Relationships between weather and the activity of mosquitoes (Culicidae) and oestrid flies (Oestridae), and responses by caribou (Rangifer tarandus) to insect harassment, were examined near Milne Point, Alaska. Weather conditions were usually unfavorable for insects within 20 km of the Beaufort Sea, and were least favorable within 1-3 km of the eoast. Weather affected the occurrence more than the level of insect activity. Mosquitoes were rarely active within 1 km of the coast; maritime weather conditions had little effect on oestrids. Weather conditions and insect activity were more variable through time than through space： this necessitated models predicting: (1) the presence of insects, and (2) levels of insect activity when insects were present. Insect harassment caused caribou to travel rapidly to coastal areas at the expense of feeding and lying, and form large, mixed groups. Insect activity was most highly correlated with caribou rate of travel and behavior.

Federal bodies have called for a directed transition away from 100 octane low lead aviation gas (100LL avgas) due to public health concerns. Leaded avgas currently powers piston engine aircraft in general aviation and air taxi fleets, serving both recreational and commercial purposes. In considering the unleaded avgas transition, we must acknowledge that public policy frequently generates unintended consequences that reduce anticipated net benefits for subgroups of the population. Particular attention should be placed on regions which are heavily reliant on piston aircraft for core commercial services to remote environments, and where infrastructure adjustments are highly complex and costly. Alaska is one such key context. This brief outlines considerations for potential core supply chain impacts in this remote, aviation-dependent environment and which communities are particularly exposed. While Alaska is 48th in total population, the state is 1st in total volume of intra-state air cargo delivery. Over 80% of the state's communities lie off the road system, and piston engine aircraft are an important component of that commercial fleet. Leveraging granularity in the Bureau of Transport Statistics (BTS) T-100 database, we find that over 50% of carriers reporting intra-Alaska flights had at least one piston engine aircraft in their fleet. In 2023, T-100 data recorded 130,850 commercial piston aircraft flights transporting 201,729 passengers and 30.6M lbs of cargo between Alaskan communities. For non-hub ‘bush’ communities, almost 50% of all commercial flights, 30% of passengers, and 20% of recorded cargo were delivered by piston aircraft. We map community reliance across the state, with particular importance found for off-road destinations in the Southeast, Southwest, and Kodiak. A complete tabular breakdown of piston-engine market shares is generated for all Alaskan destination communities. We conclude by providing key economic questions for Alaska to address ahead of a fuel transition. Assuring the technical performance of unleaded fuel alternatives in Alaskan environments is foundational. Then, to most efficiently utilize the preparation window, policymakers and sector leadership should understand the impact of increased fuel expenses on overall linehaul cost per ton-mile, the share of cost increases borne by service communities, impacts on route viability, and the potentially complex process of staging any necessary support infrastructure such as fuel storage to off-road communities in Alaska's narrow barge season.

University of Alaska Southeast Masters in Teaching Students Sophia Butler, Jerry Demmert, Shaun Nesheim, Meghan O’Leary, Reuben Seidl, and Mason Shearer, have written this book for those interested in Alaska, particularly educators. It includes lesson plans focusing on place-based and multicultural education as well as a detailed introduction to Southcentral Alaska, the most populated and varied region in the state.

This report summarizes monetary and non-monetary items used in Collectively Bargained Agreements (CBAs) to enhance retention and recruitment of educators in and outside of Alaska. This report is one of a series commissioned by the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development to support a stakeholder-informed action plan to address the state’s recurring critical challenges in recruiting and retaining teachers. To approach this task, we narrowed our focus to a review of provisions contained within CBAs in Alaska and a sample of districts in the nation, reviewed relevant literature, and collected stakeholder feedback to further inform the report content and organization. We restrict our analysis to the information contained in CBAs, which are negotiated at the district level, with the noted limitation that CBAs are not exhaustive of all educator benefits (e.g., retirement is an important benefit that is managed at the statewide level). The report details benefits in five broad categories and 15 subcategories, which are bookmarked in this abstract for easy access: coming and staying (signing bonus, longevity/retention bonus); benefits – health and wellbeing (healthcare, sick leave, other leave); benefits – moving and living (travel and relocation, housing and utilities, childcare); knowledge and growth (transferable experience, education and certification, professional development); and work life (contract length and workday, extra duties, hard-to-staff areas, performance pay). Overall, we find that benefits and compensation vary significantly across districts in Alaska, and even more substantially across districts in the national sample, reflecting the diversity in the sample in terms of state, region, size, and location.

This fact sheet presents Alaska misdemeanor assault arrest rates per 100,000 males and 100,000 females, from 1985-2022.

This fact sheet presents Alaska misdemeanor assault arrest rates per 100,000 Anchorage residents and 100,000 residents outside of Anchorage, from 1985-2022.

Interior Alaska includes a general introduction to the geographical, cultural, and historical aspects of the region, followed by content specific lessons and activities that meet Alaska’s content and cultural curriculum standards. This resource is intended for teachers, students, and anyone interested in learning more about the great region of Interior Alaska. Enjoy!

This book was compiled in 2016 by students in a University of Alaska Southeast Masters of Arts in Teaching program. It features a basic introduction to the region of Western Alaska - its geography, peoples, culture, and history - and contains six detailed lesson plans intended to serve as models of culturally responsive teaching.

Across Inuit Nunangat (the Inuit homelands of Canada) researchers have been called to engage ethically and meaningfully with community members to develop projects that support local goals. This article focuses on understanding such engagement in the context of Nunatsiavut, an Inuit-governed territory in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. In 2022 we conducted 27 interviews with researchers (both southern- and community-based), Inuit government representatives, and NGO representatives associated with the transdisciplinary SakKijânginnaKullugit Nunatsiavut Sivunitsangit (Sustainable Nunatsiavut Futures [SNF]) Project. SakKijânginnaKullugit Nunatsiavut Sivunitsangit began in 2020 and was designed, in part, to facilitate the co-production of knowledge between researchers and community members about climatic changes in Nunatsiavut. Through interviews, we explored what ethical and meaningful community engagement means in the context of a large-scale transdisciplinary project. Drawing on an analysis of interview data, we examine how project members and partners engage with Inuit community members, and how members of the project team who are Inuit have experienced these engagements. Based on participant responses, we identified elements needed for, and barriers to, ethical and meaningful engagement. We also heard about possible solutions. University researchers described institutional constraints to long-term engagement, while members of the Nunatsiavut Government staff and Inuit research coordinators emphasized that extractive (one-sided) forms of engagement can negatively impact communities. Interviewees described how a) restructuring academic and funding institutions, b) broadening engagement methods, and c) scaling down within a project can minimize the likelihood of negative effects and lead to more ethical and meaningful community engagement.

The Alaska Earthquake Center reported 39,836 seismic events in Alaska and neighboring regions in 2024. The largest earthquakes were two magnitude 6.3 events that were part of a swarm of M6 events on December 8-9 in the Andreanof Islands region of Alaska. The first occurred on December 8 at 19:57:07 UTC, and the second occurred at 00:15:30 on December 9, followed by an M6.1 23 minutes later. Other strong earthquakes include two M6.0 events, one on May 19 and one on July 19, both south of Yunaska Island in the Islands of Four Mountains region of the Aleutians, and the strongest mainland earthquake, an M5.9, off the coast of Port Alexander in Southeast Alaska on January 12. We continued to monitor the 2020 M7.8 Simeonof sequence, but all other previous sequences and swarms have dropped below one event per day and are no longer being tracked. Numerous short-lived swarms occurred in 2024 and will be discussed below.