https://kiliii.com https://kiliii.com/ABOUT/1 https://kiliii.com/CONTACT/1 https://kiliii.com/MOTION/Teshekpuk-Lake/1 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/1/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-001.jpgCHUKOTKA-001At the edges of the Bering Sea and Russia’s Arctic coastline lies one of the wildest regions on earth. This polar bear waits on a beach near sea stacks on Russia's Herald Island, for the return of the sea ice. The retreat of the summer ice in the western Chukchi Sea has concentrated hundreds of polar bears on this island and nearby Wrangel, so personal space for these non-social bears is limited. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/2/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-002.jpgLorino Container, Lorino FishermenIndigenous hunters and fishermen from the village of Lorino, in Russia's Chukotka province, gather to wait out the pouring rain and stormy weather of a summer's day in the Arctic. Across the outskirts of the former USSR, industrial structures like these old shipping containers are commonly reclaimed. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/3/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-003.jpgCHUKOTKA-003An abandoned Soviet-era truck rests outside of a repurposed factory building in Provideniya, Russia. With the collapse of the USSR, many industries that were previously supported by the central government vanished overnight. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/4/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-004.jpgCHUKOTKA-004Girls in the city of Provideniya, Russia, embrace village dogs. The city itself is a mix of reclaimed concrete structures from the Soviet era that have been brightly repainted and refurbished, although many remain abandoned. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/5/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-005.jpgCHUKOTKA-005A herd of walrus is hauled out on the narrow and ice-free shores of Chukotka's Herald Island. The walrus population here is one of the the largest and densest in the world, made denser in the shoulder seasons with the diminishing of the sea ice. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/6/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-006.jpgCHUKOTKA-006Upright whale jawbones mark a ceremonial site for a former indigenous village at Cape Dezhnev, Russia. Indigenous villagers were forcibly relocated to and from this location several times before it was eventually vacated permanently as a way to make villages more manageable under the Soviet system. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/7/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-007.jpgCHUKOTKA-007A boardwalk over low-lying tundra keeps villagers from sinking into the ground in Lorino, Russia. Building materials are hard to come by, but Chukotkans have been adaptable as long as there have people here. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/8/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-007a.jpgCHUKOTKA-007aLeft: A Chukchi dance group performs at the port of Provideniya, Russia, for tourists. Chukchi and Yup'ik indigenous communities make up a significant portion of Chukotka's population, though many have been displaced several times over the past century. Dance and ceremony remain strong within their cultures.<br /><br />Right: A young motorcyclist waits his turn outside the community dance center in the village of Uelen. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/9/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-008.jpgCHUKOTKA-008Fishermen in the village of Lorino, Russia, move their boats to accomodate others along the deepwater portion of shoreline. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/10/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-009.jpgCHUKOTKA-009Walruses, their skins pink from capillaries with blood, play in the water offshore of Herland Island, Russia, as they try to cool down their body temperatures in the summer. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/11/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-009a.jpgCHUKOTKA-009aLeft: Cormorants nest high up in the cliff faces of these basalt columns at Herald Island, Russia. The nesting bird colonies here are immense, safe from predators that would be prowling on the mainland.<br /><br />Right: A polar bear rests at the high-tide line under nesting kittiwakes. During this time of year, the bears generally do not eat, but they also won't pass up opportunistic snacks such as seabird nests they can reach. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/12/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-010.jpgCHUKOTKA-010Kittiwakes feast on the recently butchered carcass and skin of a walrus on the shoreline in Uelen village, Russia. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/13/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-010a.jpgCHUKOTKA-010aLeft: A village dog gnaws on walrus remains from a walrus kill on the shoreline of Uelen.<br /><br />Right: Musk ox and walrus skulls rest on the summer tundra on Wrangel Island, collected from decades of subsistence hunting here. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/14/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-010b.jpgCHUKOTKA-010bLeft: A thin polar bear rest in the shelter of a basalt cave on an island shoreline. In the summer season of hunger, the bears try their best to conserve energy.<br /><br />Right: Hundreds of gulls and kittiwakes line the basalt cliffs of Herald Island, finding cracks where they have made their nests. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/15/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-011.jpgCHUKOTKA-011A Chukchi woman rows a child's umiaq, or skinboat, across a tidal lake at the village of Lorino, Russia. Though largely replaced by aluminum skiffs for hunting, the umiaq remains an important part of the cultural heritage for both Chukchi and Yup'ik peoples. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/16/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-011a.jpgCHUKOTKA-011aLeft: Iron spikes protrude from a protective cage built around this cabin's windows. These protections are omnipresent on Wrangel Island, where hungry polar bears regularly ransack structures searching for food.<br /><br />Right: Tea and food tins are the only things left out in this sparse communal ranger's cabin on Wrangel Island, Russia. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/17/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-011b.jpgCHUKOTKA-011bWalrus intestines, lingonberries and whale maktak, or blubber, are all foodstuffs in the indigenous diet in Chukotka. In the Arctic, plant foods are extremely scarce, and marine mammals make up most of the food in coastal areas. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/18/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-012.jpgCHUKOTKA-012A herd of walrus rest along the shoreline of Herald Island, in far north Russia. As sea ice recedes, the giant walrus herds in the Bering and Arctic regions are restless as individual walrus compete for resting space on land. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/19/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-013.jpgCHUKOTKA-013Fishermen in Lorino eye the weather as clouds part and their card game has finished. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/20/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-014.jpgCHUKOTKA-014Fresh whale ribs have been added to this bone pile in Lorino. The bones are resources as well, used for building structures and tools in this land where the resources are few. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/21/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-015.jpgCHUKOTKA-015The cabin portion of a ship has been converted into a port structure in the city of Provideniya. The remains of heavy industry and factories are everywhere, and people repurposed much of it after the fall of the Soviet Union. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/22/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-016.jpgCHUKOTKA-016Sunlight dapples the surface of a calm sea, far offshore in the Arctic Ocean in the Russian Far East. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/23/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-017.jpgCHUKOTKA-017A village dog in Lorino, Russia, wanders in front of a tundra-capable bus from the Communist era. Ever resourceful, people in the province of Chukotka have kept Soviet vehicles running for decades longer than originally intended. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/24/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-018a.jpgCHUKOTKA-018aLeft: Shipping cranes tower over workers at the Port of Provideniya, Russia. <br /><br />Right: A girl in the village of Uelen with her puppy. In rural Russia, children often have significant independence from their parents. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/25/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-019.jpgCHUKOTKA-019A tundra lemming scurries across the mossy floor of an abandoned cabin on Wrangel Island. Lemmings are at the keystone species at the bottom of the food chain here. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/26/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-020.jpgCHUKOTKA-020Herbs and flowers on the windowsill of a house in the village of Lorino, Russia. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/27/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-021.jpgCHUKOTKA-021Boys and their dog stroll the walkway between houses on the marshy tundra in Lorino. In Chukotka, plumbing is often aboveground because of the permafrost. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/28/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-022.jpgCHUKOTKA-022A puffin takes a dive from a cliffside to get into the air. Nest real-estate on these cliffs on Herald Island is precious, and the ledges are narrow. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/29/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-023.jpgCHUKOTKA-023Basalt formations rise up to create a spine of rock on Herald Island, Russia. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/30/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-024.jpgCHUKOTKA-024 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/31/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-025.jpgCHUKOTKA-025Ruins of a basic cabin once used by subsistence hunters on Wrangel Island, Russia. Walrus and musk ox bones from decades of hunting litter the coastline here, preserved by the cold. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/32/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-025a.jpgCHUKOTKA-025aLeft: Inside a ranger's cabin on Wrangell Island.<br /><br />Right: A polar bear sleeps on a scree slope resting on permafrost, way above sea level on Herald Island. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Chukotka/33/pf-media/CHUKOTKA-026.jpgCHUKOTKA-026Sheer cliffs rise straight from the sea offshore in the Russian province of Chuktoka. This region is dominated by climate change– melting permafrost and vanishing sea ice. Yet here the time-tested mantra of the Arctic still applies. The resilient will endure. https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/1/pf-media/ISLB-003.jpgISLB-003 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/2/pf-media/ISLB-001.jpgISLB-001 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/3/pf-media/ISLB-002.jpgISLB-002 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/4/pf-media/66N-1.jpg66N-1 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/5/pf-media/ISLB-004.jpgISLB-004 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/6/pf-media/ISLB-005.jpgISLB-005 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/7/pf-media/ISLB-006.jpgISLB-006 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/8/pf-media/untitled-001.jpguntitled-001 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/9/pf-media/ISLB-008.jpgISLB-008 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/10/pf-media/ISLB-008a.jpgISLB-008a https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/11/pf-media/ISLB-009.jpgISLB-009 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/12/pf-media/ISLB-009a.jpgISLB-009a https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Islandia/13/pf-media/ISLB-010.jpgISLB-010 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https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/1/pf-media/RUMORS-001.jpgConfluence, Chukchi Sea https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/2/pf-media/RUMORS-014.jpgBasketball Court, Gambell https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/3/pf-media/RUMORS-002.jpgAuroral Vortex over South Iceland https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/4/pf-media/RUMORS-003.jpgUmiaq and Fata Morgana https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/5/pf-media/RUMORS-004.jpgUtqiagvik Cemetery under Snow https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/6/pf-media/RUMORS-005.jpgKunuunnguaq Davidsen, Sweep Roll https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/7/pf-media/RUMORS-006.jpgWhaling Blind, 2AM https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/8/pf-media/RUMORS-007.jpgTerrance Neakok, Listening for Whales https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/9/pf-media/RUMORS-007a.jpgRUMORS-007a https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/10/pf-media/RUMORS-007b.jpgRUMORS-007b https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/11/pf-media/RUMORS-008.jpgCaribou and Tundra Pockets https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/12/pf-media/RUMORS-009.jpgCanada Geese over Tundra Lead https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/13/pf-media/RUMORS-010.jpgWaiting for Sea Ice, Herald Island https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/14/pf-media/RUMORS-011.jpgMigrating Jaegers over Teshekpuk https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/15/pf-media/RUMORS-012.jpgPhantoms on Migration https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/16/pf-media/RUMORS-013.jpgSnow goose nest in Arctic tundra https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Rumors-of-Arctic-Belonging/17/pf-media/RUMORS0-001.jpgNew Umiaq, Quuniq Crew https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/1/pf-media/THIN-001.jpgRare Waters https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/2/pf-media/ThinPlacesaPhotoFolio.jpgThin Places https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/3/pf-media/THIN-002.jpgIcehenge https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/4/pf-media/THIN-002a.jpgMoss Lights, Fossil Light https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/5/pf-media/THIN-003.jpgGame with the Walrus Skull https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/6/pf-media/THIN-004.jpgMoonlife https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/7/pf-media/THIN-004a.jpgTHIN-004a https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/8/pf-media/THIN-005.jpgKodamas https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/9/pf-media/THIN-006.jpgA Great Fog https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/10/pf-media/THIN-007.jpgStone Siblings https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/11/pf-media/THIN-007a.jpgThe Spine, White Pupil https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/12/pf-media/THIN-008.jpgBeckoning Bow https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/13/pf-media/THIN-009.jpgUnder Stories https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/14/pf-media/THIN-009a.jpgKodamas 2, Under Stories 2 https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/15/pf-media/THIN-010.jpgThe Grassy Knoll https://kiliii.com/FINE-ART/Thin-Places/16/pf-media/THIN-011.jpgEye of the River Spirit https://kiliii.com/PUBLIC-SPEAKING/TEDx-Guardians-of-Life/1 https://kiliii.com/PUBLIC-SPEAKING/NatGeo-Season-of-the-Whale-%26sol;%26sol;-2018/1 https://kiliii.com/PUBLIC-SPEAKING/George-Eastman-Museum-%26sol;%26sol;-2019/1 https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/1/pf-media/GUARDIANS-001.jpgGUARDIANS-001Qumangaapik Kvist takes a smoke break on his qamutit, or sled on a long day of unsucessful seal hunting near Qaanaaq, Greenland. Income from subsistence hunting has drastically declined in the wake of animal rights activism, beginning in the 80s with the ban on seal products to current day, as quotas have been imposed on narwhal hunting, superseding traditional hunting stewardship. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/2/pf-media/GUARDIANS-002.jpgGUARDIANS-002Narwhals swim along the edge of the sea ice, between newly broken-off ice pans, on Inglefield Fjord, near Qeqertarsuaq Island, Greenland. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/3/pf-media/GUARDIANS-003.jpgKiliii YuyanInughuit hunter Qillaq Kristiansen waits patiently for narwhals in his kayak, at the edge of the sea ice on Inglefield Fjord, near Qeqertarsuaq Island, Greenland. The kayak and harpoon hunting system is part an ancient traditional hunting and wildlife management system that Inughuit follow today. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/4/pf-media/GUARDIANS-004.jpgA Pensive Hugo LucitanteHugo Lucitante, a Cofan leader, ponders the increasing threats to his homeland, while riding a canoe on the Aguarico River in the Ecuadorian Amazon. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/5/pf-media/GUARDIANS-005.jpgIllegal Goldmine in Cofan Bermejo Ecological ReserveOpen pits from active illegal gold mining by outsiders on the Bermeja River, in the Cofan Bermejo Ecological Reserve of the Ecuadorian Amazon. Illegal goldmines are an enormous problem in the Amazon basin and here in the homelands of the Cofan. The Cofan created the Ecological Reserve in the 1990s, and have stewarded it well, with no deforestation inside its borders except for these mining operations primarily funded by drug money from across the border in Columbia. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/6/pf-media/GUARDIANS-006.jpgLeaf Cutter Ants at Chandia NaeLeaf-cutter ants along a trail in the Cofan village of Chandia Nae, in the Cofan Bermejo Ecological Reserve of the Ecuadorian Amazon, in September. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/7/pf-media/GUARDIANS-008.jpgBlacktip Reef Shark under the MangrovesJuvenile blacktip reef sharks cruise in the shallows under the mangroves in a portion of Palau's Rock Islands Southern Lagoon, a UNESCO world heritage site. At this site known as shark city, tour operators will throw their leftover lunches for the sharks to eat, bringing them close for tourists to enjoy. Sharks are protected in Palau- it was the first nation to declare itself a shark sanctuary. Palau's Marine Protected area is one of the largest on earth. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/8/pf-media/GUARDIANS-007.jpgGUARDIANS-007Ismail Tewalmai sails a traditional Palaun Southwest Islander outrigger canoe as young Walter Andrew learns to navigate, near Echang, Palau. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/9/pf-media/GUARDIANS-012.jpgGUARDIANS-012A carpet python hunts along the forward edge of a Djabugay cultural burn, searching for prey escaping the flames of the Wet Topics region near Kuranda, Australia. These snakes have existed alongside anthropogenic fire for so long that they have evolved strategies to take advantage of the once-frequent occurrences created by Aboriginal peoples in the rainforest. Djabugay rangers today continue and are scaling up the practice from a time when it was suppressed. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/10/pf-media/GUARDIANS-009.jpgKiliii YuyanA banded sea krait swims towards the sea surface for air at Blue Corner, in the Rock Islands Southern Lagoon, Palau. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/11/pf-media/GUARDIANS-011.jpgDjabugay Rangers, Keepers of FireThe Bulmba Rangers, Dameon Hunter, Nyuwarri Gilkerson, Levi Newburg, Gavin Donahue (l to r) pose for a portrait on a still-burning portion of the Wet Tropics near Kuranda, Australia. The Aboriginal rangers chose their portrait here while the flames of a cultural burn continued at their feet, to show that for Djabugay people, fire is a friend when used respectfully and with traditional knowledge. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/12/pf-media/GUARDIANS-010.jpgGUARDIANS-010A cultural burn managed by the Djabugay rangers at the edges of woodland to burn back invasive grasses and encourage the growth of native species, on Djabugay country, in Queensland, Australia. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/13/pf-media/GUARDIANS-013.jpgOffering to the Snow Leopard SpiritShaman Buyanbadrakh Erdenetsogt throws an offering of sheep meat to the spirit of the snow leopard that inhabits the sacred Suutay mountain in the Altai of Mongolia. This ceremony, is a way to thank the snow leopard spirit for guarding the mountain and its people, as well as individuals that have given their lives to snow leopard protection. Frequent and regular ceremonies of gratitude to spirits of the land have made a comeback with the proliferation of shamanism after the fall of communism in Mongolia. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/14/pf-media/GUARDIANS-014.jpgBranding the FoalsA horse foal is held during a community ceremony and branded by Ser-Od Bor in the Altai mountains of Mongolia. The practice is seen as both a coming-of-age for the horses and is done accompanied by a long community ceremony of throwing milk offerings to the sky and earth. Branding of animals is a common practice among pastoral peoples, but in the Altai, shamanism is common and the constant ritual of offering to the land offers a continual connection to it. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/Guardians-of-Life/15/pf-media/GUARDIANS-015.jpgGUARDIANS-015Petroglyphs of ibex and gazelles on a hill high above the steppe at Bayan Undur, near Darvi Sum, Western Mongolia. The petroglyphs here date from 4,000-12,000 years BP. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/1/pf-media/SOV-001.jpgSOV-001Across the North American continent, Indigenous peoples are methodically reasserting control over their land, laws, and how they live. Quannah Rose Chasinghorse, a groundbreaking Indigenous model, uses her fame to support her activism, reminding people in this portrait, "whose land you're living on." Chasinghorse stands in Monument Valley, a park administered by the Diné. Native sovereignty, she says, is key to "defending my ways of life, trying to protect what's left." https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/2/pf-media/SOV-002.jpgSOV-002Carrying cedar boards to repair a walkway, Joe Louie passes the welcome sign to the Tla-o-qui-aht's Meares Island tribal park, near Vancouver Island in British Columbia in February 2022. The island has been effectively controlled by the nation since the 1980s, when it stopped loggers from working there during a renowned series of battles over sovereignty known as the War in the Woods. Today Tla-o-qui-aht parks guardians, including Louie, maintain and protect the land. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/3/pf-media/SOV-002a.jpgSOV-002aLeft: Highlighting the recovery of Nuu-chah-nulth, the Tla-o-qui-aht tongue, young Tim Masso displays two masks—one with no mouth to symbolize the loss of the language, one with an open mouth to show its revival. <br/><br />Right: Tla-o-qui-aht Director of Lands and Resources Saya Masso poses in front of the Standing Harvest Tree in British Columbia. The tree was used generations ago to provide planks for a longhouse and is a prominent feature of the Tla-o-qui-aht tribal parks. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/4/pf-media/SOV-003.jpgTla-o-qui-aht land and seaRadar Beach, a portion of the coastline in the traditional lands of the Tla-o-qui-aht first nation, glows in February twilight. Tla-o-qui-aht believe in sharing lands with the wider public, but assert their sovereignty over lands within their traditional territory as a means to keep it within their control, and thus maintain stewardship over this area, honored in travel magazines as one of the most beautiful tourist destinations on earth. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/5/pf-media/SOV-004.jpgJoe Martin and Memorial PoleTla-o-qui-aht elder and carver Joseph Martin draws final designs on a totem pole carved to memorialize the deaths of Tla-o-qui-aht from the pandemic, Canada's residential schools, and missing and murdered Indigenous women in Tofino, Canada. "When the Europeans came, they said we were illiterate," explains Joe Martin, the master carver who is overseeing the pole's creation. "But so were they– they couldn't read our totem poles." https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/6/pf-media/SOV-005.jpgDammed Algae at Copco 1The Copco 1 dam on the Klamath River in Northern California at twilight, its face coated in toxic algae in October 2020. Opened in 1918, this hydroelectric dam on the Klamath River was built before dams were required to accommodate migrating fish. Not only did it block salmon from returning to their spawning grounds; it also created a reservoir that promoted the growth of a toxic cyanobacteria. It is one of four dams to be removed because California tribes protested their environmental impact over decades. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/7/pf-media/SOV-006.jpgEmpty Net at Ishi Pishi FallsWith a dip net, Karuk fisherman Ryan Reed searches for Chinook salmon under the watchful eye of his father, Ron, on California's Klamath River at Ishi Pishi Falls. The Reeds caught no fish–stark contrast to earlier times. Before CA became a state, the river saw about 500,000 salmon each fall, but last year just 53,954 mature Chinook swam up, a 90 percent decline. The nation now restricts salmon fishing to Ishi Pishi Falls, but with the slated removal of four dams, the Karuk hope the salmon will return. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/8/pf-media/SOV-007.jpgCultural Fire, Fairy LightLow flames in cool weather– set during a Yurok-led training exercise– burn harmlessly through underbrush near Orleans, California, consuming fuel that could drive dangerous conflagrations. After miners, farmers, and state and federal governments took their lands, Native nations were forced to stop protective burning, major reason that today's wildfires are so destructive. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/9/pf-media/SOV-007a.jpgSOV-007aLeft: Yurok weaver Margo Robbins, in her weaving room in Orleans, CA. Margo is weaving the start of a baby basket using hazel branches, which can only be harvested after low-intensity fire management of the forest. <br /><br />Right: Elizabeth Azzuz, amidst prime hazel shoots in an area that previously underwent a Yurok cultural burn. Azzuz led the cultural burn, which ended right outside her home, as a way to heal the forest of her homeland, which she sees as a way to practice Yurok sovereignty. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/10/pf-media/SOV-008.jpgHealing the Land with AcornsKathy McCovey, a Karuk tribal member, tosses black oak acorns to reseed her land in Happy Camp, California, days after a wildfire destroyed her retirement home. A former U.S. Forest Service anthropologist, McCovey belongs to a Karuk team that sets controlled fires to reduce underbrush, the fuel for future fires. Last year California expanded the use of prescribed burns, an important victory for Native peoples. For Kathy, planting acorns is an act of Karuk sovereignty, and more importantly, one of healing. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/11/pf-media/SOV-009.jpgIndian Relay Riders, Pink and YellowIndian Relay racers gallop at breakneck pace along the track during the NW Montana Fair's races in 2020. An extreme sport spun from the horse traditions of the plains, Indian Relay is a break-neck bareback race on painted steeds, with riders switching from one galloping horse to another every lap. The event has spread across the North American West, putting a distinctive Indigenous stamp on agricultural fairs like this one in Kalispell, Montana. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/12/pf-media/SOV-009a.jpgSOV-009aLeft: Duane Kemmer, father of the Kemmer family Indian Relay racers and team captain, poses for a portrait with one of the team horses. Kemmer says Indian Relay is a way to connect with his children and to pass on his heritage. <br /><br />Right: Cliff Kemmer, a rider for the Counting Coup Indian Relay race team, in his race regalia. Kemmer started when he was nine years old. He works with horses every day, racing or practicing, and he breaks in Shetland ponies as a business. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/13/pf-media/SOV-010.jpgSocial Hour at Indian Relay, KalispellYoung members of Counting Coup and other Indian Relay teams socialize and visit with their horses at the NW Montana Fair in Kalispell. This period of preparation is important for more than the sport- it is a time of community. The relay brings people from across the West to share in a principal form of identity, the relationship between Native Americans and horses. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/14/pf-media/SOV-011.jpgCarlson home with BisonThe family of Sheldon Carlson, former director of the Intertribal Buffalo Council, communes at the end of the schoolday underneath bison skills at their home in Browning, Montana. The Intertribal Buffalo Council has restored thousands of bison, a cultural keystone species, to the plains near Two Medicine, MT, in conjunction with the Blackfoot Confederacy- an act of sovereignty on their lands against the fierce opposition of non-Native ranchers. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/15/pf-media/SOV-012.jpgBlackfoot Riders and Bison at Two MedicineBlackfoot riders Chazz Racine and Robert Wagner herd bison from horseback from the Piikani Nation's herd near Two Medicine River in Montana. The Siksikaitsitapi have raised buffalo since the mid-1970s, but systematic restoration began there only in 2009 on the reservation. Today they have a thousand animals, and meat is available at the reservation grocery. But to buffalo program director Ervin Carlson, the larger goal is to re-create Siksikaitsitapi landscapes– ecosystems teeming with free-ranging buffalo. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/16/pf-media/SOV-013.jpgCentral Fountain, Winstar CasinoThe central fountain and a sea of slot machines inside the WinStar World Casino and Resort. The Chickasaw Nation owns and operates the huge casino in Thackerville, Oklahoma. The nation has 31 casinos and gaming operations that help pay for, among other things, education, housing, and health care for its 73,000 citizens, as well as the salary of its ambassador to the United States. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/17/pf-media/SOV-013a.jpgSOV-013aLeft: Sara Hill, the Cherokee Nation's Attorney general, in front of the courtroom bench in the Cherokee Nation government building. “I tend to think about it in terms of not only preserving what was,” she says, “but the right to be a separate people with a separate destiny.”<br /><br />Right: Chief David Hill of the Muscogee-Creek Nation, on the banks of the Arkansas River in Tulsa, OK. Chief Hill was at the forefront of the fight that led to the landmark McGirt v. Oklahoma decision in 2020. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/18/pf-media/SOV-014.jpgAndrew Amos, Tvshka Homma StickballNineteen-year-old Andrew Amos runs for a pass in a co-ed practice game of ishtaboli (stickball) in Durant, Oklahoma in September 2020. A member of Tvshka Homma, the Choctaw Nation's men's team, Amos has played since he was seven– in contrast with previous generations, which faced government efforts to suppress the game and other expressions of Native American culture. Players are in constant motion and wear no padding, no helmets, no gloves, and, sometimes, no shoes. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/19/pf-media/SOV-015.jpgThe Medicine Line at AkwesasneThe sun sets on the forests of the Saint Lawrence River, which divides Mohawk lands, as seen from Akwesasne Reserve no. 59 in Canada. Despite successes the Mohawk have had in international recognition of their status as a nation, the US and Canada do not recognize their sovereignty. Today, Mohawk lands are split by the US-Canada border along the river, which is known as the medicine line. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/20/pf-media/SOV-016.jpgAkwesasne EmbraceKatsi Tekatsi:tsiaâkwa Cook embraces her grandson Karakwatiron during the corn harvest at her family farm in Akwesasne, New York. Raised in a prominent Mohawk (Kanienâ'keha:ka) family, she became a midwife in the late 1970s and helped found the Birthing Centre of Six Nations Health Services in Ontario. By integrating traditional customs with modern protocols, she says, Indigenous midwifery plays a role in revitalizing Mohawk culture. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/21/pf-media/SOV-016a.jpgSOV-016aLeft: Angel Jimerson, production manager of the Ganondagan White Corn Project at a trial native grass plot in Victor, NY. <br /><br />Right: Angela Ferguson, director of the Onondaga Nation Farm, in front of the corn harvest in Onondaga, NY. Ferguson works with Indigenous colleagues to bring back varieties of corn nearly lost to colonization. For Native people wanting to make a statement, she says, “the biggest protest you can make is to put one of your seeds in the ground.” https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/We-Are-Here/22/pf-media/SOV-017.jpgOnkwe Community GardenStanding in their field, members of the Onkwe community garden in Akwesasne, New York, display traditional varieties of corn, squashes, and beans they are reviving, in October 2020. Onkwe is one of about a hundred such projects in Haudenosaunee territory. The Onkwe community shares traditional knowledge inherited from elders in farming and gardening techniques with youth and families. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/1/pf-media/WHLB-001.jpgWHLB-001High above the Arctic Circle on sea ice a mile from shore, an Iñupiaq whaling crew watches from the sea ice for a passing bowhead whale at 2am. The Iñupiat have hunted whales here for millennia, often waiting for fickle sea ice conditions in an era of changing climate. The unpredictability of this coastal Arctic environment means that the Iñupiaq are the carriers of a vast ecological knowledge. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/2/pf-media/WHLB-003.jpgWHLB-003Knowledge of the sea ice is paramount to successful whaling by Iñupiat. This aerial photograph shows the scale of sea ice environment where it meets the Arctic Ocean. Somewhere within this expanse of water, an umiaq, or skinboat, must intercept a bowhead whale within 2 meters. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/3/pf-media/WHLB-004a.jpgWHLB-004aLeft: Larry Lucas Kaleak is the co-captain of Iñupiaq whaling crew, Yugu. He is responsible for many of the day to day duties of a whaling crew, including the nighttime polar bear watch. During the night, ice fog has coated the fur on his parka with hoarfrost.<br /><br />Right: Harriet Leavitt Reich is the wife of Qallu Reich, the captain of Yugu crew. In Iñupiaq culture, she has the ultimate authority on whaling decisions and is a leader with the highest social standing within the community. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/4/pf-media/WHLB-005.jpgWHLB-005Whaling requires an around-the-clock watch. Aside from the threat of polar bears, there is the everpresent danger of an ivu, or collision of the pack ice into the shore. Much like sped-up plate tectonics, a destructive crash is often preceded only by a moment's notice and a vigilant crewmember. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/5/pf-media/WHLB-006.jpgWHLB-006Billy Ray Okpeaha, a 15 year-old aspiring whaler, throws a hunk of ice out of the path of his crew's skinboat. For the young people of town, whaling is a sense of identity and purpose. It also keeps them out of trouble. The public defender for the Alaskan Iñupiaq villages notes, " During the whaling seasons, probably four months of the year, crime becomes nonexistent. All the young men are out whaling." https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/6/pf-media/WHLB-007.jpgWHLB-007Seven-year old Steven Reich examines his father's umiaq, or skinboat used for whaling. His father Qallu, captain of Yugu crew, expresses nervous excitement to bring Steven out whaling on the ice for the first time: "I am proud of my son; he's here to learn to be a hunter." Despite the enthusiasm, Qallu is anxious about safely reading the changing conditions of the ice. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/7/pf-media/WHLB-008.jpgWHLB-008Larry Lucas Kaleak listens to the sounds of passing whales and bearded seals through a skinboat paddle in the water. The sounds of bearded seals and bowheaded whales are unique and distinctive, and can be easily heard in the vibrations of the wooden paddle. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/8/pf-media/WHLB-009.jpgWHLB-009This camp, erected miles out on the sea ice, is the Iñupiaq home away from home. Despite spending months living in cramped and frozen quarters, the captain of Yugu crew prefers it. "It is quiet here." This setup is typical of spring whalers, who spend months on the sea ice waiting for whales by their skinboat. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/9/pf-media/WHLB-010.jpgWHLB-010A rare windless day results in glassy waters at the edge of the sea ice on the Chukchi Sea. Days like this are cherished good weather windows and are the time when the volatile sea ice environment is the safest. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/10/pf-media/WHLB-011.jpgWHLB-011A beluga whale shows its flukes as it dives under the sea ice. Our of respect to tradition and the rhythms of the land, Iñupiat do not hunt belugas during the whaling season. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/11/pf-media/WHLB-012.jpgWHLB-012Flora Aiken gives a silent blessing to the first bowhead whale of the spring season. The Iñupiaq have a rich spiritual life which centers around the gift of the whale to the community. Foster Simmonds offers a prayer, saying, "Hide something for me. Look at the food, the whales. Look at the sea, the whalers. A blessing for them. Take that and hide it in your heart." The whale here is tied up after being towed to the ice's edge and is awaiting the village to come and help haul it onto the ice. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/12/pf-media/WHLB-013.jpgWHLB-013"Whaling is community. It takes a village to pull up a whale," says whaling captain Ned Arey. This bowhead, caught by Arey crew, is being pulled onto the ice by dozens of Iñupiat, who work tirelessly for 8 hours or more. This whale took broke through the thin sea ice several times before being abandoned due to the danger-- a major symptom of the warming Arctic Ocean. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/13/pf-media/WHLB-014.jpgWHLB-014Billy Ray Okpeaha kneels next to an umiaq in ready position, anticipating the surfacing of a bowhead whale. When the whale surfaces, the crew must quickly and silently slide the skinboat into the water right next to it. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/14/pf-media/WHLB-015.jpgWHLB-015A rare calm day out on the Beaufort Sea belies the instability of the sea ice-- day by day vast sections break away and float along with the current, often stranding subsistence hunters. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/15/pf-media/WHLB-016.jpgWHLB-016On the Arctic Ocean, Iñupiaq paddle their umiaq skinboat. A Fata Morgana mirage makes their umiaq appear to float over the sea. Spring whaling by umiaq is made possible by the shorefast sea ice. As the sea ice gets thinner each spring from a warming climate, traditional whaling becomes increasingly challenging. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/16/pf-media/WHLB-027.jpgWHLB-027Polar bears present an ever-present danger to Iñupiaq whalers when out on the ice. Attracted to the scent of fresh blubber, they prowl the edges of camp, but are usually scared off by rifle shots and noisemakers. During whale butchering many people stand guard against the bears circling nearby and keep children close to camp. This bear at Akootchook's whale was one of thirteen seen in a single day on the sea ice off Utqiagviq, Alaska. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/17/pf-media/WHLB-017.jpgWHLB-017A bowhead whale harvested by Iñupiat finally rests on a thick section of sea ice after being slowly pulled out of the water for the past 8 hours. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/18/pf-media/WHLB-018.jpgWHLB-018Iñupiat shoot photographs of a successful whaling crew using smartphones. The use of phones, Facebook, and other modern communication devices belies the underlying strength of family ties in this community. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/19/pf-media/WHLB-020.jpgWHLB-020Division of whale meat and blubber is governed by Iñupiaq tradition and followed strictly by whaling crews. Here, the niñit, or community shares, are equally apportioned, and even the whaler's share will be given away at Nalukataq, the summer whaling festival. The tradition of gifting ensures that less-fortunate members of the community benefit from the bounty of successful whalers. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/20/pf-media/WHLB-021.jpgWHLB-021A young polar bear investigates the recently butchered carcass of a bowhead. While spring and fall whale hunts provide a source of food for the bears, the fall hunt is especially critical for bears on the verge of starvation caused by reduced pack ice in the summer months. Many Iñupiat prefer to let the bears feed provided they maintain a safe distance from people. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/21/pf-media/WHLB-021aaaa.jpgWHLB-021aaaaLeft: Marvin Kanayurak takes a break from the whale-towing line and snacks on freshly boiled maktak, or whale skin and blubber.<br /><br />Right: Iñupiaq homes often resemble typical Midwestern houses– with the spoils of subsistence hunting in the Arctic. This whale blubber and meat is being readied to be cut into smaller portions. Fresh raw maktak is a delicacy only eaten twice a year during the whaling seasons. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/22/pf-media/WHLB-022.jpgWHLB-022Raleigh Kowunna and Nuyaagiq Ahyakak chat inside a whaling tent, heated only by the open flame of a propane stove. Whaling is a community effort, and here on the ice is where the knowledge of elders is passed on to young whalers. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/23/pf-media/WHLB-022a.jpgWHLB-022aLeft: From autumn to spring, the front porch acts as a family freezer for caribou, as here in the village of Utqiagvik, Alaska.<br /><br />Right: Steven Reich prepares to give away candy and leftover maktak from his whaling crew to the community of Utqiagviq, in a ritual marking the beginning of the whaling season. This ritual and many others surrounding whaling reinforce the bonds of the Iñupiaq community. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/24/pf-media/WHLB-023.jpgWHLB-023The town of Utqiagvik sits at the northernmost point in arctic Alaska. Today it is a bustling town of 5000 people, primarily Iñupiaq. In the mid 1900s, Iñupiaq were forced into permanent settlements and began to adopt European ways of life at the expense of cultural identity. One result is that the suicide rate in the Arctic is higher than anywhere else on the planet. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/25/pf-media/WHLB-024.jpgHarpooned Ugruk SealThough the traditional umiaq remains in use for whaling, the Iñupiat adopted motorized boats in favor of traditional kayaks a century ago. Nonetheless, much remains the same, including the need for harpoons and the ecological knowledge required to successfully hunt seals among the ice floes. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/26/pf-media/WHLB-025.jpgWHLB-025Though Western palates consider seals inedible, they are a basic source of food for the Iñupiaq. Misigaq, or seal oil, is a liquid made from the blubber of the bearded seal. Left to ferment for a few days at refrigerator temperatures, it is eaten together with many traditional foods. Marine mammal blubber contains vitamins and nutrients that are normally only found in plant foods, keeping the Iñupiaq free of the scurvy that plagued early foreigners to the Arctic. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/27/pf-media/WHLB-026.jpgWHLB-026Jesse Darling pulls a salmon from his gillnet right set in the lagoon right outside of town. Older Iñupiat recall that the first major appearance of salmon was only about ten years ago. Prior to that the catch was primarily whitefish and grayling. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/28/pf-media/WHLB-026a.jpgWHLB-026aLeft: Bernadette Adams was the first Iñupiaq woman to harpoon a whale in recent memory. “I happen to have no brothers, so I had to find some way to help the family out,” says Bernadette.<br/><br/>Right: Iñupiat elder Foster Simmonds has been a whaler since he was a child. Since then, whaling has seen subtle changes. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/29/pf-media/WHLB-026b.jpgWHLB-026bLeft: Kids play on the beach during the summer and dart away happily to retrieve fallen eider ducks that have been shot by their relatives, distributing the workload in this arctic environment.<br /><br />Right: For young people everywhere, cultural skills take learning and practice. Cathy Peacock hangs seal meat to dry and professes that there’s much to learn, though she is proud to keep her traditions strong. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/30/pf-media/WHLB-028.jpgWHLB-028Makalik Wilhelm and Billy Ray Okpeaha drag the skin of a polar bear to the edge for cleaning in icy arctic waters. Shot in self-defense, Iñupiaq nevertheless immediately work to utilize as much of the animal as possible, despite the distance from village support. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/31/pf-media/WHLB-029.jpgWHLB-029Members of Yugu crew clean the hide of an eight foot nanuq, or polar bear, shot while defending camp. Starving and desperate, it stalked into the whaling camp, 15 yards away from members of the crew and the photographer. The North Slope Borough's Wildlife Department reports increasing conflicts with polar bears in the past decade. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/32/pf-media/WHLB-030.jpgWHLB-030A polar bear hide hangs underneath rows of drying beaded seal meat and above frozen quarters of caribou. This is the front porch of whaling captain Quuniq Donovan's mother, and is typical for a subsistence household in Utqiavik. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/33/pf-media/WHLB-031.jpgWHLB-031Today's Iñupiaq leaders live double lives, treading the fine line between modern concerns for the community and the subsistence lifestyle. Maasak Leavitt, who works for the North Slope Borough, was hurt when his son pronounced on Facebook that his dad was 'too busy politicking' to hunt. Maasak hopes one day his son will understand that his work in government helps to protect traditional practices. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/34/pf-media/WHLB-032.jpgWHLB-032At Nalukataq in Barrow, Alaska, the Iñupiaq whaling festival, the village comes out to celebrate a successful whaling season and to give thanks to the whale for its gift. Here, successful whalers must do the blanket toss. They are thrown up to thirty feet in the air, and depend on everyone's hands to land safely. This trust goes back millennia, and ensures intimacy among the growing population in Iñupiaq villages. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/35/pf-media/WHLB-033.jpgWHLB-033Elder Fannie Akpik stands in front the Barrow cemetery, where many of her family members rest. When Christianity was adopted by the Iñupiaq, it marked a major change for the culture. Today, the social forces of global media and communication mark another cultural pivot. Fannie Akpik is a strong advocate for regaining cultural identity and language through education in Iñupiaq schools. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/36/pf-media/WHLB-033a.jpgWHLB-033aLeft: A large male polar bear investigates the freshly butchered carcass of a bowhead whale.<br /><br />Right: Elder Nuyaagiq Ahyakak skins a common eider at whaling camp. Food at whaling camp today is often store-bought for its portability and shelf life, but opportunistic subsistence foods like eider are welcomed and preferred. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/37/pf-media/WHLB-033b.jpgWHLB-033bLeft: 16-year old Yugu Ningeok, a member of an Iñupiaq whaling crew, wears his ice camoflauge cover, or qatiginisi. Yugu is named after his uncle, the original founder of the whaling crew.<br /><br />Right: Thomas Kingosak, a member of Yugu crew, poses for the camera in front of a block of multi-year ice. TK has been a hunter since his childhood and keeps his rifle close during the whaling season for polar bear defense. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/38/pf-media/WHLB-033c.jpgWHLB-033cSigvaun Kaleak and his father Raleigh, wearing traditional ice camouflauge parkas, are lifelong whalers. Although European whaling decimated the global whale population by the 1900, the Iñupiat maintained a sustainable harvest of bowheads. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/39/pf-media/WHLB-034.jpgWHLB-034An unusual phenomenon known as a sun pillar forms between above the sea ice on the Chukchi Sea. This type of refraction is only seen when the air is filled with ice crystals. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/40/pf-media/WHLB-035.jpgWHLB-035A young polar bear stares wistfully at the recently butchered carcass of a bowhead. While spring and fall whale hunts provide a source of food for the bears, the fall hunt is especially critical for bears on the verge of starvation caused by reduced pack ice in the summer months. Many Iñupiat prefer to let the bears feed provided they maintain a safe distance from people. https://kiliii.com/PROJECTS/People-of-the-Whale/41/pf-media/WHLB-036.jpgWHLB-036This newly-built umiaq belongs to Quuniq crew, the youngest in Utqiagvik. Whaling tradition is passed on with intention to younger generations, as Iñupiat increasingly understand the importance of cultural identity through traditional practices over modern versions. "Everyone gets excited by the outboards but as I've gotten older I prefer the [traditional] umiaq. It's the patience and it's more challenging," says captain Qallu Reich. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/1/pf-media/ARCB-001.jpgARCB-001An Arctic river flows down through the Brooks Range in Alaska as it thaws in the summer. The Brooks Range marks a transition from the forested taiga to the South, and the tundra of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/2/pf-media/ANWRB-001.jpgANWRB-001A herd of caribou races over a mountain pass at the southern end of the Arctic National WIldlife Refuge. For the past 30 years this wilderness, known as ANWR for short, has been a battleground between oil interests and the environmental movement. In 2018, it was opened for oil and gas drilling by the Trump Administration. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/3/pf-media/ARCB-003.jpgARCB-003A set of caribou antlers demarcates the corner of a bushplane airstrip in the Arctic Refuge. The scarcity of manmade objects here is a testament to the unchanged nature of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge even in the modern era. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/4/pf-media/ARCB-004.jpgARCB-004A packraft expeditioner pulls off the Hulahula River at a bend to setup camp. Though the landscape is open, distances are easily underestimated in this enormous region. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/5/pf-media/ARCB-004a.jpgARCB-004aLeft: In Arctic Village there is a memorial to the heroes of the Gwich'in that have fought to protect the caribou calving grounds of the Arctic Refuge.<br /><br />Right: Gwich'in elder Gideon James, on the battle for ANWR, says, "My people have lived in a real fashion, where they know how to do things for themselves; they're skillful. For the life of me, I'm ashamed of the legislators. All they are is a puppet of the big companies." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/6/pf-media/ARCB-005.jpgARCB-005The Gwich'in residents of Arctic Village have led the fight againt oil drilling in the region for 30 years. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/7/pf-media/ARCB-007.jpgARCB-007White-Crowned Sparrow eggs nestle in the grasses of the tundra in June. Birds from every continent except Australia migrate here for the summer to mate and nest, taking advantage of the rich Arctic summers. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/8/pf-media/ARCB-007a.jpgARCB-007aLeft: Elssie Tritt has grown up in Arctic Village and has only known a life where the caribou are integral. She takes a momentary break from romping about the taiga, then resumes chasing her brother around the village.<br /><br />Right: Bertha Ross laughs heartily atop her four-wheeler as she ferries supplies from Arctic Village's tiny airstrip. Out here, her voice carries across the tundra. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/9/pf-media/ARCB-008.jpgARCB-008Flowering cassandra, part of the heath family of berry-producing plants, covers the tundra in the Arctic Refuge, https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/10/pf-media/ARCB-009.jpgARCB-009A grizzly trail parallels the trails of caribou along the claylike upper reaches of the Hulahula river. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/11/pf-media/ARCB-010.jpgARCB-010A young Grizzly Bear (Ursus Arctos) with unusual blonde coloration forages on the tundra near Kaktovik, Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/12/pf-media/ARCB-010a.jpgARCB-010aLeft: A bush plane comes around to inspect its 'airstrip'-- a cleared and mostly flat gravel bar in the middle of the Hulahula river.<br /><br />Right: A microburst drenches the taiga of the southern Arctic Refuge. Summer here is brief, and Arctic plants take advantage of the undending daylight for maximal growth. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/13/pf-media/ARCB-011.jpgARCB-011An expedition group from the Sierra Club make their way down towards the Arctic Ocean along the Hulahula River in ANWR's coastal plain. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/14/pf-media/ARCB-012.jpgARCB-012A sheet of spring overflow ice floats above the Hulahula River in the fog. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/15/pf-media/ANWRB-002.jpgANWRB-002A bull caribou forages on the tundra as it sheds its winter coat in preparation for summer. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/16/pf-media/ARCB-014.jpgARCB-014Expedition base camp for the Sierra Club rafting trip. Each year the Sierra Club sends a variety of influential people from policymakers to influencers to the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, so that they can see for themselves this vast living wilderness. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/17/pf-media/ARCB-015.jpgARCB-015A rafting expedition from the Sierra Club floats down the Hulahula river with expert piloting. The bleak fog hides the myriad of migratory waterfowl and their constant calls. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/18/pf-media/ARCB-015a.jpgARCB-015aLeft: A male common redpoll patrols its territory along an Arctic riverbank in the Arctic Refuge.<br /><br />Right: A tiny jeweled wasp drinks the nectar of Arctic Willow blossoms on the tundra. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/19/pf-media/ARCB-016.jpgARCB-016Caribou walk carefully across overflow ice as they attempt to cross the Hulahula River. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/20/pf-media/ARCB-017.jpgARCB-017Caribou graze as they work their way through the wet marshes of the tundra. Most of the tundra is like this-- low and wet due tot he permafrost just under the surface. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/The-Arctic-Refuge/21/pf-media/ARCB-018.jpgARCB-018A subsistence camp rests along the banks of the Hulahula. 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https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Rewilding-Patagonia/33/pf-media/PAT-030.jpgPAT-030 https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/1/pf-media/NAVAJO-001-1.jpgNAVAJO-001-1Jordyn Yazzie poses above Canyon de Chelly in her regalia, during the short season of snow up high on the Navajo Nation in Arizona. Jordyn's family participates in a rural home-visit healthcare program managed by the tribe. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/2/pf-media/NAVAJO-004.jpgNAVAJO-004Spider Rock is the home of Spider Woman, a cherished hero among the Diné, or Navajo. Spider Woman taught the ancestors of the Diné the art of weaving, and her home remains a sacred place on the Navajo Nation. Today Canyon de Chelly is an iconic part of the American Southwest and Native America. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/3/pf-media/NAVAJO-002.jpgNAVAJO-002A Diné cowboy looks out over the herd of cattle he is driving to auction. On Navajo land, sheepherding and cattle ranching remain important livelihoods in the 21st century. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/4/pf-media/NAVAJO-002a.jpgNAVAJO-002aLeft: The young sister of two Diné cowboys waits in a pickup as her brothers drive cattle past on the way to auction. The combination of trucks and horses as tools for cattle ranching are a pragmatic compromise between modernity and tradition.<br /><br />Right: A calf looks on after taking a drink of milk from its mother on a long drive to auction on the Navajo Nation in Arizona. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/5/pf-media/NAVAJO-003.jpgKiliii YuyanA calf leaps over brush on the northern portion of Navajo land as a Diné cowboy watches the herd. The two brothers are driving their cattle to auction, and learning the traditional skills needed to continue the long lineage of Diné as herders. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/6/pf-media/NAVAJO-005.jpgNAVAJO-005Mikhail Bahe arranges a cradleboard as her husband walks the baby inside their family's modern hogan. Hogans and traditional families like Mikhail's are common today in the rural Navajo Nation. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/7/pf-media/NAVAJO-005a.jpgNAVAJO-005aRenee Charley brushes a young woman's long hair with a be'ezo, or bundle of grass used traditionally by Diné for this purpose. For many Native American peoples, hair has special importance, and for Diné, hair is considered a store of memory. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/8/pf-media/NAVAJO-005b.jpgNAVAJO-005bLeft: A juniper tree at high elevation on the Navajo Nation wakes as early morning frost vanishes along with freezing fog. Winter conditions are the norm here, even in Arizona.<br /><br />Right: A free-ranging foal pauses for a moment from grazing in the evening sun near the rim of Canyon de Chelly. Horses are considered sacred animals by the Diné, many of whom maintain free-ranging herds. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/9/pf-media/NAVAJO-006.jpgNAVAJO-006Two Navajo women take an early morning run in Canyon de Chelly. They say their ancestors have been running in this valley since the beginning of time. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/10/pf-media/NAVAJO-006a.jpgNAVAJO-006aKristin Mitchell embracing the snowfall under a juniper tree as it is shaken, taking a traditional Navajo snow bath at Spider Rock. This part of a snow bath is: Yas ninny' bee táádigis bil ádi didiilchil dóó ádaah nidinííldah, or rub your face and body with snow and dust it off. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/11/pf-media/NAVAJO-006b.jpgNAVAJO-006bLeft: Renee Charley picks female juniper berries to make ghost-beads. The berries are dried and then strung into necklaces. Junipers are an important part of Diné spiritual practice. Though the relationship is complex, the berries relate to the connection between the human and spirit worlds.<br /><br />Right: Danielle Nelson holds her niece in the doorway of her family's modern hogan. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/12/pf-media/NAVAJO-007.jpgNAVAJO-007Renee Charley, a home visitor from the Family Spirit program, plays Navajo string games. String games are a traditional wintertime storytelling activity, which can be easily learned but difficult to master. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/13/pf-media/NAVAJO-008.jpgNAVAJO-008Mikhail Bahe and her husband weave together on a loom passed down over generations. Diné textiles have been highly valued for 150 years, and remains an important livelihood for many on the rural Navajo Nation. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/14/pf-media/NAVAJO-008a.jpgNAVAJO-008aLeft: Diné women carry on a number of important and renowned craft traditions, including basketry and weaving. Renee Charley spins yarn using a drop spindle, as a baby naps in his cradleboard.<br /><br />Right: Siblings sleep in their cradleboards for a quiet moment inside their family's hogan on the Navajo Nation. Although cradleboards are ancient, they are still in common use by Diné. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/15/pf-media/NAVAJO-009.jpgNAVAJO-009Solar panels and a tricycle rest nearby a Diné ramada, or sun shelter. Ramadas are places where Diné families gather in the summer. Today, as the Navajo Nation continues its efforts to modernize rural areas, renewable energy and Western health initiatives have made inroads. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/16/pf-media/NAVAJO-010.jpgNAVAJO-010Inside a modern hogan in rural Arizona, a family prepares for a visit by a heathcare worker from the Navajo Nation system. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/17/pf-media/NAVAJO-011.jpgNAVAJO-011 https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/18/pf-media/NAVAJO-012.jpgNAVAJO-012A group of free ranging horses graze along the rim of Canyon de Chelly, on the Navajo Nation. In recent times, drought has brought great suffering to feral horses in the region, which are considered to be heavily overpopulated. Resistance from animal rights groups has prevented culling of the herds to sustainable size. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Navajo-Nation/19/pf-media/NAVAJO-013.jpgNAVAJO-013A descendant of one of the original Navajo Codetalkers, Aaron Sam is a Hatałii, or traditional medicine man of the Diné. He performs a cleansing ceremony to clear the air inside this hogan, where he performs healing ceremony in conjunction with the Fort Defiance hospital, on the Navajo Nation. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/1/pf-media/ICE-002.jpgICE-002 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/2/pf-media/LEOPARD-001.jpgLEOPARD-001 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/3/pf-media/ICE-001.jpgICE-001 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/4/pf-media/ICE-003.jpgICE-003 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/5/pf-media/ICE-006.jpgICE-006 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/6/pf-media/ICE-004.jpgICE-004 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/7/pf-media/ICE-005.jpgICE-005 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/8/pf-media/CONVERGE-033.jpgCONVERGE-033 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/9/pf-media/ICE-007.jpgICE-007 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/10/pf-media/ICE-008.jpgICE-008 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/11/pf-media/ICE-009.jpgICE-009 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/12/pf-media/ICE-011.jpgICE-011 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/13/pf-media/ICE-013.jpgICE-013 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/14/pf-media/ICE-014.jpgICE-014 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Beneath-the-Ice/15/pf-media/ICE-015.jpgICE-015 https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/1/pf-media/NINGALOO-001.jpgKiliii YuyanThere are few experiences to remind one of how small they are in the world, and swimming with a whale shark over Australia's Ningaloo Reef is one. Tightly regulated swimming with both whale sharks and humpback whales has created a low-impact tourist industry that supports conservation and prevents overtourism. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/2/pf-media/NINGALOO-002.jpgNINGALOO-002This fringing coral reef is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and one of the least known diving and snorkeling destinations. Cold waters from offshore flood into the reef at high tides, largely protecting the coral from the major bleaching events seen elsewhere in Australia. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/3/pf-media/NINGALOO-005.jpgNINGALOO-005Ningaloo reef system is primarily composed of bommies, blooms of coral that seemingly spring straight out of the white sands here. This in turn supports a rich ecosystem that is rich with the biodiversity of the Coral Triangle. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/4/pf-media/NINGALOO-003.jpgNINGALOO-003Community protections here have allowed fish to grow to enormous sizes, like this male coral trout, large enough to cohabitate under a bommie with a whitetip reef shark at the northern end of Ningaloo. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/5/pf-media/NINGALOO-004.jpgNINGALOO-004Ningaloo is famous for its shallow reefs, which allow a closer experience for snorkelers and freedivers even from shore. Boats offer even easier access to the prime portions of the reef. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/6/pf-media/NINGALOO-006.jpgNINGALOO-006A reef manta glides over the sands at Ningaloo Reef in August. During plankton blooms, visibility declines but charismatic megafauna- mantas and whale sharks arrive to feed on the bounty. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/7/pf-media/NINGALOO-006a.jpgNINGALOO-006aThe Ningaloo's sister body of water is Exmouth Gulf, a large bay that remains unprotected. Between the outside reef and the gulf is a peninsula of desert, one of the driest and hottest regions of Australia. But where there is water, fresh or saline, life thrives. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/8/pf-media/NINGALOO-007.jpgNINGALOO-007River and streams paint with mineral-rich sediments through the desert, supporting mangroves estuaries and feeding into the shallows of Exmouth Gulf. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/9/pf-media/NINGALOO-008.jpgNINGALOO-008A brahminy kite watches for prey attentively on driftwood high over a riverbank feeding into the sea at Ningaloo Reef. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/10/pf-media/NINGALOO-010.jpgNINGALOO-010A humpback whale slaps its pectoral fins on the surface of Exmouth Gulf, signaling to other whales during a rambunctious hour at sunset. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/11/pf-media/NINGALOO-009.jpgNINGALOO-009Humpback whales, taking a break from a long migration, rest and raise their calves in Exmouth Gulf. This mother and young one sleep on a peaceful day in a serene sea. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/12/pf-media/NINGALOO-011.jpgNINGALOO-011Snorkelers dash back onto the boat with a bit of help from a deckhand, after an exhilarating, and tiring, whale shark swim at Ningaloo Reef. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/13/pf-media/NINGALOO-011a.jpgNINGALOO-011aThe colors and patterns of the underwater world at Ningaloo seem to repeat in fractalline glory. Ningaloo's trademark clothing items are patterned after whale shark skin- from towels to rash guards, the people of Exmouth are proud of their charismatic sharks. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/14/pf-media/NINGALOO-012.jpgNINGALOO-012A well-concealed cowtail stingray shuffles in the sand to settle in and camoflauge. This two meter ray is common here in Ningaloo's white sands. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/15/pf-media/NINGALOO-013.jpgNINGALOO-013Photographer Brooke Pyke returns to the surface after freediving down for a manta ray at Ningaloo Reef. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/16/pf-media/NINGALOO-014.jpgNINGALOO-014Snorkelers with Live Ningaloo celebrate after having swum with the infamous Ningaloo Big Three- a manta, a whale shark, and a humpback whale– in a single day. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/17/pf-media/NINGALOO-015.jpgNINGALOO-015A cowtail stingray which has lost its barb, rests on a seabed of white coral sand at the inner reef. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/18/pf-media/NINGALOO-016.jpgNINGALOO-016A frequent visitor of divers is the olive sea snake, a species that has adapted to life in the ocean. This one swims around the reef, investigating nooks and crannies for prey at 15 meters, before it will return to the surface for a breath of air. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/19/pf-media/NINGALOO-017.jpgNINGALOO-017A spectacular lionfish, native to the Australasian waters, swims around a coral bommie, showing off its poisonous spines to potential predators. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/20/pf-media/NINGALOO-018.jpgNINGALOO-018A whitetip reef shark rests undeneath overhanging coral at Blizzard Ridge on the Ningaloo Reef. Whitetip reef sharks do not need to keep swimming like many shark cousins, but can pass water over their gills at rest. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/21/pf-media/NINGALOO-019.jpgNINGALOO-019A young snorkeler dives down to check out the shallow corals at Ningaloo Reef. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/22/pf-media/NINGALOO-020.jpgNINGALOO-020A snorkeler tries to keep pace with a juvenile whale shark during a swim at Ningaloo Reef. Regulations here only allow swimmers to approach after the shark has passed, ensuring the gentle giants will not be disturbed and dive away. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/23/pf-media/NINGALOO-021.jpgNINGALOO-021An exuberant swimmer climbs back aboard her boat after a successful whale shark swim of several minutes, remarking, "It feels like magic when you're swimming right next to it." https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Ningaloo-Reef/24/pf-media/NINGALOO-022.jpgNINGALOO-022A migrating humpback whale with her calf swim just below the surface of the water at Ningaloo Reef. The population of humpbacks here is unique to Western Australia, singing unique songs that are not used by other humpbacks worldwide. Along the way, the pair may stop to feed and rest in the Exmouth Gulf before their long journey north. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/1/pf-media/OTT-001.jpgOTT-001Sea otters raft up, a hundred at once, in Alaska's Halibut Cove, after an explosive population recovery. Together they groom and rest between bouts of the vigorous foraging that frustrates shellfish-harvesting humans. “It’s important for us to relearn how to coexist with sea otters,” Tim Tinker says. “Humans had learned that. And then for 150 years arriving Europeans learned how not to.” https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/2/pf-media/OTT-006.jpgOTT-006On a commercial dive boat, Jared Ellis finishes hauling up sea cucumbers harvested by boat owner Craig Thomas. As shellfish-hungry sea otters have spread throughout other parts of Southeast Alaska, they’ve so far mostly stayed away from this spot, Kasaan Bay. But wandering sea otters are now sighted here from time to time. “We see it as a matter of time,” says Ellis, who works in construction in the summer but hopes to become a career dive fisherman. “It’s scary, for sure.” https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/3/pf-media/OTT-001-2.jpgOTT-001-2A curious sea otter pup floats on the belly of its mother in Kasitsna Bay, Alaska. “I refer to their cuteness as their publicity problem,” says Sea Otter Savvy head Gena Bentall, a biologist whose organization gives kayakers and other onlookers guidelines for sensible behavior around wild sea otters. Smitten otter-watchers sometimes paddle too close, or even give chase, trying for the cutest photograph. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/4/pf-media/OTT-003.jpgOTT-003Commercial diver Glenn Gollen gathers sea cucumbers from the seafloor of Kasaan Bay, Alaska. Across Southeast Alaska, writer Cynthia Gorney heard them described as “an infestation” (a Haida tribal leader) and from a man who’s fished the area for almost 40 years: “Actually one of the most destructive things on the planet.” https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/5/pf-media/OTT-004.jpgOTT-004Sea otters rest and forage in a large raft of more than a hundred in Halibut Cove, near Homer, Alaska. Northern sea otters, unlike their southern relatives, in recent decades have multiplied prolifically in waters from which they had once vanished. A 2021 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service–supported study put the Southeast Alaska count at more than 27,000 sea otters. Canadian scientists estimate that another 8,000 live along British Columbia’s coast. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/6/pf-media/OTT-005.jpgOTT-005Tlingit fur artist Christy Ruby heads home after a day’s hunt off Prince of Wales Island. As an Indigenous Alaskan, Ruby is permitted by law to harvest sea otters, as long as they are only used for subsistence or for traditional handicrafts. “I don’t take it lightly when I take a life,” Ruby says. “It’s ancestral. It’s in my blood.” Research supports the idea that sea otters learn to avoid danger areas and that Indigenous people once used site-specific sea otter hunting to protect shellfish areas. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/7/pf-media/OTT-006a.jpgOTT-006aPortrait of Craig Thomas and Glenn Gollen, just before diving for sea cucumbers from the Divemaster, a commercial sea cucumber dive boat in Kasaan Bay. Thomas, with fellow diver Glenn Gollen, is a fourth-generation Alaskan facing fierce competition from sea otters for shellfish like the hefty local geoducks. “I’ve seen them dig a three-pound geoduck out of a flat sand bed in a minute and a half,” Thomas says. “It’s just mind-boggling.” https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/8/pf-media/OTT-007.jpgOTT-007Commercial diver Craig Thomas gathers sea cucumbers from the seafloor of Kasaan Bay, Alaska. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/9/pf-media/OTT-008.jpgOTT-008Northern sea otters forage in a group near rocks off of Yukon Island in Kachemak Bay, Alaska. A snow-covered Mount Whittier is in the background. The genders tend to split up by raft: all females, with pups and often one territorial male, or all males. Together they groom and rest between bouts of the vigorous foraging that frustrates shellfish-harvesting humans. “It’s a long-term relationship we are in,” Tinker says. “Humans and sea otters have to basically re-figure out how we coexist.” https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/10/pf-media/OTT-009.jpgOTT-009Aerial view of Alaska Native hunter Christy Ruby in position, camouflaged, to hunt sea otters as they drift in close to the rocks, on Prince of Wales Island, Alaska. “The MMPA wasn’t written for ever dealing with overabundance,” says Mike Miller, a Sitka Tribal Council member who chairs Alaska’s Indigenous People’s Council for Marine Mammals. “But if you look at their overall impact on ocean health, there’s a positive side to otters too. There’s got to be something close to balance someplace.” https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/11/pf-media/OTT-009a.jpgOTT-009aChristy Ruby, a Tlingit hunter and fashion designer, in the field (left) and her studio in Ketchikan, Alaska (right). Christy uses traditional Alaska Native materials, primarily seal and sea otter skins she has harvested and processed herself. Ruby was a graphic artist before she decided to make her living hunting sea otters and seals, as allowed by federal law because of her Tlingit ancestry. She has won Indigenous art awards for the “unique apparel” she sells on her website—including vests, mittens, and hats. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Sea-Otter-Rebound/12/pf-media/OTT-010.jpgOTT-010A dry and groomed sea otter swims near its raft in Halibut Cove, near Homer, Alaska in October. Other regions in the mainland US are learning from the Alaskan sea otter experience. “We are not necessarily dead set against sea otter reintroduction,” says Oregon Dungeness Crab Commission executive director Tim Novotny. “The concern is, you don’t want to put a floating time bomb of furry crab-eaters in the water. Goats are cute, but nobody wants 5,000 of them in their backyard.” https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/1/pf-media/GPOCK-001.jpgGPOCK-001Under a cold sea in British Columbia, a giant pacific octopus hunts across a garden of marine life, exploding with color. Cold seas aren't always so rich, but mountainous undersea landscapes combined with the world's fastest currents create seemingly magical environments, pulsing with life. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/2/pf-media/GPOCK-002.jpgGPOCK-002Pushed by tidal exchanges of nearly 20 feet, currents rip across Canada's Browning Passage, where bull kelp thrives. This young kelp, only yards long, will grow by as much as 10 inches each day in spring, eventually forming tall and thick kelp forests that cradle a myriad of living things year-round. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/3/pf-media/GPOCK-021.jpgGPOCK-021A lone fish-eating anemone in an anemone forest blossoms with color. Although anemones and their jellyfish cousins exist on a slow-motion timescale, they are nonetheless avaricious predators. Anemones are equipped with tiny toxic harpoons they use to sting and subdue everything from plankton to fish. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/4/pf-media/GPOCK-004.jpgGPOCK-004The brightly colored reefs of the Pacific Northwest have caused many of its inhabitants to adopt camoflauge to suit. This type of large sculpin, known as a red irish lord, is usually found on outcroppings where the currents sweep prey in front. It's dwarfed by the meter-tall plumose anemones, also reaching into the current to collect their food. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/5/pf-media/GPOCK-006.jpgGPOCK-006Even large creatures in the current-swept Puget Sound often hide in cracks and crevices- until it's time for dinner. This female wolf eel accepts a diver's gift of a sea urchin, crushing and eviscerating the well-protected urchin in seconds. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/6/pf-media/GPOCK-009.jpgGPOCK-009Schooling rockfish and other species hover at the edge of a vertical rock wall, waiting for prey to be swept upwards. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/7/pf-media/GPOCK-011.jpgGPOCK-011Until revealed with judicious lighting, this ornate foot-long heart crab was practically invisible among the banacles and sponges of the reef. This bustling reef, scarcely a hundred feet long, rises out of a mostly barren sandy seafloor in Puget Sound. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/8/pf-media/GPOCK-013.jpgGPOCK-013At times, cold seas can seem nearly tropical. The clear blue waters of British Columbia sometimes exhibit 100 feet of visibility, allowing sunlight to penetrate and expose the bright colors of anemones, sponges, and this copper rockfish. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/9/pf-media/GPOCK-014.jpgGPOCK-014On shallow reefs, a multi-layered kelp forest creates a habitat so rich it is sometimes referred to as an ocean rainforest. This laminaria kelp forms a dense bottom layer, while the tall gas-filled bull kelp are tossed in the surge zone. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/10/pf-media/GPOCK-015.jpgGPOCK-015Combined kelp and anemone forests of the central BC coast become ideal places for fish and invertebrates to live. The kelp shelters life from the pounding surge of waves above, while being close enough to the surface to draw energy from the sun. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/11/pf-media/GPOCK-017.jpgGPOCK-017A copper rockfish shelters under towering metridium anemones as perch school above. At the dead-end of Puget Sound, tidal interchanges through Hood Canal's restricted channels create rushing currents. The great tides bring fresh seawater and nutrients every twelve hours. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/12/pf-media/GPOCK-018.jpgGPOCK-018A pair of clown nudibranchs, or sea slugs, mate and lay their eggs on rocks washed by the intense currents at Keystone Jetty in Washington's Salish Sea at night. In these cold waters, the water is green with life, and the brilliant colors of its night denizens abound when you shine a light on them. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/13/pf-media/GPOCK-019.jpgGPOCK-019Looking so much like a carefully curated flower garden, these feather duster worms spread their bright fans into the water column, picking up zooplankton drifting by in the current. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/14/pf-media/GPOCK-020.jpgGPOCK-020Like fireworks across a night sky, the incredible globular eyes of a red irish lord allow it to observe its surroundings without moving its body. Although it stands out on the sandy seafloor, the camoflauge of the red irish lord is nearly perfect on the colorful rocky reefs it frequents. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/15/pf-media/GPOCK-022.jpgGPOCK-022The life brought by cold currents extend into Kasaan Bay in SE Alaska. Hidden inside a crack is a small giant pacific octopus, flushed pale in submissive expression to a passing larger octopus moments earlier. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/16/pf-media/GPOCK-023.jpgGPOCK-023In the Alaskan Pacific, deep-water species are found in the shallows. Currents of Kasaan Bay bring plankton to the waving filter arms of crinoids, the relatives of sea stars. Despite appearances, crinoids are not sedentary plants- when the need strikes, they will swim gracefully, fluttering their arms until settling down onto a secure landing. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/17/pf-media/GPOCK-024a.jpgGPOCK-024aLeft: Cold waters in Canada around 42 F preserve organic matter fallen from the temperate rainforest above. This uprooted tree now serves as a structure for invertebrates to attach, becoming a foundation for marine life.<br /><br />Right: Young bull kelp grows toward the surface in spring, forming the top story of a kelp forest. The upperstory will die back each winter as kelp is ripped from its moorings by storms. https://kiliii.com/OCEANS/Octopus'-Garden/18/pf-media/GPOCK-025.jpgGPOCK-025Thick-stemmed laminaria kelp waves in fast current. The stems of this hardy brown algae host a variety of other species, anchoring a forest in a tremendously dynamic environment. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/1/pf-media/SROCKNEW-1.jpgSROCKNEW-1Oscar High Elk, Oceti Firekeeper, stands in protest and solidarity with his family, a protest that lasted from summer to the snows of North Dakotan winter in 2016. His camp was one of thousands at the Oceti Sakowin protest village along the Cannonball River. The upside-down American flag is a sign of distress. For them, it's a symbol that Lakota consider their land and water more important than allegiance to a nation-state that has repeatedly betrayed them. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/2/pf-media/SROCKNEW-2.jpgSROCKNEW-2Stoic horses weather the first snowfall of North Dakota's coming winter. Local law enforcement had been expecting the cold weather to scatter the thousands gathered at Standing Rock. Don Cuny retorts, "They will leave long before we do-- this is our land and winter is in our blood." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/3/pf-media/SROCKNEW-3.jpgSROCKNEW-3Fixico Akicita, member of the Muscogee-Creek Nation, brushes away tears as he speaks about the land as his mother. "This is our home. By choice because we choose to live this life this way...I made a commitment to the future generations. For the ones who aren't even here yet. If it means my life is in harms way, it's going to be okay." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/4/pf-media/SROCKNEW-3a.jpgSROCKNEW-3aDorothy Bird, a Crow Creek Sioux, holds a photograph of her grandfather. For the Dakota, the fight at Standing Rock goes deeper than the pipeline with a history that has affected generations.James Sazue, also of Crow Creek, says, "A lot of people didn't think they would ever see this happen again. The last battle." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/5/pf-media/SROCKNEW-4.jpgSROCKNEW-4The tipi is both a symbol of the Plains and and an icon of indigenous resistance. Standing Rock's many protestors created camps from many types of structures, dominated by tipis and yurts. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/6/pf-media/SROCKNEW-4a.jpgSROCKNEW-4aDon Cuny, a lifelong activist of the American Indian Movement and Lakota tribal member, raises his first in Standing Rock's symbol of defiance. Echoing the sentiment is a young Water Protector heading to the front lines of the protest. Although the battle at the Standing Rock reservation is against the Dakota Pipeline project, its major victory has been to turn the world's attention to the story of indigenous rights. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/7/pf-media/SROCKNEW-5.jpgSROCKNEW-5Wearing the mantra of Standing Rock Sioux, Water is Life, a young woman at the Oceti Sakowin camp looks out over an estimated ten thousand people gathered there. To the Sioux, fighting for water and land is not an intellectual exerciseâ it is a fight for the health of the people. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/8/pf-media/SROCKNEW-6.jpgSROCKNEW-6Months after enjoying camp and sharing it with outsiders, Don Cuny looks out to a lean camp, well-sheltered for the winter. Though half its supporters have left, nearly four thousand remain, in structures ranging from tipis to wall tents. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/9/pf-media/SROCKNEW-6a.jpgSROCKNEW-6aYvette Isburg, of the Crow Creek/Yankton Sioux, and Travis Fire Cloud, of the Sisseton Wahpeton Sioux Tribe, show the unyielding pride their cultures are known for. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/10/pf-media/SROCKNEW-7.jpgSROCKNEW-7Lakota gaze across the Cannonball River at the site of active construction on the Dakota pipeline. Between them lie a perimeter of razor wire and police snipers. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/11/pf-media/SROCKNEW-8.jpgSROCKNEW-8The horse has been an inseparable companion to Lakota and Dakota peoples for centuries. Here at Standing Rock, they are more than just symbols of Native American pride-- they also serve as practical means of transport and spiritual support. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/12/pf-media/SROCKNEW-8a.jpgSROCKNEW-8aHeather Shepard Waters stands outside her tipi as the first snow builds up around Oceti Sakowin camp. Both the Lakota and their horses seem right at home, used to the bone-chilling temperatures that have suddenly pushed down from the north. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/13/pf-media/SROCKNEW-9.jpgSROCKNEW-9Living outside even in the biting cold of winter, protestors at Oceti Sakowin take a break to sled down the hill to the center of camp. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/14/pf-media/SROCKNEW-10.jpgSROCKNEW-10Kiliii Yuyan https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/15/pf-media/SROCKNEW-11.jpgSROCKNEW-11It has been said that life on reservations looks like the life of refugees. There's one big difference-- the Lakota are on the ancestral land that they can call home, and it's worth fighting for. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/16/pf-media/SROCKNEW-11a.jpgSROCKNEW-11aWi Cha Kupito Wi of Crow Creek and Joseph Romandia of Pine Ridge wield their fists as potent symbols of resistance, unity, and heart. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Standing-Rock/17/pf-media/SROCKNEW-12.jpgSROCKNEW-12Snow coats the banks of the Cannonball River, the source of clean water that the Sioux consider sacred. The Cannonball is a tributary of the Missouri River, and it is under this that the Dakota Pipeline is being constructed. Lakota do not trust assurances by Energy Transfer partners that the pipeline will not develop a leak-- there have been a multitude of leaks in neighboring pipelines over the past several years. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/1/pf-media/GATES-001.jpgGATES-001A rainstorm washes the side of a mountain in the awe-inspiring Brooks Range of Alaska. This stunning juncture of Takahula Lake and the Alatna River shows an eagle's eye perspective of Gates of the Arctic National Park. Above the Arctic Circle, it is the least-visited of America's national parks. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/2/pf-media/GATES-002.jpgGATES-002An expedition guided by Arctic Wild loads cargo into a Helio Courier bushplane for multiple trips into Gates of the Arctic. Since they can only land on gravel bars, the Helios are some of the only planes that can get people there-- two at a time with limited cargo. Guide Patrick Henderson wears a headnet-- a preview of the days when Alaska's infamous mosquitoes are out in force. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/3/pf-media/GATES-004.jpgGATES-004Expedition camp on the Nigu River floodplain basks in the twilight of arctic summer. During summer's 24hr daylight, a beautiful soft twilight lasts all night long. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/4/pf-media/GATES-006.jpgGATES-006Remains of an Iñupiaq ceremonial site form the early 20th century atop a ridgeline in the central Brooks Range. This site is still used and maintained, with fresh antlers scattered about the area. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/5/pf-media/GATES-005.jpgGATES-005Rafters Kevin Mattson and Mike Medford take a break with a small fire alongside colorful blooms of fireweed on the banks of the Nigu River. Gates of the Arctic can be colorful in the summer, with sprays of fireweed and lupine flowers across the lowlands. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/6/pf-media/GATES-008.jpgGATES-008A herd of caribou and their calves cross the tundra at Etivluk Lake just outside of Gates of the Arctic National Park in Alaska. The vast expanse of the tundra hides the enormous herds of caribou that roam here. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/7/pf-media/GATES-009.jpgGATES-009A brown bear and her cubs, their fur bleached by the sun and hidden by tall grass, forage along the banks of the Nigu River. Approaching them from the water is one of the few safe ways to see these enormous wild creatures. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/8/pf-media/GATES-010.jpgGATES-010The carcass of an enormous bull caribou rests on the tundra of the National Petroleum Reserve right outside Gates of the Arctic, likely a bear kill from the chew marks and other sign. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/9/pf-media/GATES-011.jpgGATES-011Arctic cottongrass blows in the high winds of the tundra. Many species browse on this unique arctic plant, found in its low-lying wetland areas. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/10/pf-media/GATES-011a.jpgGATES-011aLeft: The antlers of a bull caribou killed by a brown bear, Gates of the Arctic National Park.<br /><br />Right: A brown bear cub stands up to get a better look over the tall tundra grasses of the Etivluk River, in the National Petroleum Reserve, Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/11/pf-media/GATES-012.jpgGATES-012Silhouetted caribou run across a ridgeline above Etivluk Lake, near Gates of the Arctic National Park. The herds in the park can be enormous, but they are also dependent on vast unbroken tracts of wilderness like Gates of the Arctic and the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/12/pf-media/GATES-013.jpgGATES-013A rafting expedition with Arctic Wild floats down the Nigu River, just outside of Gates of the Arctic National Park. Rafting is one of the principal way for visitors to travel here, allowing adventurers to build camps that they may have to use to weather snow or high wind conditions for days. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/13/pf-media/GATES-013a.jpgGATES-013aLeft: Paddling guide Patrick Henderson smiles under a double rainbow in Gates of the Arctic. <br /><br />Right: A caribou makes the leap across a tundra pool as it crosses the wetland plains of the summer tundra. Arctic tundra is valuable wetland habitat because permafrost a few feet under the surface remains solid and prevents water drainage. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/14/pf-media/GATES-014.jpgGATES-014A rainbow arches over expeditioners at a late riverside lunch on the banks of the Etivluk River in Alaska. The Brooks Range has unpredictable weather, even in summer. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/15/pf-media/GATES-015.jpgGATES-015Foothills outside of Ivotuk airstrip in the Brooks Range of Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/16/pf-media/GATES-016.jpgGATES-016Caribou tracks wander along a sandy floodplain of the Nigu River in the National Petroleum Reserve. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/17/pf-media/GATES-017.jpgGATES-017Bull caribou browse on the tundra near Etiviluk Lake, just outside of Gates of the Arctic National Park. These two caribou appeared to be curious about the photographer and camera, wandering slowly closer. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/18/pf-media/GATES-018.jpgGATES-018A bull caribou appears on a ridge in the clearing mists of the Etivluk River. Close animal encounters are the norm here, although the sheer scale of the tundra means rafters see all the caribou and other animals miles away as well. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/19/pf-media/GATES-019.jpgGATES-019Rafting expeditioners row under a rainbow on the Etiviluk River. Stormy weather created the conditions for a persistent rainbow over many hours. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/20/pf-media/GATES-020.jpgGATES-020Expeditioners and gear were spread across three rafts on their way down the Nigu River in Alaska's Gates of the Arctic National park. This, the main cargo raft, was always paddled by one of the expert guides. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/21/pf-media/GATES-021.jpgGATES-021Vicky Mattson works to break down her tent as record-breaking flooding on the Colville River approaches her campsite. The flooding on the river here raised the river level by over four feet in 24 hours, and even inundated the city of Fairbanks, Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/22/pf-media/GATES-021a.jpgGATES-021aLeft: Fireweed seeds bloom on the floodplain of the Colville River in the central Brooks Range of Alaska.<br /><br />Right: The skull of a snowshoe hare skull rests on the tundra in the National Petroleum Reserve, likely a lynx or raptor kill. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/23/pf-media/GATES-022.jpgGATES-022Bull caribou migrate across the tundra from the National Petroleum Reserve into Gates of the Arctic National Park. For migratory wildlife like caribou, wilderness borders mean little-- they need large unbroken tracts of wilderness to forage enough before winter comes. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/24/pf-media/GATES-023.jpgGATES-023An aerial view of the Alatna river valley during a rainstorm, in central Gates of the Arctic National Park. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/25/pf-media/GATES-024.jpgGATES-024A Helio Courier bushplane approaches a natural gravel aistrip on the Colville River floodplain. Entry and exit points in the Brooks Range can be far from each other, requiring wilderness expeditions here to be truly self-sufficient. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Gates-of-the-Arctic/26/pf-media/GATES-025.jpgGATES-025An expedition campsite at the beginning of a rafting trip down the snaking Nigu River in northeast Gates of the Arctic National Park. 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https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/26/pf-media/BB2Inside.jpgBB2Inside https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/27/pf-media/BB4Inside.jpgBB4Inside https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/28/pf-media/CFire1.jpgCFire1 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/29/pf-media/CFire2.jpgCFire2 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/30/pf-media/VOGUE-001.jpgVOGUE-001First Place, International Photo Awards, 2019, Feature Story https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/31/pf-media/VOGUE-003.jpgVOGUE-003 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/32/pf-media/APROOF1.jpgAPROOF1Gold, Bronze x2, Px3 Prix de la Photographie Paris, 2018, Feature StoryPDN Photo Annual, 2019 Feature Story1st Place, PDN World in Focus, 2018 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/33/pf-media/APROOF2.jpgAPROOF2 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/34/pf-media/Trumplastminute.jpgTrumplastminute https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/35/pf-media/IntentionalFireA.jpgIntentionalFireAGold Medal, Society of Publication Designers, 2020, Digital Photography Feature https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/36/pf-media/IntentionalFireB.jpgIntentionalFireB https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/37/pf-media/APICOVIDRacism.jpgAPICOVIDRacism https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/38/pf-media/Gyrfalcon1.jpgGyrfalcon1 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/39/pf-media/Gyrfalcon2.jpgGyrfalcon2 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/40/pf-media/GatesoftheArctic1.jpgGatesoftheArctic1 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/41/pf-media/NPR-1.jpgNPR-1First Place, PCNW 22nd Juried Exhibition, 2019 (Image from this story) https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/42/pf-media/NPR-2.jpgNPR-2 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/43/pf-media/PS1.jpgPS1 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/44/pf-media/PS2.jpgPS2 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/45/pf-media/CNN1.jpgCNN1 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/46/pf-media/CNN2.jpgCNN2 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/47/pf-media/Sierra-ArcticRefuge.pngSierra-ArcticRefuge https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/48/pf-media/Chaeg1.jpgChaeg1 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/49/pf-media/Chaeg4.jpgChaeg4 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/50/pf-media/TEAR-005.jpgTEAR-005Silver, International Photo Awards, 2017, Deeper PerspectiveHonorable Mention, PX3, 2017, Press/Feature Story https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/51/pf-media/TEAR-001.jpgTEAR-001First Place, Best of ASMP, 2019, Series https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/52/pf-media/TEAR-008.jpgTEAR-008 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/53/pf-media/TEAR-009.jpgTEAR-009 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/54/pf-media/1.jpg1 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/55/pf-media/2.jpg2 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/56/pf-media/TEAR-019.jpgTEAR-019 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/57/pf-media/TEAR-021.jpgTEAR-021 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/58/pf-media/TEAR-A1.jpgTEAR-A1Honorable Mention, International Photo Awards, 2015, Feature Story, Portraiture https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/59/pf-media/TEAR-014.jpgTEAR-014 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/60/pf-media/TEAR-026.jpgTEAR-026 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/61/pf-media/TEAR-028.jpgTEAR-028 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/62/pf-media/TEAR-033.jpgTEAR-033 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/63/pf-media/TEAR-036.jpgTEAR-036 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/64/pf-media/TEAR-023.jpgTEAR-023 https://kiliii.com/PUBLICATIONS/65/pf-media/TEAR-024.jpgTEAR-024 https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/thumbs https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/1/pf-media/BTS-001.jpgBTS-001 https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/2/pf-media/BTS-003.jpgBTS-003 https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/3/pf-media/BTS-005.jpgBTS-005 https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/4/pf-media/BTS-006.jpgBTS-006 https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/5/pf-media/BTS-007.jpgBTS-007Kiliii Yuyan photographs a giant pacific octopus in Browning Pass, at God's Pocket, off of Hurst Island near Canada's Vancouver Island, in March 2025. https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/6/pf-media/BTS-008.jpgBTS-008 https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/7/pf-media/BTS-009.jpgBTS-009 https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/8/pf-media/BTS-010.jpgKiliii Yuyan https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/9/pf-media/BTS-011.jpgBTS-011 https://kiliii.com/BEHIND-THE-SCENES/10/pf-media/BTS-012.jpgBTS-012 https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/1/pf-media/FIRE-001.jpgFIRE-001A Yurok firefighter manages the boundary of an indigenous prescribed burn near Weitchpec, CA, during a fire training exchange, or TREX. In recent years, indigenous prescribed fire practices have come to attention as wildfires have raged destructively across California. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/2/pf-media/INDFIRECA-002.jpgINDFIRECA-002Sunset over the Klamath River and its forests, near Weitchpec, CA. "The Klamath-Siskiyou bioregion has the most diverse conifer forest in the world. That's right along a major travel route between Shasta and Karuk territory", says USFS research ecologist Dr. Frank Lake. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/3/pf-media/INDFIRECA-003.jpgINDFIRECA-003Dr. Frank Lake, a USFS research ecologist of Yurok descent, carefully selects stalks of beargrass from the forest floor that was culturally burned three months prior, in June above Orleans, CA. The low intensity of the 6-acre prescribed fire did not kill the beargrass plants, but removed older leaves that were unsuitable for traditional weaving, as well as leaf litter. Dr. Lake's work focuses on indigenous burning across California. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/4/pf-media/INDFIRECA-003a.jpgINDFIRECA-003aLeft: A sprig of evergreen huckleberry rests atop a Yurok traditional winnowing tray alongside baskets of woven confer roots, maidenhair ferns and beargrass. All of these traditional materials are managed to their ideal harvest state through indigenous fire.<br /><br />Right: Dr. Frank Lake cracks and extracts a beaked hazelnut from its shell. The hazelnuts grow on his property in Orleans, CA, where they are carefully managed through traditional Yurok prescribed burning. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/5/pf-media/INDFIRECA-003b.jpgINDFIRECA-003bLeft: Margo Robbins not only leads Training Exchanges, but also weaves her culture’s celebrated baskets. “Our people are hunters, gatherers and basket weavers,” says Robbins. “Restoration of the land, and preservation of our culture is a number one priority for people living on the Yurok Reservation. We MUST put fire on the ground if we are to continue the tradition of basket weaving.”<br /><br />Right: Young beargrass and acorns stand out against the dark background of charred forest litter culturally burned by the Yurok community 3 months prior. This acreage provides easily accessible tan oak acorns for food and beargrass for basketry materials, alongside other plants with cultural uses. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/6/pf-media/INDFIRECA-004.jpgINDFIRECA-004Two halves of a forest separated by a fire line near Orleans, CA in September. The charred side is from a recent indigenous prescribed burn by the Yurok community. The burn demonstrates the open nature of the forest after a burn, the reduction of fuels, and the sequestration of carbon in the charcoal on the ground. In high-intensity wildfires, the trees die and the majority of the carbon in their wood is released into the atmosphere. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/7/pf-media/INDFIRECA-005.jpgINDFIRECA-005Margo Robbins, of the Cultural Fire Management Council leads firefighters as they light an indigenous prescribed burn with bundles of wormwood in ceremony, near Weitchpec, CA. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/8/pf-media/INDFIRECA-005a.jpgINDFIRECA-005aLeft: A ring of flame is created around a young hazel plant, burning away competitors during an indigenous prescribed burn. Hazelnuts are an important food for the Yurok, and this type of managed burning can selectively protect cultural plants.<br /><br />Right: Elizabeth Azzuz of the Cultural Fire Management Council opens an indigenous cultural burn training by lightning a ceremonial fire with sage and a bundle of wormwood, near Weitchpec, CA. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/9/pf-media/INDFIRECA-006.jpgINDFIRECA-006Sunset over the Klamath River and its forests, near Weitchpec, CA, at the beginning of October. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/10/pf-media/INDFIRECA-007.jpgINDFIRECA-007A section of forest neat Weitchpec, CA, burned by a moderate-intensity wildfire shows that the fire has killed all of the trees despite having stayed below the forest canopy. The low-intensity fires of indigenous prescribed burns keeps older trees alive and can be specifically used to protect species of value. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/11/pf-media/INDFIRECA-008.jpgINDFIRECA-008Firefighters participating in a Yurok-led cultural fire training exchange (TREX), practice controlled burning, coordination, and fire management skills near Weitchpec, CA, in early October. Although the widely used practice of burning brush piles is not traditional, it is a skillset that supports indigenous burning. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/12/pf-media/INDFIRECA-008a.jpgINDFIRECA-008aLeft: A TREX leader manages his team and burn piles during a fuel reduction exercise.<br /><br />Right: A firefighter from Canada participates in a Yurok-led cultural fire training exchange, or TREX, near Weitchpec, CA, in October. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/13/pf-media/INDFIRECA-009.jpgINDFIRECA-009Blaine McKinnon reviews the lay of the land with firefighters training in indigenous cultural burning at a training exchange (TREX), near Weitchpec, CA. Both modern firefighting techniques and indigenous practices inform each other during TREX. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/14/pf-media/INDFIRECA-010.jpgINDFIRECA-010A firefighter lays down a line of fire with a driptorch during an indigenous cultural burn near Weitchpec, CA. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/15/pf-media/INDFIRECA-011.jpgINDFIRECA-011Firefighters participating in a training exchange put on by the Cultural Fire Management Council refill their drip torches in the midst of a broadcast prescribed burn near Weithpec, CA in October. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/16/pf-media/INDFIRECA-012.jpgINDFIRECA-012An experienced TREX leader lays down fire with his drip torch, careful not to get caught behind his lines. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/17/pf-media/INDFIRECA-012a.jpgINDFIRECA-012aLeft: Smoke from an indigenous prescribed burn filters through the forest canopy on Yurok lands, near Weitchpec, CA in October.<br /><br />Right: Jose Luis Duce watches the edge of an indigenous prescribed burn near Weitchpec, CA. Jose leads this type of training exchange in Spain, bringing the traditional ecological knowledge of California tribes to other regions where it is in high demand. It has become so popular that each CA training is joined by Spanish firefighters. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/18/pf-media/INDFIRECA-013.jpgINDFIRECA-013A firefighter runs quickly over the charred ground of a low-intensity indigenous prescribed burn near Weitchpec, CA, in October. The small flames of this fire are created and maintained through a deep knowledge of ideal climatic conditions like humidity, plant species, and soil composition. The fire is created and walked along a small section at a time to prevent increasing its intensity. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/19/pf-media/INDFIRECA-014.jpgINDFIRECA-014A Yurok tribal member fishes for salmon using a dipnet at his traditional fishing grounds on the Klamath River in late September. Declines in the spring salmon here have forced closures of the fishery. Historically it is believed that smoke from indigenous burning shaded regional rivers during periods of the highest water temperatures, increasing the survival rate of spawning salmon. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/20/pf-media/INDFIRECA-014a.jpgINDFIRECA-014aLeft: Ali Meders-Knight, Master TEK practitioner and Mechoopda tribal member, harvests grass stems from deergrass (Ósoko sáwi), that has been selectively managed through the use of indigenous prescribed burns at Verbena Fields in Chico, California.<br /><br />Right: Gathering and cleaning stalks of a California native grass in Big Chico Ecological Reserve for Miwok traditional basket weaving. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/21/pf-media/INDFIRECA-015.jpgINDFIRECA-015This open grassland at Big Chico Ecological Preserve, CA, is created and maintained by indigenous burning. Grassland environments which once covered California are now few, and the biodiversity of grass species has declined precipitously. With cultural burning under Miwok tribal member Dr. Don Hankins, a myriad of native species have returned to these grasslands. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/22/pf-media/INDFIRECA-016.jpgINDFIRECA-016Tan oak acorns rest on the charred forest floor above Orleans, CA, where they stand out due to the lack of leaf litter and debris. This forest floor was culturally burned by Yurok land managers to reduce tan oak acorn pests like weevils, and to make the harvest of acorns, a traditional food source, more productive. Tan oaks both produce more acorns after fire and their acorns are more easily gathered against a charred forest floor. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/23/pf-media/INDFIRECA-017.jpgINDFIRECA-017Prescribed burns, though smoky, have low flames and temperatures, ensuring their spread horizontally rather than vertically through the forest. These firefighters manage the edge of the fire to keep it from spreading across the prescribed boundary. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/California-Indigenous-Fire/24/pf-media/INDFIRECA-018.jpgINDFIRECA-018The open view of a Yurok culturally burned area in Orleans, CA. The continuation of ancient cultural burning reminds us what is possible in fire-prone California. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/1/pf-media/MUSHERS-019.jpgMUSHERS-019Kristy Berington mushes a dog team across the boreal forest in preparation for the Iditarod. During the famous Alaskan dogsledding race, men and women compete together at elite levels. <br /><br />Says musher Blair Braverman, "Those of us who cross the finish line will find ourselves back in a semblance of civilization. But for those those weeks with our dogs, we’ll be the only real things in the world." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/2/pf-media/MUSHERS-001.jpgKiliii YuyanIn heavy snow a week before her first Iditarod, Alison Lifka mushes her dog team for pre-race training.<br /><br />"One of my favorite shirts that can be found in tourist shops throughout Alaska reads 'Alaska: Where men are men and women win the Iditarod.' It’s only a matter of time before a woman wins again. For me, it would just reaffirm what we already know, which is that women are amazing—and we can do anything we set our mind to", says Blair Braverman. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/3/pf-media/MUSHERS-002.jpgKiliii YuyanAnna and Kristy Berington are identical twin mushers from Wisconsin who live in Knik, Alaska.<br /><br/>Kristy says, "I felt a deep longing to have that relationship with dogs, the wilderness, and adventure. All of this was alongside my sister Anna—we've been through a lot together. This is my 10th Iditarod. I've been involved with this sport for about 20 years." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/4/pf-media/MUSHERS-002a.jpgMUSHERS-002aLeft: Slicing Alaskan Keta salmon for Anna's canine teammates. The dogs eat enormous amount of salmon and ground meat, getting both vital nutrients and water primarily from their food.<br /><br />Right: Mushing is a lifestyle that often comes with Alaskan bush living. Kristy Berington starts a chainsaw to cut firewood for her cabin. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/5/pf-media/MUSHERS-003.jpgMUSHERS-003Anna Berington inspects her dogs before she harnesses them for a night run. Many of them will need to have their paws put into booties to keep ice from forming between their toes during certain conditions. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/6/pf-media/MUSHERS-004.jpgMUSHERS-004Kristy Berington's dog team mushes across a frozen marshland at night. With February temperatures at an unseasonal 45F, mushing at night keep the dogs from overheating. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/7/pf-media/MUSHERS-005.jpgMUSHERS-005Meltwater pools cover a frozen lake on Alaska's Kenai Peninsula in February, thawed by an increasingly warm climate. In the past decade, the Iditarod's ceremonial start has been postponed multiple times from a lack of snow. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/8/pf-media/MUSHERS-005a.jpgMUSHERS-005aLeft: Musher and writer Blair Braverman. “After I finished high school in California, I went to a socialist dog sledding boarding school in the Norwegian Arctic. My dogs are my family—I love them like pets, but we also have a different, deeper connection that comes from relying on each other in the wilderness."<br /><br />Right: Blair Braverman, and Jenga, an eight-year-old leader in Braverman’s racing team. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/9/pf-media/MUSHERS-008.jpgMUSHERS-008Alison Lifka cares for dogs at her kennel as they wait to be rigged up to the sled."I have a very close relationship with the dogs on my team," Lifka says. "Having dogs as teammates is a lot easier than having human teammates. Despite not being able to talk, they communicate their needs to me just fine. They simply need to be loved, cared for, fed, and run." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/10/pf-media/MUSHERS-007.jpgMUSHERS-007Anna and Kristy Berington prepare a meal of kibble, water, beef, and vitamin supplements for their dogs. Says Kristy, "The most challenging part is seeing your dogs age. When they retire, you can still see their desire to run with the young guns when you hook up a team. So we take them on short runs, and I think they feel and remember what it was like at the finish line." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/11/pf-media/MUSHERS-008a.jpgMUSHERS-008aLeft: Alison Lifka pauses from tending her dogs for a moment. "Many images come to mind when I think about running dogs: I think about the immense joy the dogs expel, their infectious energy and love of running. I don’t run dogs to finish. I run dogs for the joy of the moment, the peace of the trail."<br /><br />Right: Alison's dogs strain to get running, but they are anchored so they can get some necessary rest. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/12/pf-media/MUSHERS-009.jpgMUSHERS-009Alison Lifka inspects her dog team, which have gotten mired in the deep snow they are running in. Training in serious wilderness conditions is one of the prerequisites for long-distance dog sledding, as teams may be hundreds of miles away from assistance. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/13/pf-media/MUSHERS-010.jpgMUSHERS-010Dwarf spruce trees dot the wetland landscape around Willow, AK. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/14/pf-media/MUSHERS-011a.jpgMUSHERS-011aLeft: Jessica Klejka mushes her dogs under power lines along her normal training route. "Mushing for me alternates between admiration for my team of dogs who have been bred, raised, and trained to the best of their abilities, and the pure adrenaline rush of being alone in the wilderness with just my team of dogs."<br /><br />Right: Jessica's dog team takes a short break in the dense fog that has settled over the trail. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/15/pf-media/MUSHERS-011b.jpgMUSHERS-011bLeft: Kristy Berington says, "When I signed up for my first Iditarod, I did hear someone say, 'She's just a pretty face—she won't make it past McGrath.' It didn't bother me—I thought it was funny, because I knew I was going to finish."<br /><br />Right: Kristy carries a bottle of her father's ashes to bring her good memories and good luck on the trail. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/16/pf-media/MUSHERS-013.jpgMUSHERS-013Blair Braverman harnesses her dogs at the Tustemena 200 race, a qualifier for the longer Iditarod. "It sounds simple, but the biggest challenge for me in Iditarod this year is that it's new. I've never run 1,000 miles with my dogs before; I don't know what that looks like. I haven't experienced the trail. I haven't been sleep deprived for that long before. So I'm essentially launching into a huge unknown. That sense of not-knowing has defined all my training, all my preparations." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/17/pf-media/MUSHERS-014.jpgMUSHERS-014Alison Lifka relaxes in her tiny cabin, which serves as home for her full time during the mushing season. "The amazing part about being a dog musher is that it doesn’t matter whether you are a woman or a man. I would really like to see another woman win the Iditarod—not so much to prove women can do it, but just to remind people that the women in the sport are just as competitive as the men." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/18/pf-media/MUSHERS-014a.jpgMUSHERS-014aLeft: Jessica Klejka grew up mushing with her family in Bethel, Alaska. "As a veterinarian, there is nothing I love more than seeing animals as healthy as they can be."<br /><br />Right: Magda Blakeson, a dog handler at the kennel where Alison Lifka works and trains, with a dog on Lifka’s team. She aspires to one day run the Iditarod as well. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/19/pf-media/MUSHERS-015.jpgMUSHERS-015The double lead dogs at the front of the line set the pace and listen to musher Jessica Klejka's commands. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/20/pf-media/MUSHERS-016.jpgMUSHERS-016The sun rises over a dense layer of fog at the training runs in the forest for the mushers in Wasilla, AK. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/21/pf-media/MUSHERS-017.jpgMUSHERS-017An aerial view of Jessica Klejka's dog team training around a frozen lake in Wasilla, AK. "I won the Junior Iditarod when I was in high school. My biggest concern [about the Iditarod] is sleep deprivation and eating. After the dogs are cared for, I make sure I’m hydrated, I eat, and I pack the sled with supplies for our next run and then try to get in a nap. During a typical four-hour layover, a musher usually gets about an hour of sleep." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/22/pf-media/MUSHERS-017a.jpgMUSHERS-017aLeft: Anna Berington's dog team is illuminated by the lights of her snow machine and her dogs' breaths, during a twenty-mile night run.<br/><br />Right: Alison Lifka says "Alaska seemed like that last wilderness outpost, and it called to me. That, and the promise of snow. My first summer in Alaska, I guided sea kayaking tours out of Prince William Sound. The most common question I received was 'What do you want to do next?' My answer: mush sled dogs." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/23/pf-media/MUSHERS-018.jpgMUSHERS-018Alison Lifka's dog team romps in the snow to cool off after running in warm temperatures. The energy of the team is infectious. Often when a single dog starts pulling, the entire group will do the same-- running away with the sled. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Women-of-the-Iditarod/24/pf-media/MUSHERS-011.jpgMUSHERS-011Lifka's dog team races through fresh snow as they train just days before the Iditarod. "For me, all the other races were a way to gain experience so I could run the Iditarod. I’m not seeking to win, but to run my team the best I can and to finally see the Iditarod trail. There are very few chances to travel for 1,000 miles in such rugged wilderness." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/1/pf-media/LWLDB-001.jpgLWLDB-001Living Wild documents a group of 21st century hunter-gatherers as they rediscover the traditional living skills of the Paleolithic. The movement is spearheaded by a woman named Lynx Vilden and unified by the ambition to leave modernity and return to primitive living. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/2/pf-media/PORT-003.jpgPORT-003Left: Lynx Vilden wearing her buckskins just before embarking on a two-week foray into the Washington Cascades. Her clothing, though made from stone-age materials, are culturally non-specific.<br /><br />Right: Matthew Forkin, fully geared up with 90 pounds of primitive camping gear and dried food, supplied for two weeks. Matt is a software engineer at Google and longtime primitive skills practitioner. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/3/pf-media/LWLDB-002.jpgLWLDB-002Practiced hands spin the shaft of a bowdrill into the coals of a fire. What anthropologists refer to as 'material culture' is important in primitive lifeâ- especially with firemaking. The warmth and security of fire is never guaranteed in the wild, despite a high level of expertise with friction fire methods. Moisture in the air, lack of suitable wood species or varying levels of wood decomposition make each successful fire a gift. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/4/pf-media/LWLDB-003.jpgLWLDB-003Lynx says, "It looks very romantic. But it's also very real and very harsh and very unforgiving. The Earth doesn't give a shit if you die out here. Or, you'll do a lot of damage out here. It has to be done conscientiously. We can't all do this, because there's too many of us." https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/5/pf-media/LWLDB-004.jpgLWLDB-004Chantelle laughs with glee as she and the Living Wild group watch their first sunset from a ridgline above camp. Their good spirits ebbed and flowed during the project. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/6/pf-media/LWLDB-005.jpgLWLDB-005A team of pack horses is led across a stream with all of the material goods of the primitive life. Working with horses without modern gear requires significant horsemanship. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/7/pf-media/LWLDB-006.jpgLWLDB-006Chantelle collects firewood, a seemingly endless task in a culture that depends on fire for warmth, cooking, and light. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/8/pf-media/LWLDB-007.jpgLWLDB-007Matt gathers saxifrage leaves for dinner. Though hunter-gatherers are often pictured as big game hunters, most calories are usually gotten from reliable low-yield plant sources. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/9/pf-media/PORT-004.jpgPORT-004Left: Klara Marie Shulke, from Germany, runs a wilderness program that draws many Europeans. Her clothing, like most participants, are drawn from modern patterns but made of tanned deer hides.<br /><br />Right: Jesse Jameson, an American, wears buckskin clothing he has lived in for the past several years. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/10/pf-media/LWLDB-007a.jpgLWLDB-007aLeft: Emma and Lynx try to rest in the fading late light of the summer. Under the conditions of the Living Wild project, participants develop powerful social bonds.<br /><br />Right: A cherished pot made from river clay cooks otherwise indigestible plant foods. Like many ancient hunter-gatherer cultures, the Living Wild group has a lean opportunistic diet without much meat and fat. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/11/pf-media/LWLDB-008.jpgLWLDB-008Every evening, someone climbs the ridges overlooking camp to check for movement from ever-present nearby wildfires. Lynx fires an arrow into the valley to express her gratitude for their safety. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/12/pf-media/LWLDB-009.jpgLWLDB-009During the project, the group struggles up a scree slope in 100 degree heat. Every person carries between 40 and 90lbs of primitive gear as they migrate their camp to a valley with better hunting prospects https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/13/pf-media/LWLDB-010.jpgLWLDB-010Lynx casts her dogbane fishing line with her hunting bow. Ever resourceful, she carries few things, and each of her tools serves many purposes. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/14/pf-media/LWLDB-010a.jpgLWLDB-010aLeft: Hunger changes what people consider edible and drinkable. Lynx drinks directly from a stream with care, noting its source.<br/><br/>Right: Grasshoppers are also food-- they make a filling lunch one day after being fire-roasted. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/15/pf-media/LWLDB-011.jpgLWLDB-011Exhausted by hunger and the hard work of shelter-building, Matt takes a break on a fresh layer of fir boughs that will serve as insulation and bedding. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/16/pf-media/LWLDB-012.jpgLWLDB-012Emma pushes and struggles as softens a bison hide. The thick hide requires a lot of effort to tan, but the result is a coveted insulating layer that she can cover her entire body with when the primitive project begins. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/17/pf-media/LWLDB-012a.jpgLWLDB-012aLeft: Max naps in the late morning as the day warms, after a sleepless cold night.<br /><br />Right: Jane searches for balsalm arrowroot to dig up the starchy taproots. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/18/pf-media/LWLDB-013.jpgLWLDB-013Tucked deep inside a shelter, Lynx works on small crafts as the weather turns into rain and wind. Even in this protected space, exposure is a serious problem. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/19/pf-media/LWLDB-013a.jpgLWLDB-013aLeft: The Living Wild group takes time to bathe and swim in a cold mountain lake. After several weeks, they have become at home in the forests and mountains.<br /><br />Right: Neils warms himself in a hogan-style shelter in the early morning chill. During the preparatory phase of the Living Wild project, shelters provide much-needed relief from the elements as the participants slowly become acclimated to primitive living. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/20/pf-media/LWLDB-013b.jpgLWLDB-013bLeft: Klara sews a garment from some tanned buckskin, in front of a racked bison hide.<br /><br />Right: A great deal of trial and error is the way that Living Wild participants learn. Though at first glance, fishing in a pristine lake seems simple, without experience, it proved to be exceedingly difficult. Jesse tries her hand at fishing with a bone gorge hook in the shallows where she can see small trout. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/21/pf-media/LWLDB-014.jpgLWLDB-014Jesse sleeps outside the crowded bark shelter in the morning, pulling her buffalo robe tight to keep mosquitoes and the cold morning air out. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/22/pf-media/LWLDB-015.jpgLWLDB-015Jane blows a glowing-red ember into a hard-won fire for the evening. Friction fire take a great deal of skill and participants prefer to keep fires alive rather than starting anew each time. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/23/pf-media/LWLDB-016.jpgLWLDB-016Riding across the ridgeline in the evening, Lynx scouts for signs of smoke and wildfire to stay ahead of its movements. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/24/pf-media/LWLDB-017.jpgLWLDB-017After three exhausting days of hauling logs to build a new shelter, the group has an impromptu moment of celebration-- singing a song together. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/25/pf-media/LWLDB-018.jpgLWLDB-018Alex wears a buffalo mask and coyote cape, part of a dance costume he created as an ode to the wild denizens of the land. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/26/pf-media/LWLDB-019.jpgLWLDB-019Lynx fishes in a mountain lake with nothing more than a cord tied to her bow. Though fishing lke this is tedious, fish still form the staple part of the protein and fat in the Living Wild diet. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/27/pf-media/LWLDB-020.jpgLWLDB-020Leaping from rock to rock in search of small game, Matt is always thinking about safety. Out here, without the possibility of modern medical assistance, a simple injury can be life-threatening. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/28/pf-media/LWLDB-021.jpgLWLDB-021Riding bareback is a tough but quick way to cover great distances using Stone Age technology. Without infrastructure, though, horses are forced to tread difficult terrain using deer trails and runoff washes. https://kiliii.com/ARCHIVE/Living-Wild/29/pf-media/LWLDB-022.jpgLWLDB-022Taking a break inside her bark shelter, Lynx looks out over her hunting camp, separate from the main group. Over many years she has crafted a lot of primitive gear. 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https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Polar-Panos/6/pf-media/PANOS-006.jpgPANOS-006 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Polar-Panos/7/pf-media/PANOS-007.jpgPANOS-007The sky is mirrored on the calm waters in this panorama along the sea ice on Inglefield Fjord, near Qeqertarsuaq Island, outside the village of Qaanaaq, Greenland in May 2023. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Polar-Panos/8/pf-media/PANOS-008.jpgPANOS-008 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Polar-Panos/9/pf-media/PANOS-009.jpgPANOS-009 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Polar-Panos/10/pf-media/PANOS-010.jpgPANOS-010Aerial photo of https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Polar-Panos/11/pf-media/PANOS-011.jpgPANOS-011 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Polar-Panos/12/pf-media/PANOS-012.jpgPANOS-012 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Polar-Panos/13/pf-media/PANOS-013.jpgPANOS-013 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Polar-Panos/14/pf-media/PANOS-014.jpgPANOS-014 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/1/pf-media/YUYAN-190619-GYR-01926-Edit-3.jpgThe White FalconA female white-morph gyrfalcon soars through the arctic air outside of Nome, Alaska in July. Gyrfalcons are a true Arctic species, and are the avian equivalent of polar bears-- they are susceptible to climate change effects that make their principal prey, the ptarmigan, harder to catch, resulting in less successful bredding gyrfalcons. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/2/pf-media/GYR-002.jpgGYR-002Hungry gyrfalcon chicks clamor for a portion of a songbird from their mother, high up on its cliffside nest. The is only a small variety of prey available on the open tundra, but this is an environment well-suited to gyrfalcons. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/3/pf-media/GYR-004.jpgGYR-004A young musk ox browses in the deep willows in coastal Alaska, putting on weight and fat for the coming winter months. Willow shrubland like this is critical for many arctic animals. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/4/pf-media/GYR-003.jpgGYR-003Gyrfalcon habitat outside of Teller, Alaska, is flat open tundra and willow brush near riparian areas. The gyrfalcon's principal food, the ptarmigan, is increasingly difficult to hunt as willows spread more densely northward. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/5/pf-media/GYR-007.jpgGYR-007Biologists wade a deep river, beseiged by infamous arctic mosquitoes as they return from banding chicks at a gyrfalcon nest. Record-breaking temperatures in Western Alaska in summer 2019 hatched hundreds of millions of mosquitoes at once. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/6/pf-media/GYR-001.jpgGYR-001A dark morph gyrfalcon patrols near its nest in snowy subarctic Western Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/7/pf-media/GYR-008.jpgGYR-008Golden eagles and gyrfalcons often share nesting sites, with the smaller falcons trying to take over abandoned eagle nests in prime locations. This bluff looks out over Alaska's Snake River. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/8/pf-media/GYR-009.jpgGYR-009Biologist Michael Henderson of the Peregrine Fund rappels from a gyrfalcon nest near Nome after inspecting a gyrfalcon nest for the age of chicks and the food the adults are feeding them. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/9/pf-media/GYR-010.jpgGYR-010Devin Johnson, a field biologist at the Peregrine Fund, cleans up climbing gear from a gyrfalcon nesting area as he shields himself from an onslaught of mosquitoes. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/10/pf-media/GYR-011.jpgGYR-011A gyrfalcon drops off its prey to hungry nestlings on a cliff face outside of Teller, Alaska. By July, these nestling are several months old but still far from fledging. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/11/pf-media/GYR-012.jpgGYR-012Michael Henderson carefully scoops up gyrfalcon nestlings high up on a cliff face for banding and taking measurements. The Peregrine Fund's gyrfalcon project has the most complete population data in the world, but is only a few years old. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/12/pf-media/GYR-012a.jpgGYR-012aA young gyrfalcon is banded, measured and its data compiled into a catalog of gyrfalcon population information for the Western Alaskan region. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/13/pf-media/GYR-013.jpgGYR-013Days-old gyrfalcon nestlings look out from their cliffside nest out over a wide expanse of Alaskan tundra. In this harsh environment, conditions can change from subzero and snowing to hot and sunny quickly. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/14/pf-media/GYR-014.jpgGYR-014Two recently hatched gyrfalcons stare at each other. They are growing quickly and gaining the ability to move around the nest. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/15/pf-media/GYR-015.jpgGYR-015The leg of a large ptarmigan, the principal prey of gyrfalcons, at the base of a falcon nest. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/16/pf-media/GYR-015a.jpgGYR-015aLeft: Michael Henderson, project manager of the Peregrine Fund's Gyrfalcon Project, at a nest site.<br/><br/>Right:Holding a juvenile gyrfalcon he has just bande,d Devin Johnson, a field biologist for the Peregrine Fund, poses for a portrait. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/17/pf-media/GYR-015b.jpgGYR-015bLeft: John Earthman, a falconer who regularly assists the Peregrine Fund, holding a young gyrfalcon.<br/><br>Right: A captive gyrfalcon trained by falconer John Earthman, used for education and hunting in the Western Alaskan region. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/18/pf-media/GYR-016.jpgGYR-016Juvenile gyrfalcons noisily voice their concerns as biologists from the Peregrine Fund band them before returning them to their nest above. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/19/pf-media/GYR-017.jpgGYR-017Even this young gyrfalcon is not exempt from the assault by mosquitoes during a heat wave across North Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/20/pf-media/GYR-018.jpgGYR-018 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/21/pf-media/GYR-005.jpgGyrfalcon in a StoopA male gyrfalcon stoops, or dives toward a biology team studying gyrfalcon populations. Gyrfalcons defend their nests fiercely, and this one made a powerful whooshing sound as it dove within feet of the scientists' heads. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/22/pf-media/GYR-021.jpgGYR-021Lush vegetation flourishes in the flood zone outside of the Snake River in Western Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/23/pf-media/GYR-022.jpgGYR-022A ptarmigan, the principal prey for gyrfalcons, is well camoflauged among the tall vegetation of this floodplain on the tundra. As the warming climate allows vegetation to grow taller and willows to appear further north, ptarmigan become more difficult to hunt, posing a significant problem for gyrfalcons. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/24/pf-media/GYR-023.jpgGYR-023Across the warming tundra there are winners and losers. Red foxes like this one are increasing in numbers and outcompeting arctic foxes, diminishing their range. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/25/pf-media/GYR-024.jpgGYR-024The incredible heat in summer on the Western Alaskan tundra has caused south-facing slopes to dry up by July. This week showed sustained temperatures well above 80 degrees, close to the Arctic Circle. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/26/pf-media/GYR-025.jpgGYR-025Remains of a cold and snowy spring dot the shoreline of American Creek, near Nome in July. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/The-Arctic-Falcon/27/pf-media/GYR-026.jpgGYR-026A gyrfalcon soars over mountainous tundra, a land its kin have occupied for eons. As the avian equivalent of the polar bear, this top predator may find its range shrinking as climate change dramatically alters the landscape of the far north. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/1/pf-media/RAREGREEN-001.jpgRAREGREEN-001 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/2/pf-media/RARE-002.jpgRARE-002An immense welded steel door blocks access to a shuttered uranium mine, next to the Narsaq proposed rare-earth mine. Potential uranium dust created by the proposed mine is the source of much tension in the village. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/3/pf-media/RARE-020.jpgRARE-020Aerial view of the proposed Kvanefjell rare-earth mine's prospecting camp. The currently inactive camp overlooks the town of Narsaq, just a few miles away. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/4/pf-media/RARE-004.jpgRARE-004An unstable iceberg begins to break apart in the warm weather of August in Narsaq, Greenland. All of the glaciers in the fjord show visible signs of retreat from the past 20 years, with bare rock showing where lichens have not yet colonized. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/5/pf-media/RARE-005.jpgRARE-005Gulls and kittiwakes gather in an enormous flock at the base of glacier in Tunulliarfik Fjord, Greenland. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/6/pf-media/RARE-006.jpgRARE-006Night is brief in Narsaq village in summer. The tiny village of 1300 has only a short section of road and few vehicles. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/7/pf-media/RARE-007.jpgRARE-007Danish-influenced architecture dominates this village of Narsaq in South Greenland. Today's Greenlanders are a mixture of its original indigenous Iñuit peoples and the Danish. After a powerful independence movement, Greenland was granted 'home rule' in 1979 and its official language became Kalallisut, or West Greenlandic. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/8/pf-media/RARE-008.jpgRARE-008Kari and Regina Edwardsen, two locals in Narsaq, share tea and thoughts about the rare-earth mine from their lving room. Says Kari, "I think most of us are just tired of waiting for the mine to come or not. It has been so many years since it was proposed." https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/9/pf-media/RARE-008a.jpgRARE-008aOne of the sought-after minerals in the Kvanefjeld mineral complex in Narsaq is known as tugtupite, used for jewelry. These pendants, made by geologist Peter Lindbergh, flouresce brightly under ultraviolet light. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/10/pf-media/RARE-009.jpgRARE-009Icebergs rest offshore from the southern town of Narsaq, Greenland in summer. This town, deep in Tunulliarfik Fjord, is constantly passed by icebergs calving from the glaciers along the fjord as the current moves them. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/11/pf-media/RARE-017.jpgRARE-017A fishing and hunting cabin is used for the storage and repair of nets, near Narsaq's second harbor. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/12/pf-media/RARE-010.jpgRARE-010Clothes dry on the line outside a home in Narsaq in summer. Much of village life is spent outdoors here in this mild sub-arctic land. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/13/pf-media/RARE-011.jpgRARE-011Teenagers play in the new soccer field at the edge of town. Concerns about uranium dust exposure are exacerbated by the fact that Greenlandic youth spend so much of their time outdoors, where the wind blows constantly. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/14/pf-media/RARE-012.jpgRARE-012A few miles from the proposed rare-earth mine, Narsaq is experimenting with agriculture. Growing food in Greenland is difficult due to its short northern season, but it remains vital for the Greenlandic interest in self-sufficiency and eventual independence from Denmark. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/15/pf-media/RARE-014.jpgRARE-014Spanish tourists visit the base of glacier in Tunulliarfik Fjord. Tourism is a significant portion of the Greenlandic economy, which is only growing. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/16/pf-media/RARE-014a.jpgRARE-014aLeft: Glacial ice breaks, releasing dammed water trapped inside this glacier near Narsaq, Greenland.<br /><br />Right: The recession of this glacier is clear where it meets the exposed rock below. The glacial tongue extended 50 yards into the water of Tunulliarfik Fjord just a decade earlier. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/17/pf-media/RARE-015.jpgRARE-015The harbor of Narsaq, Greenland is sheltered by the long fjords of South Greenland. Even so, a regular stream of icebergs is a major impediment and occasional hazard to travel by boat, which is the primary mode of travel and subsistence during the summer. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/18/pf-media/RARE-013.jpgRARE-013Houses glow in the evening light in Narsaq. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/19/pf-media/RARE-019.jpgRARE-019Stones of differing colors and compositions hint at the treasure of the Kvanefjeld mineral complex area in South Greenland. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/20/pf-media/RARE-019a.jpgRARE-019aLeft: Black and Red Eudialyte crystals in a cobble collected from the proposed rare-earth mine site.<br /><br />Right: Tugtupite, a unique flourescing mineral, collected by Greenlandic geologist Ulric Lindbergh. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/21/pf-media/RARE-003.jpgRARE-003A road climbs the mountains behind Narsaq up to the site of the decommissioned uranium mine. In the distance the town can be seen, and the valley with its agriculture below. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/22/pf-media/RARE-021.jpgRARE-021Paul Cohen swims in crystal blue waters along a beach in Tunulliarfik Fjord. The environment here has so little pollution that Greenlanders flying into other countries often have respiratory problems from reduced air quality. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Rare-Earth-Greenland/23/pf-media/RARE-022.jpgRARE-022The Greenlandic flag flies proudly behind a ferry as it crosses Tunulliarfik Fjord. Greenland's desire to attain independence from Denmark lies in expanding its economy. While Greenlanders themselves value their pristine natural environment, the fate of resource extraction projects here remain uncertain. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/1/pf-media/MASKSJE-001.jpgMASKSJE-001The village of Gambell lies on Saint Lawrence Island in Alaska, in the middle of the Bering Sea. Gambell is closer to Siberia than Alaska, but its remoteness has not insulated its indigenous Yup'ik population from the devastating effects of colonization. Alaska Native youth have a rate of suicide 18 times greater than that of the continental United States, with Yup'ik communities impacted the most. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/2/pf-media/MASKSJE-003.jpgMASKSJE-003Heavy snow and fog blankets a house in Gambell, Alaska. This remote island community is only accessible by small plane, and most villagers will never leave in their lifetimes. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/3/pf-media/MASKSJE-004.jpgMASKSJE-004A view of the living room inside WK's family home. Television has become the center of most family homes across Alaska, but for youth from St Lawrence Island, the visions it provides can be nearly unattainable. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/4/pf-media/MASKSJE-006.jpgMASKSJE-006The central importance of family is clear in the home of WK. Programs encouraging youth to attend college in Anchorage or Fairbanks have only recently begun to understand that indigenous values make leaving family behind for school nearly untenable. Indigenous-led initiatives have proven to be more effective. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/5/pf-media/MASKSJE-006a.jpgMASKSJE-006aSubsistence remains the primary source of food and identity in this Yup'ik village. Community members are increasingly divorced from this through cultural loss due to Indian boarding schools, and due to the effect climate change has had on walrus herds through diminishing sea ice. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/6/pf-media/MASKSJE-007.jpgMASKSJE-007Nine year-old CA sleeps in a school hallway. A lack of housing and mattresses has created a situation where many kids have no place to sleep at night. The problem is so pervasive that official school policy is to avoid waking kids even during class for at least 20 minutes. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/7/pf-media/MASKSJE-009.jpgMASKSJE-009The Yup'ik have hunted and fished Gambell's prolific seas for thousands of years. The village bears the scars of waves of cultural genocide, beginning with European whalers who brought an epidemic that killed over 75% of the population. Today, the Yup'ik have had to abandon the use of their traditional skinboats for hunting as well, as the sea ice has vanished and along with it, the walrus herds. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/8/pf-media/MASKSJE-012.jpgMASKSJE-012A basketball court sits empty in the village of Gambell, Alaska. Several youth I spoke to me told me the recent suicide of a friend who loved the game has kept them away from the court. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/9/pf-media/MASKSJE-012a.jpgMASKSJE-012aLeft: Reflecting on the grief in his life from losing a good friend to suicide, BK becomes quiet.<br /><br />Right: BK wears a fierce mask that is his interpretation of hope and strength. Holding a chisel in his school's shop class, he hopes that occupational training will help him to land a good job when he graduates. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/10/pf-media/MASKSJE-012b.jpgMASKSJE-012bLeft: IK wears her grief mask in her bedroom with her mother. Fiercely protective, her mother believes that instilling confidence is the only way to keep her daughter safe in a village scarred by so much trauma.<br /><br />Right: IK feels a sense of relief when she is at home with her family. She wears her hope mask in the family kitchen, where so many of her joyful memories come from. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/11/pf-media/MASKSJE-012c.jpgMASKSJE-012cLeft: LA reflects on family and loss at home in her mask of grief. Though her family has more than most, she is not insulated from the deaths in the community.<br /><br />Right: LA poses with her two younger siblings in the classroom. LA, who often takes care of her brothers and sisters, asks, "If I was gone, who would watch out for them?" https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/12/pf-media/MASKSJE-012d.jpgMASKSJE-012dLeft: MB wears her mask of grief a few steps from family's front door. She lost her father to suicide last year, yet upon meeting in person, her resilience is evident in her energy and vibrance.<br /><br />Right: MB is happiest when romping about with her brother, something she fears, "cannot last forever". https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/13/pf-media/MASKSJE-012e.jpgMASKSJE-012eLeft: NA stands outside a shattered school window wearing his featureless grief mask. Like many Yup'ik, speaking about emotions is immensely difficult for him.<br /><br />Right: AB poses with his hope mask at the Gambell School Library. Globalization has brought Western popular culture to Saint Lawrence Island through television and internet, offering glimpses of another world while denying access to that world. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/14/pf-media/MASKSJE-012f.jpgMASKSJE-012fLeft: KO embraces her closest friend, DS, a few steps from school wearing their grief masks.<br /><br />Right: KO and DS would only wear their masks of joy together. At 13, they have not personally known any suicide victims-- a hopeful sign of change in the community. Nonetheless their family dynamics reflect deep intergenerational traumas. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/15/pf-media/MASKSJE-013.jpgMASKSJE-013An aerial view of the vast coastline of Saint Lawrence Island in April 2018. Historically, the shoreline is sheathed in sea ice nearly year-round, but 2018 became the first year on record where the sea ice never formed completely due to the warming climate. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/16/pf-media/MASKSJE-014.jpgMASKSJE-014The frame of a skinboat rests on trestles, a reminder of Yup'ik traditional culture. For the youngest generation of Yup'ik, traditional culture can be a lifeline. 16-year old Sam Schimmel from Gambell says, "What I've seen is that when youth are not culturally engaged, you see higher rates of incarceration, higher rates of suicide, higher rates of alcoholism, higher rates of drug abuse - all these evils that come in and take the place of culture." https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Masks-of-Grief-and-Joy/17/pf-media/MASKSJE-010.jpgMASKSJE-010Kids play on a snowy playground in the light of Arctic spring. With each new generation, traumas of previous generations grow more distant, though they will face new challenges. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/1/pf-media/FLYWAY2-001.jpgMigrating JaegersMigrating jaegers on migration search for nesting sites across the frozen surface of a lake in Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve. As the junction of several migratory bird flyways, itâs the densest concentration of birds in the Arctic, known as "Heathrow at the top of the world." https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/2/pf-media/FLYWAY2-002.jpgFLYWAY2-002A flock of greater white-fronted geese fly over the tundra at Teshekpuk Lake in May. Teshekpuk is ground zero for migratory birds in the Arctic, which are already being squeezed by other factors, including climate change and loss of habitat in the places they stop elsewhere around the world. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/3/pf-media/FLYWAY2-003.jpgCaribou and Tundra PocketsCaribou from the 50,000-strong Teshekpuk herd jump through deep snow at the edges of Teshekpuk Lake in May. The herd is an important to Alaskan Iñupiaq subsistence hunters from the nearby villages of Utqiagvik and Nuiqsut. Says Iñupiaq hunter Jonah Nukapigaq, "Pretty much all of us depend on our caribou." https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/4/pf-media/FLYWAY2-004.jpgEdge of TeshekpukThe edge of Teshekpuk Lake in Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve (NPR-A) seem barren, but the wetlands here teem with bird life in summer. "It is more important, there are more birds, of higher density, in the NPR-A than in the Arctic Refuge," says scientist Rebecca McGuire of the Wilderness Conservation Society. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/5/pf-media/FLYWAY2-005.jpgFLYWAY2-005Greater white-fronted geese shift positions within their migratory V-formation in the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/6/pf-media/FLYWAY2-006.jpgCaribou at Teshekpuk, Single FileA herd of caribou cross the vast plain of Alaska's Tesehkpuk Lake, the largest lake in the Arctic. Tesehkpuk is home to one of the great caribou herds, as well as the destination for some of the largest flocks of migratory birds on earth. Though lacking photogenic landscape features, the vast tundra here is iconic of America's great wilderness. In May, pregnant females are on the move and waiting to give birth to their calves. Traveling single-file saves energy so each caribou does not need to break its own trail. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/7/pf-media/FLYWAY2-007.jpgFLYWAY2-007A Willow Ptarmigan in its breeding plumage waits on the snowy tundra as its nesting season approaches. Ptarmigan are unique Arctic birds, well adapted to a life in the cold, but they share their landscape in the summer with millions of migratory birds. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/8/pf-media/FLYWAY2-008.jpgFLYWAY2-008A willow ptarmigan runs under the feet of a female caribou on May migration across the wetlands of Teshekpuk Lake. Ptarmigan have been known to maintain a close relationship with caribou at times, taking advantage of the safety of the herd. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/9/pf-media/FLYWAY2-009.jpgFLYWAY2-009A pomarine jaeger hovers over the tundra, searching for lemming prey under the snow. Jaegers are predatory, and pomarines can only breed successfully in years with high lemming populations. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/10/pf-media/FLYWAY2-010.jpgFLYWAY2-010What at first appears to be a remote and featureless snowy tundra becomes the edge of Alaska's Teshekpuk Lake in May. It shows the characteristic patterned polygons of the tundra. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/11/pf-media/FLYWAY2-011.jpgCanada Geese over Tundra LeadCanada geese fly over a lead on the frozen surface of Lake Teshekpuk, Alaska, in search of a nesting site. The best sites with protection from predators and flooding are competitive, as millions of other migratory birds are searching for the same spaces. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/12/pf-media/FLYWAY2-012.jpgFLYWAY2-012A tundra swan searches the snowy tundra for a favorable nesting site among patches of melted snow at Teshekpuk Lake. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/13/pf-media/FLYWAY2-013a.jpgFLYWAY2-013aHeavily laden pregnant caribou from the Teshekpuk herd migrate towards their calving grounds. Although it requires a lot of energy to walk across snowy tundra, calves are better protected from predators by the remoteness of their calving grounds within a vast expanse of land. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/14/pf-media/FLYWAY2-014.jpgFLYWAY2-014A glaucous gulls soars over the rare blue sky at Teshekpuk Lake in Alaska, one of the most important areas on earth for migratory birds. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/15/pf-media/FLYWAY2-015.jpgFLYWAY2-015Frozen tundra grasses capture the midnight sunlight on the banks of Teshekpuk Lake in late spring. Snow can fall any day of the year, even in midsummer. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/16/pf-media/FLYWAY2-015a.jpgFLYWAY2-015aA northern pintail darts across the skies of the National Petroleum Reserve in May. As the snows and ice give way to marshlands in June, a mad race is on to find the best nesting sites. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/17/pf-media/FLYWAY2-016.jpgFLYWAY2-016A tundra swan sits on its island nest, well protected by surrounding meltwater from the snow in late May. The primary predator of bird eggs is the arctic fox, which cannot access well-sited nests such as this one. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/18/pf-media/FLYWAY2-017.jpgNuiqsut Pipelines, 1An oil pipeline outside of the village of Nuiqsut, Alaska. Precisely because the tundra is featureless over such a huge area, pipelines and roads in the wetland region of the Teshekpuk Lake would bring predators height and access to nesting migratory birds. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/19/pf-media/FLYWAY2-018.jpgRoad and Pipeline, Tundra CrossingAn access road outside of Prudhoe Bay, Alaska intersects a set of pipelines. Seemingly insignificant oil support infrastructure can alter the dynamic of the relatively flat and featureless tundra in surprising ways because of the sheer unbroken length of roads and pipelines. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/20/pf-media/FLYWAY2-019.jpgFLYWAY2-019A caribou and her calves make their way across the tundra shallows northeast of Teshekpuk Lake in June. Summer is the most important time to graze and put on fat reserves for the brutal coming winter. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/21/pf-media/FLYWAY2-020.jpgArctic Terns, Fishing ReflectionAn arctic tern surfaces after fishing in the waters of the Qupaluk wetland area. The Arctic tern has the longest migration on earth, traveling from the Antarctic to the Arctic, over 44,000 miles annually to nest on the Alaskan tundra. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/22/pf-media/FLYWAY2-021.jpgFLYWAY2-021Tundra polygons are shaped by thousand year-old forces of freezing and thawing and an underlying permafrost layer. These polygons are of the key to the marshlands that make excellent bird nesting areas, as they create small shallow lakes surrounding dry ground. These polygons are seen at Qupaluk in late June. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/23/pf-media/FLYWAY2-022.jpgFLYWAY2-022Snow geese forage in the shallows of a tundra archipelago in the Qupaluk wetlands near Teshekpuk Lake. Qupaluk is a designated critical region of 55,000 acres for birds migrating from Asia, Australia and New Zealand, but has no special legal protections unlike Teshekpuk. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/24/pf-media/FLYWAY2-023.jpgSnow Goose Nest, Tundra CamoflaugeThe nest of a Snow goose disappears among the grasses and sedges of the tundra on Alaska's coastal plain. This nest is part of a colony of hundreds in the vicinity. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/25/pf-media/FLYWAY2-024.jpgFLYWAY2-024Snowy owl nestlings just a few days old rest inside their nest scrape on a slightly raised hummock on the flat tundra environment of Alaska's coastal plain. Snowy owls raise their young here alongside millions of other nesting birds in the summer. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/26/pf-media/FLYWAY2-024a.jpgFLYWAY2-024aLeft: Snow goose eggs rest inside their downy insulated nest on the tundra at Qupaluk, near the Arctic coast.<br /><br />Right: Biologist Peter Detwiler floats the late June egg of a pectoral sandpiper found at Qupaluk to measure its development. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/27/pf-media/FLYWAY2-025.jpgFLYWAY2-025Scientists attach a satellite tag to a pectoral sandpiper at Qupaluk to track its movements. This study in previous years has found shorebirds by GPS tags traveling around the world, establishing a baseline for their migratory behavior. 88 species of shorebird here are in decline. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/28/pf-media/FLYWAY2-026.jpgFLYWAY2-026A pomarine jaeger flies low over its nest on the low tundra in June surrounded by shallow water at Qupaluk. Pomarines depend on lemmings during breeding years and only succeed in high years of the lemming population cycle. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/29/pf-media/FLYWAY2-027.jpgFLYWAY2-027A Brown Lemming peers out from its network of trails in the tundra mosses, in the Qupaluk area of Alaska's North Slope. These tunnels allow lemmings in good years such as this to escape predation even when the snow cover on the tundra has melted away. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/30/pf-media/FLYWAY2-028.jpgFLYWAY2-028A female snowy owl returns to her nest at Teshekpuk Lake in the midnight sun of June. Visible is the owl's brood patch, a pink area devoid of feathers because snowy owl feathers insulate so well that an exposed area is necessary to incubate eggs and nestlings. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/31/pf-media/FLYWAY2-029.jpgFLYWAY2-029Snowy owl nestlings just a few days old await the quick return of their mother in the near-freezing cold of arctic summer at Teshekpuk Lake. Their nests are often begun as scrapes on a tundra hummock, then walls built up with the bodies of lemmings. The presence of the owl's nest also puts other nesting birds at ease. A brant colony has established itself in the lower wet tundra around the hummock. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/32/pf-media/FLYWAY2-030.jpgFLYWAY2-030A herd of 300 Teshekpuk caribou picks its way around Qupaluk wetlands in late June. Caribou gather in enormous herds to protect themselves from the hordes of mosquitoes and botflies that develop in this marshy land. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/33/pf-media/FLYWAY2-031.jpgFLYWAY2-031An opportunistic tundra swan tries to swallow a dead fledgling goose found in the shallow marshes near Teshekpuk Lake. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/34/pf-media/FLYWAY2-032.jpgFLYWAY2-032A pair of endangered Steller's eiders forage at a summer tundra pond at Qupaluk. The eiders have a limited breeding range, only on the coastal plain and western coast of Alaska. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/35/pf-media/FLYWAY2-033.jpgQupaluk TundraTwenty percent of the earth is covered in tundra. These vast and treeless territories are the most remote regions on earth. In winter, the land hibernates beneath a layer of insulative snow. In summer, the snows become permafrost pools and the tundra unveils itself as a moss-laden horizon. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/36/pf-media/FLYWAY2-034.jpgFLYWAY2-034An Arctic Loon shakes water off its back in the midnight sun at Qupaluk, close to the northern Arctic coast in June. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/37/pf-media/FLYWAY2-035.jpgSilent Change, Snowy OwlA male snowy owl flies low over the tundra in search of lemmings. It's a lemming bumper crop year on Alaska's North Slope, and snowy owls caring for their nests are busy feeding their families alongside millions of other nesting birds. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Arctic-Flyway/38/pf-media/FLYWAY2-036.jpgPipeline and Caribou, TeshekpukCaribou from the Teshekpuk herd graze near an oil pipeline 30 miles west of Prudhoe Bay. Although the pipeline rises 6' above the tundra, in studies, caribou tend to treat the pipeline as a wall. Although Teshekpuk Lake remains a designated area with special protections, recent discoveries have prompted renewed interest in oil drilling and infrastructure. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/1/pf-media/GRNB-001.jpgGRNB-001Danish-influenced architecture dominates this village of Aasiaat in North Greenland. Today's Greenlanders are a mixture of its original indigenous Iñuit peoples and the Danish. After a powerful independence movement, Greenland was granted 'home rule' in 1979 and its official language became Kalallisut, or West Greenlandic. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/2/pf-media/GRNB-002.jpgGRNB-002A view of Nuuk's southern fjords shows an archipelago dominated by the jagged profile of Kingittorsuaq mountain. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/3/pf-media/GRNB-003.jpgGRNB-003Kunuunnguaq Davidsen performs a Greenland kayak (qajaq) roll in the 2018 Greenlandic National Championships in Nuuk. Traditional kayak rolling was done to recover from capsizing during kayak-hunting. It has since evolved into a national sport with 37 increasingly difficult rolls. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/4/pf-media/GRNB-004.jpgGRNB-004KH takes a moment to calm his anxiety after coming in from a failed roll in 40F water, where he was suspended underwater for a minute. Historically, some kayakers in Greenland were known to suffer from a psychological syndrome known as 'kayak angst', which created a paralyzing fear or capsizing. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/5/pf-media/GRNB-005.jpgGRNB-005Kunuunnguaq Davidsen practices kayak rolls during rough weather in Nuuk. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/6/pf-media/GRNB-006.jpgGRNB-006Alan Josefson paddles past a dock in Nuuk harbor, where a fresh sealskin awaits processing. The sealskin will be processed then sewn into a traditional float used in kayak-hunting. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/7/pf-media/GRNB-006a.jpgGRNB-006aLeft: Emaanooraq Nathansen cinches the oily sleeves on his sealskin tuiliq, or waterproof kayak parka. The traditional tuiliq is required for the Kayaking Championships, and in this way ensures that the knowledge of traditional garments is not lost.<br /><br />Right: The tradition of ivory-carving is strong in Greenland. This polar bear head is used as a deck line toggle to hold paddles and harpoons on a kayak's deck. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/8/pf-media/GRNB-007.jpgGRNB-007Crosses and summer wildflowers fill a cemetery in Nuuk, Greenland. Danish colonization brought Christianity, which Greenlanders were forced to adopt. Even so, says hunter Adam Hansen, "We made Christianity into a cover for our traditions." https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/9/pf-media/GRNB-008.jpgGRNB-008Gulls and auks fly past an iceberg near Qasigiannamiut in Disco Bay, Greenland. The cultural revolution that has come to Greenland in the past fifty years continues against the backdrop of climate change and melting of the Greenland Ice Cap. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/10/pf-media/GRNB-009.jpgGRNB-009Being a hunter or fisherman in Greenland is a viable occupation because, unlike Alaska and Canada, Greenland allows the market sale of fish and animals. This fishing vessel is moored outside of the small settlement of Qasigiannguit. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/11/pf-media/GRNB-009a.jpgGRNB-009aLeft: Fisherman Adam Hansen gaffs an Atlantic wolf fish. These predatory bottomfish are common, large, and prized by Greenlanders.<br /><br />Right: A seal heart and meat is for sale at the local market in Nuuk. In Greenlandic custom, all of an animal's parts are used for food. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/12/pf-media/GRNB-010.jpgGRNB-010Maya Sialuk is a traditional Inuit tattoo artist. She is protective of the symbols and designs that she does, aware of their powerful significance in Greenlandic shamanic culture. For Maya, tattooing is a form of colonial resistance. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/13/pf-media/GRNB-011.jpgGRNB-011Two qajaqs and an unfinished frame rest outside of Aasiaat's paddling club. Greenland kayaks are constructed with a method known as skin-on-frame, which stretches a skin of canvas or sealskin over a light wooden frame. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/14/pf-media/GRNB-012.jpgGRNB-012A large iceberg with an arch become a temporary tourist attraction in Ilulissat ice fjord. The red sailboat seen here belongs to a local guide and adds visual interest to tourist photographs. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/15/pf-media/GRNB-013.jpgGRNB-013Sinnii Tobiassen completes a difficult feat in an event known as Allunaariaqattararneq. These rope gymnastics were the traditional way that kayakers trained for kayaking, developing the requisite skills of strength, flexibility and coordination. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/16/pf-media/GRNB-013a.jpgGRNB-013aTim Gallaway shows off a medal he has won in the international category for kayak racing. Greenland's Championships are organized by its kayaking organization, Qaannat Kattuffiat.<br /><br />A husky lounges outdoors in July in front of two qamutit, or dogsleds. Says Mayak Sialuk, "The three most dangerous things in Greenland are Nanook, Greenlandic woman, and Dog." https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/17/pf-media/GRNB-014.jpgGRNB-014 https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/18/pf-media/GRNB-015.jpgGRNB-015The portion of Greenland that remains uncovered by its permanent ice sheet is tundra over rock formations. Arctic Willows snake across the rocks near a waterfall in Nussuaq. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/19/pf-media/GRNB-016.jpgGRNB-016Boys race to launch their qajaqs in the youth portage race. Qajaq construction makes a big difference here, and many of the youth built their own qajaqs with the help of their families. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/20/pf-media/GRNB-017.jpgGRNB-017Karl Bjorn Hansen runs with his qajaq up the shoreline in the youth portage race. The Greenland National Championships include heavy participation by youth under 15, a sign of Greenlandic culture's emphasis on family ties. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/21/pf-media/GRNB-018.jpgGRNB-018Just moments after the start of the men's long-distance race, kayak racers pull away. In the distance, Nuuk's multi-level buildings are indicators of a thriving and modern Greenlandic economy. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/22/pf-media/GRNB-019.jpgGRNB-019Wildflowers and grasses grow along fjord edges that descend into Ilulissat's ice fjord, where the Greenland ice sheet calves off icebergs into the Atlantic. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/23/pf-media/GRNB-020.jpgGRNB-020A massive iceberg floats through the famous Ilulissat ice fjord. This glacial bay is a UNESCO world heritage site. https://kiliii.com/ARCTIC+ANTARCTIC/Greenland-Renewed/24/pf-media/GRNB-021.jpgGRNB-021A Greenlandic husky puppy is groomed from both sides. Greenlandic huskies are a carefully protected breed, and no other breed of dog is permitted north of the village of Sisimiut. Greenland's laws have shaped a democracy based on indigenous values and priorities.