26 March 2025 | 08:30 - 10:00 (MDT)
Open Session - HYBRID
Room: Glen Miller Ballroom - UMC 208
Organisers: Courtney Carothers (Tamamta / University of Alaska Fairbanks); Jessica Black (Tamamta / University of Alaska Fairbanks); Sonia Ibarra (Tamamta / University of Alaska Fairbanks); Peter Westley (Tamamta / University of Alaska Fairbanks)
Session Description:
The Tamamta program seeks to transform fisheries education, research, and governance systems in Alaska and beyond. We are motivated by deep systemic inequities, Indigenous erasure, racism, and continued violence against Alaska Native Peoples, and we strive to uplift Tribal sovereignty, Indigenous values, governance practices, and knowledge systems. We envision a future where Indigenous Peoples and our/their knowledge and governance systems steward land, fish, and animal relations. Our program supports three cohorts of Indigenous and allied students to pursue their graduate degrees in western and Indigenous fisheries and marine sciences. We are working to decolonize and Indigenize our curriculum, programs, and institutions. We are hosting difficult dialogues on racial equity, providing short courses, and cultural exchanges for state and federal partner agencies to join this collective transformation. In this work, we center deep relational work based on reciprocity, respect, and redistribution. In this session, a panel of Tamamta scholars, advisors, and fellows will discuss pivotal lessons learned, highlight best practices, and generate dialogue about topics including: colonialism and systemic racism, Indigenizing and decolonizing approaches, Indigenous and non-Indigenous partnerships, allyship, supporting Indigenous students, and inequities in fishery systems.