Amplify the Local Community Voices
APU organized a one-year planning project to further develop relationships with four Indigenous communities along the Alaskan Yukon River who are experiencing environmental and social impacts from the climate crisis. The Beyond Ice project aims to amplify the local community voices along the reach of the Yukon by sharing their stories of resilience, challenges of living in drastically changing conditions and visioning of a future through this transition. The emerging paradigm of knowledge co-production is the fulcrum for all parts of Beyond Ice; from project design to implementation and evaluation. The partnerships involve the villages of Nulato and Nunam Iqua which span the heart of Alaska from the interior to the Bering Sea. With this planning grant, Indigenous community members, artists, scientists, museums, and evaluators developed plans to co-produce concrete outcomes, envisioning: (1) interactive community art exhibits based on local and Indigenous perspectives (2) educational art experiences at Anchorage Museum’s Northern Perspectives Festival, and (3) a STEM education program featuring K-Adult curricula.
The goal of collaborations between Indigenous communities, scientists and museums is to provide rapid dissemination of ongoing research studies and highlight the co-production of knowledge for more effectively communicating this invaluable work to the public. Beyond Ice will ultimately provide Yukon Arctic Indigenous communities with a platform to share Indigenous perspectives beyond their borders. Beyond Ice’s inclusive process supports multiple community members, elders, and young people, empowering each to engage in the co-production of knowledge highlighting Indigenous observation of the changing Arctic.
Funded in part by the National Science Foundation Award Number 2325081 more information can be found on the REVISE webpage.
