The Central Arctic Ocean: High Seas Governance at the Top of the World
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Online
Free
Open to the Public
Diminishing sea ice in the central Arctic is opening the fragile ecosystem to new industries. This talk will examine precautionary approaches being taken to balance science, policy, and Indigenous Knowledge with the demands of the commercial fishing and other industries.
The Central Arctic Ocean: High Seas Governance at the Top of the World
Speaker: Alex Shahbazi, Senior Manager, Arctic Programs, Ocean Conservancy
Thursday, September 25, 2025
6:00pm to 7:30pm Pacific Time
Online via Zoom
About the Topic
The Central Arctic Ocean is unique. Its sea ice helps regulate the Earth’s climate and drive global ocean currents while supporting thriving marine ecosystems that are relied on by Indigenous communities across the circumpolar north. But with the Arctic warming up to four times faster than other parts of the planet, diminishing sea ice is ravaging those ecosystems while attracting risky proposals for new, untested industrial activities in the Central Arctic Ocean’s high seas that current governance arrangements are unable to address. With the traditionally far-off Arctic increasingly becoming the center of global attention, this talk will look at how the northernmost sea is still a place where we, just maybe, can get governance right.
About the Speaker
Alex is Senior Manager, Arctic Programs at Ocean Conservancy where he works on our efforts to protect the Central Arctic Ocean. Alex has a broad background in conservation, policy, and the Arctic having come to Ocean Conservancy from the International Arctic Research Center’s Study of Environmental Arctic Change. There, he supported over a dozen policy and research projects with Arctic community members, scientists, and decision makers. He has also worked on Arctic policy with the World Wildlife Fund and Polar Bears International, and conservation outreach and education at Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago.
Alex holds a master’s degree in international environmental policy from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies and a bachelor’s in physics from Lawrence University. He is based in Bend, Oregon where – as you’d expect – he enjoys mountain biking, hiking, and skiing along with playing viola in ensembles around town.
Recommended Viewing
- Protecting the Central Arctic Ocean Through Indigenous Knowledge and Science
- Protecting the Central Arctic Ocean
Zoom Details
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Questions
Contact Rachel Christopherson at the Center for the Blue Economy at cbe@miis.edu or (831) 647-4183.
Gratitude to Our Sponsors
We thank the Loker Hicks Foundation and the Nancy Eccles and Homer M. Hayward Family Foundation our sponsors.
About the Host
The Center for the Blue Economy is a research center at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, that provides economic and policy analysis to support the development of a robust and equitable blue economy for the 21st century. The Center uses the World Bank’s definition of the Blue Economy: the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, and ocean ecosystem health. We must maintain ocean health to maintain human health, economic health, and the health of the planet. Climate change is linked, inextricably, to a healthy ocean. We are co-leading a movement for Ocean Climate Action Now. We’ve launched a website in collaboration with our research partners, Monterey Bay White Sharks. Consider joining our Center for the Blue Economy Newsletter List (3-4x per year by email).