Washington, DC – U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Vice Chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, today welcomed the announcement of more than $30.4 million for 42 climate resilience projects in tribal communities in Alaska. These awards, made through funding provided by Congress through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Inflation Reduction Act, and the annual appropriations process, will help tribal communities across the state adapt and bolster their resilience to climate change.
“The selection of more than 40 climate resilience projects across tribal communities in Alaska is a significant step forward in addressing the growing threats and impacts of climate change,” said Vice Chairman Murkowski. “By incorporating Indigenous knowledge and prioritizing community driven initiatives, we can ensure these resources effectively meet the unique needs of each Tribe.”
The entities listed below will receive awardsunder the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ Tribal Climate Resilience Annual Awards Program. Alaska received about one-quarter of the total of $120 million in awards announced today. More information is available here.
As Vice Chairman of the Indian Affairs Committee, a senior appropriator, and one of the lead negotiators and authors of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Senator Murkowski played a key role in authorizing and providing the funding awarded by DOI.
Alaska Award Recipients
| Tribe/Tribal Organization | Purpose | Funding Amount |
| Ahtna Intertribal Resource Commission | Ahtna Territory | $248,013.00 |
| Asa’carsarmiut Tribe | Asa’carsarmiut Adaptation Planning Project | $235,000.00 |
| Bristol Bay Native Association | New Stuyahok Road and Drainage Improvements Planning Project | $106,501.00 |
| Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes | Tlingit & Haida Feasibility Study for Water Quality Testing in Southeast Alaska | $249,804.00 |
| Central Council of the Tlingit & Haida Indian Tribes | Seacoast Indigenous Guardians Network Data Collection | $415,089.00 |
| Chignik Bay Tribal Council | Indian Creek Bridge and Landfill Road Preliminary Engineering Report | $248,989.00 |
| Chignik Bay Tribal Council | East Side Electric Distribution System Upgrades Preliminary Engineering Report | $249,638.00 |
| Chilkoot Indian Association (Haines) | Planning for Resilience – Developing a Climate Adaptation Plan for the Chilkoot Indian Association | $234,515.00 |
| Chugach Regional Resources Commission | Chugach Imaq – long-term evaluation of the effects of climate change on Indigenous marine mammals in the Chugach region | $208,086.00 |
| Chugach Regional Resources Commission | Evaluating subsistence shellfish beaches for future enhancement and clam garden projects | $192,435.00 |
| Hoonah Indian Association | Youth Climate Education and Stewardship in Hoonah | $201,795.00 |
| Kawerak, Inc. | Bering Strait Climate Adaptation Planning Project: Accelerating Regional Adaptation and Resilience | $249,147.00 |
| Ketchikan Indian Community | Climate Resilient Drinking Water Infrastructure to Support New Affordable Housing Development for the Ketchikan Indian Community | $3,944,640.00 |
| Knik Tribe | Strengthening Knik Tribe’s Co-Stewardship of Aquatic Wildlife Resources in Cook Inlet, Alaska: Gathering Knowledge to Ensure Long-Term Food Sovereignty by Learning from the Past, Taking Stock of the Present, and Planning for the Future | $2,870,666.00 |
| Metlakatla Indian Community, Annette Island Reserve | Climate Change Adaptation Plan Update, Annette Islands Reserve | $155,922.00 |
| Metlakatla Indian Community, Annette Island Reserve | Metlakatla Indian Community Tribal Climate Resilience Implementation 2023 | $1,017,230.00 |
| Native Village of Chenega (aka Chanega) | Empowering Tribal Resilience: Floating Wave Attenuation Breakwater Planning and Design for Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation | $100,140.00 |
| Native Village of Chitina | Planning for the Native Village of Chitina’s Climate Change needs | $244,684.00 |
| Native Village of Diomede (aka Inalik) | Plan for the Native Village of Diomede | $232,036.00 |
| Native Village of Ekwok | Ekwok Nushagak River Bank Stabilization Project | $634,569.00 |
| Native Village of Eyak (Cordova) | Climate Resilient Ecosystems and Communities through Mariculture | $249,334.00 |
| Native Village of Kipnuk | RMP Coordinator | $115,233.00 |
| Native Village of Kongiganak | Kongiganak Erosion Mitigation Preliminary Engineering project | $200,000.00 |
| Native Village of Kongiganak | RMP Coordinator Adaptation project | $112,810.00 |
| Native Village of Kwinhagak (aka Quinhagak) | Community Resilience to Permafrost Degradation Threats Project | $4,000,000.00 |
| Native Village of Kwinhagak (aka Quinhagak) | Adaptation Plan Support – Establishing an RMP Coordinator | $121,494.00 |
| Native Village of Nelson Lagoon | Native Village of Nelson Lagoon Shoreline Protection and Water Security | $4,000,000.00 |
| Native Village of Nunam Iqua | Resilience Coordination Project | $96,038.00 |
| Native Village of Paimiut | Native Village of Paimiut Asqinaq Climate Resilience Planning | $223,546.00 |
| Native Village of Shishmaref | Tribal Capacity Building and Adaption Planning: Local Coordinators | $150,000.00 |
| Native Village of Tuntutuliak | Implementing Climate Resilience Strategies | $130,000.00 |
| Native Village of Tununak | Coordination Project | $122,898.00 |
| Native Village of Unalakleet | Tribal Climate Resilience Coordination Project | $89,112.00 |
| Nenana Native Association | RMP Coordinator | $135,684.00 |
| Nunakauyarmiut Tribe | Relocation, Managed Retreat, and Protect in Place Activities Coordination Project | $126,898.00 |
| Saint Paul Island (See Pribilof Islands Aleut Communities) | Strengthening Indigenous Narratives Through Data Dissemination and High Impact Story Telling within the Indigenous Sentinels Network | $249,215.00 |
| Saint Paul Island (See Pribilof Islands Aleut Communities) | Erosion Stabilization of Community Cemetery located on Black Bluffs, St. Paul Island, AK | $3,530,654.00 |
| Village of Chefornak | Home stabilization and construction | $4,000,000.00 |
| Village of Kotlik | Tribal Capacity Building and Adaption Planning: Resilience Coordinator | $102,861.00 |
| Wrangell Cooperative Association | Earth Branch Climate Action and Adaptation Plan | $222,952.00 |
| Yakutat Tlingit Tribe | Developing a Climate Adaptation Plan through Integrating Traditional Ecological Knowledge and Environmental Assessments in Yakutat, Alaska | $189,219.00 |
| Yakutat Tlingit Tribe | Restoring a Productive, Traditional Clam Garden to Mitigate Climate Change Impacts in the Intertidal Ankau Saltchucks, Yakutat, Alaska | $222,172.00 |
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