Over the course of the past week, with impeachment building to its inevitable head and the State of the Union ever on the horizon, I found myself not in the office, but rather at the Alaska Federation of Natives’ Winter Conference. Sitting in the outermost row of seats, I was tasked with taking down notes on the conference’s events. All around me, I felt confidence. Solidity. Solemnity. The air of those around me filled with an intrinsic knowledge of belonging at the center tables; in the room where it happens, and where the sausage gets made.
My goal in all of this, aside from taking the best notes possible, was keeping my head down. I felt like a mosquito in a four man tent: grateful to be inside, unsure of my place, and hoping to not get swatted away. For in front of me, I saw Alaska’s elite. Individuals whose influence, oversight, and power control the levers to my state’s continued well-being. Around the central table, with their names and titles in front of them, sat April Ferguson of the Bristol Bay Native Corporation, Ben Stevens, the Chief of Staff for Governor Dunleavy, Lt. Gen. Thomas Bussiere, Commander of the Alaska Region of the North American Aerospace Defense Command, and before the impeachment hearings gaveled in, our esteemed congressional delegation, just to name a few. Needless to say, I was taking notes furiously. I was also marking down questions. Naturally curious, and knowing my place among those around me, I waited for natural breaks in the conference to write down questions I had— all subject to future research privately later. For the NASA and SpaceX presentations, I had questions about latency periods and telecommunications advances. Following the Conoco and Exxon presentations, I had questions about zoning laws and land use agreements. And after Ben Stevens’ presentation, I wanted to know more about the state’s education funding. In truth, I felt I learned more in a few days than I had over years of my previous schooling. Learning directly from those deciding the policies affecting hundreds of thousands back home and across the nation, I had a ring-side view to the center of Alaskan decision-making. I couldn’t be more thrilled. If anything, the past week showed me a blueprint to action through organization. Thanks to Ben Mallott, Nicole Borromeo, Will Mayo, Julie Kitka, and others, who I’m sure helped in coordinating the conference, Alaskans of all types were able to voice their concerns, affairs, and priorities in the hopes of bettering the state together. Moving forward, I’m grateful to Sen. Sullivan’s office and the Alaska Federation of Natives for giving me the opportunity to listen and learn of the intangibles I could never learn in school, from those whose teachings cannot be written or codified in any textbook.
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Photo used under Creative Commons from Mike Juvrud