Arctic Peoples

By Clive Tesar

People from six villages, three on the Alaskan side of the Bering Strait, and three on the Russian side, are taking part in a ground-breaking monitoring program designed to track changes in the area. The Bering Sea Sub-Network (BSSN) will include the communities of Sand Point, Gambell, and Togiak in Alaska. They will be joined by Nikolskoye, Tymlat and Kanchalan in Russia. These sites provide broad coverage of the Bering Sea, and represent communities with a strong tradition of local and indigenous Knowledge.

This is a wonderful opportunity to draw on the wealth of knowledge possessed by Indigenous Peoples on both sides of the Bering Sea,

says Victoria Gofman, principal investigator of the BSSN.

What struck me as I travelled to the villages has how eager people were to share that knowledge, and to have an opportunity to do something about the changes that are affecting their communities.

The Bering Sea is an incredibly fertile marine environment, a fact recognized by the Indigenous Peoples who live along its shores. About half of the seafood eaten in the United States, and about a third of the seafood consumed in Russia comes from the area. However, it is not threatened by a variety of changes, including climate change and increasing human exploitation of the Bering’s resources. There is an urgent need to better understand this highly productive natural system.

The project was put together by the Aleut International Association, whose members span both sides of the Bering Strait, and who have a keen interest in assessing changes in their traditional territory. The information from the Bering Sea Sub-Network will be complemented by scientific studies being supported by the US government over the next five years.

For more information on the BSSN, and to read about Victoria Gofman’s travels in Russia, check out the Aleut International Association’s newsletter at http://www.aleut-international.org/files/Download/2007_3rd%20Quarter%20Newsletter_Final.pdf