Steve Heimel

Alaska’s rich environment is already a major source of food, but it’s not inexhaustible. Encouraging local food producers is one part of food security but another part is hanging onto the habitat that is already producing wild plants and animals. We’ll be drilling deeper into the issues surrounding food security for the second week in a row on the next Talk of Alaska.APRN: Tuesday, 11/11 at 10:00amDownload Audio

A short growing season, limited transportation links, high fuel prices – the list of barriers to strengthening Alaska’s local food system is long. It’s hard to know where to start.APRN: Tuesday, 11/4 at 10:00amDownload Audio

Should Alaska join the other states that have decided to decriminalize marijuana? Proponents argue that it’s already a big business here and bringing it out into the open would allow it to be taxed and provide a source of revenue. Proponents argue it’s too risky and would make our existing substance abuse problems even worse.APRN: Tuesday, 9/16 at 10:00amDownload Audio

Two people were arrested and charged in a fatal shooting in East Anchorage last week.

Those stories grandpa told of being a secret government spy after the Second World War may be true. Secret documents now made public reveal that Alaskan bush pilots and other civilians were recruited by intelligence agencies to be spies in the event of a Russian invasion. We’ll hear more about Alaska’s secret Cold War history on the next Talk of Alaska.APRN: Tuesday, September 9 at 10:00amDownload Audio

The deadline for making candidacy changes for the November general election ballot is tomorrow and talks have reportedly been going between Democrat Gubernatorial nominee Byron Mallott and independent candidate Bill Walker about a possible unity ticket. Just how that would be done and what would become of running mates Craig Fleener and Hollis French remains to be seen.

There are eight thousand fishing vessels registered in Alaska and not enough qualified Alaskans to fill the jobs aboard them or working on them. Everyone knows the state needs to beef up its vocational training resources, but how do we get there? Maritime work-force development is the subject on the next “Talk of Alaska."APRN: Tuesday, Sept. 2, at 10:00 a.m.Download Audio

Archaeologists have been arguing for decades about how human beings got to the new world, and genetic research released today deepens the mystery. An article published in "Science" magazine shows that there must have been at least four pulses of migration from Siberia through Alaska since the last Ice Age, and the Yupik and Inupiat people now in Alaska actually replaced an earlier population. Download Audio:

Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker has spent the week in Alaska talking with staffers in the various federal agencies she's in charge of, including the Census and the Bureau of Standards, the Economic Development Administration and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Download Audio:

Wildlife managers always give the same advice – let wildlife stay wild. They say do not feed the animals, do not let your pets go after them, and do not allow them to become habituated to humans. But what if the wildlife comes to you? And your pets?Listen now:APRN: Tuesday, August 26, at 10:00 a.m.