We may not think a whole lot about economics but it is a major key player in the world today.

One of the biggest key players in the economics section in Alaska is the Alaska Native Corporations. SouthCentral Alaska has four corporations and one that has a slight section in the region. Cook Inlet Region Inc, commonly known as CIRI, is a big contributor to the economics. Just after christmas in 2000, CIRI was able to give a typical shareholder with a hundred shares got a $50,000 from the corporation was was followed only a few months after by an additional $15,029 within only a few months. After totaling the two payouts to the anchorage regional corporations nearly 7,000 shareholders, CIRI paid out nearly $408 million.

CIRI obviously can not give out millions of dollars without making any money themselves. In order to be able to give out dividends like they did, CIRI has many projects under their name. Some of those include the Fire Island wind project which is using wind turbines that convert wind energy into electrical energy for the anchorage area. CIRI also owns the Tikahtnu Commons area which is a very quickly developing hub for the residence around. Besides the real estate business, CIRi also does a lot of work in the gas and oil industry. They do what is called underground coal gasification which basically turns coal into synthesis gas (syngas) without any mining needed as well as Cook Inlet oil and gas leasing.

Another big Corporation in the south central area is Doyon LTD. Similar to CIRI, Doyon has their part in the gas and oil industry. They provide pipeline construction, drilling operations, security, and even remote camp services. Chugach Alaska Corp is also a native

corporation in south central Alaska. Chugach Alaska Corp has their main headquarters established in Anchorage but has offices all around the United States and the world employing more than 5,400 employees worldwide. The last Native corporation that has area in the south central Alaska area is Ahtna Inc. Ahtna has helped with both the building and the security detail for pipelines.

Alaska is known for its precious minerals such as Coal, Copper, Silver, and Gold. It would not be uncommon to find any of these in anywhere you go in Alaska. In the southcentral region, you can find precious metals such as precious metals like gold and silver, Strategic minerals, and Polymetallic (industrial) minerals that were formed in sedimentary-volcanic environments. There are mines all over the area that mine these minerals out of the ground. Some of these mines include the Crow Creek mine who mine for gold are located south of anchorage in the Girdwood area. The Kennecott mine located in the Valdez-Cordova census area mines for Copper. Another mine in the area is the Indian Valley Mine who are located 20 miles south of Anchorage used to mine for gold. As you head north in the southcentral area, you will drive into the Matanuska-Susitna valley which is commonly known as the Mat-Su valley, you will begin to notice some farms popping up here and there. This is because in the Mat-Su valley has very rich and fertile farm land which makes it one of the only places in Alaska that has good fertile, nutrient rich farm land.

Subsistence living is not as important as it used to be in southcentral Alaska. Long before americans and modern day society came to Alaska, Native Alaskans used the land as their

hunting grounds. They hunted for meat such as moose, sheep, and caribou but also did a great deal of fishing. In 2010, the annual harvest of wild game animals was 180 in pounds per person. This totaled out to a usable weight of 1,318,594 pounds of wild game.

Along side hunting, the Kenai peninsula has a great deal of fishing. Fishing is a big industry Alaska with fisherman going for sport fishing, commercial fishing, or subsistence fishing. The sportfishing industry brings both a lot of people and a lot of money into the Alaska economy. People from all over the world spend thousands if not hundreds of thousands to come to Alaska and fish the famous fish packed oceans and rivers. It is along the Kenai Peninsula where most of the fishing action occurs. Every year there is what is called dip netting which is taken advantage of by Alaskans for sport fishing and and subsistence fishing. Where the mouth of the Kenai meets the ocean, drift and set netters will fishing for Red Salmon for the commercial side of fishing.

In the year of 2010, the census report for the Municipality of Anchorage totaled out to be 291,826 people which became a reported 105,123 households in the Municipality of Anchorage area. It has been estimated that the common household would bring in $72,813 whic is actually a dramatic increase since the estimated $55,546 per household in 2000. One of the most common occupation areas with the most employees in it was managment, business, science, and arts with over 55,550 employees.