Northern Alaska Environmental Center
Promoting conservation of the environment and sustainable resource stewardship in Interior and Arctic Alaska through education and advocacy
The Northern Alaska Environmental Center
The Northern Alaska Environmental Center is an Alaska-based conservation organization dedicated to protecting the land, waters and wildlife of Interior and Arctic Alaska for current and future generations to use and enjoy. We understand the unique challenges of living in Alaska and seek to balance natural resource development with conserving what makes Alaska special.
The Northern Center is committed to defending special places in Northern and Interior Alaska from irresponsible extraction activities, and promoting local initiatives to protect the health and way of life of people living in Fairbanks and Interior Alaska.
We acknowledge that we work throughout the unceded territories of the Indigenous Peoples of Alaska; that our office is located on the traditional territories of the Lower Tanana Dené Athabascan Peoples. We honor the ancestral and ongoing land and water stewardship and place-based knowledge of the peoples of these territories.
Our Guiding Principles
- Believes that a healthy environment is a prerequisite for a sustainable economy.
- Bases conservation decisions on sound science and ethics.
- Uses our stakeholders’ energy, expertise and enthusiasm to strengthen the organization.
- Seeks opportunities to collaborate with federal, state and local government agencies, and with other organizations to enhance our effectiveness.
- Supports the establishment, protection and appropriate stewardship of designated Wilderness areas, as well other less-restrictive management that protects sustainable uses of non-Wilderness wild lands.
- Values healthy and intact ecosystems where habitat fragmentation is minimized and wildlands are respected.
- Favors stewardship over intensive management of natural resources, in order to meet the needs of the present generation without jeopardizing the ability of future generations to meet their needs.
- Encourages the implementation of clean energy technologies and management practices that minimize air, water and noise pollution and impacts on habitat.
- Supports public processes—including use of legal, legislative, and administrative systems—in natural resource use decisions.
- Expects to comment on issues in our areas of expertise and interest.
- Puts our greatest effort into issues whose results are irreversible or long lasting.
- Employs clear, honest communication and constructive dialogue.
Northern Center Programs
Latest News
Ore hauling safety concerns continue, but we still have a voice
Last month, Advocates for Safe Alaska Highways presented to the House Transportation Committee on public highway safety in the face of an industrial ore haul that runs a distance of 240 miles across three Alaska highways. You still have a chance to let your representatives know that Alaska cannot afford this or future ore hauls.
Here’s what sets the Northern Alaska Environmental Center apart
We tackle big, regional issues that impact Interior and Arctic Alaska and beyond, and remain a grassroots, Alaska-based nonprofit. To give us strength in this time of extreme challenges, we need to remember why we do this work.
Meet Our 2025 Featured Artist
Every year, we have the honor of commissioning an Alaska-based artist whose work embodies the spirit of northern Alaska to create an original piece for our organization through our Featured Artist program. This year, we are thrilled to have selected Fairbanks artist Tehya McLeod as Northern Center’s 2025 Featured Artist!
Upcoming Events
april 2025
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august 2025
november 2025
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