Association of Village Council Presidents Bethel, Alaska Vivian Korthuis Vice President of Community Services

Inuit Circumpolar Council General Assembly Inuvik, Canada Sustainable Resource Use and Management July 22, 2014

AVCP Mission Statement Provides Human Development, Social Services, and other culturally relevant programs for the people, to promote self-determination, protection and enhancement of our culture and traditions though a working partnership with member villages of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta.

AVCP Service Area Map

Setting the Stage AVCP was formed to help with the settlement of aboriginal land claims in Alaska and provide services to the 56 Tribes along the Yukon and Kuskokwim Rivers and Bering Sea Coast in Western Alaska The Yukon Kuskokwim Delta and Bering Sea are important global migratory bird nesting grounds and largest chinook salmon run in Alaska.

Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge The Yukon Kuskokwim Delta is 57,826 square miles The Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge is 19.2 million square acres and it surrounds almost all of the 48 villages in the region This is important because it plays in the overall management of federal, state, and tribal lands

Our Region’s Experience Our Tribes helped create the Goose Management Plan resulting in the recognition of Tribal Management and Conservation Plans which resulted in the 1997 migratory bird protocol amendment which recognizes spring and summer subsistence hunts for Alaska Natives and Canadian Inuit.

The Moose Management Plan The Tribes in our region participated in the Moose Management Plan in the 1990’s which has resulted in higher population of moose and extended hunting of moose.

Inter Tribal Fish Commission The Tribes are currently pursuing the establishment of the Inter Tribal Fish Commissions on the Yukon River and the Kuskokwim River. The goal is to create the inter tribal fish commission that allows for Tribal Salmon Management Plans to address the declining salmon stocks.

The Bering Sea The fisheries and marine mammal resources in the Bering Sea need to be monitored to prevent the depletion of the stocks our people rely on for food. One of the goals is to have a Tribal Seat and a Subsistence Seat on the North Pacific Fisheries Management Council. One last concern is the anticipated increased shipping traffic in the Bering Sea and the impact it will have on our villages.

Traditional Knowledge Our Region and our Tribes use Traditional Knowledge in all of the conservation and management discussions, plans and strategies

What is the next Big Thing? Climate Change is impacting our region. Our villages are experiencing more extreme storms, loss of sea ice and changes in vegetation.

At the End of the Day We want to make the right decisions keeping our children’s future protected. We want to make those decisions, with “one mind” because we know if we take care of our resources they will take care of us.

Quyana-Thank you.