Meilani Schijvens is the owner and Director of Rain Coast Data, a Southeast Alaska-based research and consulting firm specializing in regional economic analysis, publications, socioeconomic impact studies, survey research, and public outreach. Meilani is also the Economic Development Director for Southeast Conference (and past Executive Director). She previously taught Alaska economic history at the University of Oregon, worked as an environmental technician at the Greens Creek Mine, and was a staffer in Washington DC for the US Senate Minority Leader.  She holds a Master of Science from the University of Oregon and a B.A. in history from Colby College. A lifelong resident of the region, she believes there is no better place on the planet.

Matt Eisenhower serves as the Director of Community Health Development for PeaceHealth and lives in Ketchikan. His early involvement with rural healthcare and overseeing multiple projects focusing on the triple aim of healthcare reform gives him a unique perspective on the evolving changes in healthcare and healthcare costs. Healthcare plays an important role in the economic environment in Southeast Alaska and Matt knows how healthcare costs and quality care can serve as a driver in economic development. He has spoken nationally to various audiences on the changing trends in healthcare, change management, and population health care models. He is married and has six boys, serves on the school board, and is active in youth baseball.

Liz Cornejo is a geologist who began her Southeast Alaska career at the Niblack Project on Prince of Wales Island. Liz has worked with Constantine at the Palmer Project since 2009 and now serves as the Company’s Manager of Exploration & Community. Liz travels frequently between the Vancouver office, the summer field office, and the Haines town office. She was raised in North Dakota and, as a citizen of both the US and Canada, has spent a significant amount of time living and working in both countries, which has been especially valuable in building meaningful relationships across the Company and in the communities where she works. Liz has attended other Southeast Conference meetings in Petersburg and Sitka and looks forward to seeing everyone in Haines. 

Anthony Mallott was named Sealaska president and CEO in May 2014. Mallott earned a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from Stanford University. He came to Sealaska in 2006 to serve as Sealaska’s chief investment officer and treasurer. As a result he has deep experience in financial and investment management. As chief investment officer, he was responsible for the direction of treasury activities of the company and the management of corporate investment funds. Prior to Sealaska, Mallott was a vice president within Bank of America’s capital markets, working in the portfolio and risk strategy group for 10 years.
Mallott is chair of the Kootznoowoo Permanent Fund Settlement Trust, which benefits Kootznoowoo, Inc. shareholders. He has served as a board member of the Rasmuson Foundation; and an investment committee member of the Alaska Community Foundation.
 

Ken Alper is the Tax Division Director for the Alaska Department of Revenue, having been appointed to that position by Governor Bill Walker in 2014. In addition to administering the division and the 25 tax programs it oversees, he is part of the administration’s policy team for fiscal restructuring. He was the primary presenter for HB247 and HB111, the two Oil and Gas Tax Credit reform efforts that passed in 2016 and 2017, respectively.

Prior to this he spent ten years at the Alaska State Legislature, mostly as the oil and gas aide to the House Minority. In this role he developed legislation and amendments as well as providing bill analysis, technical assistance, and revenue modeling to multiple legislators. He had input into all major production tax and gas development efforts during that time.

Originally from New Jersey, Ken has a BA in Regional Science from the University of Pennsylvania and a Master of Urban Planning from the University of Washington. After several years of back and forth, he moved to Alaska permanently in 1997. Ken and his wife Jill Ramiel own and operate the Silverbow Inn in downtown Juneau where they live with their three children.

Alana Peterson grew up and resides in Sitka, a small island community in Southeast Alaska. Professionally, Alana earned a Bachelor’s of Science in Business Administration at Charleston Southern University. After graduating from college she joined the Peace Corps where she served as a Small Business Development volunteer for two years on the southern coast of Peru. She obtained her Master’s degree in Business Administration from Northern Arizona University. She continues work in economic development in her current role as Program Director at Spruce Root, Inc.  

Marc Luiken serves as the Commissioner for the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities. Under his direction, the department is responsible for the planning, design and construction, as well as the maintenance and operation of Alaska’s transportation system, public buildings and facilities. He previously served as the department’s Commissioner from December 2010 to October 2012; a position he took after serving as DOT’s Deputy Commissioner for Aviation. Most recently, Commissioner Luiken was employed as a project manager and performance coach with RLG international, a consulting firm supporting the oil industry in Alaska with ConocoPhillips and BP Exploration Alaska. Prior to his public service to the State of Alaska, Luiken served 29 years with the U.S. Air Force, retiring June 1, 2010. His career as an Air Force fighter pilot spanned the globe with multiple assignments in the United Kingdom and Germany, and an assignment in Japan. He is combat veteran with service in Operation Desert Storm, Operation Southern Watch, Operation Joint Forge and Operation Enduring Freedom. Commissioner Luiken holds a bachelor’s in Human Factor’s Engineering from the U.S. Air Force Academy; a master’s degree in Management from Troy State University and a master’s in Strategic Studies from Air University in Alabama. He is a Certified Member of the American Association of Airport Executives and a member of the Air Force Association. He lives in Anchorage with his wife Suzanne. They have five children; each of whom are Alaska residents.

John D. Reeves joined Elliott Bay Design Group in 2015 as a Project Manager and Senior Engineer, bringing extensive field experience gained through 23 years of operating and maintaining some of the most complex vessels in the U.S. Coast Guard fleet, 11 years in and around Alaska.  John's wide-ranging background includes five years as port engineer and manager of four industrial repair facilities, including Ketchikan.  Since joining Elliott Bay Design Group, John has provided engineering and design for new ferries, modifications to vessels in operation, and feasibility studies.  Clients include the Alaska Marine Highway System, Pierce County, WA, and Water Emergency Transportation Authority in California

John Waterhouse serves as Chief Concept Engineer, and was a founding partner, at Elliott Bay Design Group, and has over 30 years of experience in naval architecture and marine engineering.  Throughout his career, he has made significant contributions to the industry through innovative design and engineering achievement.  His ferry experience includes vessel design and engineering for various clients including Washington State Ferries, Alaska Marine Highway System, and The Steamship Authority.  John's expertise includes analysis and development of transportation studies, including operational and business plans and analyzing long-term financial strategies for both public and private operators including Alaska Department of Transportation, Delaware River and Bay Authority, and Alaska's Inter-Island Ferry Authority.  

Maxine was born in Juneau and raised in Angoon in a traditional Tlingit environment by her father, Matthew Fred, Sr., and mother, Elizabeth (Bessie) Fred. Maxine earned her B.A. in sociology from University of Alaska, Fairbanks. In addition to serving as the Mayor of Angoon for two terms, Maxine has owned her own company, Angoon Oil, for more than 2 decades.

Senator Bert Stedman is a fourth-generation Alaskan. In 1908, the Stedman family homesteaded in Kake, where Bert's great-grandfather operated a fox farm and worked as a hunting guide and shipwright. Senator Bert Stedman attended Sitka High School, where he was a founding member of the Sitka swim team. He long-lined and seined throughout Southeast Alaska. After graduating in 1974, he worked in the heavy construction industry and continued to fish commercially for several years. Senator Stedman graduated from the University of  Oregon with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. He then returned to Sitka and founded Pioneer Capital Management. Bert has  successfully operated this personal investment services firm from 1986-2016. Bert  served eight years on the Sitka Planning and Zoning Commission and four years on the Sitka Assembly, including one year as deputy mayor. In 2003, Governor Frank Murkowski appointed Senator Bert Stedman to the Alaska State Legislature as a State Senator. Senator Stedman was then elected to the seat in 2004 and reelected in 2008, 2012 as well as in 2016. Senator Stedman is currently the Chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee and is a member of the Senate Resources Committee, Senate Community & Regional Affairs Committee, and the Legislative Council Committee.

Joe Plesha has worked at Trident Seafoods Corporation for thirty years, first as its General Counsel (1987 through 2009) and since 2009 as Trident’s Chief Legal Officer. Mr. Plesha previously worked at a law firm in Seattle (1986 and 1987) and on Capitol Hill in Washington DC as Counsel to the Senate Commerce Committee covering fishing and oceans issues (1985 and 1986) and as a Legislative Assistant to U.S. Senator Frank Murkowski (1983 through 1985). Joe also worked each summer at a salmon cannery in Ketchikan while earning his undergraduate and legal degrees.

Bobbie Meszaros is Tlingit, of the Ch’áak’ (Eagle) moiety of the Sik’nax.ádi (Wolf Killer Whale) Clan from Shtax’héen Kwáan (Wrangell, Alaska) and Tseesk’iya dachxán (grandchild of the Tahltan Crow Clan). Bobbie works for Sealaska Heritage Institute as the new Development Officer. In this role, she is
responsible for the management, planning, and implementation of the philanthropy program that secures financial resources to support Sealaska Heritage’s mission and program goals. Bobbie has over ten years of fundraising and event planning experience while working for several national based nonprofit organizations. She specializes in serving Alaska Native and American Indian Tribal Nations throughout Indian Country. Prior to joining Sealaska Heritage, she worked for the American Indian College Fund as a grant writer and researcher. Bobbie holds a B.A. in Anthropology and History from the University of Alaska Anchorage. She has recently relocated back home to Alaska after spending the last several years in Colorado and is excited to promote Juneau as the Northwest Coast Art Capital within the region and nationally.

Since 1994, Doug Ward has been Director of Shipyard Development for the Ketchikan Shipyard. The Ketchikan Shipyard is owned by the Alaska Industrial Development and Export Authority (AIDEA) AND operated by Vigor through a long term public private partnership that includes the City and Borough of Ketchikan.  Vigor is currently building the first of two Alaska Class Ferries for the Alaska Marine Highway System.  Doug is co-founder of the Ketchikan Marine Industry Council (KMIC) and Maritime Works (MWs) formed to support the growth and expansion of Alaska’s maritime industrial base.  In 2017, under Ward's leadership, Vigor partners with Maritime Works to launch the Advancing Alaska Workers demonstration of practices that are producing a best-in-class, Alaska resident shipbuilding and repair workforce at the Ketchikan Shipyard. Founded on employer-led co-investment of private, public, and philanthropic resources, the Ketchikan Shipyard sustains a regionally competitive, advanced manufacturing enterprise in an isolated, rural, and resource-driven economy.

Carol Tuynman is the Creative Director of Alaska Arts Confluence in Haines, Alaska. The organization works to inspire a culture of collaboration borough wide by focusing on downtown revitalization and building positive relationships between all people through creative placemaking initiatives such as art on Main Street, First Friday, and the Fort Seward Interpretive Walking Tour and Sculpture Garden.

Jim Bates is the President and CEO of Business Improvement Group, Inc. (BIG) and an Adjunct Professor in several schools at the University of Alaska Anchorage. Jim also serves as an advisory board member to the Project Management Institute Alaska Chapter (PMIAK) and as an Executive Advisor for the Texas Technology Consortium. Jim has a vast career spanning 36 years with proficiencies in Business Management and Information Technology. Recently he spent three years (through March 2016) servings as Director of Enterprise Technology Services for the State of Alaska and represented Alaska nationally as it’s CIO. Jim has been providing business benefits for diverse organizations since the early 1990’s, including F500’s, as an employee and/or consultant. Mr. Bates has a passion for teaching and is a champion of outcome-based learning. Jim has been providing business and IT instruction since 1992 and has developed class syllabi for many courses including certification preparation. Jim currently serves as the Lean Six Sigma Master Black Belt over the University of Alaska Anchorage’s Lean Center of Excellence. Jim has become in high-demand as a Speaker, Facilitator, Panelist, Trainor, Mentor and Coach for diverse events and organizations nationwide.

Governor Bill Walker and Lt. Governor Byron Mallott took office in December of 2014 as the first non-partisan administration in Alaska history. They are also the first Alaska-born Governor and Lt. Governor to serve together. Byron Mallott was born in Yakutat, the ancestral home of his mother’s Tlingit clan. Yakutat remains the voting residence of the Lt. Governor and his wife Toni. Together they have raised their blended family of five children. Mallott entered public life as mayor of Yakutat at age 22 and has since held many positions of responsibility in the public, private and non-profit sectors. He has served as the state’s first commissioner of community and regional affairs under Governor Bill Egan; president of the Alaska Federation of Natives; founding president of the First Alaskans Institute; and trustee, chair and executive director of the Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation. In the private sector, Mallott has served as chair, president and CEO of Sealaska Corporation; served on the board of Alaska Air Group, and Bank of America subsidiary boards in Washington and Alaska; and as a director of the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank in San Francisco. Mallott has also been a small business owner and commercial fisherman. Mallott says his proudest service is as clan leader of the Tlingit Raven Kwaash Kee Kwaan Clan of Yakutat. The Mallotts spend as much time as possible with their children and grandchildren. They enjoy birding, hiking, fishing and boating in Alaska’s incredible outdoors, and traveling to visit friends and discover new places.

An expert in rural energy systems, Jodi Mitchell has worked with Inside Passage Electric Cooperative (IPEC), known formerly as the Tlingit and Haida Regional Electrical Authority, for more than 20 years, assuming the role of chief executive officer/general manager in 2008. Prior to IPEC, she worked at Sealaska. She is currently the vice chair on the Sealaska Board. Mitchell is former chair and trustee of the Kootznoowoo Permanent Fund Settlement Trust, a director of the Kwaan Electric Transmission Intertie Cooperative, and a member of the Energy Committee for Southeast Conference. She also serves as a director of Synergy Systems, Inc., Olympic Fabrication, LLC, Kingston Environmental Services, Sealaska Constructors, LLC, and Haa Aani, LLC. Mitchell is Raven-Beaver Deisheetaan, originally from Angoon, Alaska. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from the University of Oregon and is a certified management accountant from the Institute of Management Accountants.

As Business Development Director for Alaska Power & Telephone Company, Jason Custer works to advance a wide range of utility projects, including cutting-edge renewable energy and fiber optic projects benefitting rural Alaskan communities.  Custer serves on the Board of Directors for Renewable Energy Alaska Project (REAP), Haida Energy, and the Lynn Canal Transmission Corporation.  He is Past President of the Chamber of Commerce in his home town of Ketchikan, and a co-founder of the Ketchikan Marine Industry Council.  Custer is a returned US Peace Corps volunteer, who served as an aquaculture/agriculture extensionist in rural NW Zambia; it was there, living in absence of electricity or running water, that he first developed his passion for utility infrastructure.

Karen has recently begun work for SE Conference as the Biomass Outreach Coordinator.  She is the facilitator for the Alaska Wood Energy Development Task Group, and organizer for the Alaska Wood Energy Conference.  Her position at SE Conference involves outreach for all things biomass.  Karen lives and works from Thorne Bay Alaska.
 

Jessie Huff, works as Alaska’s Energy Coordinator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Rural Development, headquartered in Palmer.

USDA Rural Development provides financing and technical assistance for economic development, housing and infrastructure projects in rural Alaska.

Jessie holds a Masters of Science in Applied Resource Economics from UAF, the focus of her master’s work was super-efficient building and community design for northern climates, her Bachelors of Science is titled Renewable Energy for Alaska’s Rural Communities.  Her education also includes Associate degrees and study in Digital Media, Technical Theatre and permaculture. She has been working within Alaska’s renewable and energy efficiency sector for the last 7 years. Prior to focusing on energy, Jessie spent 13 years working seasonally in remote off grid locations within the National Park, outdoor education and eco-tourism industries.