Native America Calling

Filmmaker Kelly Moneymaker is dedicated to documenting how Indigenous people across the world — especially in the Arctic — are adapting to a rapidly changing climate. Moneymaker, who is Samoan and was raised by an adoptive Iñupiaq father, pivoted her career after a successful run in pop music to highlight Indigenous stories on film. Her work has been showcased at United Nations Climate Conferences, prestigious film festivals, and previous Arctic Encounter Summits in Anchorage, Alaska. We’ll speak to Moneymaker about her film work and hear from Unangax̂ tribal leader Crystal Dushkin about her efforts to revitalize her culture while bringing economic security to her community.

And Rachel Kallander, Arctic Encounter Summit founder and CEO, will join us for a review of this year’s convening of global leaders and stakeholders.

There are no casinos or lotteries in Alaska. The state has some of the most restrictive gaming laws in the country, but the small Dena’ina Athabascan Village of Eklutna, located in Anchorage’s municipality, is pushing the envelope on tribal gaming rights in the state. The Chin’an Gaming Hall is still open even after a year of legal disputes and threats by the state to close its doors. The village is also at the forefront of climate advocacy in southcentral Alaska. They have been working to restore their river’s namesake and salmon habitat. We’ll speak with the Eklutna’s president Aaron Leggett, live from the Arctic Encounter Summit in Anchorage, an annual gathering of policymakers, diplomats, Indigenous leaders, and stakeholders.

We’ll also hear from Alaska Native elders and subsistence rights advocates from St. Lawrence Island about whaling and contamination from a former military site on the island.

GUESTS

Aaron Leggett (Dena’ina Athabascan), president of the Village of Eklutna

Vi Waghiyi (Yupik), environmental health and justice program director at the Alaska Community Action on Toxics

Merle Apassingok (Yupik), elder and leader from the Native Village of Gambell

Dr. Sara Olsvig (Inuit), chair of the Inuit Circumpolar Council

President Donald Trump is pushing for more oil drilling in Alaska’s Arctic, a decision directly impacting Iñupiaq communities. Millions of acres in the National Petroleum Reserve were opened for oil and gas leasing and the administration’s reversal of Biden-era protections has the potential to open up the pristine National Wildlife Refuge for leasing and drilling. Some Iñupiaq communities welcome the potential for more oil drilling that promises to boost revenue and jobs for shareholders. Others worry about the environment and their ability to carry on subsistence lifestyles. We’ll get perspectives from Iñupiaq leaders about the future of economic development in the Arctic. We’re broadcasting live from the 2026 Arctic Encounter Summit in Anchorage, Alaska.

GUESTS

Asisaun Toovak (Iñupiaq), mayor of Utqiagvik, Alaska

Pearl Brower (Iñupiaq), president and CEO of Ukpeaġvik Iñupiat Corporation

Nagruk Harcharek (Iñupiaq), president of The Voice of the Arctic Iñupiat (VOICE)

The work of Margaret Pearce (Citizen Potawatomi) as a cartographer does not separate Indigenous people, stories, culture, and memory from a place that she is mapping. She works with tribes, Native scientists, and culture keepers to bring forth map layers often overlooked by the mainstream. One of her recent projects, “The Cold at Inuit Nunangat”, maps the ways Inuit protect their homelands in northern Canada and how colonization interferes with that connection. Her current mapping project, “Mississippi Dialogues”, depicts the Mississippi River through the perspective of Indigenous people and their stewardship. Pearce was named a National Geographic 33 in March and is a recipient of a 2025 MacArthur Fellowship and genius grant. She is our April Native in the Spotlight.

We’ll also visit with photographer and National Geographic Explorer Kiliii Yüyan (Nanai Hèzhé) about his photography book, “Guardians of Life: Indigenous Knowledge, Indigenous Science, and Restoring the Planet“. The book, which launched in April, is a culmination of photos from his travels to Indigenous communities throughout the globe with a focus on Indigenous connections and stewardship of land.

The Seminole Nation of Oklahoma is one of the first tribes to pass a moratorium against the construction of hyperscale data centers. The nearby Muscogee Nation also turned down an opportunity to build a data center after Muscogee citizens spoke out in force against the plan. Large tech companies are stepping up the pressure to build hyperscale data centers to house the processing power for data storage and generative AI. The federal government is providing incentives for tribes to get involved in this part of the tech boom. It is part of the Trump administration’s push to unleash American technological power, but such facilities typically require a lot of power and water. Native environmentalists warn data center companies are only looking to take advantage of tribes’ sovereignty and resources.

GUESTS

Cheyenne McNeill (Coharie), editorial fellow at Mother Jones

Jordan Harmon (Muscogee), policy specialist at Indigenous Environmental Network

Ashley Leitka (Absentee Shawnee Tribe and Oglala Lakota), co-director of the sovereignty and self-determination department for Honor The Earth

Dr. Karen Jarratt Snider (Choctaw), professor of applied Indigenous studies at Northern Arizona University