Boulder, Colorado: March 20 to 28, 2025
Established in 1999, the Arctic Science Summit Week (ASSW) is an annual meeting hosted by the International Arctic Science Committee that brings together members of the Arctic research community. In 2025, ASSW was hosted in Boulder, Colorado, from March 20 to 28. Matt Druckenmiller, ELOKA co-principal investigator (PI), was a member of the organizing committee and the lead of the meeting. Over the years, the focus of ASSW has widened to include greater Arctic Indigenous participation. This year, as in prior years, the ELOKA team facilitated the attendance of members of our partnering organizations. Noor Johnson (ELOKA co-PI), and Joshua Brown (ELOKA postdoc) attended along with partners, including Tatiana Degai (ELOKA Advisory Member), Melissa Van Veen (Tahltan Atlas), Margaret Rudolf (ELOKA Advisory Member), Kaare Erickson (ELOKA Advisory Member), Roberta Glenn (AAOKH), and many more.
ELOKA helped organize a half-day side meeting on Indigenous Data Sovereignty, led by Tatiana Degai. During this gathering, experts, like Dominique David-Chavez, discussed Indigenous data sovereignty and how it can be implemented. The event was attended by over 30 people, and the conversation highlighted the importance of bringing together experts and scientists who, without being together at the meeting, otherwise may not have these discussions together.
Unique to this year’s conference was the Indigenous Pavilion. The Indigenous Pavilion offered a place of reprieve from the busy conference, and hosted Indigenous-led events, including a film festival. Two ELOKA partners debuted films at the festival: “The Story of Elvel” by Tatiana Degai and “Seining for a Song” by Snowchange.
Night at the Indigenous Pavilion: A reflection of ASSW from Joshua Brown, ELOKA Postdoctoral Researcher
The Arctic Science Summit Week 2025 offered many memorable experiences and presentations, but one night stood out. A unique structure caught my eye on the flat stone sundeck outside the main building: The Indigenous Pavilion. It was a fascinating blend of contemporary materials and timeless architecture, with fabric stretched around poles, reminiscent of a stretched-out tipi. It housed chairs, tables, a film screen, and video and audio equipment. This space, where many presentations, film screenings, and gatherings took place, was a testament to the cross-cultural nature of the event. It also operated as a hub for people to share food, stories, and music, and to forge new connections.
One night, Ossie Kairaiuak, from the well-known Yup'ik musical group Pamyua, acted as a conductor and taught a group a song. People from Mongolia and Sápmi sang, and others led a large group in their round dances. Hand drums emerged as people also enjoyed an international potluck with muktuk and more in a long lodge and around a portable fire pit.
I found myself amused also by people telling me I looked like I could be one of their relatives, and many folks I met reminded me of cousins and others from my community. Hearing people communicate across numerous languages reminded me of my great-grandparents and grandparents that utilize many languages.
This night was surreal, feeling like home, like family, while simultaneously modern and traditional. Much was familiar but also different, comforting, and intriguing. I want to help craft a future like this with many people coming together to share about their communities, to learn, grow, organize, and collaborate. This night and this event reminded me that Indigenous communities can gain much from gathering and learning from one another, learning about each other's challenges and successes, and how they might partner, and who knows, also become kin.
