Directors

Jeff Libby
Photo of Jeff Libby
Director, Applied Environmental Research Center; Executive Director, Arctic Domain Awareness Center; and Director, Center for Strategic Partnerships and Research
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone: (907) 786-0432
Email: jllibby@alaska.edu
Jeff Libby serves as the Executive Director for the Arctic Domain Awareness Center. He also serves as the Director for the Center of Strategic Partnerships and Research (CSPR) and the Director for the Applied Environmental Research Center (AERC). The AERC operates on a Cooperative Agreement with the United States Army Corps of Engineers and Department of Defense with an additional Cooperative Agreement through the national Park Service. Jeff previously served as an Associate Dean for the University of Alaska Anchorage, Community and Technical College. He holds an MBA and an M.S. in Project Management as well as an International Master of Business Administration. Jeff also has a Bachelor of Science in Natural Sciences with a concentration in Environmental studies and a diploma in Expertise in Coaching and Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). Mr. Libby is passionate about the Arctic, environmental impacts and climate change. He has been instrumental with student engagement opportunities and is known for developing the first federally recognized and approved research technician apprenticeship program authorized by the U.S. Department of Labor.
Leanne Lusk
Photo of Leanne Lusk
Director of Federal Research Projects
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: lmlusk@alaska.edu
Leanne Lusk, CAPT, USCG (Ret) serves as the Director of Federal Research Projects in UAA’s Office of Research. In this role, Lusk assists both the Arctic Domain Awareness Center (ADAC) and the AERC by enhancing the efforts and reputation of both research centers. Lusk joined the university after completing more than two decades of military service in the US Coast Guard. That experience allows her to support the work of AERC by building new partnerships, launching new projects and initiatives, and utilizing her Arctic and Alaska expertise and involvement with the Department of Homeland Security. She joined UAA and the AERC team in November 2023. Ms. Lusk holds a Master's in Business Administration and a Bachelor's of Science in Government with a concentration on International Relations. 
Heather Paulsen
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Director of Business Development and Grants and Contracts
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone: (907) 786-1663
Email: hpaulsen@alaska.edu
Heather Paulsen serves as the Director for Research Operations at the University of Alaska Anchorage. She is also the Finance Director of the Arctic Domain Awareness Center. Ms. Paulsen also serves both ADAC and the Applied Environmental Research Center (AERC) as the Authorized Official Representative since August 2014, following a 10 plus year career in Higher Education in Finance.  Ms. Paulsen provides oversight of federal task orders and management of Department of Defense and Department (DoD) and Department of Homeland Security (DHS) contracts. She previously served as the Director of Business Development and Grants and Contracts for the UAA Business Enterprise Institute and the Director of Finance for the UAA, Business Innovation Zone (a 501c3 affiliate of the University). Her responsibilities included: operational and financial management of the first 501c3 affiliate education and economic non-profit approved by the University of Alaska System Board of Regents from startup, the DHS CoE ADAC financial management, and the financial and operational management of the Business Enterprise Institute. She has a proven track record and experience of leading financial strategies to facilitate ambitious growth plans from the financial day to day operational aspects from oversight and delivery of annual budgets, to expenditure tracking, operating budgets, and long range financial planning, investing, and forecasting all while ensuring appropriate federal, state, and local compliance and arm’s length controls between the organizations to safeguard stakeholders. Ms. Paulsen holds a Master's in Project Management, Master’s in Business Administration in Technology Management and a Bachelor’s of Science in Applied Mathematics.

Project Managers

Cameron Wilson
Photo of Cameron Wilson
AERC Project Manager
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone: (907) 786-0321
Email: cwilson17@alaska.edu

Cameron Wilson joined the Applied Environmental Research Team at the University of Alaska Anchorage (UAA) in spring of 2020. He recently completed his M.S. in Civil Engineering at UAA with a project titled Per Capita Water and Fixture Use in Rural Alaska. The project involved collecting data on water use ranging from per capita consumption based on community water production to measuring how much water is used at each individual fixture within the home at any given time. He designed, built, and programmed custom sensors to accomplish the task and then deployed them in several villages. He is now involved in a variety of projects including coastal GPS surveying and modeling, pacific salmon studies, forestry, and the identification/eradication of invasive plant species. Originally from North Carolina, he grew up in the earthmoving business and has experience operating heavy equipment and project implementation. He earned his B.S. in Biological Engineering from NC State focusing on bioprocessing and alternative fuels, then immediately after graduating and completing his research, he drove to Alaska seeking opportunity. After only a few short months, a field engineering position led to five years in the west Texas oil fields before he was finally able to come back to Alaska to continue his education and a career in research.

Joe Cook
Photo of Joe Cook
AERC Project Manager
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email:  jcook73@alaska.edu

Joseph Cook, CMSgt USAF (Ret) serves as a Project Manager and works with multiple facets of the Applied Environmental Research Center to include contractual, fiscal operations, and compliance with federal, state, and agency specific regulations. Cook has more than 20 years of management and leadership experience with a proven record for leading dynamic and diverse teams through multifaceted projects towards organizational success.  After completing a career in the United Air Force, Cook recently transitioned, joining the University of Alaska Anchorage team in 2023.  He holds a Master’s in Management with a concentration in Organizational Leadership. He completed his undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice. 

Cat Warden
Photo of Cat Warden
AERC Project Manager
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: cawarden@alaska.edu
Vanessa Allen
Photo of Vanessa Allen
AERC Project Manager
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: vlallen@alaska.edu

Vanessa Allen serves as the Education and Workforce Manager for UAA’s Applied Environmental Research Center (AERC). In this newly created position Vanessa manages the Registered Apprenticeship programs and assists with Workforce Development initiatives for the Arctic Domain Awareness Center (ADAC). Vanessa was a former educator for 21 years with the Anchorage School District and transitioned to Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium (ANTHC) working in clinical education before joining UAA. As an alumna, she holds a Master’s of Science Degree in Career and Technical Education, e-Learning Graduate Certificate and Bachelor’s of Arts Degree in Sociology. She joined the University of Alaska Anchorage family and the AERC team in August 2023.

Research Technicians

Caitlin Kollander
Photo of Caitlin Kollander
Senior Research and Grant Technician
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: cakollander@alaska.edu

Caitlin Kollander was born and raised in Anchorage Alaska. She began work as a participant with the Applied Environmental Research Center (AERC) in 2019 surveying Tricolored Blackbirds in California and performing bat surveys on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson. She continued to participate on a variety of AERC projects while she completed her B.S., majoring in Biological Sciences and Natural Sciences with a minor in Environmental Studies, and then her M.S. in Biological Sciences at UAA. Her master’s thesis, titled The Virus Ecology of Myotis lucifugus in Southcentral Alaska, explored how bat ecology influences the Alaskan bat virome and likelihood of novel virus emergence from subarctic bats. She joined the AERC team as a research technician in 2023 and now primarily studies bat ecology in addition to assisting with salmon, forestry, and invasive plant management projects. While Caitlin specializes in bat ecology, she has research experience in a variety of other fields including song- and shorebird, marine mammal, fish, and small and large mammal ecology.

Alta Franklin
Photo of Alta Franklin
Research Technician
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: akfranklin2@alaska.edu

Alta Franklin joined the UAA Applied Environmental Research Center (AERC) in January 2022 after completing a Forestry and Wildlife Research Technician position on JBER. Alta graduated from University of Alaska Fairbanks during the spring of 2020 with a B.S. in Fisheries and Ocean Sciences with a concentration in Ocean Science, and a minor in Marine Science. She is an avid scuba diver, with certifications in Nitrox, Rescue, Cold Water and Dry Suit diving, and has experience with AAUS and technical diving. Specialized cold water diving played an integral part of her undergraduate research project in the Chemical Oceanography Department at UAF. At the AERC, Alta continues to provide expertise in urban forestry, forest resources, and moose browse habitat enhancement, as well as leading fisheries projects in monitoring the migrations of Pacific salmon.

 

Samuel Franklin
Photo of Samuel Franklin
Research Technician III
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: sfranklin2@alaska.edu

Samuel Franklin graduated from the University of Alaska in spring 2021 with a B.S. in Natural Sciences, concentrations in biological and geological sciences, and a minor in public health. He joined the Applied Environmental Research Center in summer of 2020 as a participant before moving into a research technician position a month later. In 2016, he worked as a research technician for UAA maintaining experimental sites and collecting data for various climate change studies at Thule Airbase in northwestern Greenland. In his current role at AERC, he serves as the team lead for pacific salmon monitoring, and assists in forest resource management, urban forestry, moose browse habitat enhancement, coastal surveying, and invasive species management on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson to fulfill goals within the Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan.

Samantha Golden
Photo of Samantha Golden
Research Technician
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: sgolden4@alaska.edu

Sam Golden was raised in southern California, spending every summer camping and hiking in the Channel Islands National Park and Mammoth Mountain. There, she discovered her passion for being outdoors and searching for animals. She attended Humboldt State University in Northern California, and obtained a bachelor’s degree in Wildlife Biology with an emphasis in Vertebrate Conservation in 2021. As an undergraduate, she worked on survey projects involving songbirds, waterfowl, invertebrates, and invasive species removal. She came to Alaska in May 2022 to be a field participant with AERC and was hired as an apprentice field technician for the 2023 season. Sam will be assisting with salmon surveys, invasive species management, moose browse enhancement, and urban forestry.

 

Jacob Hart
Photo of Jacob Hart
Research Technician IV
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: jahart5@alaska.edu

Jacob Hart joined the Applied Environmental Research Center (AERC) in April of 2022 as the lead forester. Growing up in Wisconsin, Jacob realized his passion for nature through spending much of his free time outdoors and cutting countless cords of firewood. Jacob served in the United State Marine Corps Reserves, and in the spring of 2020, graduated from the University of Missouri - Columbia with a B.S. in Forestry also earning a GIS certificate. Following graduation, Jacob worked for the Missouri Department of Conservation in multiple roles and regions gaining experience as a wildlife technician and forester. In his current role at AERC, he primarily works on the forest resources and moose browse enhancement projects conducted on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson.

Kori Orion
Photo of Kori Orion
Research Technician
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: ksorion@alaska.edu

Kori Orion joined the Applied Environmental Research Center (AERC) in the spring of 2022. She is currently pursuing a M.S. degree in Biological Science at UAA studying the seasonal movement of bats in Alaska. Kori’s primary methodology utilizes stable isotope analysis to assign geographic origin to samples by quantifying the ratios of deuterium and oxygen incorporated into bat tissue through local drinking water. Raised on a small cattle ranch in southeast Idaho, Kori earned her B.S. in Biological Science with a minor in Natural Resources. Working on a variety of studies throughout the northwest, her career in wildlife led to Alaska where she has lived since 2009. Kori has a robust background in executing environmental research and now serves to apply her experience towards the diverse AERC projects; specifically, assisting in pacific salmon population monitoring, forestry management, invasive species control, and bat acoustic research.

Blake Meador
Photo of Blake Meador
Research Technician
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: lbmeador@alaska.edu

After completing two seasons as a summer participant, Blake Meador joined the Applied Environmental Research Center as a research technician in 2023. Originally from Nashville, Blake has more than a decade of research experience in biology and archaeology and served for seven years in the Tennessee Air National Guard. He holds certifications in SCUBA and wildland firefighting, has a bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Middle Tennessee State University, a bachelor’s degree in biology from University of South Alabama, and is currently completing a master’s of biological sciences at UAA.

 

Communications

Jeffrey Kee
Photo of Jeffrey Kee
Research Communications Specialist and Media Professional
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: jakee@alaska.edu
Jeffrey Kee is a Communications Specialist for UAA’s Business Enterprise Institute, who contributes to serve the mission of the Applied Environmental Awareness Center and the Arctic Domain Awareness Center. Jeff has also worked in media production since 2013 and has been involved in almost every stage of production. He has a B.A. in Digital Media from Cedarville University in Cedarville, Ohio and prior to working at UAA, he gained considerable media experience as a media specialist at KYUR Channel 13, Coastal Television Broadcasting Company. This background has given him a wide range of skills to pull from in order to complete the various projects for AERC and other UAA media needs. His regular production tasks include creating multiple media and communication products, ranging from video, animation, web, print, product design, and much more.
Joey Besl
Photo of Joey Besl
Research Communications Specialist and Media Professional
1901 Bragaw Street
Phone:  
Email: jbesl@alaska.edu

Joey joined AERC in 2023. He previously worked in UAA's Advancement office as a writer and served as interim director of communication and marketing at Alaska Pacific University. He was selected for a climate journalism fellowship by the National Press Foundation in 2021 and an ocean science journalism fellowship from Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in 2022. He has a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from the College of Wooster and a master’s in water security from University of Saskatchewan.