Issues: Community Sustainability
SCS originally formed because Sitka residents were outraged at the large scale clearcutting occurring around their home. They were also very concerned about pollution emitted from the Sitka pulp mill. As SCS has grown, our primary focus has remained on Wilderness and public land protection. However, as residents of Sitka we are obviously very concerned about community issues. In fact, our Community Outreach Coordinator and Community Sustainability Organizer positions were added to help us work in our community, SCS sponsors a Backwoods Lecture Series to help Sitkans learn more about the wildlife and resources of the Tongass. See Our Events Calendar at the bottom of the page for a schedule of SCS events.
Climate Change and Energy
Just because Sitka is a small town, the Sitka Conservation Society does not believe that means it can’t be a national leader in taking on climate change. The idea is that if little Sitka can take progressive steps, why can’t any other community? To help address climate change in Sitka, SCS has advocated for increasing the city’s hydroelectric capacity and organized energy conservation programs to help individuals improve the energy efficiency of their homes.
Local Foods
At the Sitka Conservation Society we are working towards creating a more resilient food system by supporting local efforts to protect the habitat of wild foods, support traditional harvest/subsistence lifestyles, increase local food production, create access to wild seafood, reform the school lunch program to include local foods, and increase awareness of local fishing culture.
Environmental Education
The Sitka Conservation Society provides diverse environmental education programs, which reach hundreds of people from preschool age through retirement age every year. Some of these programs are actually done in the classrooms of local schools, while other programs include public lectures and boat trips for the community at large.
Recent Posts:
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Living with the Land: Seaweed Harvest
“Living with the land” means having knowledge and familiarity with the natural environment that surrounds you. Part of that knowledge is knowing what are the edible plants in the environment and when they are ready for harvest. On the outer coast of Alaska in the Tongass National Forest, that also means knowing what seaweeds are [...]
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Energy Star Rebate Program Makes Dent in Electric Consumption
The Energy Star Rebate Program kicked off in late February and provided electric users with the opportunity to upgrade to an Energy Star appliance and receive a rebate ranging from $165-$1,500. The program was well received by residents in the first few months and is already showing great potential to make a dent [...]
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Celebrating a Year of Fish to Schools
The Sitka Conservation Society’s Fish to School Program has nearly completed its first full school year with raving reviews, community support, and strong partnerships. These local fish lunches are served as a hot lunch option through the school lunch program. Lunches are available to all students, totaling about 700 students with about half of those [...]
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Starrigavan Stream Team
Each May in Starrigavan Valley, nearly 100 7th Graders from Blatchley Middle School in Sitka spend a couple days doing hands-on stream restoration and monitoring. In the classroom, the students learn about watershed ecology and salmon habitat. Then they hit the field and help professional watershed managers actually install in-stream wood structures to rebuild fish [...]
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Kayak Skills/Rescue & Wilderness Monitoring Training
Saturday, June 9 and Sunday, June 10, 2012, 10am-5pm ACA instructors Adam Andis and Darrin Kelly will teach all of the skills you need to be a safe and confident paddler, so that you can get out and enjoy our coastal wilderness areas and volunteer with the Sitka Community Wilderness Stewardship Project to collect needed [...]
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Weatherization 101: Programming You Heater
Weatherization 101 is a six part series produced by the Sitka Conservation Society and the City and Borough of Sitka Electric Department to help Sitkans increase their energy awareness, conserve electricity, and save money. Links to all six videos are below. The State of Alaska has set a goal of achieving a 15% increase in [...]
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May is National Bike to Work Month!
All of us here at SCS hope that you will join us in riding our bikes to work during the month of May in honor of National Bike Month! Our friends at SEARHC, Yellow Jersey Cycles, UAS, Rotary, and Sitka Community Hospital have a load of events that will knock your sprockets off! Be sure [...]
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Weatherization 101: Home Breaker Panels
During a panel outage, every electric user should turn off the breaker panels to ensure that the electric department can get power up and running again across the whole community. This video shows how to use your breaker panel to turn off the highest energy uses in your home. Weatherization 101 is a six part [...]
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Weatherization 101 at Blatchley Middle School
Energy education classes in Blatchley Middle School are back by popular demand. Sixth grade social studies teacher, Tom Henshaw, welcomed a lesson on hydroelectricity and Sitka’s energy thresholds last semester and was so pleased with it, he requested another lesson focusing on energy this semester. The lesson that all 115 students received was Weatherization 101. [...]
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Fish to Schools to be Honored at Benefit Dinner on Wednesday 4/25
When people from the lower 48 think of Alaska, images of the Deadliest Catch, the debate around drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the open tundra of the north often come to mind. But, there is a lot more to Alaska. Despite the long winters and short summers Alaska is joining the nation’s [...]
