Many of us were disheartened by the November election results, and AWA is no exception. AWA is a grassroots organization— we focus on wildlife issues across Alaska that have community-based solutions. While we will continue to advocate for wildlife at the state and local level during the next administration, some federal and executive issues impact Alaska's wildlife and our work.
We don't know what's to come in the next administration, one area of concern is the possible enactment of Project 2025. Project 2025 is a detailed blueprint for the incoming administration, written by William Perry Pendley, a lawyer who served as the acting director of the BLM from 2019 to 2021. Because the Senate never confirmed him, a federal district judge ruled that Pendley had served unlawfully for over 400 days. Pendley is well known for his anti-environmental, pro-development background and Project 2025 reflects this.
While Trump hasn’t officially announced that he’ll enact Project 2025, there are several Alaska-specific issues laid out in the document that AWA will be watching closely, including:
The reinstatement of the 2020 Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) and the lifting of the suspended oil and gas leases in ANWR, which could impact polar bears and other species.
The approval of the 2020 Willow EIS and the expansion from three to five drilling pads, which could bring barges into the habitat of 78,000 molting geese and approximately 600,000 shorebirds.
The approval of the Ambler Road Project, which would fragment key caribou habitat and migration corridors.
The revocation of the National Park Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules regarding predator control and bear baiting, potentially reversing years of progress in responsibly regulating sport hunting in Alaska’s Preserves and Refuges.
The reinstatement of the 2020 Alaska Roadless Rule for the Tongass National Forest, opening some of the ancient forest to logging and road construction.
Ways to Help AWA
We know that many of us are overwhelmed by the amount of work that's to come in the next four years to safeguard our environment. At AWA, we’ll be focusing on what we can do to help Alaskan wildlife right here in our backyard, and we could use your help.
Become a member: Your $35 membership fee not only gives us the time and resources to dig into important issues, but it also amplifies our voice when we testify for Alaska’s wildlife. Being able to say we have a large membership base that supports wildlife conservation is vital to getting things done.
Sign up for our newsletter and follow us on social media: This is the best way to see our Action Alerts. These action alerts, generally sent during public comment periods, are emailed and posted to our social media. We share information on specific wildlife issues, as well as specific actions you can take to stand up for wildlife, including submitting public comments and sharing vital information with your network. For more frequent notifications on our current work, follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
Volunteer: We’re always looking for dedicated volunteers! Whether you can provide admin skills, photographs and videos, or your knowledge of Alaska’s wildlife, we’d love to have you on board. Please fill out the volunteer form on our website! In particular, we’re looking for volunteers in these sectors:
Wildlife knowledge holders: Are you a biologist, wildlife viewer/wildlife viewing guide, subsistence hunter/gatherer, naturalist, transporter, photographer, pilot, or person with other deep experiences engaging with wildlife? We are always looking for local experts to help frame our comments and guide our advocacy on issues affecting specific regions or species across Alaska.
Admin and events: AWA is a small team, and sometimes the administrative demands of running a nonprofit pull us away from critical wildlife programming. If you have extra time to help us write member thank you notes, solicit silent auction donations from local businesses, or table at community events, we'd love your help!
Content creators: If people have a relationship with wildlife, they're more inclined to protect them. If you have Alaska wildlife photos and videos you're able to donate, we'd sure appreciate it! We also have internships and volunteer opportunities for folks to create wildlife education content. Whether you're gifted in photography, graphic design, art, video production or writing, your creativity is an essential tool in wildlife conservation!
Logistics and fundraising: We do a lot of work around the state that often takes us far from our own homes. We’re always looking for homestays, Alaska Air miles, pilots to help us transport materials and people, and business owners to promote our work.
Looking to Take Action for Alaska Right Now?
The Izembek Refuge is in danger of being fragmented by a road that would forever harm this vitally important wetlands complex and the wildlife that it supports. The refuge sits at the intersection of the Pacific America, West Pacific, and East Asian/Australasian migratory flyways. Each year, the lagoons complex hosts hundreds of bird species as they migrate along these routes; hundreds of species from every continent depend on the rich eelgrass beds at Izembek as they traverse from the Arctic back to their winter ranges across the globe.
There are alternatives to road construction: a marine route between King Cove and Cold Bay is entirely viable and more reliable in harsh weather than road travel would be. The Inflation Reduction Act provided over $40 million to modernize the dock at Cold Bay, and a marine ferry would be an excellent solution to connect the two small communities without unnecessarily compromising wildlife habitat and wilderness qualities in the refuge.
The road would require a proposed land exchange, swapping lands owned by King Cove Corporation for Izembek Refuge Wilderness lands. This would set a dangerous precedent for all conserved lands in Alaska and could open the door to future land exchanges for commercial and private purposes that jeopardize over 150 million acres of national parks, refuges, wilderness areas, and other public lands.
Defenders of Wildlife has issued an action alert to protect Izembek. Visit their website to learn more and use their form to submit a comment.
Send your comments to the Interior by December 30. Comment today.
