The AKPIRG Advocate, April 2025
We're Hiring! ✨
Apply to be our Housing Organizer for Lingít Aaní/Juneau!
AKPIRG’s housing work is expanding to Juneau! 🏡
The Housing Organizer (Lingít Aaní/Juneau) will work on the Economic Justice Team to address Juneau’s housing shortage through local civic engagement and community education. A strong applicant will have experience building coalitions, facilitating groups, and leading community-based education and/or civic engagement initiatives.
Applicants must be based in Juneau. Application review will begin May 5. If this sounds like a good fit for you or someone you know, apply or share with your networks!
VOTE in your electric utility board elections! 🗳⚡
If your name is on the electric bill for your house and you live along the Railbelt, you are eligible to vote in your utility’s board elections!
Our utilities are electric cooperatives, led by boards of directors who make key decisions every day—like where our power comes from and how much it costs. These choices matter more than ever, as most of our electricity currently comes from natural gas, and that supply is facing a serious shortfall. Your vote helps support clean, safe, and reliable energy that creates good local jobs.
These elections are often determined by just a few votes, your vote can make a huge impact in your community. Use your voice for energy democracy!
To learn more about the election process for each utility and to learn more about the candidates for each board, visit the Alaska Energy Transparency Project (AETP) website:
Have You Recently Sought Help From the CFPB? ProPublica Wants to Hear From You.
Photo illustration: Shoshana Gordon/ProPublica. Source images: Getty Images, Wikimedia Commons.
The federal agency responsible for holding big banks and fintechs accountable to consumer protection law is functionally dismantled. The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has dropped or frozen cases that might have helped return money to consumers across the U.S.
ProPublica, a nonprofit investigative journalism organization based in New York City, wants to understand the fallout that might come from gutting the federal government’s consumer watchdog, and they’re collecting stories from people who have worked with the CFPB to inform their journalism.
Consider filling out ProPublica’s CFPB story collection form if you or someone you know:
Filed a complaint with the CFPB in the past year.
Had problems with a company whose case the CFPB dismissed or stopped investigating
Were in touch with the CFPB regarding investigations or resolutions in the past year
Worked with communities that rely on CFPB’s resources
Community Solar is HERE! 🌞
🌞 Big news for community solar in Alaska! Chugach Electric Association (CEA) just launched the state’s first-ever community solar project. After years of advocacy to make community solar possible under Alaska state law, it’s incredible to see the first project up and running.
Chugach customers now have the option to subscribe to solar panels in the project for around $9 per panel per month. While this early-stage program won’t lower electric bills right away, it offers a way to support renewable energy development as a long-term hedge against rising energy costs—especially with the anticipated Cook Inlet natural gas shortfall.
We’re thrilled to see this kind of community-driven solution take shape and hopeful it paves the way for more local energy innovation across Alaska. Every step toward shared energy options brings us closer to true energy democracy. ⚡️🌱
Are the long-term cost savings worth the upfront subscription for you and your family? Read AKPIRG's letter on CEA's community solar project to learn more about how community solar pays off over time (also linked on Chugach's community solar webpage).
AKPIRG in the Capitol ✈️⚡
Last month, AKPIRG energy policy experts traveled to Washington DC to advocate for continued federal funding for Alaskan energy projects! ✈️
June Okada and Natalie Kiley-Bergen flew down to DC with four Alaskan leaders whose communities have been impacted by recent federal funding changes. The trip was coordinated in response to the freezing and thawing of funds, causing well-planned projects to make much-needed upgrades to rural energy infrastructure to be stalled or canceled entirely. The cohort met with lawmakers and federal agencies to underscore the necessity of federal funding to support resilient energy systems across Alaska.
Huge thanks to United Today Stronger Tomorrow for coordinating this fly-in to DC, and to all of the Alaskan leaders who joined the trip and shared their stories! To get more context about these stories, see some of the news coverage about the impacts of federal funding freezes in Alaska:
Rural leaders push Congress to unfreeze climate and environmental funds
Michael Copley, NPR
Nome based tribal community hopes to offset power costs with solar energy
Joe Allgood, Alaska’s News Source
Sen. Murkowski makes pitch for renewable energy’s value in Alaska communities
Yereth Rosen, Alaska Beacon
Help us keep fighting for resilient energy systems in Alaska -- chip in today to power our advocacy from Juneau to DC! ⚡✈️
Donate to the Rapid Response Community Fund 💗
🚨URGENT ACTION ALERT 🚨 - Donate to the Rapid Response Community Fund: akpirg.org/rapid-response-community-fund
With looming threats to federal funding and jobs, Alaskans are experiencing unprecedented instability in all parts of the economy. AKPIRG started a Rapid Response Community Fund for projects that provide direct relief to Alaskans who are facing this instability head-on. As communities across the country respond to ever-changing directives from the new administration, we hope this Fund can serve as a structure to meet evolving community needs in Alaska.
Our first project in need of urgent funding is the Payday Jubilee - a joint effort with the Mutual Aid Network of Anchorage and the Alaska Conference of the United Methodist Church to ❗️pay off❗️Alaskans’ payday loans and reform the policies that enable this predatory lending practice in our state.
The Payday Jubilee helps ensure that Alaskans can prioritize spending for necessities - not paying exorbitant interest on loans. We are seeking to raise $25,000 to provide direct relief for your neighbors who are stuck in the debt trap.
We will continue to add projects to the Rapid Response Community Fund - stay tuned for more ways to support community resilience across Alaska!
To learn more about the problem of payday lending in Alaska, solutions like the Payday Jubilee, and to pitch in to the Rapid Response Community Fund, visit:
Spotted: AKPIRG Out n' About! 🕺
Left: AKPIRG staff at the Alaska State Capitol building during Folk Fest in Juneau
Right: AKPIRG Deputy Director Erin Willahan with former AKPIRG ED during SpruceRoot's Sustainable Southeast Partnership Retreat in Sitka
It’s no surprise that AKPIRG folks tend to pop up wherever community is happening! From concerts to conferences, we’re always finding ways to connect, catch up, and celebrate the work happening across Alaska.
A handful of AKPIRG staff made the trip to Juneau this April for Folk Fest, soaking up some of Alaska’s best folk music. Between concerts and jam sessions, they also squeezed in meetings with a few legislative offices (above left). It was a treat to spot so many friendly AKPIRG faces in the crowd all weekend!
A few weeks later, AKPIRG Deputy Director Erin Willahan traveled to Sitka for SpruceRoot's Sustainable Southeast Partnership Retreat. Erin had the opportunity to learn from people across the region whose work intersects with AKPIRG's, including Steve Cleary, a former AKPIRG executive director now working for Renewable Energy Alaska Project (REAP) (above right).
Whether catching a show at the Red Dog Saloon or swapping ideas with community leaders, AKPIRG shows up — for each other and for the communities we’re proud to be part of.
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If you'd like to get more involved in the AKPIRG community, consider signing up to be a volunteer!
