The Wilderness Society’s Post

This is a helpful reading list for anyone who is interested in the security of the Arctic region in these troubled times. Here's an extract: "In 2021, the interim U.S. National Security Strategy made no mention od the Arctic. The final version released in October 2022 confirmed that the Arctic had become a priority, changing the U.S. approach to Arctic affairs, security, science and much more." #usa #arcticsecurity #arcticregion #readinglist

Webinar: Breaking New Ice: Japan-Russia Relations and the Arctic: Implications for the United States. #geopolitics #internationalrelations #Japan #Russia #UnitedStates #Arcticcooperation #globalaffairs #webinar

https://lnkd.in/d_ZR54es > Maritime infographic: The Great White Shark going to extinct? > https://lnkd.in/d_ZR54es

How to assess organizational readiness and preparedness? Is Your Organization ready for the AI Boom? A Journey of Opportunities and Risks? How to oversee and mitigate organizational systemic risks? Bold Action is the most difficult decision. How to transform vision and ambitious ideas into action? Together, we can make a positive, lasting and impactful difference: 1) What’s your big solution for protecting, restoring and rewilding our ocean? 2) How to join a growing innovation ecosystem of founders, partners, investors and experts that can help accelerate the start-up? 3) How to maximize employee engagement, optimize customer experience and increase executive presence for transforming challenges into great opportunities? Looking forward to your real-world solutions to global challenges.

‘While Chernobyl is a word we would all much prefer to wipe out from our memories as it recalls an event which opened a Pandora’s box of invisible enemies." Sobering words from Former Secretary-General of the United Nations Kofi Annan that act as a stark reminder of our need to be vigilant in the protection of our environment. Today marks the United Nations' World Environment Day and on this day we ask you all to remember the responsibility we have to protect our delicate and fragile environment. Even now, 38 years later, the Exclusion Zone around Chernobyl remains the world's most contaminated land. This became even all the more perilous, when in 2022 the invasion of Ukraine came via the dreaded ‘Chernobyl Exclusion Zone’, re-releasing deeply buried toxic radioactive elements, such as Caesium 137, back into the environment. Some of the contaminants infecting the soil and air, such as plutonium, have a half-life of 24,400 years and over 1 million hectares of land cannot be farmed for over 100 years. Though Chernobyl is a past event, it forever remains an unfolding tragedy and disaster. https://lnkd.in/ecG8XqS

This year’s UN #WorldOceanDay theme is ‘awaken new depths’. Chuuk Lagoon is an atoll in the Pacific Ocean, where shipwrecks dating back to WW2 lie corroding and leaking toxic oil – threatening the #safety of this protected reef. Lloyd's Register Foundation is building a global coalition of experts to create technical standards and engage international bodies, to enable a more strategic response to the growing challenge of these potentially polluting wrecks. Explore now: https://loom.ly/ZRvHcYk

Michigan’s more than 3,000 miles of coastline are subject to environmental changes that come with rapidly changing climate conditions. High and low water levels, wind, ice, and human activity all contribute to the ever-changing character of these coasts. To address these changes and sustainably invest in and steward these vital coastal areas, Michigan and the seven other states bordering the Great Lakes signed an agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) for a Great Lakes Coastal Resiliency Study. Using advanced climate and hydrodynamic models, the study will examine a range of future conditions that could affect coastal resilience. #MiEnvironment #GreatLakes #MIHealthyClimate

#Indigenous knowledge is paramount to ensure safety, as traditional experiences can help inform decisions moving forward. 

It is interesting how the ocean remains almost invisible to the general public as one of the primary means of power projection and the assertion of geopolitical interests until major maritime insecurities emerge. As the world grapples with the situation in the #RedSea, I am reminded of a paragraph I chanced upon in Daniel Patrick O'Connell's book, "The Influence of Law on Sea Power". As far back as 1975, he argued that there would be an increasing resort to coercive sea power. "...Violence at sea is...less comprehensible than violence on land, and...the ocean could be the scene of a struggle for power among nations that would be unacceptable on land". It is worth considering whether global responses to the #Houthi attacks are based more on geopolitical interests and the projection of (sea) power than on addressing the root causes of the problem to begin with. #maritimesecurity #oceangovernance #redsea #shipping #shippingindustry

As a concerned individual, one cannot ignore the alarming situation at Chuuk Lagoon in the Pacific Ocean. The presence of corroding shipwrecks from WW2 leaking toxic oil is not only a threat to the safety of the protected reef but also poses a risk to the environment. It is indeed vital that organizations like Lloyd's Register Foundation are taking steps to address this issue by building a global coalition of experts and establishing technical standards. The need for a strategic response to prevent further pollution from these wrecks is more pressing than ever. #pollution #environmentalthreat #shipwrecks