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Seal Science: The Whole Seal: Traditional Diets and Food Security This article is the second one of eight in a series of outreach materials funded through a partnership between Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) and the Indigenous People’s Council for Marine Mammals (IPCoMM) on harbor seal conservation and subsistence harvesting. Written by Abigail Sweetman. (Article 1) “Food is medicine” [...]

 Tlingit student Gáanax Sháa Gloria Eyon on graduation day. All photos courtesy of Michael Penn. First student graduates from new Northwest Coast art college degree program! Tlingit student Gloria Eyon has made history by being the first to graduate from an AA degree program that includes an emphasis on Northwest Coast arts. The landmark program at the University of Alaska Southeast [...]

  Seal Science: Establishing Baselines: Data Gaps in Harbor Seal Research This article is one of eight in a series of outreach materials funded through a partnership between Sealaska Heritage Institute (SHI) and the Indigenous People’s Council for Marine Mammals (IPCoMM) on harbor seal conservation and subsistence harvesting. While residents and visitors of coastal Alaska may [...]

  Exterior of the SHI building, which features formline design by master Haida artist Robert Davidson. Formline Deterioration in Northwest Coast Art The Sealaska Heritage (SHI) Native Artist Committee in their recent meeting expressed deep concern about the deterioration of Northwest Coast (NWC) formline that they are seeing within our community of artists. The concerns [...]

Eechdaa Dave Ketah, who was born in Ketchikan, now lives in Portland, OR. Despite living away from Lingít aaní, Ketah has been connecting with his heritage by taking online classes offered at SHI and UAS, visiting his father’s people in Klawock to learn to carve and by attending Celebration in person in 2022.  [...]

A whole group portrait at the final celebration for the Haa Yoo X’atángi Deiyí project on August 19, 2022.  Immersive Learning Experiences with Haa Yoo X’atángi Deiyí: Our Language Pathways Photos and Text by Stacy Unzicker Along the back of a banquet hall sits a long table holding pictures of beloved elders and ancestors that [...]

Sealaska Heritage’s fourth culturally responsive education conference, Our Cultural Landscape, was held virtually for the second time Aug. 5-7, drawing more than 450 educators from Alaska, the Lower 48, and beyond. The event featured prominent Indigenous keynote speakers and more than two dozen breakout presentations, while providing opportunities for attendees to discuss the many complex issues [...]

  By Kaasteen (Katelynn Drake)​ Photos by: Carl Tuzroyluke Sealaska Heritage’s Voices on the Land program was first held in Juneau in 2014, with the goal of improving student literacy skills, as well as increasing Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian language use through the mediums of performing arts and digital storytelling. This educational project was launched in order to [...]

  Spruce-root apprentices seeking roots. Photos by Carl Tuzroyluke. By Kaasteen (Katelynn Drake)​ Sealaska Heritage’s spruce-root gathering and weaving class held its first session on Saturday, June 19. Ten apprentice students in Juneau convened at the start of Boy Scout Camp Trail to learn the art of spruce-root gathering from Tlingit artist Naakil.aan (Hans Chester). Naakil.aan [...]