Iñupiaq Values in Subsistence Harvesting: Applying the Community Voice Method in Northwest Alaska

Abstract

Our study applied the Community Voice Method, a film-based community engagement approach, in a primarily Indigenous Arctic community to amplify voices of hunters regarding management of subsistence resources. Over a 30-month period we applied transdisciplinary methods to collaborate with the community of Kotzebue in northwestern Alaska on an original film. The goals of the film were to illustrate how Iñupiaq values and knowledge guide subsistence hunting practices through stories, educate youth and foster intergenerational dialog, and initiate discussions about inclusion of Indigenous values and knowledge in resource management. Here, we describe our application of this method and reflect on our successes and challenges, in hope that other practitioners can use this methodology to proactively identify community issues around natural resource management and, through an audiovisual medium, facilitate stakeholder empowerment in Indigenous communities.

Pathways to subsistence management in Alaska national parks: Perspectives of harvesters and agency staff

“…Indigenous harvesters in our study have distinct customs for sustaining caribou (e.g. avoid shooting cows with calves and disturbing the overall migrations); such customs are passed down from Elders (Atkinson, 2020; Green et al, 2019). A recent resurgence in the mobilization of IK to promote hunter success and conserve the caribou herd, in part motivated by declines in caribou as documented by agencies, has been circulating through Northwest Arctic communities (Atkinson, 2020).…”

“…This study was motivated by community dialogues facilitated through a participatory film project in the region, which addressed ways in which Iñupiaq values and practice guide subsistence harvesting in national parklands power asymmetries that are embedded in the current management system and paths forward for Indigenous self-determination. and beyond (Green et al, 2019), as well as the changing access to subsistence harvest in Alaska National Parklands (Green et al, 2021). As voiced by community members, Indigenous resource stewardship can and does occur alongside, and independent of, Western management regimes (Green et al, 2019).…”

“…In the vast and productive hunting and gathering areas of what is now known as Alaska, Indigenous peoples have sustained deep connections and relationships with the land, animals and plants adapted over millennia (Barnhardt & Kawagley, 2005; Carothers et al, 2021; Fienup‐Riordan, 1990; VanStone, 1967). Many traditional practices persist today, such as letting the leaders of a caribou herd pass without being harvested to ensure the herd's successful migration (Atkinson, 2020), respecting animal populations by not taking more than one needs (Green et al, 2019) and allowing enough salmon to pass through to refuge areas before harvesting remaining fish (Langdon, 2006). Subsistence harvest of animals and plants is guided by longstanding traditions and values that maintain reciprocal relationships between human and nonhuman worlds (Green et al, 2019; Nelson, 1982), and Alaska Native people recognize a spiritual connection among all living things as a source of healing for the individual, the family, the community and beyond (Topkok & Green, 2014).…”

“…In this paper, we explore Indigenous (Iñupiat) harvester and NPS staff perspectives on contemporary federal management of subsistence resources in northwestern Alaska, where reliance on subsistence harvest is high (227 kg per person annually, or 25%–30% of food intake; Magdanz et al, 2010; Magdanz et al, 2011). This study was motivated by community dialogues facilitated through a participatory film project in the region, which addressed ways in which Iñupiaq values and practice guide subsistence harvesting in national parklands and beyond (Green et al, 2019), as well as the changing access to subsistence harvest in Alaska National Parklands (Green et al, 2021). As voiced by community members, Indigenous resource stewardship can and does occur alongside, and independent of, Western management regimes (Green et al, 2019).…”

“…This study was motivated by community dialogues facilitated through a participatory film project in the region, which addressed ways in which Iñupiaq values and practice guide subsistence harvesting in national parklands and beyond (Green et al, 2019), as well as the changing access to subsistence harvest in Alaska National Parklands (Green et al, 2021). As voiced by community members, Indigenous resource stewardship can and does occur alongside, and independent of, Western management regimes (Green et al, 2019). Thus, in this study, we aim to further examine the barriers to and pathways for inclusion of IK and stewardship in management of subsistence resources on Western Arctic (WEAR) National Parklands, including Cape Krusenstern National Monument (CAKR).…”