Despite the challenges of farming in Iceland, where glaciers cover much of the country, Jakobsdóttir emphasized the importance of agriculture in safety and security strategies. “Being a farmer in Iceland is not easy. The fields are not great. But agriculture is an important part of our safety and security strategy in this world.”
Efforts on food security are coupled with an attempt to curb the energy-hungry Bitcoin miners that have made the island a data center haven. Jakobsdóttir expressed concern that a significant portion of Iceland’s green energy is being consumed by Bitcoin mining centers, and suggested that valuable renewable electricity from these centers be diverted to housing and other sectors:
“Bitcoin is a worldwide problem, but data centers in Iceland use a significant amount of our green energy. A new proposal to increase wind power would ‘prioritize’ green industries to achieve carbon neutrality. Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, which use a large part of our energy, are not part of this mission.”
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