The Hickel and Egan Awards for Excellence in Public Policy Leadership 2026

That is still my favorite version of the Alaska flag song. Thank you, Moira, for setting that up last year. That was great. I am Ross Johnston, the executive director of Commonwealth North, and if you know me, you know that I am notorious about keeping my forum participants on a very strict time schedule. Tonight I have given myself 10 minutes.

Kai Binkley-Sims, can you start the clock? Thank you.

Before we begin, I want to acknowledge that we are gathered tonight on the traditional homelands of the Dena'ina people. I also want to acknowledge that every corner of Alaska was home to its first people long before there was a state or a map with Alaska's name on it. Their stewardship is the foundation the rest of Alaska is built on, and we are grateful for your continued stewardship of this great land. And that brings me to our first thank you, Old Harbor Native Corporation from the Lutuk Village of Old Harbor on Kodiak Island. You are our key sponsor tonight, and thank you for believing in this evening and the work coming off north of us all the way.

Thank you, Christina.

And I also want to thank all the notable guests that we have tonight, including Senator Lisa Murkowski and other elected officials. Thank you.

And a thank you to ConocoPhillips and GCI, our cornerstone members. Your study support is what lets Commonwealth North keep bringing Alaskans together across parties and across regions to work on the questions that matter most to the state. So thank you.

So back in September, I received an email from North Pole, Alaska. Saying that we held the best gubernatorial forum in the state. Yeah, and if you haven't guessed, that email was from Santa Claus. So two takeaways: if you didn't know, there is an Alaskan who legally changed his name to Santa Claus who lives in the North Pole. And number two, we made his nice list.

And I get emails like that all the time, from Utqiagvik to Homer, from legislators, community leaders, engaged Alaskans.

And every one of them is a reminder of who Commonwealth North works for. We work for Alaskans. So what is an Alaskan? Rough, rugged, industrious, above average, good looking. Yes, you're all of those things.

But my definition is a little bit more simple.

You want to be here. And there are people who arrived here 2 weeks ago who are more Alaskan than people who have lived here their whole lives. Because when you want to be here, You will invest your time and effort to make your home better. And if you don't want to be here, you'll complain and work on your exit plan. And that's not who we are here for.

We are here for those who want to make Alaska better. We're here for you.

Last year at this gala, I said publicly what a lot of people were saying privately. That we could give up the dividend to create a stable fiscal future. And I was told that by saying that, it would be like walking into an 8-year-old's birthday party and saying, "No cake." And do you know what happened? Absolutely nothing. The earth did not shatter, Facebook did not erupt, there were no effigies of me burning.

And that told me something. Alaskans are ready for change. And they're not only asking for it, they are begging for it. So let me say another truth out loud tonight. The people leaving Alaska are not the ones who don't want to be here.

The people leaving are the ones who want to stay.

Look around your table. 8 People. Chris Noss, don't point. This is also a fundraiser.

If your table looked like Alaska, 3 of you would not be able to cover the basics: food, healthcare, childcare, housing. Not the poor, working families. More than 1 in 3 Alaskan households. And this isn't about lack of opportunity. Almost 1 in 4 Alaskans live somewhere— or sorry, 1 in 4 people working in Alaska live somewhere else.

That is 2 people at your table of 8 holding an Alaska job and taking the paycheck to another state. And this isn't about lack of resources. 57 Of the 60 critical minerals are in Alaska. We have new oil coming online on the North Slope and enough natural gas on the North Slope to power the rest of the United States for the next 3 years. And this isn't about money.

We have the largest state sovereign wealth fund with the smallest— one of the smallest state populations.

So what does it mean? It means we are not preparing the Alaskans who are here for the opportunities that are here. And this is an us problem. And I don't mean us as Alaskans, I mean us in this room tonight. My 10-year-old goes to one of those well-praised charter schools, and she's in a class of 33.

When I was 10, my class had 27 students, a teacher, and a teacher's aide. That was one educator for 14 kids. My daughter has one teacher for 33. And I don't need a study to tell me that math is not mathing. That's not teaching, that's crowd control.

So why do my daughters deserve less than I did?

They don't. And neither do yours.

And I hear it all the time: "There are no good people to hire in Alaska." And whose fault is that? That's ours. That's like a bakery complaining, "There's no good bread in town." And we made excuses. We said that those families came from broken homes and weren't ready for the good jobs. But that hasn't worked for us.

So let me tell you a little secret. What is Alaska's number one resource? Is it the beauty? Is it the minerals? Costco?

It's us, the people. Those all sit as potential, but it is us who realize the potential. And if we want to build a better Alaska, we have to build better Alaskans. And this isn't just about education. This is about community, because nobody in this room got here alone.

Look at who we honor tonight. Every one of them was mentored. Every one of them was handed a connection, a chance, a seat at the table they had not earned yet. When they stood up with a vision, some people fought them, but the coalition that lifted them was stronger than the one that pushed them down. That is how this state has grown, not from the potential, from the people.

And Wally Hickel was not always well-liked. He made bold choices, and those choices did not always put him ahead. But they did put Alaska ahead. So who is our Wally Hickel of today?

Our leaders get accused of lacking vision, but I don't think that is true.

And there is definitely exceptions to that rule. I think most of them get scared because we tell them, "If you make waves, you won't get elected. Mess with the status quo, after you are elected and you get voted off the island. And we can keep blaming them for not making the big choices, because let's face it, it's easy to play devil's advocate. There's a whole social network dedicated to that called Facebook.

But what our leaders and legislators are short on are evangelists, advocates, connectors, someone who says, "I see you are trying, and I'm here to help." Our leaders get more strength from our encouragement than from our criticism.

Wali Hicko had people who lifted him. Every honoree tonight had people who lifted them. We need to lift the next generation of leaders. My kids will need people like you to lift them. So will yours.

And that is our job, to lift Alaskans. Not someday, not after a fiscal plan passes, now, us, in this room, because you chose to live here. You choose to love here. You choose to make our state a better place because you are Alaskans. Alaska will be exactly as great as the Alaskans we build.

So let's build the best damn Alaskans.

So join me with a warm round of applause as I welcome Maura Smith to introduce what the award means tonight and why we give them to folks who are not just our honorees, but our mentors, our leaders, our Alaskans. Thank you.

Good evening. It is such a joy and such a, just a source of honor to be with you tonight. I'm not going to take a lot of time, you guys. Let's get to the action. We have two awards that we give out, and this evening one of them is being given out to two people.

They're distinct from one another, and they've existed for some time. The first is in honor of Governor Egan, and it is the distinguished— excuse me, we'll do that the other way. The first is in honor of Governor Hickle And it is the Walter J. Hickel Award for Visionary Leadership. And to introduce our awardee this evening, I'd like to invite Gloria O'Neill up to the stage. Gloria O'Neill was our honoree last year.

She's the president and CEO of Cook Inlet Tribal Council and has been a relentless and persuasive voice on matters related to Alaska Native communities in Alaska and across country. So welcome, Gloria.

Good evening, everyone. Those entrees are coming out and the steak looks great.

So why am I standing up on this stage with my beautiful girlfriend Sophie Minnick? It's because when we thought about giving this award to Carl Mars, How many of you know how much of a big kahuna he is? Yeah! I mean, come on. So it takes two of us to do it.

But before we get into it, I want to acknowledge Carl's family. Thank you for being here with us tonight. And And thank you for sharing Carl with our community over these many decades. All right, where does Carl come from? Most of you know Carl grew up in Seldovia in a family of fishermen.

He fished and he served in the Marine Corps. Then as a young man, he walked into Seary And he took all that grit and that relentlessness and he transformed the Alaska Native community from the early years. To the rest of Alaska and the friends that are here to support Carl and celebrate him today, he is one of the most powerful business leaders this state has ever had. But if you ask anyone from Seldovia, what they'll tell you is that he is still called Baby Carl.

And who knows this better than most people in the room? Carl Mars has 9 lives. We know that, right? It's from that Grit. So I'm pretty sure, Carl, you've used all those lives.

And we know he doesn't do anything halfway. He lives to the max. He says exactly what he thinks, and you never have to wonder where you stand with him. But I— what I love about Carl is he's still giving back. He's still showing up.

Where most people would have been slowed down by now, but not Carl. 8 Years as a University of Alaska Regent, the Alaska Railroad Board, the Fiscal Policy Council, and Kwáanek Broadcasting, just some of the many organizations Carl has served. These days he chairs Alaskans for Common Sense and writes op-eds about the Permanent Fund. His advice to all Alaskans— now get ready for this, it's simple— use your common sense. That's retirement Carl style.

And we all know Carl is a diamond in the rough, don't we? Some days he's more rough than diamond. I came up with that, Carl.

And who knows better than this than my good friend Sophie Minnick, who worked alongside of Carl Mars for so many years when he led CIRI? Sophie.

Thank you, Gloria. And we're truly You know, talking about a diamond. Good evening, everyone. Tonight, it's my ultimate honor and privilege to join Gloria in recognizing a remarkable Alaska businessman, a visionary, a champion for Native communities. Carl's career has been defined by a steadfast commitment to serving Alaska Native shareholders and creating opportunities for future generations.

During his more than 3 decades at Seery, culminating in the role of president and CEO, he helped to transform the organization into one of Alaska's most respected Alaska Native corporations, delivering record shareholder dividends while advancing the social and economic well-being of its people. Carl demonstrated exceptional strategic vision through investments that transformed Seery's future. One of the most notable was Siri's investment in a little telecommunications partnership that became part of VoiceStream Wireless. Okay, you guys, today VoiceStream Wireless, after it was bought by Deutsche Telekom, is T-Mobile. Siri's investment increased dramatically during this time, creating extraordinary returns for the company and and its shareholders.

As a result of that transaction, CERI was able to make significant special distributions to its shareholders, the majority of which were tax-free. When the first special distribution happened, which was $50,000 and happened right towards the end of the year, New Year's, big news, CERI shareholders, $50,000, The car sales lots were flashing signs of, "Siri shareholders, you're welcome here." To Carl, that meant it was time to get down, get busy, and protect our shareholders, which is exactly what we did. Through his leadership, we made sure that those shareholders were protected financially, physically, and ready to receive the benefit that they were going to receive. Beyond those efforts, Carl led the effort to endow our Seri Foundation with $53 million for education and career aspirations of Seri shareholders, their descendants, and other Alaska Natives.

But that didn't— Carl didn't stop there. After his distinguished career at Seri, he brought his strategic mind and his dedication to Old Harbor Native Corporation. He served as their CEO from 2010 to 2024, and he guided that corporation through a period of tremendous growth on behalf of its shareholders and helped position it for its future success. Even following his retirement, just like Carl, he remained engaged as an advisor, a board participant, ensuring a thoughtful transition and continued support for the corporation. Into the future.

One of Carl's most significant contributions, though, extended far beyond the companies he ever led. While CEO of Old Harbor Native Corporation, he became the leading advocate for improvements to the Alaska Native Settlement Trust legislation. In testimony before the United States Senate, Carl championed reforms designed to make settlement trusts more effective tools for protecting Native assets, supporting shareholders' well-being, and ensuring that the benefits of ANCSA could be sustained for future generations. Today, because of Carl's tenacity, his grit, and his determination, Native corporations who have established settlement trusts and who are paying dividends to their shareholders are doing so on a tax-free basis.

Beyond the boardroom, Carl has been a tireless advocate for education, youth development, civic leadership, and Native self-determination. His service to numerous nonprofits, business, and educational organizations reflect a belief that leadership is ultimately about lifting others up. Gloria and I and countless others that are in this room have benefited from Carl's ability to see the big picture, to lead, to mentor, to provide opportunities and identify potential in his people and help them build and in turn create strong leaders throughout the organizations he has served. Carl, congratulations, and from the bottom of my heart, thank you for your exceptional leadership, your service, and your impact. Your legacy lives on in the organizations that you strengthened, the communities you have served, and the countless people that you inspired along the way, including myself.

Gloria has a few more words. I love you.

Not only was it inspiring people, but it created these friendships and fellowship that Sophie and I share.

So as Sophie talked about, Carl has an eye for people. And I'm one of those people. He knew how to pick people and help them grow. I've known Carl since the 1990s when I became— excuse me, since 1998 when I became the CEO of CITC. I was 28 years old.

I didn't know what I didn't know, you know? But Carl did. And I'll never forget that when I stepped into my role, Carl was laying in a surgery bed recovering from one of his many heart surgeries. Told you he had 9 lives. But that didn't stop him from sharing some of his wisdom.

First, he said, "Don't mess it up." But guess what? He didn't use the word mess. The word started with an F and ended with a K. You guys got it.

Yeah, I was waiting for the laugh. Then the part that stuck. When you turn the ship, turn it slowly. Know where you're going. And bring the people along.

And when the tough gets going, have courage and hold steady. That's Carl. A lot of wisdom and very few words. And I've kept that wisdom with me for the past 30 years. We all know Carl doesn't do subtle.

And in the late 1990s, The legislature kept blocking a constitutional amendment to protect subsistence for our people. So what did Carl do? Carl took photos of those 8 legislators. I mean, these were big photos. Blew them up and posted them in front of AFN's 4,000 people.

This is what Carl said. You heard Ross talking about this earlier. It's about Anchorage. He said, "Now you know who to vote against." And what he also said is, "It's not personal. Their position is bad for Alaska." What does this tell you about character?

Is Carl perfect? No. Is Carl messy? Absolutely. But Carl is one of the most brilliant transformative entrepreneurs Alaska has ever seen.

He has the gut instincts to spot an opportunity before anyone else in the room. Plenty of people can see the vision, but Carl has the grit and the constitution to get it done. And he has always been clear about what matters. People, his family, his friends, and the mission to improve the lives of Alaska and Alaskans. And he has never lost sight of that.

I want to thank Old Harbor for your love and care of Carl. And as Christina Woolston said it best, who leads Old Harbor today She said, Carl Mars is a visionary leader whose strength, determination, and unwavering commitment to our people helped transform our corporation and our community. And I appreciate the leadership of Old Harbor who is here today. Thank you. So before I bring Carl up, because I know he asked to get up and walk up here, he said, don't be a smartass, Gloria.

But as he starts to walk up, I just want to also congratulate Senator Lyman Hoffman and Senate President Gary Stevens on this year's Egan Award. Alaska is stronger for your many years of service, and it's an honor to celebrate you both tonight. Carl didn't want to be here. He thought I was a troublemaker. Girdwood, Alaska.

And I called him up. I'll have to tell you this story. I can't help myself. I called him up and I said, Carl. He asked, what the hell do you want?

But anytime he calls me, I haven't worked— you know, he hasn't worked in the region for 2 decades. Gloria answers the phone. And I said, Carl, I need you to show up in Anchorage, you know. He goes, what the hell for? And I told him about the award.

And he's like, You know, I don't care about recognition or fanfare. And I said, I know you don't. But Carl, we care about you and we want to show you how much we love you and what you've done for Alaska. Carl Mars.

Woo!

Well, I'd like to know who the hell she was talking about.

Thank you, Gloria. Thank you, Sophia.

That introduction was a mite over the top. It would be nice to take all of the credit for all the things that was done while I was at CERI and those things accomplished at Old Harbor. However, as you all know, It takes a supportive board and a great team— managers, staff, and mentors— to make this work.

And it's important to have mentors around you, and I, for one, have drawn upon many of them from time to time. I appreciate Commonwealth's North and what it does to encourage people to become mentors.

It's wonderful to be here tonight, and I appreciate the Commonwealth North bestowing on me the honor of receiving this distinguished award with Wally— the Wally Hickel Award. Now, I got to tell you, Wally and I didn't get along great. We had a few arguments, and he's probably spinning in his grave.

Anyway, allowing me to share the stage with two other distinguished gentlemen, Senator Lion Hoffman, Senator Gary Stevens.

They both have accomplished a lot for the state of Alaska and the many years that they've served. And I'm sure we've not seen the last of them, I hope. I'd also like to introduce my family, my brother Pat, who's here with me, my older brother Pat.

And, you know, I just found out today I've been losing weight. I finally got below his weight, so I feel good.

I'd also like to introduce my children, Emil and Crystal, who are sitting here.

And they've given me 6 grandchildren, and those grandchildren have given me 2 great-grandchildren. Hmm, must mean I'm getting old.

Er, and supposedly getting wiser. Well, school's still out on that one. I also want to recognize my partner, Cindy Callahan, who keeps me somewhat grounded, somewhat grounded, somewhat focused to a much greater degree than I can. I am an incredibly lucky guy. I've had some of the greatest mentors during my career, some of who have received this distinguished award.

Great people to follow the footsteps of, such as our good friend Senator Stevens, Congressman Don Young, Ed Rasmussen, Carl Brady, Morris Thompson, Jake Adams, and the list goes on, and many of you sitting here. I do have to tell a story about the shareholder trust language legislation. We sort of kept that under the radar quite a while working on it, but thanks to Senator Murkowski, who's here I believe somewhere. Where you at, Senator? Can you hear me?

Senator Sullivan and Congressman Don Young.

I wouldn't be receiving this award tonight if it weren't for great management and staff, and I've had the privilege of working with the best over the years, both at Cook Inlet Region for 30-plus years and at Old Harbor Native Corporation for at least 15 years or more.

I especially want to thank the Old Harbor Board of Directors that supported me through some pretty tough times and lenient times. And I'd also like to thank Dave Jarrett, who was my COO and is now the CEO of Old Harbor Investment LLC, for sticking with me through those tough times.

I have to acknowledge that having a great team made Old Harbor successful, made me look real good for an old fisherman from Seldovia and Kodiak. And thank you to the board of Commonwealth North Gloria O'Neill, for allowing me to share the stage with these two distinguished senators. And I want to thank all my board, staff, and management for being there with me over the years, and I accept this award on their behalf. Thank you.

So I somehow failed to note at the beginning that my name is Moira Smith. It's nice to meet you if I haven't before. And I got the honor of chairing this gala as a member of the Commonwealth North Board, working very closely with Ross Johnston. It's truly my honor and my joy to lift up these Alaskans. So let's turn to the next award, which, you know, listen, if you're going to give an award to Senator Hoffman, at the end of his long legislative career, and Gary Stevens is going to decide to retire the same year.

Between Rita and Lillian and Lyman and Gary, it's got to go together. So we're excited this year to honor two Egan awardees in the true spirit of Governor Egan, who was able to put politics aside and enact good policy for the state of Alaska. We are excited to welcome up to the stage John Binkley, who was last year's Hickel awardee, to introduce our two Egan awardees. Welcome, John.