Board

Benjamin Jackinsky

President, Ninilchik

Benjamin is a commercial fisherman and business owner who was born and raised in Ninilchik, Alaska.  He owns and operates two retail businesses in Kenai.  He is a member of various Ninilchik Native organizations.  He holds Bachelor of Fine Arts and Bachelor of Arts degrees. Benjamin is active in local cultural and environmental organizations.

Mako Haggerty

Vice President, Homer

Owner and operator of a successful local water taxi service, Mako moved to Alaska in 1982 to pursue a career in commercial fishing. Mako is a true progressive activist – he has worked tirelessly on a variety of commercial fishing, environmental and global trade issues. He served on the Kenai Peninsula Borough Assembly, and the KBBI  Board of Directors (local public radio station). And he currently serves on the Kachemak Bay Parks Citizen Advisory Board, and  the Prince William Sound Regional Citizens Advisory Council.

Mike O’Meara

Treasurer, Homer

Mike is a long-time Kachemak Bay area resident and activist. Before moving here he was a public school teacher in Hollywood California and Anchorage Alaska. Mike worked with Homer’s Pratt Museum for 19 years developing and administering science/environmental education exhibits and programs. Probably best known were the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill exhibit Darkened Waters and the museum’s remotely operated video camera projects for observing wild seabirds and brown bears. Mike is a founding member of Cook Inletkeeper, the Sierra Club’s Alaska Chapter, Kachemak Bay Conservation Society, Alaska Marine Conservation Council and supporter of many other environmental organizations. After retiring from the Pratt in 2008 he helped launch and guide the Homer Electric Association Members Forum, a ratepayers group promoting transition from fossil fuel to renewable energy technology. He has been the editorial cartoonist for the Homer News since 1980.

Nancy Wainwright

Secretary, Anchorage

Nancy is an attorney in private practice in Anchorage, Alaska.  She previously worked at the public interest law firm Trustees for Alaska, where she focused on constitutional and clean water challenges to large mining projects, and worked closely with Native, fishing and conservation clients to protect their rights. Nancy has been active on many environmental fronts in Alaska, securing landmark decisions on oil and gas, water rights and oil spill planning issues. She received a BA in political science from Scripps College in Claremont, CA, and a JD from Hastings College of Law, San Francisco.

Patrick Dougherty

Anchorage

Pat is an avid fly fisherman and a longtime journalist with a passion for protecting water quality and fish habitat around Cook Inlet.  He worked for the Anchorage Daily News for 34 years and served as the paper’s Executive Editor & Senior Vice President. He holds a Bachelors Degree in Journalism from Baylor University, and he was selected for a prestigious Nieman Fellowship at Harvard University. In addition to fishing and tying flies, Pat spends his spare time bird hunting, dog training, skiing and playing music.

Rob Ernst

Nikiski

A true “Alaskan entrepreneur” who fishes commercially, runs a growing coffee retail business, and teaches Anthropology at the Kenai Peninsula College of the University of Alaska, Rob received a B.S. from Amherst College and M.A. in Linguistics from the University of Washington.

Tom Evans

Nanwalek

Tom is an influential leader among his Sugpiaq people, a southern Alaska Indigenous tribe which occupies a 200-person village off the road system on the southern Kenai Peninsula. Tom sits on the Nanwalek IRA Council where he provides leadership and direction on the complex socioeconomic issues facing his people. Tom attended UCLA and remains active with the Port Graham/Nanwalek Watershed Council.

Willow King

Kasilof

Willow is a born and raised Alaskan, now raising her three young children with her husband in Kasilof. Willow grew up commercial fishing on the shores of Cook Inlet, and she’s also worked in the processing and sustainable seafood marketing sectors. She recently created a new eco-friendly abode made of recycled and reused materials, a personal contribution to protecting the watershed.

Peter Mjos

Anchorage

Peter is a medical doctor with over 40 years providing medical care for Alaskans. Peter has an extensive history of involvement in community and civic affairs, including work with the Nature Conservancy, Alaska Center for the Environment, Anchorage Citizen’s Coalition, Sierra Club, Tongass Conservation Society, Anchorage Junior Nordic League, as well as being a former member of the Glen Alps City Council and Anchorage Community Council. Peter received a B.A. from St. Olaf College (Cum Laude, Chemistry 1968) and M.D. from the University of Minnesota (1972).

Shannyn Moore

Tutka Bay

Born and raised in Homer, Alaska, Shannyn is a top rated progressive radio and television broadcaster based in Anchorage, Alaska. A dynamic media personality, she pioneered the progressive political talk forum for women in the 49th State. She has interviewed the state’s best-known politicians and authors, worked extensively with the Alaska Public Radio Network and appears regularly on MSNBC, The Canadian Broadcasting Company and other national media forums.