Adam Lajeunesse, PhD, is the Irving Shipbuilding Chair in Canadian Arctic Marine Security Policy and an Assistant Professor at the Brian Mulroney Institute of Government. His research centres on issues of sovereignty and security in the Canadian North, with a particular focus on the history of the Canadian Armed Forces in the region, Canadian-American relations and the status of the Northwest Passage, and the evolution of Canadian Arctic maritime policy. He is the author of Lock, Stock, and Icebergs: The History of Canada’s Arctic Waters (2016), an award winning political history of the Northwest Passage. He is also the co-author China’s Arctic Ambitions and What They Mean for Canada (2017) and the co-editor of Canadian Arctic Operations, 1941–2015: Lessons Learned, Lost, and Relearned (2017).
Dr. Lajeunesse is a fellow of the Canadian Global Affairs Institute, the Arctic Institute of North America, and the Centre for the Study of Security and Development as well as the Research Coordinator for the Naval Associations of Canada’s Naval Affairs Program. He is an editorial advisor for the interdisciplinary journal Arctic, the editor of the Arctic Operational Histories, co-editor of the Documents on Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security, and the manager of the Canadian Naval Review.
An active contributor to public policy development, Lajeunesse has appeared before Senate and House of Commons committees, lectured to various government departments, and participated in Canadian Armed Forces and other federal policy review processes. He is also a regular lecturer at the NATO Defence College and participates in the biannual Arctic Security Working Group.
Currently, Dr. Lajeunesse is working on SSHRC-funded histories of icebreaker operations in the Canadian Arctic, northern development, and circumpolar Arctic submarine operations.
BOOKS
Publications
Books
Lock, Stock, and Icebergs: The Evolution of Canada's Arctic Maritime Sovereignty. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 2016.
• Winner of the 2016 Dafoe Book Prize ($10,000)
China’s Arctic Ambitions and What They Mean for Canada. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 2018. (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer, James Manicom, and Frédéric Lasserre).
Edited. Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Operations, 1941-2015: Lessons Learned, Lost, and Re-Learned. Fredericton: Gregg Centre, University of New Brunswick, 2017. (Co-edited with P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
Collections and Short Monographs
Edited. In Manhattan’s Wake. Arctic Operational Histories. Antigonish: Mulroney Institute of Government, 2019 (Co-edited with P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
Edited. Documents on Canadian Arctic Maritime Security, 1950-1988. Documents on Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security. Calgary: Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, 2018.
Edited. HMCS Labrador: An Operational History. Arctic Operational Histories. Antigonish: Mulroney Institute of Government, 2017 (Co-edited with P. Whitney Lackenbauer and Jason Delaney).
Edited. From the Polar Sea to Straight Baselines: Arctic Policy in the Mulroney Era. Documents on Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security. Calgary: Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, 2017 (Co-edited with Rob Huebert).
Edited. Ice Islands in Canadian Policy, 1954-1971. Documents on Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security. Calgary: Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, 2015.
Edited. Canadian Arctic Defence and Security Policy: An Overview of Key Documents, 1970-2012. Documents on Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security. Calgary: Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, 2017 (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer and Ryan Dean).
Climate Change & International Security: The Arctic as a Bellwether. Arlington: Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, 2012. (With Rob Huebert, Heather Exner-Pirot, and Jay Gulledge).
Book Chapters
(R) “Arctic Geopolitics and Security from the Canadian Perspective,” Handbook on Geopolitics and Security in the Arctic, Frontiers in International Relations, Joachim Weber ed. (Springer, 2020)
(R) “Regional Border Security Management in the Territorial North.” The North American Arctic: Themes in Regional Security, Dwayne R. Menezes and heather N. Nicol eds. London: UCL Press. (2019) (With Heather N. Nicol, Whitney Lackenbauer, and Karen Everett)
(R) “Defence Policy in the Canadian Arctic: From Jean Chrétien to Justin Trudeau.” In Canadian Defence: Theory & Policy, Srdjan Vucetic et al. Eds. (Toronto: Palgrave McMillan, 2019) (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
(R) “China’s Mining Interests in the North American Arctic.” In Governing the North American Arctic: Lessons from the Past, Prospects for the Future. Dawn Berry and Halbert Jones Eds. London: Palgrave MacMillan, 2017, 74-99 (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
(R) “The Arctic Response Company Groups: Presence and Mass.” In Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Operations, 1941-2015: Lessons Learned, Lost, and Re-Learned. Adam Lajeunesse and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. Fredericton: Gregg Centre, University of New Brunswick, 2017.
(R) “The CAF Returns to the Arctic, 2000-2006.” In Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Operations, 1941-2015: Lessons Learned, Lost, and Re-Learned. Adam Lajeunesse and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. Fredericton: Gregg Centre, University of New Brunswick, 2017.
(R) “Lessons Learned, Lost, and Relearned.” In Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Operations, 1941-2015: Lessons Learned, Lost, and Re-Learned. Adam Lajeunesse and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. Fredericton: Gregg Centre, University of New Brunswick, 2017 (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
(R) “There is no Glide Path in the Arctic: A Final Look at Lessons Learned.” In Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Operations, 1941-2015: Lessons Learned, Lost, and Re-Learned. Adam Lajeunesse and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. Fredericton: Gregg Centre, University of New Brunswick, 2017 (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
(R) “Symbolism and Substance: Northern Deployments in the Late Cold War.” In Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Operations, 1941-2015: Lessons Learned, Lost, and Re-Learned. Adam Lajeunesse and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. Fredericton: Gregg Centre, University of New Brunswick, 2017.
(R) “Lester B. Pearson, the United States, and Arctic Sovereignty: A Case of Un-Pearsonian Diplomacy.” In Mike’s World: Lester Pearson and Canadian External Relations, 1963-1968. Asa McKercher and Galen Roger Perras Eds. Vancouver: University of British Columbia Press, 2017. (With Peter Kikkert and P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
“Managing Flows: Profile of Regional Border Security Management in the Territorial North.” The Networked North: Borderlands in the Canadian Arctic Region. Heather Nicol and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. Waterloo: Borders in Globalization & Centre on Foreign Policy and Federalism, 2017. (With Heather Nicol and Karen Everett).
“The Emerging Arctic Security Environment: Putting the Military in its (Whole of Government) Place.” In Whole of Government through an Arctic Lens. Heather Nicol and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. Antigonish: Mulroney Institute of Government, 2017. (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
“The Canadian Armed Forces in the Arctic: Building Capabilities and Connections.” In Whole of Government through an Arctic Lens. Heather Nicol and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. Antigonish: Mulroney Institute of Government, 2017. (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
(R) “Canada’s Arctic Policy: The Evolution of Stephen Harper’s Northern Strategy.” In A Northern Nation, Klaus Dodds Ed. (Forthcoming, 2021) (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
(R) “A Gentleman’s Agreement: Sovereignty, Defence and Canadian-American Diplomacy in the Arctic,” Breaking Through: Understanding Sovereignty and Security in the Circumpolar Arctic, Wilfred Greaves and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. (Forthcoming, January 2021).
Peer Reviewed Articles
“China’s Mahanian Ambitions: Second Thoughts.” Canadian Naval Review 15:2 (Fall, 2019).
“Preparing for the Next Arctic Sovereignty Crisis: The Northwest Passage in the Age of Donald Trump.” International Journal 74:2 (Spring, 2019), 225-239.
“Finding “Win-Win:” China’s Arctic Policy and what it means for Canada.” Canadian Global Affairs Institute Policy Paper (December, 2018).
“Operation Nanook: Purpose, Evolution and Future.” Canadian Naval Review 14:2 (Fall, 2018), 11-17.
“The Canadian Armed Forces in the Arctic: Building Appropriate Capabilities.” Journal of Military and Strategic Studies 16:4 (Spring, 2016), 7-66 (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
“Watching the Arctic Ocean: Lessons from the Cold War.” Canadian Naval Review 12:3 (Fall, 2016), 4-8.
“The Canadian Armed Forces in the Arctic: Purpose, Capabilities, and Requirements.” Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute (May, 2015).
“On Uncertain Ice: The Future of the Northwest Passage and Arctic Shipping.” Canadian Defence and Foreign Affairs Institute (December, 2014). (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
“A Very Practical Requirement: Under-Ice Operations in the Canadian Arctic, 1960-1986.” Cold War History 13:4 (November, 2013), 507-524.
“The Ice has Ears: The Development of Canadian SOSUS.” Canadian Naval Review 9:3 (Fall, 2013), 4-9 (With William Carruthers).
• Winner of the CNR’s Bruce S. Oland Competition
“The New Economics of Arctic Oil and Gas.” American Review of Canadian Studies 43:1 (February, 2013), 107-122.
“A New Mediterranean? Arctic Shipping Prospects for the 21st Century.” Journal of Maritime Law and Commerce 43:4 (October, 2012), 521-539.
• Also appears in Canadian Arctic Shipping: Issues and Perspectives. International Centre for Northern Governance and Development Occasional Paper 11:1 (Winter, 2011), 4-19.
“Claiming the Frozen Seas: The Evolution of Canadian Policy in the Arctic Waters.” Canada and Arctic Sovereignty and Security: Historical Perspectives. Journal of Military and Strategic Studies. P. Whitney Lackenbauer Ed. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 2010, 233-259.
“The Northwest Passage in Canadian Policy: An Approach for the 21st Century.” International Journal 63:4 (Fall, 2008), 1037-1052.
“Lock, Stock and Icebergs: Defining Canadian Sovereignty from Mackenzie King to Stephen Harper.” The Calgary Papers in Military and Strategic Studies: Occasional Paper, No. 1. The Centre for Military and Strategic Studies and the Arctic Institute of North America (March, 2008).
“Sovereignty, Security and the Canadian Nuclear Submarine Program.” The Canadian Military Journal 8:4 (Winter, 2008), 74-82.
“The Distant Early Warning Line and the Battle for Public Perception.” The Canadian Military Journal 8:2 (Summer, 2007), 51-59.
“The Anglo-German Alliance Talks and the Failure of Amateur Diplomacy.” Past Imperfect 13 (2007), 84-107.
[submitted to peer-review] “Here there be Dragons? Chinese Submarine Options in the Arctic.” (With Tim Choi).
Non-Peer Reviewed Publications
“Are Chinese Submarines Coming to the Arctic?” Quick Impact Series, North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (July 2020). (With Tim Choi).
“Canada-US Relations in the Age of Trump,” introduction to a special edition of the American Review of Canadian Studies. (Spring, 2020 (With Don Abelson).
“‘Russian Arctic Military Exercise Draws Awe and Concern’ … and Promotes Misconceptions about the Canadian Armed Forces in our North and Threats to the Canadian Arctic?” North American and Arctic Defence & Security Network Quick Response Series (May 2020).
“The RCN in the Arctic: A Brief History,” Niobe Papers, Naval Associations of Canada (May, 2019).
“The Arctic in Canadian Strategic Thinking,” Limes 1:19 (Winter, 2019) (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer), 187-194.
• Published in Italian as: “Per Il Canada l’Artico è un Mare di Opportunità”
“Is the Next Big Fight over the Northwest Passage Coming?” Policy Options (February 2019).
“Hans Island: A Housewarming Gift,” Papers in Northern & Maritime Security 3 (June, 2018). (With Heather Exner-Pirot).
Negotiating Sovereignty: The Past and Present Failure of Security as a Bargaining Chip. Arctic Security Working Paper No. 5. Toronto: Walter and Duncan Gordon Foundation and ArcticNet Arctic Security Projects (February, 2013).
“Unarmed Warships: What are the AOPS for?” Canadian Global Affairs Institute. Policy Update (June, 2018).
“Energy, Security, and Resources (Section Introduction).” (Re)Conceptualising Arctic Security, Rob Huebert, Ryan Dean, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer Eds. (Calgary: Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, 2018).
“Arctic Security in a “Lower for Longer” World.” Dispatch (Fall 2016). (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
“The Chinese Prepare to use the Northwest Passage.” World Policy Institute (September, 2016).
“Reviewing Canada’s Arctic Capability: Suggestions for the Defence Review.” Conference of Defence Associations Institute (June, 2016).
“The Evolving Security Requirements in the Canadian Arctic.” Conference of Defence Associations Institute (May, 2015).
“Developing the Offshore in the North American Arctic.” The Journal of Ocean Technology 9:2 (August, 2014), 114-115 (With P. Whitney Lackenbauer).
“American Submarines in Arctic Waters: A Research Note.” The Laurier Centre for Military Strategic and Disarmament Studies (January, 2013).
“Arctic Warfare.” Oxford Bibliographies Online: Atlantic History. Dennis Showalter Ed. New York: Oxford University Press (Winter, 2012 – Revised: Summer 2017).
“Forgotten Frontier: A Brief History of Canada’s Northern Policy.” Nord-Nord-Ouest Chronique 6 (April, 2011), 1-5.
“Fuel Cell Submarines and the Three Ocean Fleet.” The Centre for International Strategic Studies Bulletin 21:1 (Winter, 2008), 10-11.
“Economics and Resources,” Arctic Strategic Foresight Analysis (scheduled release Summer 2020) (with Peter Kikkert, Adam MacDonald, Aldo Chircop, and Brian Bow).