Events Archive
Community Meetings
Bernie Zak, ARM North Slope of Alaska Program Manager, speaking at the Atqasuk Community Meeting.
In October, the ARM Education and Outreach Program held a community meeting in Atqasuk, Alaska, to discuss climate change with the elders and community and to tell them about ARM and ARM educational opportunities. It also provided the community a chance to meet the ARM Education staff. The purpose of this meeting was to hear from the community what climate change phenomena they have observed in the Atqasuk area and to discuss which of these phenomena they felt were the most important. By living in close contact with the land for so many generations, Iñupiat people have built a large body of knowledge and understanding of the natural world. ARM Education seeks to recognize other diverse knowledge systems and to combine Western scientific knowledge with indigenous traditional knowledge and include community input and traditional knowledge into their educational outreach in the North Slope of Alaska.
Atqasuk community members learning about the ARM Program and climate change.
The ARM Education and Outreach Program's activities on the North Slope of Alaska focus on developing culturally responsive materials, since a firm grounding in the indigenous culture is fundamental to the development of culturally healthy students and communities. ARM Education is working with the North Slope school district and the Iñupiat History, Language, and Culture Commission to develop curriculum and lesson plans that incorporate and validate Iñupiat cultural beliefs, values, and practices.
