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completed. The state had another large influx of migrants during the oil boom of the 1980s when
prices were high, followed again by an outflow when prices fell. There was a smaller outflow from
military base closures during the 1990s. Alaska experienced a small inflow during the Great
Recession of the late 2000s.
Figure 6: Components of Population Change for Alaska, 1947-2012
Like other Arctic regions, there has been increased concentration of the population into the largest
urban settlements. In 1960, 36 percent of the population of Alaska lived in Anchorage. This share
has steadily increased to about 42 percent currently. Anchorage’s share has leveled off as there has
been increased population growth in the Matanuska-Susitina Valley, which is basically a suburb of
Anchorage. Combined with Fairbanks, 55 percent of Alaska’s population resides in these two
settlements. There has been a long-term trend of depopulation of rural areas in Alaska from a
combination of high energy prices, high living costs and large Permanent Fund dividend payouts
(annual payments to all residents of Alaska from oil tax revenues). The share of Alaskan Natives
who reside in the five most-populous boroughs increased sharply from 42 to 49 percent between
2000 and 2010 (Sandberg, 2013). This is not to say that Alaskan Natives are completely abandoning
subsistence lifestyles and villages for wage jobs in urban centers but with improvements in transport
and communications, there are certainly becoming more aware of opportunities elsewhere. Similar
to other Arctic regions, it is women who are moving out of the villages in large numbers, a trend
which continues (Hamilton L. C., 2010; Martin, 2009; Howe, Huskey, & Berman, 2014). According
to both survey and census data, young women in villages tend to view their future career paths
Heleniak