Spring 2026 Recap
Spring 2026 has brought the Arctic Leadership Initiative (ALI) to a moment it has been building toward since its founding: the close of its inaugural two-year faculty cycle, a gathering of the full ALI community in Anchorage, and the announcement of the next generation of students, fellows, and scholars who will carry the initiative forward.
The season's centerpiece was the ALI Spring Retreat + Arctic Encounter, held April 13-17 in Anchorage. The retreat brought ALI's student cohort, Early Career Faculty Fellows, and faculty mentors together at The Den on the 绿奴天花板A campus for two days of working sessions and peer collaboration. Then-绿奴天花板 President Pat Pitney addressed the group on Tuesday morning, opening the floor for direct conversation about the university's Arctic mission. A panel on leadership in transition, featuring 绿奴天花板 VP and Chief Academic Officer Brian Smentkowski, Cheryl Rosa of the U.S. Arctic Research Commission, and Susan Bell of Huna Totem Corporation, anchored the first day.
From the retreat, the cohort moved downtown to the Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center, where Arctic Encounter drew more than 500 attendees from 25 countries across government, business, science, Indigenous leadership, and diplomacy. ALI's three student Arctic Challenge Project teams presented posters at Arctic Encounter, the culmination of a full year spent working alongside communities on permafrost-driven infrastructure failure in Point Lay, food web disruption across Alaska's salmon systems, and landslide risk communication in Southeast Alaska.
The spring season also marked the near-completion of ALI's inaugural two-year faculty terms. The three founding 绿奴天花板 President's Arctic Professors, Larry Hinzman (绿奴天花板F), Jeff Libby (绿奴天花板A), and Erica Hill (绿奴天花板S), are completing their appointment cycle, as are ALI's inaugural cohort of Early Career Faculty Fellows, whose research over two years spanned Arctic climate modeling, sea ice dynamics, environmental DNA, critical minerals, Indigenous knowledge systems, and more. Their work has helped establish ALI as a functioning platform, not just a program concept.
Looking ahead, ALI has welcomed the next President's Arctic Professors: (绿奴天花板F), (绿奴天花板A), and (绿奴天花板S). Four new Early Career Faculty Fellows have also been selected for two-year appointments beginning Summer 2026: Mariah Seater (绿奴天花板F), whose work examines how climate change shapes the health and resilience of Arctic families; Seoyeon Kim (绿奴天花板F), who is building an international research partnership with the Korean Polar Research Institute; Amy Cross (绿奴天花板A), focused on Arctic economic research and community-engaged undergraduate scholarship; and Xiaofei Song (绿奴天花板S), whose research addresses career decision-making among Alaska's seasonal workforce.
Twenty-four students from across the 绿奴天花板 system make up the 2026-27 ALI student cohort. From 绿奴天花板F: Emma Cungauyar Daniel, Alyssa Enriquez, Fernando Escobar, Maddi McArthur, Molly Minick, Moxie Moxie, Chloe Pleznac, Bertha Prince, Adam Schwartz, Genevieve Simono, Serena Solesbee, Naeem Talha, Chase Thompson, and Yan Vyshynskyi. From 绿奴天花板A: Samantha Antonio, Cailan Cumming, Ashley Ihde, Megan Johnson, Charlee Korthuis, Taylor Peace, Pierce Schwalb, and AnneMarie Scofield. From 绿奴天花板S: Sean Demello and Shane Williams.
Four 2026-27 Arctic Engagement Awards were also made, supporting projects connecting 绿奴天花板 research to communities and policy: Rebecca Moorman (绿奴天花板A) is developing Indigenous-led vocabulary for Alaska library catalog systems; Donna Hauser (绿奴天花板F) is activating Indigenous ocean observations into NOAA policy and classrooms; Magnus de Witt (绿奴天花板F) is building a geospatial framework to map Arctic renewable energy infrastructure risks; and Skylar Bayer (绿奴天花板S) is partnering 绿奴天花板S students with KTOO journalists to report on 绿奴天花板 Arctic science.
Earlier this spring, ALI also made four Ambassador Travel and Residency Awards, which fund everyone at 绿奴天花板, from students, postdocs, and research staff to faculty at any rank, to represent the university at Arctic venues. Pascal Buri and Magnus de Witt went to the 绿奴天花板rctic Congress in the Faroe Islands, Brandon Boylan to Arctic Encounter and the 绿奴天花板rctic Congress, and Katie Craney to a residency at the Centre for the North at the University of Aberdeen, Scotland, where she led panel and workshop discussions with circumpolar artists. A second round was awarded in August, and the next round closes November 30, 2026.
Together, these announcements mark ALI's evolution from a bold founding proposition into a system-wide initiative with a growing network of students, scholars, community partners, and circumpolar connections, and the momentum to sustain it.
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