U.S. Arctic Envoy is Still Talking With Disney to Use 'Frozen' to Teach Climate Change

Adm. Robert Papp, the U.S. top envoy to the Arctic, said Thursday that he is still in talks with Disney and hopes to use characters from the hit movie Frozen to raise awareness about climate change.

"We're continuing discussions with Disney. I'm hopeful we're going to get there," Papp said at an event hosted by the Brookings Institution in Washington. "It's a very good company, and they put out a good product, and I'd like to have them help us raise awareness."

The United States is preparing to take the helm of the Arctic Council, an international forum with oversight of the polar region next month. Papp serves as the U.S. special representative to the Arctic and will chair the council.

In January, Papp told an audience at Norway's Arctic Frontiers conference that he had approached a Disney executive about the idea of raising Arctic awareness using characters from the popular movie, including Elsa, a princess with powers over ice and snow; her younger sister, Anna; a reindeer named Sven; and Olaf, a talking snowman who loves summer.

Papp said, however, that his pitch was rebuffed. "As I continued to talk, I could see the executive getting more and more perplexed, and he said: 'Admiral, you might not understand: Here at Disney, it's in our culture to tell stories that project optimism and have happy endings.' "

Temperatures are rising in the polar region twice as fast as for the rest of the planet as global warming intensifies.

Federal officials, lawmakers, and maritime experts warn that the U.S. lacks the infrastructure and investment to adequately respond to spills and accidents in the fast-melting Arctic.

The State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment.