Culture & Language
First Iñupiaq Language Class Coming to Nome Public Schools Starting This Fall
From program instructor Kiminaq Alvanna-Stimpfle: “Providing our children with an opportunity to learn Inupiaq will positively impact our community by raising children who are grounded in who they are: Inupiat.”
Read MoreKawerak Joins BSNC in Co-Management of Pilgrim Hot Springs, Plans for the Future
Following Pilgrim Hot Springs’ formal closure for the season in 2018, limited use last summer, and the end of its short-lived produce project, the 320-acre property is getting some new energy.
Read MoreNome School Board Requests $3-Million From City, Focuses on Iñupiaq Immersion
More local and traditional knowledge is set to be a key feature in future school years at Nome Public Schools. That was the Nome School Board’s focus last Tuesday night
Read MoreLocal & Traditional Knowledge Taskforce Works On Action Plan Under NPFMC
A newly realized taskforce has spent the last six months working to incorporate Local and Traditional Knowledge (LTK) into how federal agencies manage marine resources in the Bering Sea. Each year, Alaska fisheries account for over half of the marine fish caught in the United States, according to NOAA’s 2017 Fisheries of the US Report.…
Read MoreAlaska Native Language Speakers to Be Counted by New Iñupiaq Survey
The 2020 Census is not the only counting effort in Western Alaska this year. Debuting in the beginning of February, a comprehensive language survey of Iñupiat will project speaker counts and gauge attitudes of Alaska’s Iñupiaq community. KNOM’s JoJo Phillips reports on the importance of the survey as well as the coalition behind it. In…
Read MoreHuman Skulls Found Near Sinuk River
State Medical Examiners and the Alaska State Troopers are investigating the case of two human skulls collected from the mouth of the Sinuk River last month.
Read MoreNewest Native Veteran Allotment Act Requires Further Implementation
Last month at the Alaska Federation of Natives convention in Fairbanks, Senator Dan Sullivan met with veterans from around the state. The discussion centered around newly enacted legislation that will allow Alaska Native Vietnam War veterans to receive allotments of land. In March of 2019, President Donald Trump signed the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management,…
Read MoreNative Men Discuss Violence Against Women at Elders & Youth Talking Circle
Addressing the widespread use of violence against Alaska Native women was one of the dominating topics at the 2019 Alaska Federation of Natives convention. While, the call for men to step up and do better for women echoed throughout AFN, from elders up to Senator Dan Sullivan, a group of young men at the Elder’s…
Read MoreTribal Justice Summit Renews Focus on Tribal Courts in Western Alaska
Tribes in the Bering Strait region are working to re-establish control of public safety in their communities, using tools like tribal courts. This week tribes from around the region met in Nome to talk about what tribal justice could look like for them. KNOM’s Emily Hofstaedter reports on Kawerak’s first Tribal Justice Summit: Meghan Sigvanna…
Read MoreAlaska’s Polar Bear Co-Management Centered in Nome
Last week, the Alaska Nannut Co-Management Council (ANCC) officially opened its headquarters in Nome. The ANCC, which represents Alaska Native tribes and hunters that rely on polar bears for subsistence, was founded in 2017 by members of the public and supported by regional organizations, such as Kawerak and the North Slope Borough. The council’s board,…
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