The Coastal Plain is a roughly 1.57 million acre area at the northern edge of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) in northeastern Alaska. To its west are 13 million acres, designated as “Special Areas” within the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPR-A) due to their ecological and cultural importance. Thes landscapes provide critical habitat for wildlife, including the Porcupine caribou herd and polar bears. Indigenous communities here rely on the wildlife and biodiversity for food security, culture, and spiritual identity. Oil and gas development and seismic testing continue to threaten these places at an increasing pace, putting communities, wildlife, and the entire ecosystem at risk.
Over the next two years, Sovereign Iñupiat for a Living Arctic (SILA) will build capacity to integrate indigenous leadership and voices into the campaign to protect these vital lands. They will lay a strong foundation for relationships with conservation groups by centering Indigenous voices and knowledge. As a key piece of their work, they will engage with shareholders of their regional corporation, an Alaska Native-owned for-profit corporation, to build an engaged and informed Inupiaq community that understands the impacts of extraction on their lands, culture, and local economy.
