At the Alaska Mariculture Cluster (AMC) Governance Body meeting in January 2026, Alaska Sea Grant at the University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) presented on their recent contributions to AMC’s Workforce Development efforts. Their work has been instrumental in training Alaska seaweed and shellfish farmers, processors, and nursery/hatchery technicians through workshops, knowledge exchange programming, publications, and other educational activities.

UAF and Alaska Sea Grant’s approach to workforce development is highly targeted towards industry professionals, going beyond the typical university system that aims to introduce a younger student body to the industry. Their efforts also target the full range of the mariculture value chain from seed production at hatcheries to farming, processing, and business development. With support from AMC, UAF and Alaska Sea Grant are building Alaska’s much-needed mariculture workforce and encouraging cross-sector collaboration and innovation to accelerate industry growth.

As outlined in the slides below, 2025 was a productive year for the AMC partner:

These activities are funded through a subaward under the AMC Workforce Development component project. The funding (totaling $5.9 million) goes to UAF faculty members and staff based in Kodiak, Juneau, and Fairbanks and supports workshop and training costs, student internships, and purchases of mariculture equipment and supplies, among other items.

In addition to its workforce development subaward, UAF professors have applied to various AMC Request for Proposals (RFPs) and been awarded eight AMC projects, such as researching new methods for farming new mariculture species like dulse, abalone, and urchins. Read more information on these projects using the Airtable below, and find available interim and final reports on each project’s page.

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.