| Hello Friends, |
As summer’s rush gives way to fall in Alaska, the tempo shifts. The long days of harvesting and adventuring turn to focus and preparation as we get ready for winter.
This year, many communities are feeling added pressure from the rapid pace of change at the federal level. With 60 percent of Alaska’s lands under federal management, policies and policy reversals carry outsized impact, shaping opportunities and challenges in real time.
Tribes across Alaska have been strengthening their capacity to meet this moment–asserting their voices in resource decisions, reclaiming stewardship of their homelands, and building momentum for a future guided by ancestral values. This work, often described as Native nation building, is visible in powerful ways. In this newsletter, we highlight the Village of Solomon’s fight to protect a watershed central to their identity and wellbeing, alongside broader efforts to help Tribes navigate shifting federal policies.
To learn more about our work or any of the projects mentioned in this email, please drop us a line.
The Alaska Venture Fund Team |
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| News & Views |
| Updates, stories, and perspectives shaping our work. |
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Reality TV, a Gold Mine, and a Tribe:
Native Nation Building in Action |
| Outside Nome, Alaska, a small Tribe took on an out-of-state mining corporation that threatened their food source and lifeways. The Village of Solomon and its allies are defending their lands and waters, and cultivating the skills, relationships and power to build lasting self-determination. |
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| Supporting Tribal Governments with Tools for Changing Times |
| Alaska Venture Fund and partners are working to support Tribal governments across Alaska as they navigate a shifting federal landscape. With policies and actions moving quickly–and often with limited time to respond–our goal is to provide resources, information and tools that help Tribes engage effectively and protect their interests and rights. Current efforts include examining how federal laws and regulations affect subsistence and other community priorities, helping Tribes understand and use ‘cooperating agency status’ and tracking changes to public lands policies. To learn more or to support this work, please contact natalie@alaskaventure.org. |
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Venture Spotlight: The Chilkat Fund
(Jilkáat Aani Ka Héeni Fund) |
| In the Chilkat Valley, the Jilkáat Kwáan (people of the Chilkat) are shaping a future rooted in culture, kinship and self-determination. Through the Chilkat Fund (Jilkáat Aani Ka Héeni Fund), Tribal leaders and community allies are revitalizing language and traditions, expanding civic engagement and caring for the 2.6 million-acre watershed that sustains their way of life. The Chilkat Fund is a model of how investing deeply in people and place can strengthen Tribal sovereignty, cultural continuity, and community resilience. Learn more about the Chilkat Fund here. |
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| Our Team is Growing |
We are thrilled to welcome Jessica Miles to our team as Wildfire and Community Programs Coordinator. Jessica has a background that blends science and storytelling and is committed to helping Arctic communities and ecosystems thrive. She has previously worked in communications with organizations like The Nature Conservancy and Nori, and co-hosted the podcast Who’s Saving the Planet?
We are also delighted to welcome Maggie Bryan and Simran Bhathal to our team through the Alaska Fellows Program, which places recent college graduates with Alaska organizations for a year of service and learning. Maggie and Simran will be supporting climate and clean energy initiatives. We are grateful to have them with us and look forward to the fresh energy and curiosity they bring. |
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| In case you missed it |
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For the second year in a row, Juneau faced record-breaking flooding from a glacial outburst. New barriers and early warding systems helped prevent the kind of major damage seen last year, but the event underscores how climate change is reshaping life in our communities. |
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“We must continue on a trajectory driven by community priorities for a stronger Tongass National Forest.” In response to a recent op-ed by Secretary of Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins, Sustainable Southeast Partnership’s Marina Keli’ikuli Anderson shares local priorities rooted in place, balance and reciprocity — and invites the Secretary to see firsthand the work communities are leading on the ground to accomplish them. |
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Video: 90-Day Native Foods Challenge |
| For 90 days, Sitka-based Alaska Native artist and filmmaker Kaa,laa Mary Goddard is eating only Native foods harvested here in Alaska. Mary is documenting her journey on Youtube and social media with filmmaker Starling Birch. They are also working on a documentary about the experience, and are seeking funding to finish the film. |
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