Jolene Almendarez

Students from across the state competed in the 26th annual Alaska State Geographic Bee last week in hopes of winning a spot in this year’s national competition in Washington D.C. 101 students vied for the spot.Download Audio

More than 550 military personnel from around the country are gathered at the Port of Anchorage this week for an Alaska Shield exercise, meant to test the readiness of the military to provide emergency support to areas impacted by natural or human-caused disasters.Download Audio

This week, we’re heading to Moose Creek, a village of about 600 people in central Alaska. Jeff Jacobson is the chief of staff for the Fairbanks North Star Borough.Download Audio

This week, we’re heading to Shishmaref, on a barrier island in Western Alaska. The island is gradually sinking into the sea. Its 600 residents might be some of the first people in the world forced to relocate because of rising sea levels caused by global warming. Tony Weyiouanna Senior is President of the Shishmaref Native Corporation.Download Audio

Funding for the National Archives And Records Administration, or NARA, building in Anchorage has been chopped from the National Archives budget as a result of a $10 million budget cut. All federal records will be moved to a Seattle based facility beginning in September. Local archivists, historians, senators and residents though, are rallying behind efforts to keep the archives in Anchorage.Download Audio

With most current Iditarod mushers focused on the finish line in Nome, one former musher is still thinking about the start. At this year’s ceremonial start in Anchorage, Rod Perry drove a sled that weighed more than twice as much as the other mushers. The Iditarod pioneer hopes it was the first of many historic sled runs to come.Download Audio