UAS students, faculty tackle community challenges through the Arctic Leadership Initiative
A new generation of Arctic leaders is exploring questions faced by Alaskans and designing solutions.
Juneau, Alaska
Date of Press Release: October 22, 2026
The five participants from UAS embarked on challenge projects in collaboration with colleagues from across the University of Alaska system, exploring questions posed by community partner organizations. Faculty members will also be conducting independent research on topics that impact the everyday lives of Alaskans.
“The Arctic Leadership Initiative is an incredible opportunity for participants to gain the knowledge and skills needed to solve some of our state’s unique challenges," said Scott Billingsley, UAS provost. “The program is growing a new generation of leaders from across academic disciplines, benefiting our students, early career faculty and senior scholars.”
Students Sean Demello, an occupational safety and health major, and Shane Williams, an integrative behavioral health major, are working on the challenge project Communities as Observation Infrastructure. Their 11-person team aims to strengthen Indigenous and local observation networks, which are often the first to see environmental changes and threats to human and wildlife health. In April, the team will present their findings and proposed solutions at Arctic Encounter, an international conference in Anchorage.
Xiaofei Song, assistant professor of communication, is one of the initiative's early career faculty fellows. She co-leads the Communities as Observation Infrastructure challenge project team and mentors student participants. Over her two-year term, Song will also conduct research on people working in seasonal industries like fisheries and tourism to understand how they make career and financial planning decisions.
Eran Hood, professor of environmental science, was appointed to a two-year term as a University of Alaska president’s Arctic professor. He advises the Communities as Observation Infrastructure challenge project team, mentors early career faculty fellows, and will expand his research and public information sharing on glacial lake outburst floods.
Megan Behnke, assistant professor of chemistry, is a faculty advisor – a connector and liaison between fellows and the initiative’s leadership, as well as between students working on the three challenge projects. As a former faculty fellow, her one-year term is dedicated to sharing what she learned in that role to ensure that students and fellows can optimize their experience in the program.
“It's been incredible to see what the students in this program have accomplished,” Behnke said. “I think the Arctic Leadership Initiative student cohort experience enables students to engage with real-world issues with relevance to our state and with many resources to back them.”
In addition to the opportunities that brought together students and faculty in Fairbanks, the Arctic Leadership Initiative funds awards that expand the University of Alaska’s Arctic engagement and visibility.
Skylar Bayer, a term assistant professor of marine biology, received a 2026-27 Arctic Engagement Award to support students developing skills in science journalism. A collaboration with Juneau’s public radio station, KTOO, is providing students with hands-on experience and mentorship. Students will highlight the work of University of Alaska researchers through a fall 2026 internship and a spring 2027 course on Arctic science reporting.
Ella Kelly, a marine biology major, is the fall semester science reporting intern. Her first story, which covered efforts of UAS scientists to predict harmful algal blooms, was published in early October.
The Arctic Leadership Initiative began in 2024, as a priority of the University of Alaska Board of Regents, and is funded by Rasmuson Foundation and the UA Foundation. It positions Alaskans as world leaders in the Arctic, giving students and early career professionals the foundation and network needed to lead in the changing Arctic, and enhancing the reputation of UA’s universities as centers of Arctic expertise.
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