Online

Indigenous Whaling in The Guardian

The Guardian has long been a bastion of news about global indigenous issues. I’m pleased to say I worked with editor Jehan Jillani on a story on modern Iñupiaq culture and traditional whaling. It’s not easy to do a story on something as ostensibly controversial as whaling, but the Guardian understands the big difference between commercial and indigenous whaling. I hope it’s an opportunity for their readers to see the history of systematic oppression of the indigenous perspective.

By 2011, the Iñupiaq had quadrupled the population of the bowhead, while hunting them for subsistence. The story of the Iñupiaq is a vision of successful conservation using indigenous knowledge.

People of the Whale, The Guardian

Gift of the Whale: Feature on Topic.com

People of the Whale, my series on the Iñupiaq culture of the Alaskan Arctic, has been published in print internationally but hasn’t been accessible in an online form. I’m excited that it’s now published on Topic.com, an online magazine with innovative storytelling. The story comes to life with animated gifs and an excellent layout thanks to editor Caroline Smith.

This version of the story gets into more depth on the the cultural importance of whaling but also how climate change is affecting the lives and traditions of the Iñupiaq.