Dr. Peter Kikkert is the Irving Shipbuilding Chair in Arctic Policy in the Brian Mulroney Institute of Government and Assistant Professor in the Public Policy and Governance program at StFX. Dr. Kikkert has written extensively on historic and contemporary safety, security, and sovereignty issues in the polar regions. His current research program focuses on how to strengthen search and rescue, disaster and emergency management capabilities, and community disaster resilience in rural, remote, and Northern communities.
Dr. Kikkert completed his PhD in history at Western University in December 2015. While completing his doctorate he held a two-year appointment (2012–14) in the Bachelor of Education program at Aurora College in the Northwest Territories, where he taught Circumpolar and Canadian Studies. From January to August 2016, he held a Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council postdoctoral fellowship at Trent University’s Frost Centre for Canadian and Indigenous Studies. In September 2016, he accepted a position as Professor of Public History at Sheridan College, where he stayed until coming to StFX in July 2018.
Dr. Kikkert has had the privilege to live and teach in the North, sail the Northwest Passage, participate in training patrols with the Canadian Rangers, and travel on the land, ice, and waters of Nunavut, the Northwest Territories, the Yukon, and Alaska with community responders and Elders.
BOOKS
Publications
Books
Arthur-Lackenbauer, Jennifer, Peter Kikkert, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. Familiar Fields to Foreign Soil: Three Rural Townships and the Great War. Norwich: Norwich and District Museum and Archives / South Norwich Historical Society, 2018.
Books as Editor
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. The Canadian Forces and Arctic Sovereignty: Debating Roles, Interests, and Requirements, 1968-1974. Waterloo: Laurier Centre for Military Strategic and Disarmament Studies / WLU Press, 2010.
Document Collections
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. Tracks North: The Story of Exercise Musk Ox by John Lauder. Arctic Operational History Series, vol. 5. Antigonish: Brian Mulroney Institute on Government, 2018.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. Lessons in Arctic Operations: The Canadian Army Experience, 1945-1956. Documents on Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security (DCASS) No. 7. Calgary and Waterloo: Centre for Military and Strategic Studies/Centre on Foreign Policy and Federalism, 2016.
Kikkert, Peter and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. Legal Appraisals of Canada’s Arctic Sovereignty: Key Documents, 1904-58. Documents on Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security (DCASS) No. 2. Calgary and Waterloo: Centre for Military and Strategic Studies/Centre on Foreign Policy and Federalism, 2014.
Book Chapters
Kikkert, Peter, Calvin Pedersen, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Mitigating the Tyranny of Time and Distance: Community-Based Organizations and Marine Mass Rescue Operations in Inuit Nunangat.” In Arctic Shipping at a Time of Change: Governance Challenges and Approaches in the Canadian North, edited by Kristin Bartenstein and Aldo Chircop. Leiden: Brill, forthcoming.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. “A ‘Profound Change of Direction’? Co-Developing Canada’s ‘New’ Arctic and Northern Policy Framework.” In Arctic Fever: Political, Economic & Environmental Aspects of New Regional Agendas, edited by Anastasia Likhacheva, 241–76. London: Palgrave Macmillan, 2022.
Kikkert, Peter. “In Search of Polar Sovereignty, 1900–1959.” In Breaking Through: Understanding Sovereignty and Security in the Circumpolar Arctic, edited by Wilfrid Greaves and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2021.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “The Militarization of the Arctic to 1990.” In The Palgrave Handbook of Arctic Policy and Politics, edited by Ken Coates and Carin Holroyd (p. 487–505). Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2020.
Kikkert, Peter. “Finding Ihuma: Inuit Leadership Norms and the Canadian Rangers.” In Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Operations, 1941–2015: Historical and Contemporary Lessons Learned, edited by Adam Lajeunesse and P. Whitney Lackenbauer (p. 370–86). Fredericton: The Gregg Centre for the Study of War and Peace, 2017.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, Peter Kikkert, and Kenneth Eyre. “Lessons in Arctic Warfare: The Army Experience, 1945–1955.” In Canadian Armed Forces Arctic Operations, 1941–2015: Historical and Contemporary Lessons Learned, edited by Adam Lajeunesse and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. Fredericton: The Gregg Centre for the Study of War and Peace, 2017.
Kikkert, Peter, Adam Lajeunesse, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Lester Pearson, the United States, and Arctic Sovereignty: A Case of Un-Pearsonian Diplomacy?” Mike’s World: Lester Pearson and Canadian External Relations, 1963–1968, edited by Asa McKercher and Galen Perras. Vancouver: UBC Press, 2017.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. “The Dog in the Manger – and Letting Sleeping Dogs Lie: The United States, Canada and the Sector Principle, 1924–1955.” The Arctic Ocean: Essays in Honour of Donat Pharand, edited by Suzanne Lalonde and Ted McDorman (p. 216–39). Leiden: Brill, 2014.
Kikkert, Peter. “Constructing a Role: The Royal Canadian Air Force in the Arctic, 1945–1953.” In De-Icing Required! The Canadian Air Force’s Experience in the Arctic, edited by W. A. March. Sic Itur Ad Astra: Canadian Aerospace Power Studies Series. Vol. 4. Trenton: Canadian Forces Air Warfare Centre, 2012.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. “Sovereignty and Security: The Department of External Affairs, the United States, and Arctic Sovereignty, 1945–68.” In Serving the National Interest, edited by Greg Donaghy and Michael Stevenson. Calgary: University of Calgary Press, 2011.
Kikkert, Peter. “1946: The Year Canada Chose Its Path in the Arctic.” In Calgary Papers on Military and Strategic Studies: Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security Historical Perspectives, edited by P. Whitney Lackenbauer (p. 69–110). Calgary: Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, 2010.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. “Building on ‘Shifting Sands’: The Canadian Armed Forces, Sovereignty and the Arctic, 1968–1972,” In Calgary Papers on Military and Strategic Studies: Canadian Arctic Sovereignty and Security Historical Perspectives, edited by P. Whitney Lackenbauer (283–308). Calgary: Centre for Military and Strategic Studies, 2010.
Peer-Reviewed Articles
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Civil-Military Operational Support to the ‘Heart of Canada’s North’: Looking to Alaska and the Australian North for Options?” Canadian Military Journal 21, no. 4 (Autumn 2021): 26–39. [change forthcoming to (2021): 36–39.]
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “‘A Great Investment in Our Communities’: Strengthening Nunavut’s Whole of Society Search and Rescue Capabilities.” Arctic 74, no. 3 (September 2021): 258–75. https://doi.org/10.14430/arctic73099.
Kikkert, Peter. “‘The United States Cannot Afford to Lag Behind Russia’: The Push for an American Nuclear Icebreaker, 1957-1961.” The Northern Mariner 31, no. 1 (2021): 30–60. https://doi.org/10.25071/2561-5467.120.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Search and Rescue, Climate Change, and the Expansion of the Coast Guard Auxiliary in Inuit Nunangat / the Canadian Arctic.” Canadian Journal of Emergency Management 1, no. 2 (2021): 26–62.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “The Canadian Rangers: Strengthening Community Disaster Resilience in Canada’s Remote and Isolated Communities.” The Northern Review 51 (2021): 1–33. https://doi.org/10.22584/nr51.2021.003.
Szustaczek, Christine, Peter Kikkert, Christian Knudsen, and Jennifer Deighton. “Sheridan@50: A Creative History for a Creative Campus.” Journal of Professional Communication vol. 6, no. 1 (2020): 165–74.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Civil-Military Operational Support to the ‘Heart of Canada’s North’: Looking to Alaska and the Australian North for Options?” Canadian Military Journal 21, no. 4 (in press, 2021).
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “The Canadian Rangers: Cornerstone for Community Disaster Resilience in Canada’s Remote and Isolated Communities.” Northern Review (forthcoming, 2021).
Szustaczek, Christine, Peter Kikkert, Christian Knudsen, and Jennifer Deighton. “Sheridan@50: A creative history for a creative campus.” Journal of Professional Communication 6, no. 1 (2020): 165–74.
Kikkert, Peter and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “On Hallowed Ground”: St. Roch, Sovereignty, and the 1944 Northwest Passage Transit.” The Northern Mariner 29, no. 3 (2019): 213–32.
Kikkert, Peter and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Bolstering Community-Based Marine Capabilities in the Canadian Arctic.” Canadian Naval Review 15, no. 2 (2019): 11–16.
Kikkert, Peter and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “‘Men of Frontier Experience’: Yukoners, Frontier Masculinity and the First World War.” The Northern Review 44 (2017): 209–42.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “‘The Index to a Man’s Principle’s’: Dawson and the Canadian Yukon Patriotic Fund, 1914–1920.” The Northern Review 44 (2017): 51–79.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. “Archipelagic Analogs? Indonesian Baselines, Canadian Arctic Sovereignty, and the Framing of Mental Maps, 1957–62.” International Journal of Canadian Studies 50 (2014): 227–52.
Kikkert, Peter. “The Disappointing Arctic: Will More Shipping Dreams Be Shattered on the Ice?” Journal of Maritime Law and Commerce 43, no. 4 (2012): 539–52.
Kikkert, Peter. “Promoting National Interests and Fostering Cooperation: Canada and the Development of a Polar Code.” Journal of Maritime Law and Commerce 43, no. 3 (2012): 319–34.
Kikkert, Peter. “Kurt Meyer and Canadian Memory: Villain and Monster, Hero and Victim or worse – a German?” Canadian Military History 21, no. 2 (2012): 33–44.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Setting an Arctic Course: Task Force 80 and Canadian Control in the Arctic.” Northern Mariner 21 (2011): 327–58.
Kikkert, Peter. “Rising Above the Rhetoric: Northern Voices and the Strengthening of Canada’s Capacity to Maintain a Stable Circumpolar World.” The Northern Review 33 (2011): 29–45.
Kikkert, Peter. “The Polaris Incident: “Going to the Mat” with the Americans.” Journal of Military and Strategic Studies 11, no. 3 (2009): 1–29.
Conference Proceedings
Hughes, James Alexander, William Hannah, Peter Kikkert, Barry MacKenzie, Wendy Ashlock, Sheridan Houghten, Daniel Ashlock, Matthew Stoodley, Michael Dube, Rachel Brown, and Amanda Saunders. “We Are Not Pontius Pilate: Acknowledging Ethics and Policy.” 2020 IEEE Symposium Series on Computational Intelligence (SSCI), Canberra, Australia, 2020, pp. 2975-2984, doi: 10.1109/SSCI47803.2020.9308312.
Other Scholarly and Professional Publications: Articles, Reports, and Policy Briefs
Pedersen, Calvin Aivgak, Peter Kikkert, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Inuit Nunangat Needs a Community Public Safety Officer Program.” Policy Options. 27 June 2022.
Kikkert, Peter. “Creating a Non-Military Disaster Workforce Must be Part of Canada’s Climate Change Response.” North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network Policy Brief. 8 December 2021.
Kikkert, Peter. “How Creating an Armed Forces Indigenous Community Assistance Program Would Pay Off.” Policy Options. 31 March 2021.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Enhancing the Canadian Ranger Role in Disaster/Emergency Management (DEM).” North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network Policy Brief. 24 February 2021.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Strengthening Search and Rescue in Nunavut: Approaches and Options.” North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network Policy Primer. January 2021.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. Measuring the Success of the Canadian Rangers. Report prepared for 1st Canadian Ranger Patrol Group and the Canadian Rangers National Authority. Published by the North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (NAADSN). October 2020.
Lajeunesse, Adam, Peter Kikkert, Adam MacDonald, Aldo Chircop, and Brian Bow. “Economics and Resources.” In Understanding the Future Arctic Security Environment: Applying NATO Strategic Foresight Analysis to Canadian Arctic Defence and Security, edited by P. Whitney Lackenbauer (p. 51–62). North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (NAADSN), 2020.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Handshakes or Arm Wrestling? The United States, Canada and Icebreakers in the Arctic.” Canadian Global Affairs Institute Policy Perspective. August 2020.
Kikkert, Peter. “Gaps and Bridges: The Case for American Polar Icebreaker.” North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (NAADSN) Quick Impact Reports. August 2020.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. Using Civil-Military Operations to “Expand and Deepen” Relationships with Northern Communities: Examples from Alaska and Australia North American and Arctic Defence and Security (NAADSN) Special Report. July 2020.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. “The Canadian Rangers and COVID-19.” North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network (NAADSN) Policy Briefs. June 2020.
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. “Canada’s Arctic and Northern Policy Framework: A Compendium of Documents.” North American and Arctic Defence and Security Network: Policy Briefs. June 2020.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “Canada’s Arctic & Northern Policy Framework: A roadmap for the future?” In Redefining Arctic Security: Arctic Yearbook 2019, edited by L. Heininen, H. Exner-Pirot, and J. Barnes. Akureyri, Iceland: Arctic Portal, 2019.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “A Better Road Map Needed for Arctic and Northern Policy Framework.” Policy Options, 17 September 2019. https://policyoptions.irpp.org/magazines/september-2019/a-better-road-map-needed-for-arctic-and-northern-policy-framework/
Lackenbauer, P. Whitney, and Peter Kikkert. “An Important International Crossroads: Implementing Canada’s Arctic Priorities in Strong, Secure, Engaged.” Workshop Report for Department of National Defence/Canadian Armed Forces. December 2018.
Kikkert, Peter, and P. Whitney Lackenbauer. “A History of Ikaluktuuttiaq.” In A Guidebook for Research with Nunavut Communities. Iqaluktuuttiaq (Cambridge Bay) Edition (p. 14–31). Cambridge Bay, NU: Polar Knowledge Canada; Pitquhirnikkut Ilihautiniq [Kitikmeot Heritage Society], 2016.
Websites
Kitikmeot Search and Rescue Project, kitikmeotsar.ca.