Day 45

In the past week, I have mainly been focused on workplace adventures. Or as most would call it, work. With a few colleagues, I visited the BP Energy Center, where the First Alaskan Institute was organizing a summer internship program. With a group of around 30 interns, we discussed the relationship between being a good citizen and a good leader on the state, national, and tribal level. This included resource and public service responsibility.

Most of my work this week has been towards the Arctic Energy Network (AEN). The proposal is almost done, and I have now chosen groups to contact as initial members. I am also concurrently updating ION's contact database, which includes a lot of information compilation. This requires me to do a lot of things with excel that I did not know I did not know. My PowerPoint skills have always been good, but are also getting a good workout.

My research on Renewable Energy Fund has now entered the stage of surveying, calling, and reaching contacts in company database. The main things to consider when reaching out to contacts is reaching representatives of all levels of the energy sector. This includes the private, industrial sector, governmental institutions- on both a local and national level, academic institutions, tribal/native institutions, and international organizations that manage and set energy standards. Feedback from these different categories would be reflective of how funding is distributed when it comes to energy grants.

Tomorrow night, I am going with a few of my coworkers, and Ali, to see the final installment of Harry Potter. I cannot wait.

Day 37

Last week, I went to Seward for the weekend in an RV. My preconception of RVs as inconvenient and uncomfortable vehicles was quickly debunked; I started to view the cozy space as “home” for its three days of shelter. The drive to Seward was generous in visuals and fresh air, full with a drive along the Alaskan Range (the same route I described earlier to Girdwood), followed by lakes brimming with lily pads.

In Seward, the highly recommended Sea Life Center did not disappoint. I saw a variety of sea animals and birds. The most impressive were the sea lions. Utterly huge, but unbelievably graceful when they swim. They also have very cute bear-like faces, which make them look like they are smiling the whole time. The use of their lower body made them seem like giant mermen. The biggest one sat in an almost cross-legged-like position at some point, before making a giant, splattering dive.

Seward Sea Life Center. Courtesy of Ali Vivinetto.

Next came kayaking in the Kenai Fjords. I want to do this again. I set out for a three hour trip across deep waters, but not too far from the coast. Unlike tourist kayaking from resorts in Jamaica, these were intricate kayaks, with storage units and directional navigation. Since the water is pretty cold, I also had to suit up in water-proof garb. We kayaked in a group, using a low, but wide stroke, as instructed. We were also instructed to focus on the usage of our core abdominal muscles rather than our arm muscles, since the latter tire much faster. After over an hour of kayaking, which revealed endless slopes on both sides of the clear water, and trees with bald eagles, we unloaded on a shale-like coast. A short hike revealed a small waterfall before we made our return. This time, we saw several sea lions. A small one approached one of the kayaks next to me, and tried to climb on very casually.

Beginning of the Two Lakes Trail, Seward. Courtesy of Ali Vivinetto.

There were several short hikes to do in Seward, and we walked a couple of the routes. The Two Lakes route revealed two clear lakes, in the middle of dense trees and vegetation. I decided that this was what Christopher Pike meant when he tried to describe a lake and a forest clearing simultaneously. It gave my inner middle-school-Christopher-Pike-reading self a great satisfaction and serenity to look at the setting of what I had imagined to be countless resurrections and moments of protagonist solitude.

Lake surrounded by trees, Two Lakes Trail. Courtesy of Ali Vivinetto.

We also hiked to the Exit Glacier, which was my first time to see a glacier. The ice mountain was a great sight to see, with swirls of perfect blue and gray in it. The next step would have been to go glacier hiking, but that required many sharp tools and a little bit more expertise than any of us had.

Exit Glacier. Courtesy of Ali Vivinetto.

Touching Glacier water, Seward. Courtesy of Ali Vivinetto.

At work, the past week included collaboration with the International Fellows program and a board meeting at ION. I spent most of my week working on the Arctic Energy Network (AEN), which should be ready to launch in a few weeks. Meeting the international Fellows was part of a collaborative effort between ION and Mara Kimmel, a professor of Political Science at the University of Alaska, to bring in international professionals working on Arctic issues. The Fellows were from all over Europe, and worked in different fields. From discussions with most of them, a few of them worked on refugee resettlement, socialist resource management, journalism, and overseas political representation. Our first meeting was with Mead Treadwell (my host), who discussed the direction of the Governor’s office with regards to Alaska’s environmental resource management. During that meeting, it struck me how big the Arctic was. Everything that the Arctic does successfully in terms of environmental management could be implemented in other zones around the world, which span over a much smaller area.

We also met with Dr. Dalee Sambo Dorough, who specializes in human rights law and public international law. The discussion was mainly focused on the political and legal relations between nation-states and Aboriginal peoples. She also gave a good briefing on Alaska Native self-determination, and how it plays into the development and evolution of international indigenous human rights standards. Although it is not directly part of my the AEN or the Energy Grant Funds I am working on while with ION, I have probably learned just as much about Alaska Native issues as I have about energy, Renewables, and the innovative design of funds and energy production.

Later on in the week, we had a board meeting with all the directors of the Institute. During the meeting, the board went over planned projects in detail, and then briefly reviewed budgets, and motions on inviting ex-officio members. Today, I accompanied Nils (my Managing Director at ION), to the Canadian Consulate. The Canadian Consulate here focuses on US-Canadian relations in an Arctic Arena, which includes Arctic Marine Collaboration and operational level engagements on environmental and resource management. Areas with shared marine resources benefit greatly from collaboration. At the meeting with the Consul, we specifically discussed a partnership between ION and the consulate for several upcoming projects within the next fiscal year. This comes after a change in the method of giving grants. Instead of a large, annual grant, to an institution, grants are now given to specific projects. This makes for much more efficient money use. While it increases efforts on the administrative side of things, it will ensure that the right amount of money is given to specific projects.

The Arctic Energy Network (AEN) is also in the final stages of touch-ups before we launch it to institutions. With the proposal ready, and a membership structure drawn out clearly, all we need is a review before we work on membership recruitment. The proposal is reflective of my time and work here.

4th of July kite flying, Anchorage. Courtesy of Ali Vivinetto.

On the leisurely side of my past days, I tried Snow Goose on Third Avenue. I pass by it every day on my way to work, and always admired its open deck. It has an astounding amount of open space. It was a rare sunny day in Anchorage, and the open deck made for a great lunch break. Over the weekend, I visited the Saturday Market once more, and vowed to take bags of flavored almonds from Alaska Nuts and Honey with me before going home. They come in dozens of flavors. My absolute favorites are the zesty mandarin and lemon coatings, and the more low-profile but bean-y mocha flavor. The mocha coating, especially, is very subtle and does not overshadow the almond taste. I also had the spiciest Thai food ever. It took stamina to finish my Tom Yum, but my sinuses were very clear post-delicious struggle. For the 4^th of July, Ali and I checked out the local festivities. Downtown had a carnival-like set-up with a booth for almost everything; kite-flying, eagles on display, kettle corn, chili contests, a big Statue of Liberty blow-up, a recitation of the Declaration of Independence, and other things that make Americans happy. Sunny and clear at first, a breezy drizzle started around the afternoon.