New book highlights ֱֻ’s rural energy innovators
Yuri Bult-Ito
907-474-5402
Oct. 21, 2026
The ֱֻ Center for Energy and Power at the ֱֻ will host a free event celebrating the launch of “,” a new book about the people and communities shaping ֱֻ’s energy future.
Water spills from the Swan Lake hydroelectric facility at the head of Carroll Inlet, about 22 miles northeast of Ketchikan, ֱֻ, after a record rainfall in July 2020.
Written by energy researchers, utility operators and rural community leaders, the book examines ֱֻ’s energy development through the experiences of rural communities that have adopted wind, solar, hydropower and other low-carbon energy sources. It looks beyond the state’s more familiar history of oil and natural gas to explore how communities have developed local energy systems, reduced costs and responded to changing energy needs.
The book also examines what ֱֻ can learn from these experiences as communities face rising energy costs, changing environmental conditions and other challenges. It highlights the importance of succession planning and public policy in sustaining local energy systems.
The event will feature a panel discussion with several contributors to the book: Gwen Holdmann, chief scientist at ACEP; Connie Fredenberg, a utility and community relations professional; Philip Wight, associate professor of history at UAF; and , president of Pathfinder Communications and editor of the book’s chapters.
This free event is open to the public and takes place on Monday, Oct. 26, from 5:30-7 p.m. in the BP Design Theater on the UAF Troth Yeddha’ Campus.
ADDITIONAL CONTACT: Phil Wight, pawight@alaska.edu
060-27