In this episode of Arctic360’s Breaking the Ice 2026 Summer Series, we tackle the dollars behind defence and discuss how Canada, Europe, and their allies are mobilizing private capital to build defence and dual-use capabilities for the future.

To unpack the role of institutional investors, pensions funds, and public banks in financing the defence industrial base, co-hosts Jessica Shadian, President & CEO of Arctic360, and intern Ruofan Lin are joined by:

• Rudolf Siebel, Managing Director, BVI German Fund Association
• Oliver Cusworth, Senior Policy Advisor, Security & Defence Office, European Investment Bank Group
• Thomas Ashcroft, Policy Lead, Global Issues, RBC Thought Leadership

Welcome to Arctic360’s 2026 summer season, Breaking the Ice podcast series: 'The Summer of Arctic Defence, Development, Diplomacy, and Dollars.'

Join President and CEO, Jessica Shadian and this Summer's M.A. Munk School Interns, Henry Chen and Ruofan Lin, as they deep dive into the big issues facing the Arctic today.

A big thank you to Tulugkat for the permission to use their music!

President and CEO of Arctic360 and Minister of Crown and Indigenous Relations, Rebecca Alty discuss Prime Minister Carney’s March 12, 2026 Announcement on Defending, Building, And Transforming The North. They talk about the announcement’s significance for the North, the current context, and what will be required to go from announcement to project completion. They confirm that the Minister is not 100 years old and they end with takeaways about what this moment means for Northerners and what the North means for Canada as an Arctic nation in a region central to the big issues driving global geopolitics today.