Director of the Institute of Social and Economic Research, University of Alaska Anchorage
Salmon are anadromous fish; they spawn in fresh water (rivers, streams and lakes) and live most of their lives in the ocean. They are harvested by many predators on land and on sea, and because they travel thousands of miles through multiple international jurisdictions, they present unique and complicated management challenges. During their freshwater phases (for the first few months and the last few weeks of life) they compete for choice habitat with humans who use those rivers for dams and irrigation, and who develop on uplands in ways that are not always compatible with the high water quality and necessary quantity for good salmon habitat. For all of these reasons, policy and political questions surrounding the protection, harvest and management of salmon are extremely contentious. I will explore the intersection of politics, economics and science in salmon management, and discuss the regional and international aspects that create additional complexity to this resource policy arena.
Fran Ulmer is the Director of University of Alaska Anchorage’s Institute of Social and Economic Research, bringing to this position 30 years of experience of public policy in Alaska. Previously, she was a fellow at the Institute of Politics at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Public Policy at the Institute of Social and Economic Research. In the early 1980s, Fran was the Mayor of Juneau, then a member of the Alaska House of Representatives (1986-1994) and in 1994, Fran became the first female Lieutenant Governor of Alaska. In that year, she was appointed to the North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission by President Bill Clinton and served on this international board for 11 years, including as Chair, with representatives from Japan, Russia, Korea, Canada and the United States. Fran has participated in numerous panels, task forces, commissions and forums as a speaker, moderator and panelist to address the intersection of science, economics, politics and policy. Fran currently serves on the Board of Trustees of the National Parks Conservation Association, the Advisory Board of the Union of Concerned Scientists and the Alaska Nature Conservancy Board. Fran has a BA in political science and economics and a Law Degree from the University of Wisconsin.