Senator James Kaufman offered a nice commentary in todays paper, Alaska: North to the future, north to adventure. I agree with the need for a plan and new direction. It’s the focus of Alaska version 3 advocacy. www.akv3.com We are currently supporting Alaska Startup week I hope everyone can promote and will attend our kick off at the Alaska Native Heritage Center on 10/2 at 5:30 https://akstartupweek.com/

The Senator’s aspirations for Alaska are great! But his plan to get there is to ask the administration to write up plans and monitor their performance. His proposal is SB21, I’m not convinced that leaving strategic planning up to the administration gets us anywhere. Have you read their updated a CEDS plan?

It’s a well intended document but in the end it encodes a stagnation plan to keep the oil/gas/mining and fishing industrial players happy and does nothing to move our economy forward. In fact our current plans are moving us backwards in population, jobs, hope, and economic output. It’s goals are upside down! Check out the current goal 1, objective 1! Figures – keep the oil companies happy!

Rather than handing our future to a industry friendly administration it’s the legislature that needs to act, as well as electing new administrative leadership committed to real change.

Some may recall that “Mission and Measures” was a big deal 20 years in alaska that allowed public administrations build plans around what they were going to do anyway and measure their progress – it made no changes, but we didn’t spend a lot of time on it and fooled ourselves into thinking we were accomplishing something.

If it’s legislation folks want, I’ve put together a legislative package to support startups you might scan. I’d be happy to sit down and discuss it with any of our legislators.

2023 Innovation Ecosystem Legislation

We need is NEW plan for our Next Alaska, a plan the future generation that is more than keeping the pipeline 25% full, maintaining stable regulations and taxes (and those credits!), and hope the fish and tourists comeback each year. You can see some of that new future already coming alive at our Startup Week events. Join us at 5:30 on Monday October 2nd. https://akstartupweek.com/

Ky