Sealaska Corporation: "a sleeping giant."(Interview)

• Author: Backman, Harald

ABM: Could you tell us about yourself, what you did before becoming CEO of Sealaska Corporation?

Loescher: I graduated from Ft. Lewis College at Durango, Colo. with a bachelor of arts degree in 1969. I was very worried that they were going to complete the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act without me, and I really wanted to be a part of that period of time. Just out of college I went to work for the Alaska Legal Services and was able to work in law and on legislation that affected low income people. I also did some research on different aspects of ANCSA that helped Native leaders negotiate a legislative settlement in the U.S. Congress.

I joined the Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska - the federally recognized tribal government for the Native people of southeastern Alaska - in their Office of Development Planning. At that time, the focus involved analyzing economic development and community infrastructure projects. The process brought about the Tlingit & Haida Regional Housing Authority and T&H Regional Electrical Authority - entities that have provided for elderly housing, water and sewer, roads, and other energy projects within the region. Later I became the first executive director of all these entities.

What I felt was most important during that period of my life was that we improved the quality of life for the people in the communities. It was expensive, it increased the cost of living to the people in these communities. But in the long run it set a new standard of living in all of our rural communities.

ABM: Could you tell us about your history at Sealaska?

Loescher: I have 19 years in Sealaska, primarily in the ANCSA land selection and natural resources side of the company. I came to Sealaska in 1978 as the lands manager, selecting some 330,000 acres within the Tongass National Forest. The lands are traditional lands: historic sites, timberlands, mineral rich lands, some strategic ports and harbors, and uplands with industrial potential.

Our land conveyances are now 95 percent complete, and we have accomplished a number of land exchanges with the U.S. Forest Service and with U.S. Congress that enhance the value of our overall land base.

Timber and land assets are the strength of Sealaska. They constitute an estimated billion dollars or so of unrecorded assets, and this underlying strength of our natural resource base makes Sealaska a sleeping giant in the business world.

ABM: What new business and management philosophies do you bring with your new position?

Loescher: In the past 30 years, I have worked with Alaska Legal Services, and the Tlingit & Haida tribal government, housing authority, and...