Round-the-world Bicycle Traveler Stops Over in Fairbanks
A South African adventurer pedaled a bike into Fairbanks this week, completing the first leg of a journey that will take him around the world twice over 8 years.
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Family of Four Starts 500-mile Trek to Kotzebue
As Iditarod mushers were finishing their 1,000-mile journey, a family of four was just beginning their own trek from under the ceremonial burled arch. Bretwood “Hig” Higman, Erin McKittrick, and their two young kids Katmai and Lituya started their 500-mile trek from Nome to Kotzebue on Friday. Over the next few months, they plan to walk, ski and paddle up the Bering Strait.
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AK: The Middle Ages
Feasts, jousting, and medieval dress are just your average afternoon for members of the Society for Creative Anachronism. Participants are dedicated to researching and recreating the arts and culture of pre-17th century Europe. KBBI's Shady Grove Oliver joined the Alaska contingent for its annual Bi-Baronial Collegium in Wasilla and reports it's about values, family, and finding a place to fit in.
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Alaska News Nightly: March 27, 2015
Alaska Senate Delays Vote On Pot Legislation; Legislative Analyst Offers Gloomy Budget Outlook; Alaskans Testify On Governor's Medicaid Expansion Bill; Murkowski Adds Federal Land Disposal Measure to Budget; Court of Appeals Affirms Lower Court in Yup’ik Fishermen’s Case; Warm Interior Weather Turns Attention To River Breakup; Round-the-world Bicycle Traveler Stops Over in Fairbanks; Family of Four Starts 500-mile Trek to Kotzebue; AK: The Middle Ages; 49 Voices: Dan Distor of Mountain Village
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49 Voices: Dan Distor of Mountain Village
This week we hear from a Filipino high school student who moved to Pilot Station from Texas with his family when he was a first grader. Dan Distor lives in Mountain Village.
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Alaska’s Housing Issues
Only 10 percent percent of the people in Alaska who experience homelessness are chronically homeless. Families and individuals often become homeless because they lost their jobs or the cost of housing is too high. So what can we do about it?
APRN: Tuesday, 3/31 at 10:00am
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Erin’s Law And Sexual Abuse Awareness
Erin's Law was recently introduced again in the state legislature. It would mandate all public schools to teach sexual abuse prevention curriculum to all students grades K-12. It also requires education and awareness for teachers.
KSKA: Friday, 3/27 at 2:00pm and Saturday, 3/28 at 6:00pm
KAKM: Friday, 3/27 at 7:30pm and Saturday, 3/28 at 4:30pm
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Legislative Analyst Offers Gloomy Budget Outlook
Manipulating an Excel spreadsheet with dozens of inputs, Legislative Finance Director David Teal showed what would happen if the state cut formula programs, added a variety of taxes, and shrunk its agencies. None of the actions taken on their own made any difference. At projected oil prices, the state still does not close its multi-billion-dollar deficit.
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Lawmakers Seek Answers On Rape Kit Backlog
Alaska has the highest rate of sexual assault in the country, but it has no mechanism for tracking untested rape kits. Now, legislators are considering an audit to find out just how big the backlog is.
In Continuing Fight, Public Broadcasting Funding Axed
Earlier this month, public broadcasting survived an effort in the House to slash its state funding by half. Now, a subcommittee in the Senate has axed the appropriation entirely.
As Legal Landscape Changes, A New Marijuana Club Opens Its Doors in Anchorage
Just a week after a high profile raid on another operation, a new marijuana club is making sure its neighbors, customers, and the police are all on the same page as they open for business.
Alaska News Nightly: March 26, 2015
Lawmakers Consider Audit Of Determine Number Of Untested Rape Kits; Choose Respect Rally Marches Through Juneau; Anchorage Marijuana Club Navigates Shifting Legal Landscape; Fairbanks School Board OKs Budget That Cuts 60 Jobs; Member May Seek Salary Freeze; Conservation Groups Appeal Big Thorne Ruling; Prolific Glacial Melt Is 10% Of Annual Fresh Water In The Gulf Of Alaska
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Choose Respect Rally Marches Through Juneau
Gov. Bill Walker led about 100 people in a Choose Respect rally and march through Juneau on Thursday. The statewide initiative to raise awareness about Alaska’s high rates of domestic violence and sexual assault started six years ago, and grew in prominence after being embraced by former Gov. Sean Parnell.
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Fairbanks School Board OKs Budget That Cuts 60 Jobs; Member May Seek Salary Freeze
The Fairbanks North Star Borough School District Governing Board passed a budget Wednesday that would cut about 60 full-time positions and trim many programs. One board member who voted against the measure says the cuts go too far, and she says she'll push for a salary freeze to reduce the impact of the cuts.
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Conservation Groups Appeal Big Thorne Ruling
Less than a week after losing a lawsuit in U.S. District Court, a coalition of conservation groups seeking to stop the Big Thorne Timber Sale has filed a Notice of Appeal with the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, and asked for an injunction pending the outcome.
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Prolific Glacial Melt Is 10% Of Annual Fresh Water In The Gulf Of Alaska
A kayak trip in Glacier Bay in 2006 inspired an engineer to research the impact of glacial run off in the Gulf of Alaska. David Hill is an Associate Professor of Civil Engineering at Oregon State University. For the study, he used decades of state and USGS stream flow data, combined with calculations on land characteristics and watershed size to create an analysis for the entire area. He found glacier melt makes up about 10% of the overall precipitation added to the Gulf. The annual amount is measured in multiple feet of water. Hill says he worked to model how quickly rain and snow melt started to flow.
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Alaskan-Italian Minestrone | Indie Alaska
Growing up in Washington DC, Stephanie Cromarty felt completely removed from her Alaska Native heritage. A series of life changes prompted her to pack up her life and move her family to Alaska in order to be more in touch with herself and to reconnect with the culture she missed growing up.
Nevada Man Dies At Logging Site Near Wrangell
A Nevada man was found dead this week at a logging site 12 miles west of Wrangell. Alaska State Troopers were notified around 5 p.m. Tuesday that David Fussell, age 55, died on Zarembo Island.
Entrepreneur Pitches “Fish Franks” As Key to Recovery in St. George
The Aleutian Marketplace contest was designed to gather ideas and provide funding for new start-up businesses around the Bering Sea. As the competition heads into its second round, one winner is asking for extra support -- and a chance to turn his recipe for success into the real thing.
AVO Puts Volcano Near Adak Back on Watch
A volcanic island in the Western Aleutians is stirring again, after several months of quiet. Semisopochnoi was put on an advisory alert level on Wednesday morning. It’s the first alert at the volcano since a seismic flare-up last June, which was its first activity in almost 30 years.