2025 Annual AAOKH Meeting and Co-Management Workshop
Our AAOKH team is thrilled to share that we hosted our annual meeting as well as a co-management workshop last week in Anchorage at the Alaska Ocean Observing System (AOOS) offices in downtown Anchorage for Day 1 and at the Alaska Community Foundation BP Energy Center for Day 2 and our co-management workshop for Day 2. We also welcomed Jase Ahmaogak from Wainwright and Robert Lisbourne from Point Lay as our two newest observers this year!
On Day 1, we heard from each of the observers on observing themes over the last year, which included more frequent and stronger storms leading to flooding and erosion, changes in access and timing of migration for caribou, and overall less land fast ice in AAOKH communities compared to previous years.
We also heard some AAOKH student updates! Maya Russin will be working closely with Bobby Schaeffer and focusing on forage fish and winter ocean/sea ice conditions in Kotzebue Sound. Maeghan Connor defended her MS thesis this year exploring spotted seal haul out behavior in Dease Inlet on the North Slope and plans to continue with her PhD focusing on evaluating seal condition and health using drones. Elizabeth Mik’aq Lindley shared updates for her research on Pacific salmon in the Arctic and plans to defend her PhD in early 2026, which will include new results suggesting salmon eggs can ‘ukiu’ or overwinter in Arctic rivers successfully.
We also discussed how AAOKH observations and Indigenous Knowledge can be applied to evaluate and strengthen regional ocean models to support informed resource management in Arctic regions. Claudine, Remi, and Brita from UAF International Arctic Research Center (IARC) introduced the new Arctic Ocean modeling project funded by NOAA. Participants discussed past concerns about how models have been used, and emphasized that, if developed in a good way, models could become tools that support Indigenous ways of life.
On Day 2, we held a workshop with the Ice Seal Committee (ISC), NOAA Fisheries representatives and AAOKH observers to discuss challenges and opportunities for the inclusion of Indigenous Knowledge in decision-making, including improved coordination between agencies and the ISC. This included the presentation of preliminary findings from AAOKH on a historical text analysis we’ve been working on to understand what the existing AAOKH observations related to ice seals can tell us from our online database.
Quyanaqpak, quyana and very big thank you to all who supported and participated in our meeting last week! Especially to the Alaska Ocean Observing System staff for sharing meeting space and the Ice Seal Committee and NOAA Fisheries staff for joining to discuss co-management opportunities.
See below for the full meeting summary: