While the membership of the Arctic Mayors’ Forum is made up of the mayors from Arctic municipalities, the Arctic Mayors’ Forum Secretariat is staffed by a dedicated and skilled team. Read more about our staff, and the projects they are working on.
Patti Bruns
Secretary General
Patti Bruns has been Secretary General of the Arctic Mayors’ Forum since 2022. She has previously worked as Executive Secretary for two Arctic Council working groups, EPPR and ACAP. Prior to assuming her current role, she served as a Senior Advisor at the Canadian International Arctic Centre within Global Affairs Canada. Patti remains committed to fostering resilience and sustainability within Arctic communities, even amidst unprecedented change. As Secretary General of the Arctic Mayors’ Forum, she continues to champion initiatives that promote inclusive, adaptive, and forward-thinking solutions for the Arctic’s future.
Ronja Wedegärtner
Senior Advisor
Enhancing Northern Connectivity
Beyond Arctic PASSION
Ronja joined the Arctic Mayors’ Forum as a Senior Advisor in 2026. Originally from Germany, her work on cold ecosystems brought her to Norway, where she earned a PhD in Biology from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. She is dedicated to supporting thriving Arctic communities and draws on her experience as a Project Leader at the WWF Global Arctic Programme (2022–2026), where she led the Youth Together for Arctic Futures project and worked at the intersection of science and advocacy.
Ronja enjoys collaborating with partners to develop practical solutions and believes that strong relationships are key to overcoming siloed approaches.
Jules Aguirre-Morales
Advisor
Youth Together for Arctic Futures
BRIDGE
Julia joined the Forum in May 2026 bringing a passion for every day people, their lives and the natural Arctic environment. Julia supports the AMF BRIDGE and Talent North projects, leads the Arctic Mentorship Program and AMF’s participation in the Youth Together for Arctic Futures project and much more. She represents AMF on the Arctic Futures Symposium steering committee.
She previously worked an advisor at Arctic Frontiers helping bring Arctic leaders together on the global stage to discuss critical issues facing the region. Julia has also served on the board of the Arctic Youth Network and worked as an expedition coordinator for Girls* on Ice Canada.
Originally from Montreal, Canada, Julia holds a master’s degree in geophysics focused on the Arctic glacier ice loss. She is fluent in English, French and Spanish and is working to perfect her Norwegian. Julia loved finding common ground to build harmonious cooperation in the Arctic.
Alice Ferguson-O’Brien
Junior Advisor
Alice is a student from St John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada who began working with AMF in 2022 through the Laidlaw Scholarship Program at the University of Toronto. She has a long history in climate organizing, and is passionate about democracy, sustainability, and community well-being. Alice studied Cognitive Science and Philosophy at the University of Toronto, where her research focused on mental health and well-being, conspiracy theory belief, and technology. She is now pursuing a Masters in Science in Applied Digital Technology at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar.
At AMF Alice has worked extensively on youth programming, including the Arctic Policy Hackathons, the Arctic Youth Futures Workshop, and Project CREATeS 2026. She is interested in health, community-level security and resilience, and the Canadian Arctic.
Carter Ayasse
Junior Advisor
Carter is a student from Tromsø, Norway, and has worked with AMF since 2023. At IE University, as a dual bachelor in Business Administration and International Relations, he is interested in how private actors, institutions, and the cross-border collaboration between them can realize a thriving and sustainable Arctic. Having grown up in the Arctic, he has a passion for the role young people play in developing their communities, and how local, regional, and national governments can support their ambitions in the north.
At AMF, Carter works on the Enhancing Northern Connectivity and Speaking Arctic projects.