Chat & Chowder | America In The Arctic

Join us for this installment of our popular Chat & Chowder series, featuring Professor of National Security at the U.S. Naval War College and former U.S. Foreign Service Officer, Mary Thomspn-Jones. Dr. Thompson-Jones will discuss her new book, America in the Arctic: Foreign Policy and Competition in the Melting North.

Chat & Chowder programs are an excellent opportunity to engage with expert speakers and to network with other globally-oriented participants in an informal environment. Each event features a presentation, audience Q&A, dedicated time for networking, and (of course!) a selection of chowders and beverages.

Thanks to the generous support of The Lowell Institute, Chat & Chowder is now free of charge for all participants (Zoom live-streams remain free as well). We sincerely appreciate The Lowell Institute’s commitment to our mission, as well as the support of our venue, Foley & Lardner LLP.

Please consider helping sustain this work by making a contribution here.

This program will be streamed to Zoom from 6:15 to 7:15. To attend the program virtually, please register for the Zoom webinar here.

Advance registration is required. We cannot accommodate walk-ins for the in-person program.

Mary Thompson-Jones, Ed.D. is a Professor at the U.S. Naval War College. Before joining the USNWC, she directed a master’s program in Global Studies at Northeastern University.

Prior to entering academia, she had a highly successful diplomatic career, spanning 23 years a as U.S. Foreign Service Officer in leadership roles in the Czech Republic, Canada, Guatemala, Spain, and Washington, D.C. She retired with the rank of Minister-Counselor, having received several Superior and Meritorious Honor awards along the way.

Dr. Thompson-Jones’ new book, America in the Arctic, Foreign Policy and Competition in the Melting North, has been praised by Sen. Angus King, I-ME, as “a finely crafted chart that can guide us through rough seas ahead to a peaceful and prosperous future,” and by Amb. Paula Dobriansky, former Undersecretary of State for Global Affairs, as “a compelling testament to the importance of U.S. engagement and a must-read for policymakers.” She is also the author of To the Secretary: Leaked Embassy Cables and America’s Foreign Policy Disconnect.

As climate change accelerates, the Arctic has become a frontline of global competition. Melting ice, rising temperatures, and swelling seas have made remote regions at once newly accessible and rife with new dangers. Vladimir Putin’s Russia has embarked on a substantial military buildup in the Arctic, and China has also turned its attention northward. The United States, however, has only recently begun to reestablish its Arctic presence after many years of waning influence.

America in the Arctic offers a timely and compelling case for why the United States must deepen its commitment to a region threatened by climate change and geopolitical rivalry. Mary Thompson-Jones surveys past and present U.S. relations with the Arctic lands: Canada, Iceland, Greenland, Denmark, Norway, Finland, Sweden, and Russia. She traces the history of the U.S. presence in the far north from the purchase of Alaska through the Cold War, arguing that lessons from the past should inform America’s relationships with its Arctic neighbors today. At its best, U.S. Arctic policy balanced security interests with residents’ needs and international cooperation on environmental and regional issues. In recent years, many policymakers scrambling to reassert U.S. leadership have framed their goals solely in security terms. Thompson-Jones argues that climate change now poses the greatest challenge, calling for a new approach that is inclusive of all the Arctic’s inhabitants. Bringing together national security expertise and historical insight, this book charts a course for American Arctic policy in a warming world.

WorldBoston's Chat & Chowder series features key authors on international affairs in an engaging setting. In addition to discussion of a featured book (usually sold at a significant discount), the program offers the opportunity for discussion among members and guests - and of course a selection of chowders and beverages. This Chat & Chowder will be hosted in-person (from 6:00 to 7:30PM ET) and live-streamed to Zoom (from 6:15 to 7:15 PM ET only).

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