George Pappas, originally from Denver, Colorado, began his career in 1994 as a Fisheries Biologist for the Division of Commercial Fisheries in Dutch Harbor. In 1999, he was promoted to Area Management Biologist, overseeing commercial salmon and Pacific herring fisheries from a remote field station among the rural Chignik villages in the Chignik Management Area (CMA). By 2003, he had moved to Soldotna, where he managed all sport, personal use, and educational fisheries in the Northern Kenai Peninsula Management Area.

Most recently served as the State Subsistence Liaison for the Office of Subsistence Management under the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Department of the Interior for 15 years. As the Director of Subsistence, he leads the division scientifically researching and documenting Alaskans' diverse traditions and practices in using wild resources. He enjoys bear hunting, fishing, scuba diving, smoking fish, and being an accomplished crab taxidermist in his free time.