Alaska is going numb with high fuel costs. In spring 2006, students of the University of Alaska Fairbanks traveled across the state to observe how residents were feeling the pinch and seeking solutions.

In Venetie, a small Gwich’in village of 400 people, diesel costs $4.75 a gallon. “Everything that the village council does, every little bit of money that comes in, it all has to be funneled into the fuel account,” says Lance Whitwell, coordinator for Venetie’s Tribal Energy Program.

In Point Hope, a traditional Inupiaq whaling village, the population has dropped from more than 900 people to around 800, largely because of the high fuel costs. “We want our next generation to hunt the whale,” says resident Alzred Steve Oomittuk. “We don’t want to lose this way of life because of oil.”

At Archie's Yukon Inn in Galena, the heating bills have jumped from $900 last year to $1,080. “I can't make ends meet,” says Marlene Marshall, the restaurant’s owner. “It's ridiculous.”

Across the state, Alaskans are seeking solutions. Solar. Wind. Coal. Even Nuclear. The list continues. But long-term answers are years to decades away. For now, though, they’re just surviving the cold rush.

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