NSF backs UAF-led critical minerals coalition with $15 million

The National Science Foundation has named a University of Alaska Fairbanks-led coalition one of 12 new Regional Innovation Engines, with $15 million for the first two years and up to $160 million over a decade if Congress keeps appropriating and the project hits its milestones.

The target is the supply chain: minerals that defense and technology manufacturers now buy from abroad. Alaska has occurrences of 56 of the 60 minerals the U.S. Geological Survey calls essential to the economy and national security.

Lee Ann Munk of the UAF Geophysical Institute leads the effort. The technical work spans AI-driven exploration, reprocessing of old mine tailings, and bioleaching — using microbes to pull metals out of ore — brought by the startup Endolith. Other partners include NANA Regional Corporation and Alaska Silver. A workforce component aims to train Alaskans in remote communities near the deposits.

The Alaska Center and Native Movement have argued that accelerating critical minerals development risks weakening tribal consultation and environmental review, whatever the extraction technology. NANA, a coalition partner, has backed development that delivers jobs for shareholders while protecting subsistence resources and the environment.