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Indigenous Communities
Indigenous peoples, communities, and ways of life are, in many places under pressure to adapt to changes in the environmental, social, and political landscape.
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Indigenous communities have a unique, deep, and longstanding connection to and dependence upon the landscape. As these communities try to navigate and thrive in a rapidly changing environment, their leadership, insight, guidance, and active participation in addressing the many challenges and opportunities they face will be essential to a sustained and vibrant future that honors cultural traditions and a shared future.
Highlight: Event with Newtok Village Elders
In December 2017, the Polar Institute hosted a discussion with elders from the Village of Newtok, Alaska. The elders shared how coastal erosion and thawing permafrost has put their village under immediate risk of destruction. The programming in part helped prompt decision-makers to allot $22 million in federal funds for the relocation of Newtok.
Watch the event recapFeatured Experts
Michaela Stith
Former Program Assistant, Polar Institute
Dr. Michael Sfraga
Chair & Distinguished Fellow, Polar Institute // Chair, US Arctic Research Commission
Read more from MichaelOnce considered remote and isolated, the Arctic region is now part of the global political, social, economic, security, and geopolitical landscape—this reality requires research and policy analysis now more than ever.
Ross A. Virginia
Global Fellow, Polar Institute
Heather Exner-Pirot
Global Fellow
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