• Skagway Brewing Company produces 250 pounds of fresh lettuce each week using an indoor aeroponic system to bypass vulnerable supply chains.
• The sustainable closed-loop farm uses captured carbon dioxide from the beer fermentation process to boost crop yields by an estimated 20 percent.
• During the winter, the brewery donates surplus greens or sells them at cost to local schools, a senior center, and the town market.

Securing fresh food in a remote community

In the isolated town of Skagway, Alaska, access to fresh produce has historically been a significant challenge. Home to about 1,000 year-round residents and inundated by over 1.3 million summer cruise ship passengers, the community relies heavily on a barge system to bring food up from the lower states. To solve this local problem, the Skagway Brewing Company built an indoor aeroponics farm on the top floor of its facility, producing 250 pounds of artisanal lettuce each week.

The closed-loop aeroponic system, affectionately named the Raven’s Nest, uses nutrient-rich mist sprayed directly onto plant roots without the use of soil or pesticides. Owner Mike Healy launched the initiative to establish a steady, fresh food source for the town, while striving to create “the most sustainable brewpub on the planet.”

An innovative approach to sustainable agriculture

Operating a farm inside a brewery offers unique synergistic benefits. The facility captures carbon dioxide from the beer fermentation process and pipes it directly into the third-floor garden to accelerate plant growth. Healy estimates this carbon capture strategy will increase the overall harvest by more than 20 percent this year. Furthermore, the heat generated by the LED grow lights warms the staff offices during the freezing Alaskan winters, and yeast byproducts are composted for local town gardens.

While purchasing the equipment came with challenges, including the original vendor going out of business, the local team successfully rebuilt and optimized the system through trial and error. Farm manager John Michael Mead emphasizes that a hands-on approach remains vital. “A lot of times, these systems rely too much on automation,” Mead explained, highlighting the need for careful observation. “It’s important to have human contact. You have to be able to walk your system, understand what’s going on, and know if your plants are healthy.”

Feeding the community year-round

The Raven’s Nest cultivates sweet crisp, butter crisp, red oak, a romaine-sweet crisp hybrid, and fresh basil. While the busy summer season consumes most of the harvest, the winter months generate a surplus. The brewery donates or sells this excess produce at cost to local schools, the senior center, and the town market. Bypassing the traditional agricultural supply chain also has major environmental benefits.

“In the long term, when you think about greens being grown in the desert in Arizona, then driven all the way to Seattle and then shipped up to Alaska on a boat — that’s a lot of diesel, a lot more fuel, and a much bigger sustainability impact,” Mead noted.

Despite the high costs of electricity and maintenance, the project serves as a successful model for remote indoor agriculture. “In places that have a lot of sun and easy access to roads and freeways, it doesn’t make a lot of sense,” Mead said about the complex aeroponic setup. “But in Alaska, it’s dumb not to. The costs of not having what we need are too high.”

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Following the removal of four dams along the Klamath River, which winds through northern California and southern Oregon, an impressive 20,000 chinook salmon have migrated upstream in just two years. The successful return of the fall-run salmon marks a significant milestone in regional river restoration efforts.

Researchers monitoring the recovery are deeply encouraged by the swift ecological rebound. “The biological response has been much faster than I, and most of us, expected,” noted Damon Goodman, the study’s lead author. While challenges regarding water allotments and two remaining dams persist, the thriving fish population stands as a clear indicator of environmental progress.

Expanding healthcare inclusion in Nigeria

In another uplifting development, reproductive health services in Edo state, Nigeria, are actively involving men in family planning. Moving beyond traditional clinic settings, new initiatives aim to make the process more inclusive by “engaging men in places where they live, work and exercise influence within their communities.”

Historically, these clinics were primarily considered spaces for women, but the new educational outreach recognizes the importance of fatherly involvement. By bringing the conversation to community hubs, the programs help build essential support from men, which is known to significantly impact positive health outcomes.

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