The State wants public money to pay for a privately owned road in Izembek
By Dawnell Smith The Alaska Department of Transportation has proposed that federal and state money pay for a road...
16 July, 2026
On beings and biomes—the role of the river
By Madison Grosvenor As seasons shift and ice gives way to current, Alaska’s...
16 July, 2026
Litigation 101: What’s an integrated activity plan and how does it play into Interior’s proposed rule to rubber stamp Big Oil projects like Willow in the Arctic?
By Dawnell Smith Federal agencies use general management plans and review processes to...
16 June, 2026
Between a rock and a hard place—hard rock mining’s toxic stew
By Dawnell Smith Industrial mining destroys the lands where it blasts, drills, crushes, and digs. It poisons streams, rivers, and lakes and requires perpetual...
14 January, 2026
On beings and biomes–eelgrass is the sexiest plant alive
By Dawnell Smith Once upon a time, a land plant got salty. [caption id="attachment_20558"...
14 November, 2025
On beings and biomes—wetlands as the center of our everything
By Madison Grosvenor In Crossing the Swamp, poet Mary Oliver immerses us in...
17 October, 2025
What does the Clean Water Act do, and how do we safeguard it during a deregulation dumpster fire?
By Dawnell Smith A few summers ago, I paddled with friends through the...
17 June, 2025
The law under fire—what does NEPA do?
By Dawnell Smith Decades ago, bulldozers plowed interstate highways across the country without...
19 March, 2025
The 50th Anniversary series: Landmark cases
By Dawnell Smith A winning lawsuit can set the stage for legal interpretations...
20 December, 2024
What you can do for the West Su—and other acts of love
By Dawnell Smith To the west of the Susitna River lies a huge...
16 August, 2024
Pulling the Pebble mine out of Alaska’s XTRATUFs
By Dawnell Smith A pebble underfoot can make walking unpleasant and irritating, and...
18 June, 2024
The third decade—clean water, mud-slinging, and nature running wild
By Madison Grosvenor Trustees for Alaska’s third decade focused heavily on the oil...
18 June, 2024
The second decade—dialed up to 11
By Dawnell Smith If you sum up the 1980s in a few words,...
17 May, 2024
Are you a joyful animal? — Alaska News Brief April 2024
I returned to the office last week after spending part of my...
19 April, 2024
The promise of Spring. Alaska News Brief March 2024
Greetings! It’s an honor to be standing in for Vicki while she’s off...
26 March, 2024
Drinks with lawyers – Vicki follows the whales
By Dawnell Smith Vicki remembers her fifth grade teacher asking everyone in class...
19 January, 2024
Short but sweet relief on Pebble as Arctic appeals heat up
By Dawnell Smith Significant court rulings can come in small but potent packages,...
18 January, 2024
Drilling and mining are economic vampires: Alaska News Brief October 2023
I’ve been thinking about metal and mineral mining a lot these days,...
20 October, 2023
Vicki talks about the other world
As a kid growing up in Iowa, there were no oceans. What...
15 September, 2023
The light always returns: Alaska News Brief June 2023
Earlier this month, I joined my mom on her last—for now—“bucket list”...
22 June, 2023
How building a house in Idaho changed national wetlands policy and now threatens waterways in Alaska
In late May, the U.S. Supreme Court again stepped out of its...
22 June, 2023
Protect the Western Susitna River area from unnecessary development
Learn about the proposed West Susitna Industrial Access Road through our storymap....
14 April, 2023
Between a rock and a hard place: Pushing for “green energy” mining could replace one catastrophe with another
By Dawnell Smith Clean energy is in the air these days—in the sun,...
22 October, 2022
A trip to the South Brooks Range makes the Ambler road threat palpable
One of the things that most struck me in flying across the...
20 September, 2022
Stories can teach, stories can lie: Alaska News Brief April 2022
It doesn’t take long spending time with dogs, bears, birds and bees...
15 April, 2022
What’s going on in Juneau?
The Alaska legislature finishes its first session of the year in mid-May,...
15 April, 2022
Warren Keogh talks about Alaska, advocacy, and why he gives
We first crossed paths with Warren Keogh when he served as vice...
15 April, 2022
EPA must protect Bristol Bay once and for all
For years, Alaskans have made it clear that trading salmon for copper...
29 July, 2021
Alaska New Brief March 2021: A year can change everything… and nothing
It’s hard to believe it has been a year since we first...
16 March, 2021
Pebble update 2021: State of Alaska vs. Alaskans
On Friday Jan. 6, during the siege on the Capitol, Gov. Dunleavy...
27 January, 2021