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Sandy Harper, with her late husband, actor and director Jerry Harper, co-founded Cyranos in 1987. Five years later, they launched Cyranos Off Center Playhouse as the home of Eccentric Theatre Company, which later became Cyranos Theatre Company. Sandy is now Cyranos producing artistic director emerita, and the legacy and impact of the Harper's efforts to create an artistic community are captured in her newly published memoir, The Little Theatre That Could and Did. Sandy has served as president of the Anchorage Cultural Council, and on the boards of the Last Frontier Theatre Conference (now the Valdez Theatre Conference), the Anchorage Downtown Partnership, the Rasmuson Foundation, and the Anchorage Downtown Association. Among the numerous honors she has received are an honorary Doctor of Letters from the University of Alaska Anchorage, the Contribution to Literacy Award, recognitions by the Soroptimist Society for advancing women in the arts and as a YWCA Notable Woman of the Year, the Lorene Harrison Lifetime Achievement Award, and induction into both the Athena Society and the Alaska Women's Hall of Fame. For more information, visit sandyharperauthor.com.

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Pamela Miller founded Alaska Community Action on Toxics in 1997 and serves as its Executive Director. Pam works passionately for environmental and reproductive justice, health, and human rights, with more than 35 years of research, education, and advocacy experience. She was elected in 2016 as Co-Chair of the International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN), a network of more than 600 environmental health and justice organizations working in 124 countries. Among her honors are the Meritorious Service Award from UAA, the Alaska Conservation Foundation’s Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Olaus Murie Award in recognition of her “long-term outstanding professional contributions to the conservation movement in Alaska.” She holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from Wittenberg University and a master’s degree in environmental science from Miami University. Pamela came to Alaska in 1989 following the Exxon Valdez oil spill to serve as a research biologist for Greenpeace. Prior to coming to Alaska, she was director of a marine science education center in Puget Sound, served as Washington’s Ocean Issues Technical Coordinator, and received the Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence in Washington State.

Slides - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/zwjyl4p7rju49bn85eym5/PresentationForAUUF20260412.pdf?rlkey=0699op1ocaupe3ip747486klp&dl=0

Alaska Community Action on Toxics (ACAT) - https://www.akaction.org

ACAT Legislative Priorities February 2026 - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/nx7rohbdf6rjyb9ntuxa1/ACAT_Legislative_Priorities_2026_Revised_2-26-26.pdf?rlkey=t5x3v05wkbtbd9o614x2j6bmd&dl=0

What you can do to reduce plastics - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/x8a2qh94hbawniobmx9na/What-_you_can_do_to-reduce_plastics.pdf?rlkey=cse7hf1ewcssrh75g2xarkkxz&dl=0

IPEN - FOR A TOXICS-FREE FUTURE - https://ipen.org/

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Matt Claman first came to Alaska in 1980 to work in a mining camp. After graduating from law school, Matt returned to Alaska to make his home, raise his family, and establish his career. Matt was elected to the Alaska House of Representatives in 2014, the Senate in 2022, is currently chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, and is a candidate for Governor in 2026. Prior to service in the State Legislature, Matt served on the Anchorage Assembly beginning in 2007 and served as the Acting Mayor of Anchorage in 2009. An attorney for over 37 years, Matt owned a small law business, taught law classes at the University of Alaska Anchorage, and served on the Board of Governors of the Alaska Bar Association and as President of the Board in 2007-08. Matt and his wife, Lisa Rieger, raised their two children, Maia and Ben, in Anchorage, where they both graduated from West Anchorage High School. Along with his public service and work as an attorney, Matt is a licensed Emergency Medical Technician (EMT) and accomplished commercial river guide in the Grand Canyon. And in the 1990s, Matt served several years on the Board of the Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, including one year as our president.

In this election year, the Forum is providing an opportunity for numerous candidates for various statewide offices and advocates for ballot propositions to speak with us. This is a continuation of our year-round mission to help attendees become better informed about the people and issues that will affect the future of our community and our state. AUUF does not support or oppose any candidates for public office or ballot measures.

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Tom Begich is a candidate for Governor of Alaska in the 2026 election. Tom served in the Alaska State Senate from 2017 to 2023 and was the Senate Minority Leader from 2019 to 2023. In the past, he served as a staff assistant to two Majority Leaders in the Alaska State House and Chief of Staff to the Caucus Chair in the State Senate. He has served on numerous boards and commissions in Anchorage and Alaska since 1983. Through his firm CW Communications, Tom has engaged for three decades in strategic planning, community development, facilitation, communications, and training in Alaska and throughout the country in the areas of juvenile justice, restorative and community justice, education, government relations, and media relations. Begich is also a professional musician, writer, and poet.

My Focus For Alaska - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/b124joqyy32oxzgf273ic/MyFocusForAlaska.pdf?rlkey=mnojosise0m3z6rcqrm1bq8v0&dl=0

In this election year, the Forum is providing an opportunity for numerous candidates for various statewide offices and advocates for ballot propositions to speak with us. This is a continuation of our year-round mission to help attendees to become better informed about the people and issues that will affect the future of our community and our state. AUUF does not support or oppose any candidates for public office or ballot measures.

Send us Fan Mail

Wesley James Furlong is a Senior Staff Attorney at the Native American Rights Fund. Wess practice primarily focuses on protecting Indigenous cultural resources and traditional cultural places and landscapes. Much of this work involves representing Tribal Nations, Tribal consortia and organizations, and Native Hawaiian organizations in large-scale and highly controversial natural resource development and infrastructure projects throughout Alaska, the Lower 48, and Hawai'i. Wes's practice also includes defending Tribal sovereignty, treaty rights, repatriation, environmental and natural resources law, voting rights and redistricting, and subsistence rights. Wes grew up outside Seattle, Washington, and lives in Anchorage with his wife Carrie and their dog Skadi.

Slides - https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/hrnitfn9xv1lpqocr5qhe/AUUF-Presentation_Furlong.pdf?rlkey=riu56d81lnibyxk9fe0vqzpq3&dl=0

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Willie Hensley is an Alaska statesman and Native Elder. He was instrumental in the creation of the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, which became law in 1971. He is a co-founder and currently serves as Chair of the First Alaskans Institute. Willie served as Distinguished Visiting Professor in the Department of Business and Public Policy at UAA. He also helped found, and headed, both the Alaska Federation of Natives, and the Northwest Alaskan Natives Association (NANA), an ANCSA regional corporation encompassing his home community of Kotzebue. Willie received his high school diploma from a boarding school in Tennessee, attended the University of Alaska in Fairbanks, and graduated from George Washington University with a degree in Political Science. Months after he graduated, he was elected to the Alaska State House of Representatives, where he served from 1967 to 1970. He also served twice in the Alaska Senate. His book, Fifty Miles from Tomorrow: A Memoir of Alaska and the Real People, recounts his childhood growing up in rural Alaska and his journey as an Alaskan politician and native rights activist. Willie and his wife, Abbe, have six children and fourteen grandchildren.

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Anna Taylor is the Executive Director at the Alaska Institute for Justice. She started working with AIJ as a staff attorney in March 2014 at the Juneau office. In February of 2018, she moved to the Anchorage office. Since joining AIJ, Anna has helped clients get U visas, as victims of crime; T visas, as survivors of human trafficking; green cards, as survivors of domestic violence; and asylum, as survivors of persecution. She regularly does presentations on working with immigrant survivors of domestic violence and human trafficking. Anna graduated from the Washington College of Law at American University. She spent five months representing detained immigrants in Harlingen, Texas, at the South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project (ProBAR), then moved to Juneau to work for AIJ. She received her bachelor's degree from the University of Vermont, majoring in anthropology and history. She enjoys exploring the trails around Anchorage with her retired sled dog.

Slides -https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/6ndjvz0b3fasovu9jaqm6/UU_3.8.2026.pdf?rlkey=y2h6w1df4c0io5i3wsu3a9cjs&dl=0

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Jenn Bluntach is AUUF's Director of Religious Exploration. Jenn moved to Anchorage with her husband, Ryan, leaving behind their Minnesota roots, when she accepted the DRE position in the Fall of 2024. She has previous experience as an activity director and youth director at a progressive Presbyterian church in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. She loves continuing to learn about Unitarian Universalism as it seems to be the faith she was searching for her entire life that she didnt know existed. She has a passion for working with youth and creating a fun, safe, inclusive environment for all. Jenn and Ryan have a blended family of five wonderful childrenfour of whom are now adults, and two adorable grandchildren.