Michael J. Stickman is the First Chief of the Nulato Tribal Council, an

Athabaskan Athabaskan ( ; also spelled ''Athabascan'', ''Athapaskan'' or ''Athapascan'', and also known as Dene) is a large branch of the Na-Dene language family of North America, located in western North America in three areal language groups: Northern, ...

tribe in

Nulato, Alaska Nulato (; "chum salmon fish camp" in Koyukon language, Koyukon; ) is a city in Yukon-Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 239. History Nulato was a location for trade ...

. Stickman, who is

Koyukon The Koyukon, Dinaa, or Denaa ( Denaakk'e: ''Tl’eeyegge Hut’aane'') are an Alaska Native Athabascan people of the Athabascan-speaking ethnolinguistic group. Their traditional territory is along the Koyukuk and Yukon rivers where they sub ...

Athabascan, is seated on the

Arctic Council The Arctic Council is a high-level intergovernmental forum that addresses issues faced by the Arctic governments and the indigenous people of the Arctic region. At present, eight countries exercise sovereignty over the lands within the Arctic ...

. He also serves as the director of Nulato Hills Enterprises, the for-profit enterprise of the Nulato Tribal Council that provides transportation services, language education, and business planning. Stickman was one of 60

Alaska Native Alaska Natives (also known as Native Alaskans, Alaskan Indians, or Indigenous Alaskans) are the Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples of Alaska that encompass a diverse arena of cultural and linguistic groups, including the I ...

tribal leaders who oppose the US

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands, U.S. federal lands. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the BLM oversees more than of land, or one ...

's proposal to open tracts of protected lands in the Bering Sea-Western Interior region of Alaska to mining. Stickman said, "It is our responsibility to take care of land and resources that mean so much to our peoples' way of life. Our ancestors instilled these values about showing respect and caring for the land."

References

Koyukon people Year of birth missing (living people) Living people 21st-century Alaska Native people Native American leaders People from Yukon–Koyukuk Census Area, Alaska {{NorthAm-native-bio-stub

See also

References