Nordic Council is the Nordic inter-parliamentary body, while the Nordic Council of Ministers is the inter-governmental body. Members include: Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, and the autonomous territories of Åland Islands (Finland), Faroe Islands (Denmark) and Greenland (Denmark). Barents Euro-Arctic Council Barents Euro-Arctic Council (BEAC) is the forum for intergovernmental cooperation in the Barents Region established in 1993 to "provide impetus to existing cooperation and consider new initiatives and proposals". Members include: Russia, Norway, Denmark, Iceland, Finland, Sweden and Commission of European Communities. Pacific Northwest Economic Region: Arctic Caucus The Pacific Northwest Economic Region (PNWER) Arctic Caucus formed informally in November 2010 as a loose alliance between Alaska and the Canadian Territories of Northwest Territories and the Yukon. Members include legislators, government officials, business and nonprofit leaders. The Caucus met in December 2010 in Barrow, Alaska; in Portland, Oregon in July 2011; and in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories in August 2011. Northern Forum The Northern Forum is a non-profit, international organization composed of sub-national or regional governments from eight northern countries. The Forum's mission is to improve the quality of life of Northern peoples by using leadership networking to tackle common problems; and to support sustainable development and cooperative socio-economic initiatives. Youth Arctic Coalition The Youth Arctic Coalition is a non-profit, international, youth organization that was created to bridge the gap between youth living in all parts of the Arctic. The YAC has membership in the eight Arctic states, and is supported by youth, organizations, and governments from around the world. In 2014, the YAC hosted its inaugural conference in Ottawa, which brought together over 200 youth from across the Arctic. Arctic policies of select nations United States of America (Alaska) Main goals in U.S. Arctic Policy are: National security; Protecting the Arctic environment and wildlife; Ensuring economic development is environmentally sustainable; Strengthening cooperative institutions among the eight Arctic nations; Including the Arctic's indigenous communities in decisions; and Improving scientific monitoring and research. On January 9, 2009, President Bush signed National Security Presidential Directive (NSPD)-66 on Arctic Region Policy, a collaborative effort replacing the Clinton era Arctic policy directive. NSPD-66 is currently the active Arctic policy playbook being pursued by the Obama Administration and its Departments. The U.S. Arctic Policy Group is a federal interagency working group comprising those agencies with programs and/or involvement in research and monitoring, land and natural resources management, environmental protection, human health, transportation and policy making