocean and Polar Affairs,
she spent five years in the State Department’s Office of
Environmental Policy where her portfolio covered hazardous waste
and chemicals issues including the Basel Convention, the Rotterdam
Convention and the Montreal Protocol. She came to the State
Department from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency where
she spent twelve years covering chemicals issues, hazardous waste
trade and domestic climate change programs. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in
Geography from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, USA.
Mr. Niklas Granholm
Deputy Director of Studies, Swedish Defence Research Agency (FOI)
Mr. Granholm's main fields of interest are future threat
developments, strategy, Arctic, Nordic and Baltic
security issues, international crisis management and
peace-support operations, nuclear issues, naval and
maritime issues and military history.
Since his employment at the FOI in 1995, Mr.
Granholm has contributed to a number of defence and
strategy related publications, including the RUSI
Journal and the Strategic Survey.
A graduate of Stockholm University, he holds a BA in Political Science and History. He is a
reserve officer in the Swedish Amphibious Corps with the rank of Major.
Mr. Bruce Gustafson
VP Government & Industry Affairs for Ericsson in North America.
Bruce Gustafson is responsible for Ericsson’s relationship with
regulators, government officials, and industry associations in
the US and Canada. He is based in Washington, DC.
With 25 years in the industry, Gustafson was most recently
Head of Brand & Internal Communications for Ericsson in NA,
and Head of Marketing for Ericsson’s CDMA business unit.
Prior to this, Gustafson held various leadership roles in
Marketing, Operations, Strategy, and Communications during
his 20 years at Nortel Networks.
Gustafson holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Engineering from the University
of Manitoba, and a Masters of Business Administration from the University of Calgary, both
in Canada. He also holds a Juris Doctor degree from Southern Methodist University, and is a
member of the State Bar of Texas.
Ms. Helene Hellmark Knutsson
Sweden’s Minister for Higher Education and Research
Helene Hellmark Knutsson, born
1969, is a Swedish politician of
the Social Democrats. She has
been Minister for Higher Education
and Research in the Swedish
Government since October 2014.
Her areas of responsibility are
universities and other higher
education institutions in Sweden,
which are autonomous agencies and
directly
responsible
to
the
Government.
There
are
14
universities and 22 higher education institutions whose principal is the state, which means that
responsibility ultimately lies with the state. In addition there are ten or so private education
providers, including Chalmers University of Technology, Jönköping University and the
Stockholm School of Economics.
The main task of the state universities and higher education institutions is to organize
educational programmes based on scientific or artistic foundations and proven experience.
Research policy aims to strengthen Sweden's position as a research nation and thereby
strengthen its competitiveness in a globalized world.
Mr. Frank Hojem
Communications Director, LKAB Frank Hojem took up
position on 1 September 2013 as communications director,
with placement at the head office in Luleå. He most recently
served as head of LKAB's social contacts.
Frank Hojem has previously worked at the Cabinet Office as
Chief of Staff at the Ministry of Industry. There he was in
charge of the government's mining and minerals policy.
Frank Hojem is married, born in Kiruna and raised in Luleå.
Professor Rob Huebert
Associate professor, University of Calgary
Professor Huebert also served as the associate director of
the Centre for Military and Strategic Studies. In 2010 he
was appointed as a member to the Canadian Polar
Commission. Dr. Huebert has taught at Memorial
University, Dalhousie University, and the University of
Manitoba.
His area of research interests include: international
relations, strategic studies, the Law of the Sea, maritime
affairs, Canadian foreign and defence policy, and
circumpolar relations.
He publishes on the issue of Canadian Arctic Security,
Maritime Security, and Canadian Defence. His work has
appeared in International Journal; Canadian Foreign
Policy; Isuma- Canadian Journal of Policy Research and
Canadian Military Journal.He also comments on
Canadian security and Arctic issues in both the Canadian and international media.
Dr. Margareta Johansson,
Executive Secretary, INTERACT
Executive Secretary, IASC Dr. Margareta Johansson is
based at the Dept. of Physical Geography and Ecosystem
Science at Lund University and at the Royal Swedish
Academy of Sciences in Sweden.
Dr. Johansson has a broad experience in Arctic research,
ranging from glaciology/climatology to Arctic ecology
and for the last decade she has been focusing on
permafrost in a changing climate in northern Sweden. Her
research experience includes helping to coordinate major
environmental assessments such as a chapter in the Arctic
Climate Impact Assessment (ACIA). She is currently the
Executive Secretary for a FP7 EU project INTERACT
networking more than 70 research stations in the north
and for a Nordic top-level research initiative DEFROST.
She is currently co-leading the terrestrial ecosystem chapter in the Arctic Freshwater
Synthesis.
Mr. Mattias Klum
Photographer, National Geographic Society
Mattias Klum was born in Uppsala,
Sweden in 1968 and started taking
pictures in his teens. He has worked
full-time as a freelance photographer
since 1986 and as a cinematographer
and director on numerous film and
television projects since 1994. In an
artistic way that is entirely his own,
Klum describes and portrays animals,
plants, and natural and cultural
settings in the form of articles, books,
films, lectures and exhibitions.
Klum’s work has been featured in many international publications, such as National
Geographic, Wildlife Conservation, Audubon, Geo, BBC Wildlife, Terre Sauvage, Stern, Der
Spiegel and The NewYork Times. In 1997 National Geographic Magazine published Klum’s
photographs for the first time. That story made him the first Swede to have his work on the
cover and one of National Geographic’s youngest contributors at the time.
Klum is an internationally sought-after lecturer and has given more than 2500 lectures
worldwide, and has been represented by the National Geographic Speakers Bureau since
2003.
Dr. Igor Krupnik
Head of the Ethnology Division, Smithsonian Institution
Igor Krupnik is Curator of Arctic and Northern Ethnology
collections and Head of the Ethnology Division at the
National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian
Institution in Washington, DC, USA. His area of expertise
includes modern cultures, ecological knowledge, and
cultural heritage of the people of the Arctic; impact of
modern climate change on Arctic residents and cultures. He
has worked with various Arctic indigenous communities,
primarily with the Yupik and Inupiat people in the Bering
Strait Region on collaborative efforts in the documentation,
publication, and sharing of cultural knowledge, and opening
archival and museum collections for community use.
Dr. Krupnik published and co-edited more than 20 books, collection volumes, catalogs,
and community heritage sourcebooks, including many supporting the use of indigenous
languages and ecological knowledge, like Wales Inupiat Sea Ice Dictionary (2011), Watching
Ice and Weather Our Way (2004), The Earth Is Faster Now(2002), Our Ice, Snow and
Winds (2013). In 2012, for his role in building bridges among social and natural scientists,
and polar indigenous people he received a medal from the International Arctic Science
Committee (IASC).
Mr. Johan Kuylenstierna
Executive Director, Stockholm Environment Institute (SEI).
SEI is an international research organization focusing
on environment/development research for sustainable
development with about 150 staff spread over 9
offices in 6 countries. Johan has previously had
positions with the UN system (UNDESA at the UN
HQ in NY, WMO in Geneva and FAO in Rome) and
has also worked many years at the Stockholm
International Water Institute. He has also a
background as a consultant focusing on sustainability
issues and corporate core value processes within both
the private and public sector.
His academic background is Earth Sciences and his
research focused on palaeoclimatology in the polar
regions. He currently holds an adjunct professorship
in international water resources at the Stockholm
University.
Ms. Josefina Lundgren Skerk
Vice President, Saami Parliament in Sweden
Ms. Josefina Lundgren Skerk is the Vice President,
Chair of Language Council, Board member and
Member of the Saami Parliament in Sweden.
Advocate for Indigenous and Environmental
Rights.
Former ombudsman for the Social Democratic
Party in Sweden. Skied to the North Pole in 2013
with the Save the Arctic campaign.
From Sorsele municipality lives in Västamarken,
Umeå, Sweden. Born in 1987 with a B.A. in Law
from Uppsala University and an MSc in Law from
Umeå University.
H.E. Sweden's Ambassador to the U.S. Björn Lyrvall
Björn Lyrvall is Ambassador of Sweden to the United States.
From 2007 until taking up his current position in September
2013, Ambassador Lyrvall was Director General for Political
Affairs at Sweden’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Stockholm.
From 2002 to 2007, Ambassador Lyrvall was posted at Sweden’s
Permanent Representation to the European Union in Brussels,
first as Sweden’s delegate to the enlargement negotiations (20022003), and then as Sweden’s Ambassador to the EU Political and
Security Committee (2003-2007) .
Born in Hofors, Sweden, in 1960, Björn Lyrvall graduated from
Stockholm University with a degree in Political Science, Eastern
European Affairs and Russian.
Björn Lyrvall is married and has three children. He can be followed on twitter @bjornly.
Mr. Matthew Massiano
Director, FAA Business Development, Saab
Matthew Massiano has 25 years of business development
experience with Saab Sensis Corporation in Syracuse, NY,
pursuing safety- and surveillance-related contracts with the
FAA, State Departments of Transportation, and the
Department of Defense.
Matt led the company's capture of FAA contracts for the
Airport Surface Detection Equipment (ASDE-X) and Capstone/Safe Flight 21 ADS-B
programs, and the Wide-Area Multilateration (WAM) surveillance program with the Colorado
DoT. He is currently directing the company's launch of its camera-based, Remote ATC Tower
product in the U.S. Matt is a private pilot with an instrument rating.
Dr. Olle Norberg
General-Director, the Swedish National Space Board
Dr. Olle Norberg is Director-General of the Swedish National
Space Board, the governmental space agency in Sweden. Dr.
Norberg is a space plasma physicist and earned his Ph.D.
degree from the Umea University in Sweden, having worked
on several national, ESA, and international space projects at
the Swedish Institute of Space Physics.
Between 2001 and 2009 he held the position as Head of
Esrange Space Center, a center for satellite operations as well
as sounding rocket and stratospheric balloon launchings for
scientific and technological research.
He resides in Stockholm with his wife Carol and two teenage
boys, in his spare time he is a private pilot.
H.E. Ambassador to the Environment, Jan Olsson
Jan Roland Olsson, born 1960, is a Swedish
official. He served in the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs 1994-2002, including as a counselor and
Mertens in Brussels from 1997 to 2002.
Subsequently, he was Director and Head of the
Department of Commerce Secretariat for EU and
international coordination 2002-2007 and
Secretary of the Parliamentary Committee on EU
Affairs 2007-2009.
Between 2009 and 2014 was Olsson Coreper I Ambassador and deputy director at the
Swedish Permanent Representation to the European Union in Brussels. The first of September
2014 Mr Olsson was appointed to his current position.
U.S. Special Representative to the Arctic, Admiral Robert J. Papp, Jr
Admiral Robert J. Papp, Jr., USCG (Ret.) became the
State Department’s Special Representative for the
Arctic in July of 2014, and will lead the effort to
advance U.S. interests in the Arctic Region, with a
focus on Arctic Ocean governance, climate change,
economic, environmental, and security issues in the
Arctic region as the United States prepares to assume
the chairmanship of the Arctic Council in 2015.
Prior to his appointment, Admiral Papp served as the
24th Commandant of the U.S. Coast Guard, and led the
largest component of the Department of Homeland
Security (DHS).
He is a 1975 graduate of the United States Coast Guard
Academy. Additionally, he holds a Master of Arts in
National Security and Strategic Studies from the United States Naval War College and a
Master of Science in Management from Salve Regina College. Admiral Papp is a native of
Norwich, Connecticut.
Ms. Tina Pidgeon
Senior Vice President, General Communication Inc.
Ms. Pidgeon is responsible for the
development and implementation of
regulatory, legal and governmental
strategies and positions at General
Communication. She served as Senior
Counsel and Vice President of federal
regulatory affairs at GCI.
Prior to joining GCI in 2003, Ms. Pidgeon
practiced law with firm Drinker Biddle.
She is a member of the Federal
Communications Bar Association and past
co-chair of the common carrier practice group. She earned her Law degree from the
University of Virginia and her Bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame.
Mr. Lennart Poromaa
President and Sites Manager, Esrange SSC
Lennart Poromaa has over 30 years of experience in engineering
and space research. He first joined the Swedish Space
Corporation Group in 1988. Lennart has, amongst other
positions, served as Head of Range Instrumentation and Head of
Sounding Rocket & Balloon Department for SSC Group.
He was appointed President Science Services for the SSC in
2009, and has served as Site Manager for the Esrange Space
Center since 2012.
Mr. Chris Roper
Sales Manager - North America, Saab
Chris Roper has many years of business
development experience with Saab Seaeye
Corporation, pursuing a U.S. presence of
Saab. The company is already the world’s
largest manufacturer of electric remotely
operated underwater vehicles with
distributors in 26 countries and more than
700 systems sold worldwide.
He heads the Houston office since 2013 as
Saab's Sales Manager for North America,
previously positioned as Saab Seaeye’s
North American distributor.
Professor Peter Sköld
President & Director at the Centre for Arctic Research, Umeå University
Peter Sköld is a professor in history, Sami
culture and society development at Umeå
University, Sweden. He is the director of
the Centre for Arctic Research.
Skölds' research profile includes historical
demography, indigenous health transitions
and northern cultures. Apart from being
the president for International Arctic
Social Sciences Association (IASSA),
Sköld is council member of UArctic and
vice chair for WG Human and Social
Sciences in the International Arctic
Science Committee (IASC).
He is also Swedish delegate of the Arctic Council Sustainable Development Social, Economic
and Cultural Expert Group (SECEG). 2014-2018 Sköld is co-leader of the 4, 5 million Euro
project New Governance for Sustainable Development in the European Arctic, involving 30
researchers.
Professor Walker O. Smith Jr
Virginia Institute of Marine Sciences
Professor Walker O. Smith Jr is a professor
at the Virginia Institute of Marine
Sciences. He is an expert in marine
environmental research, especially
phytoplankton, and he has been working to
understand the complex factors behind
algal blooms in the oceans. He has
developed new technology in oceanography which includes autonomous underwater vehicles.
Professor Smith has, together with Professor Raymond T. Pierrehumbert, holds His Majesty
King Carl Gustaf XVI of Sweden's professorship in environmental science. During the
professorship the University of Gothenburg hosts him, during his stay in Sweden Professor
Smith will study the physical and biogeochemical processes in the Skagerrak and the Baltic
Sea and the purpose is to understand how different interacting stressors affect toxic algal
blooms.
Mr. James Stotts
President, Inuit Circumpolar Council Alaska
James Stotts (Jimmy) was born in 1947 at Barrow,
Alaska and raised in Barrow and other communities
throughout rural Alaska. Like many of his generation he
attended Mt. Edgecumbe High School, a Bureau of
Indian Affairs boarding school located in Sitka, Alaska.
After high school, he attended the University of Alaska,
where he earned a degree in Business Management.
Jimmy has extensive managerial experience in the
private sector. He worked for his village corporation
(Ukpeagvik Inupiat Corporation) and regional
corporation (Arctic Slope Regional Corporation), both
created under the terms of the Alaska Native Claims
Settlement Act. Over a thirty-year career, he worked in
various executive positions at both corporations and served on the Board of Directors of both
organizations. Jimmy resides in Anchorage, Alaska with wife Karoline.
Dr. Michael Tjernström
Professor of Meteorology, Stockholm University
Tjernström got a PhD from Uppsala University in 1988
and his research has mostly focused on small-scales of
atmospheric motions; so-called mesoscale circulation
and boundary-layer turbulence.
Tjernström has published over one hundred original
research papers, supervised numerous BSc, MSC and
PhD students and has a broad teaching experience
across all fields of dynamic meteorology. He is often
called upon to provide popular-science lectures in
various circumstances, and appears in national and
local media to discussing climate and climate change.
Since the last about 15 years Tjernström has focused
his research on the Arctic specializing on climate
processes in the Arctic, in particular Arctic clouds and
their effect on the surface energy balance over the
Arctic Ocean and hence the melt and freeze of sea ice.
He has lead three major science endeavors to the
Arctic, all based on the Swedish icebreaker Oden.
Ms. Fran Ulmer
Chair, U.S. Arctic Research Commission
Fran Ulmer is chair of the U.S. Arctic Research
Commission, where she has served since being appointed
by President Obama in March 2011. In June 2010,
President Obama appointed her to the National
Commission on the BP Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and
Offshore Drilling. From 2007 to 2011, Ms. Ulmer was
chancellor of Alaska's largest public university, the
University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA). Before that, she
was a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Public Policy
and Director of the Institute of Social and Economic
Research at UAA.
Ms. Ulmer served as an elected official for 18 years as the mayor of Juneau, a state
representative, and as Lieutenant Governor of Alaska. Ulmer earned a J.D. cum laude from
the University of Wisconsin Law School, and has been a Fellow at the Institute of Politics at
the Kennedy School of Government.
Mr. Fabrice Vareille
Minister Counselor, EU Delegation to the U.S.
Fabrice Vareille joined the EU Delegation to the United
States as Head of the Transport, Energy and Environment
section in September 2014.
He has served in the EU External Relation Services since
2001 both in Brussels headquarters and foreign postings.
Fabrice’s decade-long diplomatic experience has been
primarily focused on key EU partners in the Asia-Pacific.
Fabrice Vareille joined the European Commission in
1996; early in his EU career he held several positions in
the Commission department in charge of education and
training, with a particular focus on youth policies. Prior to
becoming an EU official, Fabrice worked in the non-profit
sector for a NGO promoting environmental education
through scientific expeditions in polar areas.
Mr. Tero Varauste
Arctic Economic Council and President & CEO Arctia
Shipping
Tero Vauraste is representative of the Finnish trade and
industry in the Arctic Economic Council. He is also
President and CEO of Arctia Group since joining the
company in 2009. He has worked as a vessel master and
in several other positions in Finnish Coast Guard. Prior
to joining Arctia Mr Vauraste had years of experience
from top management positions within the traffic
service cluster including security and safety, aviation
and car rental. He is a member of the Board of Finnish
Arctic Society and Finnish Maritime Society.
Professor Pär Weihed
Luleå University of Technology
Professor Pär Weihed is currently the
Director of the Centre of Advanced Mining
and Metallurgy, and the Scientific Director
of "The Strategic Innovation Programme for
the Swedish Mining and Metal Producing
Industry”. Weihed is also manager for the
NordMin project a network of excellence on
sustainable development in the raw materials
sector under the auspices of the Nordic
Council of Ministers. He is also the Vice
Rector of Mining at LTU.
Professor Pär Weihed completed his PhD in
1992 at Gothenburg University in Sweden.
In 1996 he was appointed as an adjunct
professor at Luleå University of Technology (LTU), and from 2003 Pär has been a chaired
Professor in Economic Geology at the same university.
Ms. Margaret Williams
Managing Director, World Wildlife Foundation
Margaret Williams work in the World Wildlife Fund’s US
Arctic field program entails leading a team of experts in
climate change, wildlife biology, fisheries, oil and shipping,
and communications to implement an international
conservation strategy for the Bering, Beaufort and Chukchi
Seas.
In the last two decades, Ms. Williams has focused much of
her efforts on Russian conservation issues. She founded
and for 12 years edited Russian Conservation News, a
quarterly journal on biodiversity conservation in Eurasia. Before joining WWF in 1997, she
worked as a consultant to the World Bank on biodiversity projects in Russia and Central Asia.
She graduated from Smith College and received a master's degree from the Yale School of
Forestry and Environmental Studies.
Ambassador Kenneth Yalowitz
Global Fellow, Wilson Center
Ambassador (ret.) Kenneth Yalowitz served as a U.S.
Foreign Service Officer for 36 years and was twice an
ambassador: to Belarus from 1994-1997; and Georgia
from 1998-2001. He also served in Moscow (two tours),
The Hague and the US Mission to NATO in
Brussels. He was chosen for the Ambassador Robert
Frasure award for peacemaking and conflict prevention
in 2000 for his work preventing spillover of the Chechen
war into Georgia.
Ambassador Yalowitz directed the Dickey Center for
International Understanding at Dartmouth College from
2003-11. He has been adjunct professor at Georgetown
University, Stanford University in Washington and
Washington & Lee University, and diplomat-inresidence at American and George Mason Universities. In 2009, he was elected to the
American Academy of Diplomacy whose members have held positions of high responsibility
in crafting and implementing American foreign policy. He is also a member of the Council
on Foreign Relations.