The 2nd Annual National Summit on Energy Security is taking place today at the National Press Club in Washington DC, presented by 2020 Vision.

This year’s summit has the theme of “National Security and America’s Addiction to Carbon: Solutions to Oil Dependence and Climate Change” and features Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN), Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), Senator Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), among many other distinguished speakers.

The event kicked off this morning with a presentation of the first annual Energy Security Leadership Award to Sen. Richard Lugar.

The day will wrap up with a reception for and presentation by Arctic explorer Will Steger. Mr. Steger has recently finished a four month journey across the Canadian Arctic’s Baffin Island to experience and document how the Inuit culture is coping with global warming. He will present photos and information about this trip, as well as three upcoming trips, at a special VIP reception.

The event has been organized by 2020 Vision, which was formed in 1986 to promote global security and protect the environment. I spoke with executive director Tom Collina about the summit.

Listen to that interview here: [audio:http://www.zimmcomm.biz/epic/energy-summit-collina.mp3]