Native

Ninilchik’s annual Salmonfest is a three-day music festival that advocates for the protection of healthy salmon through song and educational resources. But it also highlights Alaska Native culture through workshops and demonstrations.

About 30 solemnly gathered for a vigil Monday to honor missing and murdered Indigenous women. The tribe also used the opportunity to recognize local support services that are available for victims.

The Kenaitze Indian Tribe’s monthly arts and crafts sale has become a hub for Native creators to sell their wares. It's the only craft fair in the region that exclusively promotes Native art.

In conjunction with its newly revitalized cultural museum, the Kenai Chamber of Commerce and Visitor Center hosted a presentation about the early history of Kenai. The lecture was a first in a new presentation series that goes beyond the museum’s rotating exhibits.

Yarrow is a type of Alaska wildflower that grows prolifically and has a number of healing properties. That’s why the Kenaitze Indian Tribe recently held a traditional medicine workshop about the flower.

Youth from across Southcentral Alaska gathered in Soldotna last weekend to compete in sporting events with ties to Alaska Native culture. The Native Youth Olympics Invitational highlights skills that were needed to live a subsistence lifestyle in a competitive, yet friendly setting.

The Dena’ina people are historically known to have lived in two styles of homes – including one type built for winter. A presentation in Soldotna last week highlighting these homes and their cultural significance.

Many southcentral Alaska forests are dotted with devil’s club, a bush-like plant with thorny stems and large leaves. Alaska Native groups have historically used the plant for medicine, and a recent workshop in Kenai trained youth how to process and harvest the plant.

As part of its Alaska Native studies program, Kenai Peninsula College is currently offering a Native beadwork traditions course. The two-credit class teaches a number of beading techniques, while helping students better connect to and understand Native culture.

Wild plants sometimes get a bad rap. When they’re pretty, we call them wildflowers. But usually, when they’re in our gardens without being intentionally…