opened sections of the forest to dangerous logging procedures. This is notable because the Tongass draws a significant amount of excess carbon from the atmosphere, meaning that destruction to the forest could contribute to the current climate crisis. The Alaskan Conservation Foundation has provided funding to numerous organizations and individuals that are advocating for the conservation of the Tongass. Another large focus of the ACF's is the preservation of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, a region of land that's home to a multitude of wildlife. In 2017, after being protected since 1960, Congress and then-U.S. president Donald Trump opened the Arctic Refuge to drilling for oil and gas. This process taking place causes a lot of concern for environmental activists due to the effect it can have on the land and its wildlife with heavy machinery, housing, and more. The Alaskan Conservation Foundation has expressed concerns towards the amount of research and intent that is going into this process. As they have done in similar situations, the ACF has provided funding towards organizations that are hoping to prevent these actions from taking place. Organization ACF is a non-profit organization with approximately 13 full-time employees located in Alaska. It is governed by a national, 18-member volunteer board of directors. Nancy Lord, Alaska's poet laureate from 2008 to 2010, was elected to serve as board chair in 2010. The board of trustees includes Jimmy Carter and Doug McConnell. History ACF was founded the same year the United States Congress passed the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. Co-founders Celia Hunter and Denny Wilcher were veterans of that campaign to protect more than of Alaska's parks, refuges and national forests. In 1979 a group of environmental directors, led by Paul Lowe from Alaska, Bob Allen of Kendall Foundation in Boston, Dick Cooley, a professor at UC Santa Cruz, and Denny Wilcher of the Sierra Club Staff in San Francisco, met outside of Fairbanks, Alaska to discuss the early developments of a foundation that would assist in funding Alaskan conservation efforts. The prospective foundation would receive funding from other organizations across the United States through donations and grants. The funds earned would then be disbursed to organizations in Alaska that needed assistance. Typically, the money went towards an organizations operating expenses such as rent, utilities, payroll, etc... Developments of this project took place quickly. Those who were involved early in the process were appointed