I had a great conversation with Hannah over at Mountain Gazette about my article in issue 201. The article centers on the work of my nonprofit, Informed Experiences(IE), working alongside longtime partners in Arctic Alaska. Enjoy! And learn more about IE here and please reach out if you have interest in joining a trip, supporting students and/or supporting our cause.
By Hannah Truby
Last month, the Department of the Interior announced that the latest sale to lease offshore oil and gas drilling rights in Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge attracted zero interest—no companies bid for drilling rights.
The news marks a significant victory for the Refuge, which has remained in a decades-long tug-o-war between preservation and plunder. But the 70 years of largely unsuccessful drilling attempts tell a much bigger story—one that Mountain Gazette contributor Brennan Lagasse seeks to share through education and stewardship.
Since 2014, Lagasse—a writer, backcountry ski guide, and sustainability professor at UNR at Lake Tahoe—has led groups of university students to Arctic Village, Alaska, where they witness firsthand the stakes of protecting the Refuge, learning from those who have safeguarded it for millennia.
Spanning 19 million acres along Alaska’s North Slope, the Arctic Refuge is devoid of roads or facilities, and is considered one of the most pristine and undisturbed natural environments left on the planet. In addition to countless species of wildlife like Grizzly Bear and Pourcoupine Caribou, the land is home to the Gwich’in, an indigenous group that have for millennia called the region “Iizhik Gwats’an Gwandaii Goodlit”—the sacred place where life begins.
Though the Refuge’s designation in 1960 is often credited to mainstream environmental groups, the Gwich’in people have long been the Arctic’s most steadfast supporters.
Through his trips, Lagasse aims to highlight and support Gwich’in efforts, while offering his students the unique opportunity to learn about the land and witness firsthand the stakes of protecting it.
Photo by Ming Poon
Read the rest here
