Instructor: Brooks Miner / Classroom: MGH 287 / Tu & Th 10:30a-12:20p

Schedule

This schedule can be viewed in three forms: (1) a Google calendar, (2) a printable schedule pdf , and (3) in webpage form below the calendar.

To use the Google calendar, click on a class day or an assignment to learn more. For a larger view, view the course calendar in a separate window .

  • Week 1: Welcome to the UW's first class about Alaska!
    • Tuesday, March 31
      • Introductions, Alaska facts and myths, and whirlwird tour of Alaska history until the 1900s.
        • In this first class meeting of the quarter, we'll have an introduction to the course.
    • Wednesday, April 1
      • Blog post 1 due by 11:59pm. (No joke)
    • Thursday, April 2
      • Precontact Alaska
        • A brief lecture/discussion about pre-20th century Alaska, followed by a discussion about the first U.S. non-Native settlers.
  • Week 2: WWII, Statehood and the beginning of the Atomic Age
    • Monday, April 6
      • Blog post 2 due by 11:59pm.
    • Tuesday, April 7
      • WWII, Statehood, ANWR creation
        • We'll consider the various ways in which World War II touched Alaska, including the construction of the Alaska Highway and the US Navy's postwar exploration of Naval Petroleum Reserve #4 (Pet-4) in the northwest arctic. Following WWII, Alaska became a state almost exactly 50 years ago, in January 1959. How did this happen? Who wrote the state's constitution? What's unique about it? What about Native Alaskans? Also, when and why was the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge created?
    • Thursday, April 9
      • The Atomic Age: Project Chariot
        • The atom comes to Alaska! Did "they" really almost blowup the NW arctic with nuclear bombs to create a deep-water harbor? Who did? Why?
    • Friday, April 10
      • Paper 1 due by 5:00pm.
  • Week 3: The Atomic Age continues, and other crazy ideas
    • Monday, April 13
      • Blog post 3 due by 11:59pm.
    • Tuesday, April 14
      • Nuclear weapons testing on Amchitka Island
        • What about Amchitka Island, the nuclear weapons testing that took place there, and how this led to the birth of Greenpeace? And what does this and Project Chariot tell us about the atomic age in our society?
    • Thursday, April 16
      • Rampart Dam, and Intro to the Oil Age in Alaska
        • The largest hydroelectric project in the then-history of the world? A man-made lake the size of Lake Michigan? The truth can be stranger than fiction.
  • Week 4: Oil discovery and Alaska Native claims
    • Monday, April 20
      • Blog post 4 due by 11:59pm.
    • Tuesday, April 21
      • Oil discovery and ANCSA beginnings
        • The discovery of vast underground oil deposits in the Alaskan arctic heralded what many would call the creation of "modern" Alaska. Modern for who? Not just the oil companies. These oil deposits were, paradoxically enough, the driving force for Congress to finally settle the land claims of thousands of Native Alaskan individuals, villages, and tribes.
    • Thursday, April 23
      • The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act
        • The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act was an unprecedented law passed by Congress in 1971. What led to this? Who were the major players? Who had the interests of the Native Alaskans at heart? Who didn't? What were the results?
        • Special guest: Robert Anderson
    • Friday, April 24
      • Paper 2 due by 5:00pm.
  • Week 5: The pipeline and its impacts
    • Monday, April 27
      • Blog post 5 due by 11:59pm.
    • Tuesday, April 28
      • The pipeline controversy
        • Although it's a foregone conclusion today, the creation of the Trans-Alaska Pipeline was a huge controversy in the early 1970s, and it is very enlightening to learn how it all came to pass.
    • Thursday, April 30
      • Long-term effects of oil and gas drilling
        • Today we'll consider the long-term effects of all that oil and gas development on the north slope of Alaska. Has the arctic been ruined? How do we define "ruined" and "pristine," anyway?
        • Special guest: Gordon Orians
  • Week 6: Land conservation in Alaska
    • Monday, May 4
      • Blog post 6 due by 11:59pm.
    • Tuesday, May 5
      • 17(d)(2) and the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA)
        • Today we begin discussing the events and individuals that led to the passage of the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. This landmark legislation was passage at the end of 1980, but the seeds for it were sown much earlier. The characters "d2" have a very specific and controversial meaning in Alaska - we'll figure out why they're so interesting, and contentious.
    • Thursday, May 7
      • ANILCA continued
        • ANILCA is much to complicated and controversial to cover in a single class period, so we'll continue our discussion today. We'll be joined by a special guest.
        • Special guest: Doug Scott
    • Friday, May 8
      • Paper 3 due by 5:00pm.
  • Week 7: The Tongass National Forest
    • Monday, May 11
      • Blog post 7 due by 11:59pm.
    • Tuesday, May 12
      • Tongass National Forest
        • Today begins our study of the Tongass National Forest which will culminate in the group projects we'll present during the final exam period on June 8.
    • Thursday, May 14
      • Tongass continued, and begin research efforts with case study partner
        • Today we'll spend the first hour discussing the Tongass readings of the week, with a particular focus on the scientific papers.
        • During the second hour students will work together with their case study partners to begin researching the position of their stakeholder.
  • Week 8: Tongass case study
    • Monday, May 15
      • Blog post 8 due by 11:59pm.
    • Tuesday, May 16
      • Tongass continued
        • Today we'll continue our discussion of the history and current status of the Tongass National Forest.
        • Special guest: Steve Kallick
        • Two prepared questions for Steve Kallick about your stakeholder group due today.
    • Thursday, May 18
      • Intro to audio production
        • Today's class session will take place in a computer lab, where we'll finally get introduced to producing audio content for the Tongass case study.
        • We'll meet first in our usual classroom before walking to the computer lab.
    • Friday, May 19
      • Paper 4 due by 5:00pm.
  • Week 9: Tongass roundtable and the Unfinished Agenda
    • Monday, May 25
      • No blog post due today.
    • Tuesday, May 26
      • Tongass roundtable discussion
        • Each stakeholder group will meet in turn with all other stakeholder groups and share their position and goals for the future of the Tongass NF.
        • Outline of stakeholder goals (8 copies) and summary of research effort (1 copy) due today.
    • Thursday, May 28
      • The Unfinished Agenda
        • Today we'll take a break from our exclusive Tongass focus to more broadly discuss the future of land conservation in Alaska, with our visitor Allen Smith.
        • Special guest: Allen Smith
  • Week 10: Loose Ends
    • Monday, June 1
      • Blog post 10 due by 11:59pm.
    • Tuesday, June 2
      • Fisheries
        • There's never enough time to cover everything interesting about a topic in the course of a 10-week quarter. It's a shame that we only get one day to explicitly discuss Alaska's fishing industry, but we'll make the best of it.
    • Thursday, June 4
      • Exxon Valdez oil spill
        • The Exxon Valdez oil spill was such a big deal that we'll devote an entire class period to it, with a particular focus on the biological impacts that continue to today.
    • Friday, June 5
      • Radio spot and press release due by 5:00pm.
  • Final exam period
    • Monday, June 8
      • Group presentations about the management and conservation of the Tongass National Forest.
      • Paper 5 due by 10:30am.