ARCUS Community Member Profiles highlight our individual members and member representatives. They are short, easy-to-read profiles to help the ARCUS community get to know one another and support connections across disciplines and perspectives. This article summarizes the featured Profile of Gabriella Gricius, PhD Student in Political Science at Colorado State University and the North American and Arctic Defense and Security Network. For more information, please download the attached Member Profile and the transcript of a related interview.
What Do You Study?
My work in the Arctic focuses on the role of epistemic (expert) communities and their role in influencing national policy. For my dissertation, I'm interested in understanding how different actors, such as these communities and governments, are treating the region as a zone of geopolitical competition and figuring out where that urge to do so comes from. More broadly, I'm interested in thinking about how security is conceptualized in the Arctic, how it varies depending on who you ask, what values matter to those individuals, and how material security realities play an important role. I'm also working with the North American and Arctic Defense and Security Network (NAADSN) on issues such as human security, public opinion polls, and Chinese-Arctic interactions.
What excites you about this work?
The most exciting part of my work is getting to read the vast amount of literature about the Arctic from different perspectives. Perhaps it is very nerdy to say, but I really enjoy learning more about how the Arctic is understood by different countries, experts, and Indigenous perspectives. I also really enjoy building datasets based on influential experts—seeing where they studied and worked—and how there are interesting patterns within that data.
What Else Would You Like To Work On?
I would love to collaborate with other members of the Arctic research community to learn not only about their research in greater depth but also specifically to find ways that the physical sciences and social sciences can interact more with one another and incorporate Indigenous perspectives. I would also love to travel to different parts of the Arctic, specifically in Norway and Russia.
When You Aren't Doing Arctic Research, Where Might We Find You?
A favorite part of my non-work life is certainly fitness! There's something very calming about having a work-life that is primarily based on sitting and reading and contrasting that with running, lifting weights, and boxing. I'm currently training for my second marathon, and there's nothing I enjoy more than running and listening to podcasts on Saturday mornings.
Connect with Gabriella Gricius
Website: https://www.gabriellagricius.com
Twitter: @ModernFledgling