Arctic Vessel Traffic and Indigenous Communities in the Bering Strait Region of Alaska

Traditional Knowledge can be defined as: “a living body of knowledge which pertains to explaining and understanding the universe, and living and acting within it. It is acquired and utilized by indigenous communities and individuals in and through long-term sociocultural, spiritual and environmental engagement. TK is an integral part of the broader knowledge system of indigenous communities, is transmitted intergenerationally, is practically and widely applicable, and integrates personal experience with oral traditions. It provides perspectives applicable to an array of human and non-human phenomena. It is deeply rooted in history, time, and place, while also being rich, adaptable, and dynamic, all of which keep it relevant and useful in contemporary life. This knowledge is part of, and used in, everyday life, and is inextricably intertwined with peoples’ identity, cosmology, values, and way of life. Tradition – and TK – does not preclude change, nor does it equal only ‘the past’; in fact, it inherently entails change” (Raymond-Yakoubian et al. 2017, p. 133).

While there has been a large amount of work done to document subsistence use areas, there are still significant gaps. For example, Kawerak’s recent research on seals and walrus was with 9 tribes of the 20 in the region. So while that work was comprehensive in each of the nine participating communities, it was not comprehensive for the region. This particular map also does not include any information from the Russian Federation, and does not illustrate habitat use by animals—only subsistence use areas.

Some of the below was presented at the Bering Strait Voices on Arctic Shipping workshop held in Nome, Alaska September 14–15, 2014 and was included in the workshop report (Kawerak 2015a).