DOD Establishes Article Strategy and Global Resilience Office

Iris A. Ferguson is the deputy assistant secretary of defense for Arctic and global resilience, a new position that signifies the importance U.S. leaders place on the region.

“[The Arctic] is a critical region for power projection and also for homeland defense,” Ferguson said during a Zoom interview.  

The importance of the region will only grow as the impacts of climate change accelerate. Ferguson noted that temperatures in the Arctic are rising at least three times faster than anywhere else in the world. “We’re seeing a lot of geophysical changes that have dramatic impact on our operations and our infrastructure,” she said.