Yup'ik Elders' Observations on Alaska's Changing Delta

Nearly 16 hours of recorded testimonials from Yup'ik elders document lifelong observations of environmental change in Alaska's Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta. This booklet synthesizes a 2018 knowledge-exchange meeting, structuring discussions around processes like coastal flooding and permafrost thaw. It integrates elder perspectives with scientific findings from the NASA ABoVE project.

Use Cases

• Validating remote sensing data on shrub expansion and permafrost thaw with local ground observations.
• Analyzing narratives and quotations to understand community vulnerability to coastal flooding and river ice breakup.
• Cross-referencing elder accounts of species range and phenological changes with ecological models.
• Using illustrated maps and graphical summaries for community-based climate adaptation planning.
• Studying human dimensions of environmental change in rural Arctic settlements.

Strengths

• Contains nearly 16 hours of direct testimonials from elders with lifelong, pre-satellite era perspectives.
• Covers multiple YKD villages representing diverse biophysical environments for broader regional insight.
• Integrates qualitative narratives with graphical illustrations and field-based scientific findings.

Limitations

• Dataset structure and specific column names are not provided by any source.
• Sources conflict on the last updated date (2018-11 16 vs. 2026-03-13), creating uncertainty about metadata maintenance.
• The exact license terms under 'other-license-specified' are undefined.

Provenance

Source

Knowledge-exchange meeting with Yup'ik elders, community members, and natural scientists, part of the NASA ABoVE project.

Collection Method

Recorded discussions and testimonials, later synthesized into a structured booklet with narrative summaries, quotations, and illustrations.

Time Range

Elder perspectives predate satellite era; documented meeting occurred 2018 -11-14 to 2018-11-16.

Freshness

2026-03-13 06:10:56.491214

Geography

Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta (YKD), western Alaska, covering several villages.