Trump appoints Alaska governor to a seat on U.S. Arctic Research Commission
Liz Ruskin, Alaska Public Media, April 15, 2026
President Trump has appointed Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy to a seat on the U.S. Arctic Research Commission.
The commission promotes Arctic science and establishes priorities for funding research projects in Alaska and the international Arctic.
This is the first time a sitting governor has served on the commission, according to USARC Executive Director John Farrell, and the appointment takes effect immediately.
Dunleavy’s spokesman did not answer questions about how much time or travel he expected the position to take.
Mead Treadwell, who chaired the commission before he was elected lieutenant governor of Alaska, said the position is important, especially since the U.S. gained a lot of Arctic territory in 2023 by laying claim to the extended outer continental shelf.
“We just got two Californias worth of land north of Alaska, and … you get that much land, you kind of need a Lewis and Clark program to figure out what we got,” Treadwell said.
The position will also allow Dunleavy to press the Interior Department to advance energy and critical minerals projects in the Arctic, Treadwell said. Another priority, he said, might be to resolve questions about Alaska’s fishery disasters.
The governor issued a statement saying it was an honor and listed priorities he intends to pursue only in general terms, such as “strengthening America’s leadership in the Arctic.” Dunleavy’s term as governor ends in early December.
Commissioners are not granted salaries but can be compensated for travel and receive per-diem pay for a maximum of 90 days per year.
The Trump administration has reoriented Arctic policy, shifting money away from climate research and the National Science Foundation while emphasizing national security, icebreakers and resource development.
While the appointment of a sitting state governor is new for the USARC, it’s not new for the Trump administration: Trump named Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry as his special envoy to Greenland in December 2025.
Big win for mining as Senate votes to remove BWCA moratorium
Ana Radelat, MinnPost, April 16, 2026
Despite hours of impassioned arguments from Sen. Tina Smith, the U.S. Senate ended a Biden-era moratorium on mining in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness watershed.
The vote on Thursday removed a major hurdle for Twin Metals, which has battled to extract nickel, copper and other metals in Superior National Forest.
Twin Metals, which has tried to establish a mine in that area since 2019, will soon be able to request federal permits to restart work on that project after President Donald Trump, as expected, signs into law the resolution that would lift the 20-year moratorium.
In a statement, MiningMinnesota said, “We don’t need a mining ban for the entire watershed to protect the Boundary Waters. They are already protected by strict federal and Minnesota laws that require environmental review and permitting processes for any proposed mine. Those processes are designed to rely on science, ask hard questions, protect our environment, and support Minnesota’s communities and its economy. This vote does not open a mine. It opens the door for a transparent, science-based review. Mining and environmental protections can co-exist, and our industry is committed to making sure that happens.”
Ryan Sistad, executive director of Better In Our Back Yard, told KARE 11, “This is a huge win for northeastern Minnesota and communities up on the Iron Range. There’s cities like Ely, Minnesota and Babbitt that have experienced population drops in excess of 30% in the last 40 years, while the rest of the state of Minnesota has grown by 25%.”
Sistad said the Twin Metals mine would create over 750 permanent jobs and more than 1,500 spin-off jobs.