Southeast Connecticut has a long and proud connection to the Arctic region dating back several centuries to the eras of commercial whaling and polar exploration, where local residents forged enduring relationships with indigenous peoples of the Arctic, resulting in the emergence of a small Inuit community in Groton in the 19th century. Our region's connection to the Arctic continued through the mid-20th century's Arctic defense modernization efforts of the Cold War, including the advent of long-distance capable nuclear submarines in Groton which cruised beneath the polar ice, and numerous Arctic research, educational, and policy activities across the Thames River at the Coast Guard Academy. More recently, there has been a renewal of interest in the region's connection to the Arctic through our shared maritime history at the Mystic Seaport Museum and the Mashantucket Pequot Museum and Research Center, and to Arctic marine mammal research and conservation at Mystic Aquarium (with its beluga whale research program) - with this unique, and fascinating, cluster of local organizations fostering the renewal of the region's ties to the indigenous peoples of the Arctic who had long interacted with earlier generations of residents from New London, Groton and Mystic. I, along with my co-authors, will discuss our respective organizations' current efforts to sustain this fascinating geographical nexus connecting Southeastern CT with the Arctic region via our shared maritime heritage for generations to come, and to reflect on the unique geographical dimensions of our enduring Southeastern CT/Arctic geographical nexus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]