Commonwealth North
Encyclopedia
Commonwealth North is a nonprofit, nonpartisan
educational organization based in Anchorage, Alaska
. Founded in 1979, it is the oldest and largest public affairs forum in Alaska
. Membership is open to everyone.
It has more than 350 members and annually hosts more than 25 events on political, cultural, social and economic topics. Proceedings of events including transcripts, audiotapes and PowerPoint presentations are frequently made available on the organization's Web site.
In addition to hosting events and panels, Commonwealth North produces annual study reports and policy reports. The study reports address key issues confronting the state and are intended to assist in their resolution. Some issues are particular to the state, others are of broader regional, national and international interest.
. Its bylaws are based on those of the oldest such public affairs forum in the United States, the Commonwealth Club of California
.
The organization has hosted numerous world-class speakers including many former United U.S. senators
and other major political leaders in the USA and abroad, as well as business leaders and other prominent figures in public and private life. Speakers receive no honoraria.
The organization has an office in Anchorage and the majority of its programs are in Anchorage.
-winning scientists, authors, activists, and more.
The purpose of the speakers forum is to afford members a wide range of differing viewpoints that expand Alaskans' perspectives on national and global issues. At the same time, Commonwealth North provides visiting dignitaries an understanding of Alaska: its rich culture, history, resources, values, and potential.
In lieu of honoraria, Commonwealth North provides guest speakers with a first-hand view of Alaska to explore the Prudhoe Bay oil fields in the Arctic and along the 800-mile trans-Alaska pipeline; fish for halibut
or salmon
; and view Alaska's wilderness, glaciers, rivers, mountains, and wildlife.
Domestic political speakers have included U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski
. Frank Murkowski
and Ted Stevens
; U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta
; the Attorney General for the State of Alaska, David W. Márquez
; and the Governor of the Federal Reserve Board, Dr. Edward Gramlich
. International political speakers have included the President of Iceland
, Dr. Olafur Ragnar Grimsson
; Former Prime Minister of New Zealand James Bolger; and the British Columbia Premier, The Hon. Dan Miller. Other recent speakers include Dr. Vernon L. Smith
, 2002 Nobel Laureate for Economics, and Robert William Fogel, 1993 Nobel Laureate for Economics.
The 2007 report, "At A Crossroad: The Permanent Fund, Alaskans, and Alaska's Future," based on a nine-month study, contains suggestions on management and governance of the Alaska Permanent Fund
. Other reports have looked at issues including work force development, the relationship between the state and Alaska's North Slope oil producers, and bringing the North Slope gas to market.
Nonpartisan
In political science, nonpartisan denotes an election, event, organization or person in which there is no formally declared association with a political party affiliation....
educational organization based in Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage is a unified home rule municipality in the southcentral part of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is the northernmost major city in the United States...
. Founded in 1979, it is the oldest and largest public affairs forum in Alaska
Alaska
Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait...
. Membership is open to everyone.
It has more than 350 members and annually hosts more than 25 events on political, cultural, social and economic topics. Proceedings of events including transcripts, audiotapes and PowerPoint presentations are frequently made available on the organization's Web site.
In addition to hosting events and panels, Commonwealth North produces annual study reports and policy reports. The study reports address key issues confronting the state and are intended to assist in their resolution. Some issues are particular to the state, others are of broader regional, national and international interest.
History
Commonwealth North was founded in 1979 by former Alaskan Governors Walter J. Hickel and the late William A. Egan. Its mission is the nonpartisan study of public affairsPublic policy
Public policy as government action is generally the principled guide to action taken by the administrative or executive branches of the state with regard to a class of issues in a manner consistent with law and institutional customs. In general, the foundation is the pertinent national and...
. Its bylaws are based on those of the oldest such public affairs forum in the United States, the Commonwealth Club of California
Commonwealth Club of California
The Commonwealth Club of California is a non-profit, non-partisan educational organization based in Northern California. Founded in 1903, it is the oldest and largest public affairs forum in the United States...
.
The organization has hosted numerous world-class speakers including many former United U.S. senators
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
and other major political leaders in the USA and abroad, as well as business leaders and other prominent figures in public and private life. Speakers receive no honoraria.
The organization has an office in Anchorage and the majority of its programs are in Anchorage.
Speakers at Commonwealth North
The list of notable speakers and speeches numbers in the hundreds and includes domestic and foreign political and military leaders, Nobel prizeNobel Prize
The Nobel Prizes are annual international awards bestowed by Scandinavian committees in recognition of cultural and scientific advances. The will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, established the prizes in 1895...
-winning scientists, authors, activists, and more.
The purpose of the speakers forum is to afford members a wide range of differing viewpoints that expand Alaskans' perspectives on national and global issues. At the same time, Commonwealth North provides visiting dignitaries an understanding of Alaska: its rich culture, history, resources, values, and potential.
In lieu of honoraria, Commonwealth North provides guest speakers with a first-hand view of Alaska to explore the Prudhoe Bay oil fields in the Arctic and along the 800-mile trans-Alaska pipeline; fish for halibut
Halibut
Halibut is a flatfish, genus Hippoglossus, from the family of the right-eye flounders . Other flatfish are also called halibut. The name is derived from haly and butt , for its popularity on Catholic holy days...
or salmon
Salmon
Salmon is the common name for several species of fish in the family Salmonidae. Several other fish in the same family are called trout; the difference is often said to be that salmon migrate and trout are resident, but this distinction does not strictly hold true...
; and view Alaska's wilderness, glaciers, rivers, mountains, and wildlife.
Domestic political speakers have included U.S. Senators Lisa Murkowski
Lisa Murkowski
Lisa Ann Murkowski is the senior U.S. Senator from the State of Alaska and a member of the Republican Party. She was appointed to the Senate in 2002 by her father, Governor Frank Murkowski. After losing a Republican primary in 2010, she became the second person ever to win a U.S...
. Frank Murkowski
Frank Murkowski
Francis Hughes Murkowski is an American politician and a member of the Republican Party. He was a United States Senator from Alaska from 1981 until 2002 and the eighth Governor of Alaska from 2002 until 2006.- Early life and career :...
and Ted Stevens
Ted Stevens
Theodore Fulton "Ted" Stevens, Sr. was a United States Senator from Alaska, serving from December 24, 1968, until January 3, 2009, and thus the longest-serving Republican senator in history...
; U.S. Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta
Norman Mineta
Norman Yoshio Mineta, is a United States politician of the Democratic Party. Mineta most recently served in President George W. Bush's Cabinet as the United States Secretary of Transportation, the only Democratic Cabinet Secretary in the Bush administration...
; the Attorney General for the State of Alaska, David W. Márquez
David W. Márquez
David W. Márquez is an American lawyer and politician, and the former attorney general of the state of Alaska....
; and the Governor of the Federal Reserve Board, Dr. Edward Gramlich
Edward Gramlich
Edward M. Gramlich was a professor of economics at the University of Michigan and a former member of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve....
. International political speakers have included the President of Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, Dr. Olafur Ragnar Grimsson
Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson
Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson is the fifth and current President of Iceland. He has served as President since 1996; he was unopposed in 2000, re-elected for a third term in 2004, and re-elected unopposed for a fourth term in 2008. He is the longest-serving left-wing president in the history of...
; Former Prime Minister of New Zealand James Bolger; and the British Columbia Premier, The Hon. Dan Miller. Other recent speakers include Dr. Vernon L. Smith
Vernon L. Smith
Vernon Lomax Smith is professor of economics at Chapman University's Argyros School of Business and Economics and School of Law in Orange, California, a research scholar at George Mason University Interdisciplinary Center for Economic Science, and a Fellow of the Mercatus Center, all in Arlington,...
, 2002 Nobel Laureate for Economics, and Robert William Fogel, 1993 Nobel Laureate for Economics.
Research Projects and Studies
Over the years a number of issues have been studied by Commonwealth North leaders, member committees, or scholars commissioned by Commonwealth North. The issue of the year is decided by the Board of Directors. Among the topics studied have been energy, developing health care and education, rural Alaska and the management of wildlife and land.The 2007 report, "At A Crossroad: The Permanent Fund, Alaskans, and Alaska's Future," based on a nine-month study, contains suggestions on management and governance of the Alaska Permanent Fund
Alaska Permanent Fund
The Alaska Permanent Fund is a constitutionally established permanent fund, managed by a semi-independent corporation, established by Alaska in 1976, primarily by the efforts of then Governor Jay Hammond...
. Other reports have looked at issues including work force development, the relationship between the state and Alaska's North Slope oil producers, and bringing the North Slope gas to market.