James Mackovjak is an independent scholar who lives in Gustavus, Alaska. He moved to Alaska in 1970, where he became involved in forest issues in the 1980's. During the late 1990's, he was a member of the governor's Southeast Alaska Timber Task Force. His local history, Hope & Hard Work: The Early Settlers at Gustavus, Alaska, was published in 1988. More recently, he wrote Navigating Troubled Waters: A History of Commercial Fishing in Glacier Bay, Alaska, for the National Park Service. Current projects include a history of maritime freight service to the Aleutian Islands area and an administrative history of Lake Clark National Park.