Representatives from several Alaska Native organizations called for a unified approach alongside government agencies to manage wildlife and fish at the Alaska Federation of Natives convention at the Dena'ina Convention Center on Friday.
Clinton Cook Sr., the Craig Tribal Association president, emphasized the importance of prioritizing Alaska Native voices when making decisions about wildlife.
"Our people have always managed our lands. We know where the salmon run. We know where the deer are. We know when the clams are safe," Cook said. "Co-management means putting indigenous knowledge and the authority back where it belongs, right in the hands of the people who live in this great land."
Cook said that in Southeast Alaska, 18 tribes recently formed an alliance to work on several issues, including co-management of subsistence resources. He said the first step is engagement, and encouraged tribal residents to participate in advisory councils for both federal and state regulatory agencies.
Alaska Native tribes and organizations have argued that their subsistence rights are under threat, including litigation around what is known as Katie John case. In that legal battle, the state challenged the federal government for giving preference to rural Alaskans when it comes to fishing. While the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals preserved the current system in August, the state has signaled it might appeal the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.
A push for resource development in several Alaska regions has also been met with opposition from some tribal groups.
Karen Linell, the executive director of the Ahtna Intertribal Resource Commission, also spoke at the panel and called for a composed and united response in the middle of a quickly-changing political environment.
"With the current administration, we need to try to hold our ground and not lose," Linell said.
Alaska has a wide variety of co-management programs, and advocating for subsistence rights takes time, effort and money. Panelists talked about funding challenges for their organizations and the need to re-educate regional government agency directors when they change with new administrations.
Linell said that one strategy that has made a difference over the years was collaborating with neighbouring regions and figuring out how to continue practicing traditional ways of life, without harming resources other regions rely on.
"We talked about positioning of animals, and it was like, 'Wait a minute, you do duck calls, right, when you're out duck hunting? You know, we call a moose in, so why is it different?'" she said. " When we started to support each other, we started to see change."
Promoting change also requires research, Linell said. She said she hopes that more tribal organizations will have capacity to monitor wildlife and fish and collect their own data.
Several speakers brought up the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act, or ANILCA, which gives priority to rural residents for fishing and hunting on federal lands.
Cook, with the Craig Tribal Association, called for a reform of the federal law to give priority to Alaska Native people instead of rural residents. He said that Alaska Native priority will support Indigenous people who live in larger, more urban communities.
"Alaska needs a bold decision, one that recognizes the inherent right of tribes to co-manage and protect our traditional resources," Cook said. "This is about restoring management to us, the original stewards of our lands, the ones who have always lived in balance with our ecosystem, our fish and our wildlife."
Speakers agreed that a unified Native framework for subsistence management is needed, to allow different Alaska regions to collaborate and ensure exchange of traditional and scientific knowledge.
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