In Alaska, battling climate change in camouflage

This is the Opinion of the Week edition of Bloomberg Opinion Today, a digest of our top commentary published every Sunday. Follow us on Inst [Bloomberg]( This is the Opinion of the Week edition of [Bloomberg Opinion Today](, a digest of our top commentary published every Sunday. Follow us on [Instagram](, [TikTok](, [Twitter]( and [Facebook](. Photographer: Louie Palu/Agence VU Alaska holds a special place in the American psyche. An incomprehensibly vast mass of cold unknowns, it is the [least-visited state]( by Americans due in large part to the extreme climate and its hard-to-reach factor. (It is, famously, [less than 3 miles from Russia]( at its closest point.) In 1867, when the [Russian Empire, broke and eager]( to neutralize the threat its archrival Britain posed, wanted to get out of the Alaska business, the US government saw potential: a way to expand trade and influence, maintain its friendship with Russia, and capitalize on a potential gold mine (no pun intended) of resources. The goals in 1867 — for both sides — are mirror images of those in 2023. Alaska has quickly become a vital part of the US’s efforts to keep Vladimir Putin’s Russia and other dictatorial forces at bay in the Arctic Circle, where valuable shipping routes, [fragile diplomacy]( and environmental concerns meet. This time, though, climate change is proving to be its most formidable foe, literally changing the landscape and upending geopolitical strategy. In the first of a series of articles, Bloomberg Opinion columnist Liam Denning and photographer Louie Palu look at how climate change and geopolitics are reshaping [the High North’s strategic landscape](, from the military balance of power to the quest for oil and gas and mineral resources. [Read it here](. Related Reading [Red States Can’t Hold Back the ESG Investing Tide]( — David Fickling [Biden Walks a Cliff Edge on Alaskan Oil]( — Liam Denning [The Arctic Should Be a Catalyst for Climate Action]( — Bloomberg’s editorial board [China’s ‘Climate’ Balloon Risks Arctic Peace]( — Liam Denning [How a Warming Yukon Forced Its Farmers to Adapt]( — Adam Minter Notes: To contact the author of this newsletter, email bsample1@bloomberg.net. Follow Us You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Bloomberg Opinion Today newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. [Unsubscribe]( [Bloomberg.com]( [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( [Ad Choices](