In the primary election scheduled for August 19, Alaskans will vote on whether to keep or repeal the new state oil-production tax system, commonly known as Senate Bill (SB) 21. Alaska Common Ground and several co-sponsors (including ISER) are holding a forum on the oil-tax referendum on July 23, in the Wilda Marston Theatre of Anchorage's Loussac Library, from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. The forum is free and open to the public.
Speaking in favor of repealing the new tax will be Bill Wielechowski, a state senator from Anchorage, and Gregg Erickson, a long-time Alaska economist. Supporting the new system will be Brad Keithley, an oil and gas policy consultant, and Roger Marks, a veteran petroleum economist. ISER's director, Gunnar Knapp, will moderate the discussion.
Alaska Common Ground is a non-profit organization that brings Alaskans together to talk about Alaska public policy issues. For more information, go to www.akcommonground.org or call 907-952-3353.
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Gunnar Knapp has been appointed director of the Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER), after acting as interim director since January. He is a long-time professor of economics at ISER, widely respected for his studies of Alaska’s commercial fisheries and other aspects of the state’s economy.
ISER is part of UAA’s College of Business and Public Policy, and Rashmi Prasad, dean of the college, praised the appointment: “Dr. Knapp is uniquely qualified to lead ISER at this point in its history. In addition to his outstanding academic credentials, he has proven himself to be a leader among the CBPP faculty and in his role as interim director of ISER.”
Gunnar Knapp says he is honored to be named director, and sees his job as “an opportunity to work with wonderful colleagues on complex and fascinating social and economic issues—and to make a real difference in helping Alaskans understand and address those issues.”
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On June 14, UAA hosted a roundtable discussion about the new national strategy for the Arctic region, which the Obama administration recently announced. That discussion brought representatives from the Obama administration and federal agencies to Anchorage to talk with with local and state officials, business people, and private citizens. To help federal officials better understand Alaska's economy, Gunnar Knapp, ISER's interim director, made a presentation, A Brief Introduction to Alaska's Economy.
Download the presentation (PDF, 7.4MB) with the accompanying audio recording (MP3, 11.83MB).
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A new report by ISER economists Gunnar Knapp, Mouhcine Guettabi, and Scott Goldsmith assesses the economic importance of the Bristol Bay salmon fishery, the world's most valuable wild salmon fishery. Nearly half the wild sockeye salmon harvested worldwide come from Bristol Bay. The researchers found that as of 2010, Bristol Bay salmon created $1.5 billion in sales value across the United States—through harvesting, processing, and retailing of Bristol Bay salmon—and the additional economic effects of those activities.
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Gunnar Knapp, ISER director and professor of economics, recently talked to the Alaska Legislature about trends in Alaska and world salmon markets. Read his presentation to learn about how salmon markets are changing, what's driving the changes, and what the future might hold.
Download the PDF of his presentation (4.4MB).
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After three years as director of ISER, Heather Hudson has decided to step down at the end of 2012. Gunnar Knapp, a professor of economics at ISER, has been appointed interim director effective January 1, 2013.
Heather Hudson will be on leave during spring 2013, writing a book on the history of telecommunications in Alaska and carrying out other research projects before returning to the ISER faculty later in the year. Dr. Hudson came to ISER from the University of San Francisco, where she founded the Telecommunications Management and Policy Program.
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Gunnar Knapp, professor of economics at ISER, takes a broad look at the forces that shape Alaska’s economy. A February 2012 presentation (PDF, 3.4MB).
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A presentation (PDF, 5.7MB) by Gunnar Knapp, professor of economics at ISER, to Energies of the High North - Arctic Frontiers 2012, in Tromsø, Norway, January 25, 2012
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ISER faculty will teach a variety of courses in spring 2012, including classes on energy and environmental economics, communications policy, public land management, research methods, and culture and globalization.