Arctic Leadership Initiative marks season of milestones
Celebrating the outgoing ALI faculty with President Pitney.
May 8, 2026
Spring 2026 has brought the Arctic Leadership Initiative to a pivotal moment: the close of its inaugural two-year faculty cycle and the announcement of the next generation of students, fellows, and scholars.
The season's centerpiece was the ALI Spring Retreat + Arctic Encounter Summit (April 13-17, Anchorage). UA President Pat Pitney addressed the cohort, and a leadership panel featured UA VP Brian Smentkowski, Cheryl Rosa (U.S. Arctic Research Commission), and Susan Bell (Huna Totem). At AES (500+ attendees from 25 countries), ALI's three student Arctic Challenge teams presented work on permafrost infrastructure failure in Point Lay, salmon food web disruption, and Southeast landslide risk communication.
The spring also marked the near-completion of inaugural terms for President's Arctic Professors Larry Hinzman, Jeffrey Libby, and Erica Hill, and ALI's first Early Career Faculty Fellows, including UAF's Brandi Kamermans, Rick Lader, and Eduard Zdor.
Looking ahead: incoming Professors Eugenie Euskirchen (UAF), Raghu Srinivasan (UAA), and Eran Hood (UAS); four new Fellows (including Mariah Seater and Soyeon Kim at UAF) starting Summer 2026; 25 students selected for the 2026-27 undergraduate + graduate cohort; four Arctic Engagement Awards; and four Ambassador Travel and Residency Awards.
Full names, bios, and project details can be found at the .
Together, these announcements mark ALI's evolution from a founding proposition into a system-wide initiative with growing momentum.