Anchorage Unitarian Universalist Fellowship Forum Podcasts
The Speaker's Forum is held each Sunday morning from 9:00 a.m. to 10:15 a.m. Forum topics often address and spur dialogue about a current local community, statewide, national or international issue. Some forums feature a local author and the topic of the author's new book, or a representative of a local non-governmental organization (NGO) describing the organization’s work, programs, and accomplishments.
Episodes
695 episodes
Alaska Gubernatorial Candidates - Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins and Lesil McGuire
Lesil McGuire is a policy strategist and business development executive. She served in the Alaska House of Representatives from 2001 to 2006, and then in the Alaska Senate from 2007 through 2016. In the Legislature, she led bipartisan ef...
Holding Police Accountable? Shaping a New Anchorage Public Safety Commission - Felix Rivera, Anna Brawley, & Erin Jackson-Hill
Felix Rivera recently left the Anchorage Assembly after serving three consecutive three-year terms, the maximum allowed by the City Charter. During his time on the Assembly, Felix chaired the Assembly and several of its committees, and w...
Alaska Literacy Program Challenges Facing New Alaskans Seeking Education and Workforce Opportunities - Marisol Vargas and Amy Facklam
Marisol Vargas is the Co-Executive Director of Operations at Alaska Literacy Program, with 16 years of experience supporting English language learners in overcoming barriers and achieving their goals. Originally from Mexico City, she earned a d...
New Chance Ukraine Relief Project - Zori Opanasevych, Executive Director
Zori Opanasevych is the Executive Director of the New Chance United Relief Program in Anchorage and a Ukrainian community leader. She serves communities across Alaska, leading efforts to resettle and support nearly 2,000 Ukrainian refuge...
The SAVE Act, Trumps Executive Order, and Threats to Alaska Voting - Barbara Jones, Attorney and Former Municipal Clerk
Barbara Jones served as Anchorages Municipal Clerk from 2012 to 2023 and was responsible, among her many duties, for conducting fair elections. After retiring as Clerk, Jones served as Deputy Chief of Staff to Mayor Suzanne...
Alaska Gubernatorial Candidates - Gregg Brelsford, Meda Dewitt, James Parkin
Gregg Brelsford grew up in Denver. After visiting his parents in Anchorage on a college break the year before, Gregg drove the Alaska Highway in 1972 with his brother Jim to begin a life in Alaska. He earned his B.A. and a Master's in Public Ad...
A Celebration of National Poetry Month - various speakers
John McKay, our beloved Forum facilitator (and a poet in his own right), had the idea of celebrating Poetry Month by having members of the fellowship read inspiring poetry selections, rather than inviting a handful of poets to present their ...
Cyrano's Legacy & The Power of The Arts to Entertain, Enrich, and Transform - Cyranos Theatre Co-founder Sandy Harper
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 C...
The Plastics Crisis in Alaska and the Circumpolar Arctic: Toxic Threats to Health, Human Rights, and Indigenous Lands From the Petrochemical Industry - Pam Miller, Exec. Dir., Alaska Community Action Against Toxins
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, educa...
Candidate for Governor of Alaska - Matt Claman
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 Representa...
Candidate for Governor of Alaska - Tom Begich
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 Major...
Contemporary Issues Facing Alaska Native Tribes - Wes Furlong, Senior Staff Attorney, Native American Rights Fund
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 re...
The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act - From the Beginning to the Present - Willie Iggiagruk Hensley, Alaska Statesman and Native Elder
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 Alaskan...
How Alaska Institute for Justice Serves Legal Needs of Alaskas Immigrants - Anna Taylor, Executive Director, AIJ
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, An...
AUUF R.E. Programs for Youth"OWL (Our Whole Lives) Sex Ed for Teens, & More - Jenn Bluntach, AUUFs Director of Religious Exploration
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 ac...
Candidate for Alaska’s U.S. House Seat - Bill Hill
Bill Hill is a lifelong Alaskan. The son of two teachers, Bill spent nearly 25 years as a teacher, principal, and superintendent. In 2023, he was named Alaska Superintendent of the Year. A Dena’ina Athabascan, Bill grew up in a small...
Data for Indigenous Justice: Addressing Missing & Murdered Indigenous Persons in Alaska - Charlene Aqpik Apok, Exec. Dir., Data for Indigenous Justice
Charlene has served in many spaces as an advocate for Indigenous Womxn, Indigenous Sovereignty, climate justice, and Indigenous rights to health and wellbeing. Charlene is a lifelong learner in both her cultural traditions and decolonizi...
Know Your Rights With I.C.E. - Immigration Attorney Asa Hohman
Asa Hohman earned his law degree and an M.B.A. from the University of Montana and an LL.M. from the University of Washington. Shortly after his admission to the bar, Asa began focusing his practice on immigration and small-business forma...
Community Update 2026 - Anchorage Mayor Suzanne LaFrance
Mayor Suzanne LaFrance grew up in Palmer, Alaska, and is a proud graduate of Alaska’s public schools. She lives in South Anchorage with her husband Dave Hemstreet, their three kids, and their puppy. Mayor LaFrance served two terms ...
Subsistence: Its Importance to the Native Sense of Community, Spirituality and Nutrition - Joaqlin Estus, Native Journalist
From 1991-2024, Tlingit Joaqlin Estus spent her career primarily as a reporter for public radio and television, and for the national online news platform ICT (formerly Indian Country Today). She has a degree in history from UAA and first worked...
Schools, Taxes, Energy, PFDs, and More—What’s Ahead for the 34th Legislature? - Senator Bill Wielechowski
Senator Bill Wielechowski has been representing East Anchorage in the State Legislature since 2007. He has served as the President and Executive Board member of the East Anchorage Northeast Community Council, the Anchorage Planning and Z...
The Story Behind the Score: Reclaiming What Matters in Public Education - Caroline Storm, Executive Director, Coalition for Education Equity
Caroline Storm was born in Canada to immigrant parents, one from South Africa and one from Czechoslovakia. Education and learning were central to her home environment, and she was pushed to pursue a professional degree. Educated and lice...
Breathwork for Daily Life: Release, Recharge, Reclaim - Dr. Robert Alexander
Dr. Robert Alexander is the CEO and Co-Founder of AuraLab, whose Breathscape app supports deep meditative states by transforming breath into music through biofeedback. Before launching AuraLab, he worked as a NASA fellow at the Godd...
Freeing Wrongly Convicted Alaskans and Preventing Future Injustice - Jory Knott, Executive Director, Alaska Innocence Project
Jory Knott is the Executive Director of the Alaska Innocence Project. A lifelong Alaskan, he earned an interdisciplinary degree in art and music at UAA, then moved to Oregon, where he composed music, wrote grants for creative projects, and appr...
TSDO or not TSDO? That is Not the Question Housing and Zoning in Anchorage - John Weddleton & Erin Baldwin Day
John Weddleton moved to Anchorage in 1987 after a life of traveling across the country and world, including several years in Istanbul, Lugano, and five years as a dry cabin dweller in Fairbanks. John started his work career as an economi...
