Eng Joins DNR as New State Forester for Alaska
Helge Eng joined the Department of Natural Resources as Director of the Division of Forestry and Alaska state forester, after a 21-year career at California’s forest management and wildlife firefighting agency.
At the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, Eng had been deputy director for forestry since 2015. He had previously spent two years as assistant deputy director for resource protection, nine years as state forests program manager, and three years as state forest biometrician for the department.
In Alaska, Eng directs a staff of about 264 employees charged with two major missions. The division’s Fire and Aviation program protects life, property and other values at risk from wildland fire on about 150 million acres of state, municipal and private lands, including federal lands by agreement. The program plays a critical role in emergency management activities, including Incident Management Teams essential to effective, prompt response to disasters of all types in Alaska and other western states.
He has served in a variety of membership and leadership roles in forestry, including registered professional forester and member of the Society of American Foresters, member of the California Licensed Foresters Association, chair of the Northern California Society of American Foresters, and state representative on the Society of American Foresters Policy Committee.
Eng earned a bachelor’s in forest resources management from the University of British Columbia. At Oregon State University, he earned master’s and doctoral degrees in forest management, as well as a master’s in statistics.
At the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, Eng had been deputy director for forestry since 2015. He had previously spent two years as assistant deputy director for resource protection, nine years as state forests program manager, and three years as state forest biometrician for the department.
In Alaska, Eng directs a staff of about 264 employees charged with two major missions. The division’s Fire and Aviation program protects life, property and other values at risk from wildland fire on about 150 million acres of state, municipal and private lands, including federal lands by agreement. The program plays a critical role in emergency management activities, including Incident Management Teams essential to effective, prompt response to disasters of all types in Alaska and other western states.
He has served in a variety of membership and leadership roles in forestry, including registered professional forester and member of the Society of American Foresters, member of the California Licensed Foresters Association, chair of the Northern California Society of American Foresters, and state representative on the Society of American Foresters Policy Committee.
Eng earned a bachelor’s in forest resources management from the University of British Columbia. At Oregon State University, he earned master’s and doctoral degrees in forest management, as well as a master’s in statistics.
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In This Issue
Alaska Native + Southcentral
December 2025
Alaska Native regional, village, and urban corporations operate in every industry all around the state, often in regions that don’t attract attention from other corporations. Our cover story for December 2025 is an excellent example, as it covers the investment Aleut is making in its region, Unangam Tanangin, or the Aleutian Islands, which stretch 1,000 miles into the Bering Sea and Pacific Ocean. The Alaska Native special section also visits Kodiak and the handful of corporations benefiting that region, and looks back over fifty years of ANCSA corporation history and how the corporations have built, maintained, and strengthened communications and relationships with their shareholders.
Also in this issue: building a company and planning an exit strategy; several ESOPs, and UAS’ foray into a new model for tuition. Enjoy!