Emily Schwing

Spring comes late to western Alaska and brings a mix of anxiety and anticipation. Citizen scientists use traditional knowledge to predict river breakup and flooding for dozens of remote communities.

Alaska's Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race gets underway in March. Officials require participants to be vaccinated. Mushers also won't stop at one remote community to avoid possibly spreading the virus.

As pandemic restrictions loosen, tourists flock to Jack Sprat, a restaurant in Girdwood, Alaska. But like many businesses in resort towns, it's having trouble hiring servers as the economy rebounds.

The price of lumber has more than doubled during the pandemic. Now people are turning to extreme DIY for building projects. Instead of buying boards, they're buying their own sawmills.

Native American tribal members in the Pacific Northwest host an annual karaoke contest to keep their indigenous language, Salish, alive.

The rig is scheduled to head into the Arctic later this summer as part of an exploratory offshore drilling operation. That drilling is controversial — at least in the lower 48 states.

In the already challenging sled dog race, there has been a change in the normal route due to warm weather. The strongest veteran mushers size up their strengths that have prepared them to compete.

Warm temperatures and dwindling snow have shaken even the toughest mushers. Alaskans are worried about the future of their state sport.

Friday's deadline was set after a U.S. District Court judge ruled the state violated the Voting Rights Act by not providing some native speakers with materials in their language.

Wildfire season is approaching, and smoke jumpers are refreshing their skills in preparation for what's expected to be a busy summer. These jumpers are a small, elite group of men and women who take to the air when a fire can't be fought on the ground alone. Emily Schwing of member station KUAC reports from a training camp in Fairbanks, Alaska.