Alaska Communications added Yasir Alvi to its executive team as CFO. Alvi previously led finance and operations teams at Guardian Security Systems through a period of transformative growth. Alvi graduated with honors from Princeton University with a bachelor’s degree in computer science, and he earned an MBA from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania with honors, concentrating in finance. He started his career in software engineering at Microsoft. He also gained experience in investment banking and mergers and acquisitions at Morgan Stanley and financial planning analysis at Alaska Airlines.

Republic Services of Alaska has a new General Manager. Matt Melton oversees Republic Services’ Environmental Solutions business in the state, which includes emergency response, service centers, and hazardous waste facilities. Melton has more than two decades of leadership experience in the marine transportation and oil and gas industries. Melton holds a bachelor’s degree in environmental studies and a master’s degree in operational management, both from New England College in New Hampshire. He has held leadership positions on the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens’ Advisory Council, the Association of Petroleum Industry Cooperative Managers, and the Alaska Support Industry Alliance.

More than twenty years after he founded the Renewable Energy Alaska Project (REAP) as a statewide nonprofit association, Chris Rose retired this summer. To succeed him as Executive Director, REAP chose Cady Lister, most recently the Senior Energy Advisor for the Southeast Conference’s regional energy programs. Lister holds a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA, both from UAF. She previously worked as the Deputy Director and Chief Economist for the Alaska Energy Authority and as the Deputy Program Manager for the Portland Clean Energy Fund.

The board of the Alaska Public Interest Research Group (AKPIRG) selected Julia Hnilicka as the next Executive Director of the consumer protection nonprofit. Raised in Nenana as the daughter of a tugboat captain and an educator, Hnilicka most recently worked for the Biden administration as the Alaska State Director for the US Department of Agriculture’s Rural Development office.

The Alaska Native Science & Engineering Program (ANSEP) appointed Dr. Michele Yatchmeneff as COO. Yatchmeneff was previously ANSEP’s assistant director before becoming UAA’s executive director of Alaska Native Education and Outreach in 2021. Yatchmeneff continues her work as a professor at UAA. An Unangax̂ from King Cove and False Pass, Yatchmeneff earned her bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and master’s degree in engineering management from UAA. After becoming the first Alaska Native woman to teach in UAA’s College of Engineering, she earned her doctorate in engineering education from Purdue University.

UIC Construction, a division of UIC Commercial Services, named Bryan Hise as its new Operations Manager, overseeing staff and project delivery for the company’s remote construction portfolio. Hise brings more than a decade of experience in construction management. During his more than two years with UIC Construction, Hise managed diverse projects in locations such as Anaktuvuk Pass, Kaktovik, Takotna, and the parent company’s hometown of Utqiaġvik. Hise holds a bachelor’s degree in construction management from Washington State University.

Civil engineering, surveying, and environmental firm R&M Consultants added three new staff to its offices in Anchorage and Fairbanks.

Nick Parker joined R&M’s Land Surveying Group as a Staff Surveyor. He has spent the last four summers as a geomatics intern with the firm, returning full-time after earning a bachelor’s degree in Geomatics from UAA. Parker has provided field surveying for airport, highway, trail and subdivision projects across the state. He is a land surveyor-in-training and an FAA Part 107 certified remote pilot.

Lindsey Sutherland joined the Fairbanks office as an Environmental Specialist in the Environmental Services Group. She brings three years of experience in National Environmental Policy Act compliance and documentation, having supported those processes for federal agencies. Sutherland holds a bachelor’s degree in geology from Clemson University and earned a master’s degree in geology from Idaho State University. She is pursuing a graduate certificate in the National Environmental Policy Act from Utah State University.

Adam Dalton joined R&M as a Staff Engineer in the firm’s Water Resources Group. He has five years of experience in water resources and civil infrastructure projects, including aquatic organism passage design, site drainage, grading, road and bridge projects, and wetland mitigation. Dalton’s background includes hydrologic and hydraulic analysis, stormwater management, dam safety, and drainage studies. Dalton holds a bachelor’s degree in civil engineering from the University of Utah.

The brokerage formed last fall under Aleut Real Estate, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Alaska Native regional corporation Aleut, added Natalie Travers-Smyre to its team. Since earning her real estate license in 1988, Travers-Smyre has worked in brokerage management, homeowner association oversight, residential land development, new construction sales, and dispute resolution. Most recently with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Alaska Realty, she spent more than a decade in brokerage leadership roles. Travers-Smyre also enjoys mushing her team of Siberian huskies.