In the News: Wolves in Southeast Alaska Face Pressures From All Sides

In the News: Wolves in Southeast Alaska Face Pressures From All Sides

“Wolves are a charismatic top predator that have become a symbol of wildness for the conservation movement. Aldo Leopold famously wrote about the conflict between humans and wolves in his 1948 essay, ‘Thinking Like a Mountain,’ where he reflected upon shooting a wolf. Many historians credit this essay as a milestone in the modern-day environmental movement. To this day, wolves elicit an emotional response from so many of us. Love them or hate them, wolves attract a disproportionate amount of attention.”

Publication: A RADical approach to conservation in Alaska

Publication: A RADical approach to conservation in Alaska

Our board vice president, Dr. John Morton, and our executive director, Nicole Schmitt, have both been recently published! Read more about the RAD Framework and AWA’s outlook on climate adaptation for wildlife in Alaska.

In the News: Homer’s First Marine Mammal Forum

In the News: Homer’s First Marine Mammal Forum

“Brought together by the Alaska Wildlife Alliance, with the support of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and Kenai Peninsula College, the three-day forum held April 18-21, the culmination of a long-term conversation about educating boaters on how to ethically enjoy seeing the marine life of Kachemak Bay.”

VICTORY! Court upholds prohibition of brown bear baiting in the Kenai Refuge

VICTORY! Court upholds prohibition of brown bear baiting in the Kenai Refuge

Alaska Wildlife Alliance and our coalition partners celebrated a U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals decision today that upheld a 2016 U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service rule that enshrines the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge’s long-standing prohibition on brown bear baiting, along with its decades-long approach of managing the Skilak Wildlife Recreation Area for wildlife viewing and education.

We're in Alaska’s Superior Court to protect Alexander Archipelago wolves

We're in Alaska’s Superior Court to protect Alexander Archipelago wolves

After two long years and multiple attempts by the State to dismiss this case, we are finally going to trial. This week, we are holding the State of Alaska accountable to their Constitutional obligations to manage Alexander Archipelago wolves sustainably.

In the News: OPINION: Alaska has changed. It’s time for trapping regulations to change too.

In the News: OPINION: Alaska has changed. It’s time for trapping regulations to change too.

“When it comes to types of trapping that clearly infringe on the ability of other groups to safely use outdoor public spaces, decisions should be made in a collaborative process that involves representation from a more diverse range of affected groups. Parents of young children, skiers, hunters, hikers, search and rescue volunteers, mushers and others deserve to have a seat at this table.”

There are no trapping regulations in the state of Alaska- it’s time for the Alaska Board of Game to make the change. Read on to learn more about this issue.

In the News: Alaska’s Board of Game again behaves outrageously—and disrespectfully

In the News: Alaska’s Board of Game again behaves outrageously—and disrespectfully

“The BOG received almost 500 written comments in support of setbacks and only 36 comments against them, and still these handful of trails were rejected. We ‘compromised’ at a 95%-5% split (losing 95% of the initial request) and, with almost no discussion, they brushed that aside. The vote signaled to me that the Board of Game is not interested in public participation, nor is it interested in carrying out the agreements of a stakeholder group they themselves developed and organized. If they don’t listen to literally hundreds of commenters who don’t meet their worldview, or the stakeholders they called together to negotiate, who do they listen to?”

Read on to learn more about AWA’s failed Proposal 199 that requested 50-yard trap setbacks from select multi-use trails in the Matanuska-Susitna region.

In the News: Belugas are back: Spring monitoring kicks off on the Kenai

In the News: Belugas are back: Spring monitoring kicks off on the Kenai

Belugas are back in the Kenai! Read more about the efforts being made to monitor for critically endangered Cook Inlet beluga whales and how you can become involved this spring with the Alaska Beluga Monitoring Partnership.