Alaskans have been working on energy solutions for decades. Our state has been at the forefront of developing and deploying microgrid projects designed to take advantage of our many natural resources—wind, hydro, solar, coal, biomass, oil, or natural gas—in various combinations. Alaska is a natural proving ground for energy systems and innovations that must function in extreme conditions at the end of complicated supply chains with minimal maintenance. Keeping every Alaskan warm in the winter, powering lifesaving equipment off the road, and keeping lines of communication open across the state is a big ask—and it all needs to be done affordably.

Recently energy has taken root in national and global conversations, as well. For many years the United States and other developed countries were content to reap the rewards of cheap natural resource extraction, however and wherever that was possible. Escalating tensions with China and Russia’s war against Ukraine have made what seemed like a gray area very black and white: how and where energy is produced, and who is producing it, matters. Our future depends on responsible energy production and use, and responsible energy requires responsible resource development. A conventional gasoline-powered car contains between 18 and 49 pounds of copper while an electric vehicle contains approximately 183 pounds. That’s just one example of one mineral that could easily be the next bottleneck in establishing an optimal energy posture.

So it’s heartening to see initiatives at the federal level such as the Minerals Security Partnership. This international partnership has the intent to make sure critical minerals are “produced, processed, and recycled in a manner that supports the ability of countries to realize the full economic development benefit of their geological endowments,” according to the US Department of State.

It is equally disheartening to see the federal government throwing up roadblocks to natural resource development in Alaska, such as its flip-flopping on ConocoPhillips Alaska’s Willow project or its back-and-forth on the industrial access road to the Ambler Mining District. Even while our federal government is apparently joining a global mission to make sure that natural resource development is conducted with an emphasis on keeping people and the environment safe, somehow it continues to resist the reality that Alaska excels at doing exactly that.

But we do! So this year in our Natural Resource Development special section we have once again broadened our coverage of Alaska’s natural resources, ranging from minerals and fish to lumber and hydropower. Every one of those resources, properly managed, can last for generations, powering, building, and feeding not only our homes but worldwide communities.