Jennifer Bennis, Yup’ik community
Dillingham (Bristol Bay), Alaska

Jennifer Bennis, Yup’ik community
Dillingham (Bristol Bay), Alaska

The Yup’ik people and other Alaskan indigenous cultures consider salmon as sentient, familial beings who give themselves to people, as well as demand reciprocal respect relationships. Reflecting personal and cultural values, this worldview underlies Alaska Natives’ relationship with salmon and their stewardship.

Bristol Bay in Alaska encompasses 27.5 million acres of land and 12 million acres of marine ecosystem, including major river systems with hundreds of connected lakes, rivers, and streams that feed into a saltwater bay of the Bering Sea. Here is where the Yup’ik community participates in the subsistence salmon harvest that provides a significant amount of food to its members.

Photographer
Jason Chung

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