Edward Itta | |
|---|---|
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| Member of theUnited States Arctic Research Commission | |
| In office 2012 – July 29, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Helvi Sandvik[1] |
| Mayor ofNorth Slope Borough, Alaska | |
| In office 2005 – November 15, 2011[2] | |
| Preceded by | George Ahmaogak Sr. |
| Succeeded by | Charlotte Brower |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Edward Saggan Itta (1945-07-05)July 5, 1945 |
| Died | November 6, 2016(2016-11-06) (aged 71) |
| Spouse | Elsie Hopson Itta |
| Relatives | Brenda Itta (sister) |
| Residence | Utqiagvik, Alaska |
Edward Saggan Itta (July 5, 1945 – November 6, 2016) was an AmericanIñupiaq politician, activist and whaling captain. Itta served as the mayor ofNorth Slope Borough, Alaska, the northernmostborough in the United States, for two consecutive terms from 2005 until 2011.[3]
Edward Saggan Itta was born inUtqiagvik (formerly named Barrow) in July 1945 to Noah and Mollie Itta.[3]He grew up in a family living a traditional subsistence life of fishing and hunting for seals, walrus and whales, at camps on the tundra and sea ice.
He attendedMount Edgecumbe High School a boarding school in farawaySitka and after graduating in 1964 trained as an electronics technician at a Cleveland school and in theU.S. Navy.[3]
Itta´s first job was inPrudhoe Bay as an oil fieldroustabout.[3]
In the 1980s, he was director of theNorth Slope Borough, Alaska's Public Works department, spearheading modernization of North Slope villages water and sewer services and other amenities.[3]
From 2005 until 2011 he was Mayor of North Slope Borough, for two consecutive terms. In November 2008, he was re-elected to a second term with more than 53% of the vote.[4] He crossed political lines to meet with all sides, but took on organizations he saw as overly supportive of industry like theArctic Slope Regional Corporation.[3]
On November 27, 2012, PresidentBarack Obama appointed Itta to the seven-memberUnited States Arctic Research Commission, afederal agency which functions as the government's Arctic policy and research commission.[1][5] He served on the Commission until the expiration of his term on July 29, 2015.[5]
Itta served as the President of theInuit Circumpolar Council of Alaska, President of the Barrow Whaling Captains Association, vice chairman of the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission, and a representative for Alaska on theOuter Continental Shelf Policy Committee.[3]
He was married to Elsie Hopson Itta, with whom he had two children. He died after battling cancer.[3] As of 2023 he is survived by his older sisterBrenda Itta (born November 13, 1943), anIñupiaq activist and former legislator in theAlaska House of Representatives
Media related toEdward Itta at Wikimedia Commons
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