Forum@360

Alaska is still facing a yawning, multi-billion dollar gap between what it spends what it raises in revenue, despite billions in budget cuts and two years of policymakers debating how to keep the state solvent. Professor Emeritus Gunnar Knapp of the Institute of Social and Economic Research,  Caroline Schultz of Alaska Department of Labor & Workforce Development and Cliff Groh of Alaska Common Ground return to discuss Alaska’s fiscal crisis.

What is the future of renewable energy in Southeast Alaska? Three community stakeholders will discuss advances in technology and the challenges of powering the region’s most remote locations. We will look at models across the globe to see what’s working and how it could be adapted here.

There are over 150 canneries and fish processors that have operated in Alaska, but only two canneries are currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Very little is known about most of the other facilities that were the principle economic drivers for the pre-oil, pre-statehood Alaska. Historians Anjuli Grantham, Bob King, and Katie Ringsmuth talk about the Alaska Historic Canneries Initiative and their efforts to document Alaska’s early fish processing industry. They’ll also tell the stories of the people who came to Alaska to fish by sail and by oar, or find work at the various fish processing facilities.

As the 150th anniversary of the Alaska territory’s purchase from Russia approaches and the capital city prepares for a new statue commemorates the deal’s chief U.S. negotiator, historians reflect on William Henry Seward’s impact on Alaska and its indigenous people. For some, he’s a symbol of American imperialism and colonialism.

From the state’s geography and demographics to its reliance on the oil and gas industry, Alaska is a unique state with many political contradictions. State politics have changed dramatically over the past few decades, and Clive Thomas has spent decades studying that arc. Thomas was a long-time political science faculty member at the University of Alaska Southeast, and recently completed editing a 1,200-page tome on Alaska politics. Thomas will discuss the long view of Alaska’s politics with KTOO & APRN statehouse reporter Andrew Kitchenman.

Joe McCabe and Brian Weed, originators of the popular Hidden History Facebook page, talk about exploring early mines, hydroelectric facilities and pre-World War II installations which were crucial to Juneau’s early development and have been forgotten by the passage of time. They’ll also discuss the ethics of responsible exploring and how to do it safely.