Events

Taking its name from the Iñupiaq phrase for “ice bridge” the Ikaaġvik Sikukun project has successfully built bridges between a diverse team of scientists and Indigenous Knowledge-holders to produce new knowledge about the changing sea-ice environment of Kotzebue Sound, Alaska and its implications for sustained subsistence existence for the community there. The group broke new ground by co-developing our hypotheses in partnership with an Indigenous Elder Advisory Council and defining the research questions that cut across disciplinary boundaries, incorporate Indigenous knowledge, and utilize technology enabled methods that address the needs of both the local and scientific communities. To share this story broadly and in a way that respects the oral traditions of Indigenous Knowledge, the team also included an ethnographic film-maker who has been documenting each step of our unique research journey. Over the past five years, the project designed and carried out a research plan to observe the sea ice and marine mammals in Kotzebue Sound and how these come together as habitat and hunting grounds. Throughout the process, the team engaged in a continual dialogue with the Advisory Council to co-interpret findings and develop new questions. The project is starting to set up a community based and community-led microbial observatory to study the impact of climate change on the base of the marine food web.

Event Speakers

• Ajit Subramaniam, Lamont Research Professor at Columbia University
• Alex Whiting, Director of the Native Village of Kotzebue’s Environmental Program
• Carson Witte, PhD student in earth and environmental sciences at Columbia University
• Christopher J. Zappa, Lamont Research Professor at Columbia University

Event Information

Free and open to the public; registration required to receive Zoom link. Please email [email protected] with any questions. 

Part of the Climate and Society series, as well as the webinar series on Co-production of Knowledge in Climate Science. Hosted by

• Center for Science and Society
• Columbia Climate School
• Dean of Humanities
• Earth Institute
• Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory
• Climate and Society MA Program

The Center for Science and Society makes every reasonable effort to accommodate individuals with disabilities. If you require disability accommodations to attend a Center for Science and Society event, please contact us at [email protected] or (212) 853-1612 at least 10 days in advance of the event. For more information, please visit the campus accessibility webpage.