Alaska Institute for Climate & Energy
ADVANCING solutions to the interrelated social justice, climate and ecological crisis through collaborative research and project development.
ALICE fosters cutting edge climate mitigation and adaptation solutions best suited to Alaska through broad based, collaborative research and project development.
Rapid warming in Alaska is the result of interrelated global climate, ecological and sociopolitical forces. Responding effectively to the challenge requires vision, bold leadership, deep expertise, flexibility and a collaborative, holistic approach.
We bring together diverse, interdisciplinary teams of science, Indigenous, agency and private sector experts from inside and outside of Alaska to identify solutions to our most pressing problems.
Drawing inspiration from Project Drawdown, Natural Solutions, Bio4Climate, Bay Area Smart Energy, and other innovative approaches, we research and develop collaborative shovel-ready projects capable of being rapidly scaled up.
An example of our work is the Railbelt Pumped Energy Storage Concept laying the groundwork for a renewable energy-based economy that will create thousands of new jobs, reduce greenhouse emissions and lower the cost of energy for every Alaskan.
Other projects in the works include:
- A statewide assessment of rural Pumped Energy Storage (PES) potential and design of 30 or more fully PES/renewable energy powered electricity generation systems that will move rural communities off expensive diesel and heating fuel once and for all.
- Development of an Alaska Climate Solutions Hub to facilitate greater, more effective collaboration between scientists, energy experts and affected communities.
- Comprehensive research and review of holistic solutions with the greatest potential for success and rapid pilot-project development. Ideas currently being explored include marine permaculture, peatland restoration, using Pumped Energy Storage to mitigate warming salmon streams, and green hydrogen production.
ALASKA’S NEW ENERGY FUTURE
Since 2014, ALICE has been working to move Alaska towards a 100% renewable energy future in partnership with a revolving working group of Alaska renewable energy experts and advocates.
Climate Action Planning
An actionable outline to implement climate solutions on a community-wide political level.
Oil and Gas Accountability
An investigation into the current state of Alaskan oil and gas emissions
Utility Member Action Campaign
Some simple steps that Alaska’s Electric Utility Coops and Boroughs can take this year to save money and significantly reduce our individual and collective greenhouse gas (GhG) emissions.
Happening Now
"Permafrost is thawing in communities all around the Y-K Delta and Alaska, but Chefornak’s situation with sinkholes is a little unique. Torsten Mayrberger, who is a geotechnical and Arctic engineer, said it’s not very accurate to describe them as holes. It’s just soft soil that’s not draining,” he said. “It’s just mud. It’s like the quicksand that you see in the old movies.”![]()
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Climate change is a big reason why the permafrost is melting. Last year was the [second warmest year](www.noaa.gov/news/2020-was-earth-s-2nd-hottest-year-just-behind-2016) on record, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. "What we’re seeing right now is some dramatic change in the permafrost in communities that is exceeding the rates that are estimated by our climate science,” Antrobus said. ![]()
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Mayrberger, is helping Chefornak plan a new subdivision to replace some of the buildings threatened by permafrost degradation, erosion, and flooding. But while longer-term plans are in progress, there are emergencies already at hand. When the sinkhole was discovered under Abraham’s home, her family became homeless."![]()
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www.alaskapublic.org/2021/01/25/sinkhole-opens-under-chefornak-home-forcing-family-to-evacuate/?f...
Sinkhole opens under Chefornak home, forcing family to evacuate - Alaska Public Media
www.alaskapublic.org
In Chefornak, a family was forced to evacuate their home because a sinkhole caused by thawing permafrost formed underneath it. That family had to move into a building intended to be a quarantine facil...
👉 SOLUTIONS CROWDSOURCE POLL 👈: If you were Alaska's climate czar* but could only do 3 things, what would they be? Add your options if you don't see them. ![]()
*Think, unique to Alaska: C02-biodiversity/jobs/justice not necessarily in that order.
Where there’s a will, there’s a way![]()
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History made: Renewable energy surpassed fossil fuels for European electricity in 2020
www.cnn.com
Europeans got more of their electricity from renewable sources than fossil fuels for the first time last year, according to an annual report from Ember and Agora Energiewende.Navajo woman chosen to head US Indian Energy
indiancountrytoday.com
‘As the original caretakers of this land ... tribes can lead the way’
Hoping it also reverses the recent push by trump to expand Willow in Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve, a huge new threat to surrounding Native Villages, subsistence resources and Teshekpuk Lake. ![]()
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www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/01/25/biden-drilling-moratorium/?%20environment_2
Biden likely to halt new fossil fuel leasing on federal lands and waters Wednesday
www.washingtonpost.com
The planned moratorium would halt oil and gas auctions for one year and coal leasing for three years.
"Getting to net zero requires major changes in the large-scale systems we use to meet societal needs, including the way we produce and distribute energy, move people and goods, produce and consume food, and build and live within our cities. This report is intended as a decision-support tool and reference document for those tasked with figuring out how to do this."![]()
Report - Pathways to Net Zero: A Decision Support Tool - Transition Accelerator
transitionaccelerator.ca
The purpose of this report is to provide a simple tool to help those concerned with policy and investment decisions to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions in Canada.This content isn't available right now
When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.
Hoping it also reverses the recent push by trump to expand Willow in Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve, a huge new threat to surrounding Native Villages, subsistence resources and Teshekpuk Lake: www.adn.com/business-economy/energy/2020/10/27/trump-administration-approves-conocophillips-willo...![]()
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www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/01/25/biden-drilling-moratorium/?%20environment_2
www.adn.com
The approval sets the stage for construction in a largely undeveloped Arctic region that has seen increased industry attention in recent years.
"Together, the two studies present a worrying picture. The first finds that the current ice losses, which are accelerating quickly, are on pace with the worst scenarios for sea-level rise put out by the United Nation’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). That expert body [found that](www.researchgate.net/publication/344004443_Ice-sheet_losses_track_high-end_sea-level_rise_project...) ice sheets could drive as much as 16 inches of sea-level rise by 2100. But on top of that, the new NASA work on Greenland suggests that the IPCC, whose sea-level projections have long been faulted as being conservative, could underestimate future sea-level rise if the panel, which has a new report expected later this year, does not take full account of the power of the ocean to knock the ice backward and undermine it." ![]()
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www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/01/25/ice-melt-quickens-greenland-glaciers/?fbcli...
Earth is now losing 1.2 trillion tons of ice each year. And it’s going to get worse.
www.washingtonpost.com
Two new papers reveal the growing toll that human-caused global warming is having on the planet's ice.
Marine vessel noise is increasing as a direct result of our warming climate. Learn more about this and other ways that sound effects biodiversity and our own personal sanity organized by our own John Morton for the Anchorage Museum. Please share widely!
Commercially viable carbon capture technology, along with reducing carbon emissions and increasing carbon sequestration, are pieces to the puzzle of getting to global net zero
Musk offers $100 mln prize for carbon capture
flip.it
Tesla founder Elon Musk is offering a $100 million prize for the best technology to capture carbon dioxide emissions. Julian Satterthwaite reports.
"Hours after taking office, President Joe Biden made good on a campaign promise to cancel the Keystone XL oil pipeline. Later that day his Interior Department mandated that only top agency leaders could approve new drilling permits over the next two months. Next week, according to people familiar with the plans, Biden will go even further: suspending the sale of oil and gas leases on federal land, where the U.S. gets 10% of its supplies. The actions sent oil producers’ stocks tumbling and raised blood pressure across the industry."![]()
www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-23/oil-industry-reels-as-biden-targets-fossil-fuels-in-fi...
Oil Industry Reels as Biden Targets Fossil Fuels in First Days
www.bloomberg.com
Hours after taking office, President Joe Biden made good on a campaign promise to cancel the Keystone XL oil pipeline. Later that day his Interior Department mandated that only top agency leaders coul...
Time to Heal Mother Earth - We Need to Work Together to Clean the Atmosphere, Land, People, Animals & Water - The Heart of Photo is What We Can Accomplish Together - Love to Us All Peaceful Warriors! #unitednations #alaska #motherearth #AKClimate⛲️🏞🐕🏔🦅🐲
This content isn't available right now
When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.
Very nicely laid out and worth keeping an eye on...![]()
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Tracking Biden’s environmental actions
Tracking Biden’s environmental actions
www.washingtonpost.com
President Biden is already unwinding Donald Trump’s environmental legacy, while forging his own. The Washington Post is chronicling every step.
Time to upgrade Alaska’s aging Marine Highway system? ![]()
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vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/bc-ferries-seeks-support-for-full-electrification-of-hybrid-vessels-1....
BC Ferries seeks support for full electrification of hybrid vessels
vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca
BC Ferries is seeking letters of support from coastal communities to aid in securing federal funding for the Island Class Ferry Electrification Project.
More good news for Alaska! "The Northern Bering Sea Climate Resilience Area, which mandates new environmental protections and enhanced Alaska Native authority over policies for 112,300 square miles of marine territory, was enacted by an executive order signed by President Obama in December of 2016, near the end of his presidency. It was abolished by President Trump about five months later with an executive order issued at the beginning of his presidency. Now the designation is back, for which tribal organizations in the region extended their “deepest appreciation and gratitude” to the new president."![]()
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www.narf.org/bering-sea/?fbclid=IwAR3lA-BYfS_tO4DfhnE9rslFXKNDVCDfD12dRV5H416YVdohcWekk1RIQFs
www.narf.org
A press release from our client, the Bering Sea Elders Group, and other tribal organizations of the Bering Sea region: January 21, 2021 As Tribes and Tribal organizations of Western Alaska and the Ber...
The fight is over. ![]()
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www.ktoo.org/2021/01/20/biden-to-slam-brakes-on-oil-drilling-in-arctic-refuge/?utm_content=buffer...
Biden immediately slams brakes on oil drilling in Arctic refuge
www.ktoo.org
President Joe Biden imposed a “temporary moratorium” on all oil and gas leasing activities in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge shortly after taking office on Wednesday, citing the “alleged le...
National Park Service begins embracing a new way of doing land management in a warming climate![]()
Resist-Accept-Direct (RAD) - Climate Change (U.S. National Park Service)
www.nps.gov
The National Park Service and several federal land management agency partners recently published a report titled Resist-Accept-Direct (RAD)—A Decision Framework for the 21st-century Natural Resource...
Please share and stay well!We're starting the year off on a strong foot- thanks to the tireless efforts of our supporters and the community, the team at FCAC is growing!![]()
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Now Hiring: Part-Time Administrative Assistant.![]()
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FCAC seeks a dynamic and highly motivated individual to administratively support FCAC to advance local and statewide processes and solidify structures. This new position in FCAC will help with administrative support across the movement towards a Just Transition in Alaska, working in close partnership with the FCAC Executive Director. This work includes a wide variety of administrative support requiring independence, judgment, initiative and attention to detail. This position has the potential for growth to full time within FCAC and would be a part of a supportive, passionate, and dynamic team.![]()
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For full description and details to apply, click the link below:![]()
docs.google.com/document/d/1mQHgUqdFwl_8X-N7eB67QLrzaAkP7J_PZIN-gRwI3G4/edit?usp=sharing
In academia? Let us know what you think! ![]()
www.amacad.org/publication/climate-change-demands-activism-academy
Less Talk, More Walk: Why Climate Change Demands Activism in the Academy
www.amacad.org
As climate scholars, it is our professional responsibility to engage in climate politics. First, we need to engage in radical scientific analysis: we must ask questions that get at the root of climate...
🤓 NEW PAPER ALERT on the subject of carbon pricing for the policy nerds among us. "Four findings stand out. First, though carbon pricing has dominated many political discussions of climate change, only 37 studies assess the actual effects of the policy on emissions reductions, and the vast majority of these are focused on Europe. Second, the majority of studies suggest that the aggregate reductions from carbon pricing on emissions are limited – generally between 0% and 2% per year. However, there is considerable variation across sectors. Third, in general, carbon taxes perform better than emissions trading schemes (ETSs). Finally, studies of the EU-ETS, the oldest emissions trading scheme, indicate limited average annual reductions – ranging from 0% to 1.5% per annum. For comparison, the IPCC states that emissions must fall by 45% below 2010 levels by 2030 in order to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius – the goal set by the Paris Agreement (IPCC 2018). Overall, the evidence indicates that carbon pricing has a limited impact on emissions.![]()
iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/abdae9/meta
Does carbon pricing reduce emissions? A review of ex-post analyses - IOPscience
iopscience.iop.org
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The 4-year siege is over. Next up: revoke ANWR leases. ![]()
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www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2021/01/18/president-elect-biden-kill-keystone-xl-pipe...
President-elect Biden to kill Keystone XL pipeline in fight on climate change
www.washingtonpost.com
Biden is expected to soon reverse the efforts of the Trump administration and end a project proposed more than a decade ago.New Energy Future for Alaska
Help us ignite the power of the grassroots to launch the long-overdue renewable Energy Future for Alaska!
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