What We Care About
Our Priorities
Education
We inspire curiosity and deepen connections to the region through immersive learning. Our educational programs use the outdoors as a living classroom, pairing hands-on exploration of the area’s cultural and natural heritage with storytelling, artistic expression, science, adventure, and community-building. We focus on nurturing curiosity and connection, helping participants develop an understanding of the region’s rich historical and ecological significance. Tailored to the people and places we serve, these experiences help participants understand the region’s history and ecology, see themselves as part of its continuing story, and find joy and meaning in the places where they live and recreate. Our goal is to instill a sense of belonging and responsibility to care for these places.
Much of our education work today focuses on young people. We strive to make our education programs accessible so that income, background, or where someone lives does not determine their opportunity to take part. As our work grows, we hope to offer more ways for people of all ages to learn from this place and one another.
Storytelling
Heritage is not static. It lives in what people share, practice, and pass forward, and in the new stories taking shape every day. It is present in the places people know, the traditions they carry, and the experiences they choose to tell. Storytelling is how we support this vibrant living heritage. We take pride in elevating many voices and perspectives, recognizing that no single story can capture all this place means.
Stories take many forms. We work with communities, culture bearers, Tribal organizations, artists, and historians to share them through oral histories, creative writing, video, art, classroom learning, and interpretation in public spaces. By honoring place names, memories, and cultural knowledge in ways people can encounter and directly learn from, we help bring the wonders of this region to life and carry its living heritage forward.
Recreation and Stewardship
Our region is a year-round recreation hub, attracting outdoor enthusiasts from around the world. Trails and outdoor recreation lie at the heart of our mission to strengthen connections between communities, people, and nature. We work to expand access to exceptional recreational experiences that support health and well-being, bring people together, and reveal more of the meaning held in the landscapes around us. Recreation here is an opportunity to experience some of Alaska’s most breathtaking and historically significant places with curiosity and care.
That care is central to our stewardship work. In partnership with peer organizations and land managers like the National Park Service and U.S. Forest Service, we work to care for the region’s distinctive landscapes and ecosystems. Our collaborative approach helps us respond to priority needs identified by our partners, focusing our efforts where they can make the greatest difference. That work takes many forms, including but not limited to, hands-on volunteer projects, citizen science work, trail improvements, signage assessments, and installing wayfinding signs. These efforts help keep the region’s lands and waters healthy, welcoming, and accessible for generations to come.
