ADAC-ARCTIC

?? Save the date! On March 27, 2025, we'll be hosting our second Customers and Partners Roundtable of the year. We look forward to welcoming our ADAC-ARCTIC community of?collaborators, stakeholders, and project teams for a day of important updates and conversations.?Stay tuned for a webinar link and agenda. #DHS_COE_research??? DHS Science and Technology Directorate ?? University of Alaska Anchorage

This week the Center once again hosted the biannual Alaska Regional Response Team (ARRT) meeting on our University of Alaska Anchorage campus. These meetings are a collaboration between the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation the U.S. Coast Guard, and many other federal, state, and local agencies, private and industry partners, and tribal organizations to collaborate in planning response to pollution incidents across the state. These meetings also provide crucial networking opportunities for those involved, increasing collaboration across agencies. #DHS_COE_research DHS Science and Technology Directorate

This week, our Center is hosting a multi-day, in-person workshop on behalf of one of our research project teams at University of Alaska Anchorage to advance Arctic resilience and security through enhanced decision-making tools. The project,?Adapting, Assessing, and Mitigating Risks to a Complex Future in the Arctic: A Multi-Stakeholder Framework, focuses on improving disaster response visualization tools, with a case study on Nome, Alaska—an increasingly vital hub for Arctic commerce and national security. The workshop opened with remarks from?ADAC-ARCTIC Principal Investigator (PI) Jeff Libby, Research Project PI?Dr. Nancy Kinner, and Research Project Community Liaison Tom Ukallaysaaq Okleasik, owner of Northwest Planning, LLC. Participants are engaging with key stakeholders on critical Arctic Homeland Security topics, including: ?? Port Enhancements & Future Marine Activity?– Supporting strategic Arctic infrastructure & economic resilience; ?? Nome Disaster Planning & Response?– Strengthening preparedness for emerging threats; ?? Data Needs & Recommendations for NOAA: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration’s ERMA?– Advancing real-time situational awareness for Arctic operations. These discussions directly support?DHS Science and Technology Directorate’s?mission to enhance resilience and preparedness in the Arctic, a region of growing strategic significance. Learn more about how this research supports DHS priorities and Arctic security: ?? Project details:? https://lnkd.in/gSaZ9PUC ?? Workshop information:? https://lnkd.in/grxpvpKJ #DHS_COE_Research #HomelandSecurity #ArcticResilience #DisasterResponse #InfrastructureSecurity

Our Fellowship speaker series continued this week with Mark Breunig, Alaska’s Cybersecurity State Coordinator for the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA). Breunig addressed our Fellows on the topic of cybersecurity infrastructure threats. That generally means hacks and data breaches. But in Alaska, it also means polar bears and earthquakes. As CISA State Coordinator within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Security (DHS), Breunig acts as a liaison between government officials and critical infrastructure stakeholders. He has decades of experience protecting Alaska’s digital assets. Previously, he served as Chief Information Security Officer for the State of Alaska and IT Compliance Officer for the Municipality of Anchorage. The bimonthly speaker series is designed to introduce our nationwide Fellows to DHS careers in Alaska. We’re grateful to have Breunig share his decades of career experience with our students, and provide an overview of the strategic planning, risk management, and incident response required to keep Alaska’s data secure. University of Alaska Anchorage DHS Science and Technology Directorate.

This tabletop discussion-based exercise was conducted over 2.5 days at the Center for Arctic Study and Policy at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy (CASP). The objective of the exercise was to engage with a set of participants from relevant governmental and non-governmental organizations with expertise in the pan-Arctic region to discuss response to an aircraft emergency. Participants were asked to draw upon their current and prior experience and work in small teams to outline a plan for an effective response to an aircraft emergency in several different types of Arctic geography. The discussion included which capabilities and capacities available today could be brought to bear, and what gaps, constraints, or other issues might require resolution. The overall goal is to sustain an effective response over the first initial hours to days following the incident. Participants included the US Coast Guard (District 17 District 1, CGHQ SAR and Arctic Policy Shops), Inupiat Community of the Arctic Slope, Ted Stevens Center, NORTHCOM, Alaska Air National Guard, NY Air National Guard, Arctic Council EPPR Working Group, International Civil Aviation Organization, Canadian Armed Forces, Kingdom of Denmark (AC EPPR), Rand Corp., Air Greenland, JRCC Norway, and Norwegian Armed Forces/Bergen University.? The 2.5 days included extensive discussion on SAR response capabilities and gaps in the pan-Arctic regions and included discussions of ‘What’s next?’, using the assembled group to recommend how to continue the international discussion around Arctic aviation incidents in the future. CASP stated that a comprehensive report on the entire exercise is forthcoming. #DHS_COE_research??DHSDHS Science and Technology Directorate ?? University of Alaska Anchorage

Today, our Principal Investigator and University of Alaska Anchorage Arctic Professor, Jeff Libby, briefed the Alaska Senate Special Committee on Arctic Affairs. He shared a Center overview, including our mission and priority initiatives, the student fellows program, and updates on research and education projects, including the Arctic Summer Internship Program with its hands-on field research component on the North Slope in Utqia?vik. It's an honor to be doing this work in Alaska and the Arctic, and we appreciate the opportunity to share with our elected leaders, and thank them for all the work they do for our State. #DHS_COE_research ?? DHS Science and Technology Directorate

It finally feels like winter again here in Anchorage, and our latest newsletter is out! It highlights students, new employees, projects, and more. Check it out on our website at the link below. And, if you haven’t visited our website in a while, take a look around! It’s being frequently updated, and we’re excited to showcase our projects, researchers, Executive Counselors, staff, and more. If you’d like to get each issue delivered directly to your inbox, send an email to us at?[email protected]?and we’ll add your email to our distribution list. https://lnkd.in/gP_N8cnw #DHS_COE_research ??DHS Science and Technology Directorate?? University of Alaska Anchorage

Our partner Jessica Garron represented ADAC-ARCTIC today at the Alaska Forum on the Environment in Anchorage. Dr. Garron spoke about her project establishing a Drone Community of Practice (DCoP) in the Bering Strait region, a long-term enterprise she’s building alongside leaders in Unalakleet, Golovin, and Elim. She presented the work as part of a panel from the International Arctic Research Center at University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF). You can learn more about Dr. Garron’s project at the UAF booth this week, or any time on the ADAC-ARCTIC website at: https://lnkd.in/gMED8tPi

The “ARCTIC” in ADAC-ARCTIC holds more meaning than the Center’s region of focus. It stands for “Addressing Rapid Changes through Technology, Innovation, and Collaboration”. One of the ways the Center embodies that final “C” is by hosting meetings and trainings at our University of Alaska Anchorage campus. Yesterday, our partners at the U.S. Coast Guard held a multi-agency field validation training in our classroom space to get users up to speed on a new Area Contingency Plan (ACP) tool and how to perform validations within it. These plans provide tactical options and support the individuals that respond to pollution events in order to achieve a coordinated and effective response. ? The new tool is part of a massive undertaking to transition over 700 graphics-based pdf documents to an interactive, Geographic Information System (GIS) application, available in the field. These products help users understand the local geography of a site, where buoys and booms should be deployed, as well as what wildlife and cultural considerations may be needed. The new tool will integrate with NOAA: National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration’s web-based Environmental Response Management Application (ERMA). This will greatly benefit planners and responders, as well as allow for easier updates and notes from those in the field. To learn more about these strategies, see the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation webpage on Geographic Response Strategies (GRS): https://lnkd.in/dfdaxRFz ? We’d like to give a shout out to all the planners and responders for the work they do making Alaska and the Arctic a safer place for all.? ? #DHS_COE_research DHS Science and Technology Directorate

Major General gary dylewski, United States Air Force (Ret)?is another of ADAC-ARCTIC’s distinguished Executive Counselors. General Dylewski spent 27 years in the Air Force in a variety of assignments in Tactical Aviation, Space Operations, Staff and Command billets. He?served as the Air Force Aide to Presidents Reagan and Bush. He also commanded the 90th Fighter Squadron and served as Joint Director of Operations for Alaskan Command at Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska.? Currently, General Dylewski is President and CEO of Patriot Solutions International, LLC, a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business providing government and commercial clients with areas of expertise focused in the energy, construction, logistics and analysis and test/evaluation sectors. Additionally, he serves as Senior Mentor, National Security Space Institute and Consultant at Idaho National Laboratory, focusing on advanced nuclear energy capabilities and their applicability to national security requirements. General Dylewski’s extensive military and private industry background make him a valuable advisor to our Center and research and education project teams.? Find all the Executive Counselor bios on our website: https://lnkd.in/gwsXB__5 #DHS_COE_research ?? DHS Science and Technology Directorate ?? University of Alaska Anchorage?