Feeding our Ancestors: An Ethnography of Black Seaweed Use in Southeast Alaska Indigenous Communities

FAIN: RFW-299432-24

Sealaska Heritage Foundation (Juneau, AK 99801-1245)
Kelly Rose Bale Monteleone (Project Director: September 2023 to present)

Ethnographic research examining the cultural importance of black seaweed to Alaskan Indigenous cultures, and how climate change is affecting this valuable resource. (36 months)

Black seaweed is one of the favorite foods of the Lingít (Tlingit), Xaadas (Haida), and Ts’msyen (Tsimshian) people of Southeast (SE) Alaska. Each year, harvesters await the arrival of spring when it is gathered and later distributed widely throughout the community. Black seaweed is a highly valued food source, playing a critical role in the cultural and ceremonial life of the Native people, even holding a prominent position in artistic traditions. However, quite astonishingly, very little documentation exists on the cultural, ceremonial, nutritional, and artistic role of black seaweed for Indigenous peoples in SE Alaska. This Indigenous-led collaborative project will document how, why, and where SE Alaska Natives are harvesting, utilizing, and distributing black seaweed now and in the past. This will be done with a focus on how a warming climate is affecting this culturally important species and the knowledge mobilization, traditional practices, and ideological expressions.