Alaska

During Fiscal Year 2013, EDA invested $838,155 in 12 projects in the State of Alaska. EDA’s investments help Alaska communities achieve bottom-up, locally-defined economic development goals and strategies.

EDA offers a complementary, balanced portfolio of grant programs designed to help rural and urban communities grow their private sectors and create jobs.

Investment Spotlight: American Indian/Alaska Native Economic Development Planning

EDA was founded to advance economic self-determination of communities across the country.   EDA’s model is built upon bottom-up regional economic development—helping communities devise their own strategies for economic development based on their unique assets.   For nearly 50 years, EDA has partnered with Native American communities at every step along the way— from planning for their economic future, to making that future a reality.

EDA provides Partnership Planning grants to American Indian/Alaska Native groups to develop comprehensive economic development strategies (CEDS) that articulate and prioritize their economic goals.   Each year, EDA funds 52 American Indian/Alaska Native planning organizations who are leading these efforts across the country.

In 2013, EDA funded six American Indian/Alaska Native economic development planning organizations, investing a total of $370,000 in tribal planning efforts across the state.   These EDA-supported planning organizations are providing critical capacity and technical expertise to support communities and regions in their comprehensive, entrepreneurial, and innovation-based economic development efforts.   These plans focus on increasing private investment and higher-skill, higher-wage jobs in areas experiencing substantial and persistent economic distress.   These programs are designed to enhance the competitiveness of regions.