The Alaska Mariculture Alliance (AMA) is hosting a webinar with Ecotrust to update stakeholders and industry members on their ongoing evaluation of the Alaska Mariculture Cluster (AMC) grant program. The webinar, which will be on November 20, 2025, from 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm AKST, will feature AMA, SEC, and Ecotrust staff members.

Awarded $255,000 through a competitive request for proposals (RFP), Ecotrust is the AMC grant evaluator responsible for designing and implementing a framework to measure the effectiveness, equity, and long-term impact of the grant. Their work includes developing clear metrics and evaluation tools that assess outcomes across AMC’s grant component projects. Ecotrust is also leading a participatory evaluation process that gathers input directly from Alaska’s mariculture community, including Tribal leaders, rural residents, farmers, and industry partners. This engagement occurs through one-on-one interviews, focus groups, and surveys to ensure that local voices and lived experiences inform how the program’s success is measured.

Ecotrust collaborated with Southeast Conference to develop the AMC’s Theory of Change, a framework that visually maps how targeted investments are expected to lead to industry-wide outcomes such as increased capacity, collaboration, and equitable growth. This partnership helps the AMC adaptively manage its programs and demonstrate progress toward building a resilient and inclusive mariculture sector in Alaska.

This webinar is a valuable opportunity to hear directly from Ecotrust team members and better understand AMC’s progress, successes, and future directions. More information can be found on AMA’s website.

Background

Southeast Conference (SEC) is the federally designated Economic Development District (EDD) for Southeast Alaska, as well as the state designated Alaska Regional Development Organization. SEC’s mission is to undertake and support activities that promote strong economies, sustainable communities, and a healthy environment in Southeast Alaska.

In September 2022, Southeast Conference was awarded a $49 million U.S. Economic Development Administration (EDA) Build Back Better Regional Challenge (BBBRC) grant to catalyze a viable and sustainable mariculture industry in Alaska, supporting the production of shellfish and seaweed, for the long-term benefit of the state’s economy, environment, and communities.

SEC leads the Alaska Mariculture Cluster (AMC) grant coalition, which includes members of Alaska’s mariculture industry, tribal organizations, regulatory agencies, university system, regional EDDs, trade organizations, and others. A Governance Body, composed of AMC coalition leaders and Tribal executives from each of the project regions, guides the grant’s work and equity metrics.

The AMC has complementary grant components designed to break down barriers and develop Alaska’s mariculture industry.  The Overarching Narrative explains how the grant components work together to grow the industry in an equitable and responsible manner. The full project period for the AMC BBBRC project is October 1, 2022 to September 30th, 2026.