Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER)

09/04/2026

🥕🥦🍎 Since Anchorage School District (ASD) began rolling out its new school lunch model four years ago, elementary students have been eating 31% more of their entrées and 29% more vegetables, according to data collected by a team based at UAA: University of Alaska Anchorage's ISER and the Center for Behavioral Health Research and Services.

And the benefits extend beyond lunchtime: national research indicates school lunch participation improves academic outcomes equal to about two months of additional learning within a school year.

The ASD Wellness Evaluation project was a multi-year effort led by Dr. Juliana Cohen of Merrimack College, with ISER Collaborator Dr. Katie Cueva as the Alaska lead. Get the full scoop on the district's new nutrition model:

The Anchorage School District is continuing its new student nutrition service model across all 57 elementary schools this year, marking the completion of a four-year transition away from a pre-packaged lunch system.

08/20/2026

What does Indigenous education look like in Arctic communities around the world? 📖❄️

This question was at the center of a session at the 2026 UArctic Congress that focused on school and schooling in the North. Coordinated by ISER's Diane Hirshberg (UAA: University of Alaska Anchorage) and Kathy Snow (University of Prince Edward Island), the Qaggiq discussion explored nine approaches to Indigenous education from participants representing five different countries, including Greenland, Canada, and Finland.

Read more from UArctic:

Diane Hirshberg and Kathy Snow, members of the UArctic Thematic Network for Teacher Education for Social Justice and Diversity, coordinated an open session entitled "Qaggiq: Facilitating Discussions on Schools and Schooling", which received an unprecedented number of proposals. 

08/13/2026

On August 19 at 9am AKST, Bob Loeffler (Research Professor of Public Policy, UAA Institute of Social and Economic Research) will describe a framework for thinking about critical minerals mining and processing in the Arctic. In providing a theoretical framework for thinking about these issues, it will also puncture common myths that may pervade discussion of them. Some questions addressed in the talk:

- Why are critical minerals, like beauty, in the eye of the beholder?

- If Rare Earth Elements aren’t rare, then why don’t we produce more of them?

- Why do I have a crystal ball that shows me everything that will be mined in the next 20 years? How can you get one too?

- Why is a gold rush also a critical minerals rush?

- Why are economists as important as geologists in producing critical minerals?

𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙄𝙣𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣

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08/07/2026

Are you familiar with the wildfire mitigation strategies in your city? In Anchorage, certain techniques known as fuel treatments have helped reduce fire risk.

ISER researchers Dr. Jennifer Schmidt and Katie Davis led a series of focus groups with Anchorage residents to gauge community sentiment surrounding fuel treatments. They found that while residents are aware of these fire mitigation efforts, they still have some questions. Curious which fuel treatments have worked in Alaska, and how communities really feel about them? Read their new policy brief: https://scholarworks.alaska.edu/uaa_iser_reports/1856/

Photo by Lisa Saperstein

07/16/2026

What did you do on your summer vacation? ISER Director Diane Hirshberg traveled north of the Arctic Circle in Norway, where she helped teach a sustainability summer course at Nord universitet. 🇳🇴

30 students from around the world traveled to Bodø in northern Norway for the summer class titled "Sustainable Blue Growth in the High North." Hirshberg and UAA MPP graduate student Hannah Silta participated, with Hirshberg providing guest lectures, mentoring students, and serving as an external examiner on the final projects.

Hear from Diane and several students in this video about the program, produced by the High North Center:

This summer, 30 students from four continents came to Bodø for Nord University's course Sustainable Blue Growth in the High North. Full story: https://www.nord.no/en/news/they-came-from-four-continents-for-one-week-in-the-arctic-most-want-to-stay-longer

07/14/2026

Gas prices are likely on the rise again. Assistant Professor Brett Watson spoke to Alaska's News Source about the most recent military blockades, and how the shifting conflict in the Strait of Hormuz might affect Alaskans at the gas station.

📺Read and watch:

Middle East uncertainty poses ‘apocalyptic’ risks for rural communities, boosts LNG pipeline prospects.

06/30/2026

What would a 3% sales tax achieve in Anchorage? And how would it affect different communities in the city? A new ISER report digs into the data, detailing the costs and benefits of a sales tax proposed by the mayor last year.

Learn more on ISER’s website: https://iseralaska.org/2026/06/report-effects-on-households-of-a-proposed-anchorage-municipal-sales-tax/

06/23/2026

Hi from Tórshavn 🇫🇴 . Several ISER members were part of the Alaska delegation at last month's UArctic Congress in the Faroe Islands. This biennial meeting assembles researchers and institutional leaders from across the Arctic Circle to collaborate on shared goals for the region.

Director Diane Hirshberg led the ISER contingent, representing UAA: University of Alaska Anchorage on two sessions. She co-chaired a panel on Indigenous approaches to education featuring participants from Finland, Canada, Norway, and Greenland, and was a speaker in the session "Building Capacity for a Sustainable Arctic: The Foundational Role of Circumpolar Education in Achieving Arctic Council Priorities".

Elsewhere at the four-day meeting in the Faroes, ISER Professor Mike Jones shared his work on Arctic supply chains and food pricing with his collaborator, Sébastien Lévesque of Université Laval in Quebec. Bella Block, a former graduate student researcher and research professional at ISER, presented her National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded study on marine traffic and policy options in the Bering Sea.

05/29/2026

The school year is over, and ISER researchers are studying which Alaska educators choose to come back to their jobs next year – and why. They’ll present updated teacher and principal turnover numbers, as well as preliminary findings from their statewide educator survey this Wednesday (June 3) at the Alaska State Board of Education.

🗓️Join the virtual meeting on Wednesday afternoon to hear initial results on turnover patterns and teacher feedback. The agenda and video link will be available at: https://education.alaska.gov/State_Board

05/26/2026

Thanks to our supporters, partners, neighbors, and friends for celebrating 65 years of public policy research at ISER! 🎉