Environmental change and cultural continuity: Alutiiq identity, subsistence practice and ways of knowing in a changing environment

My thesis analyses the construction of Alutiiq indigenous identity in the villages of Chenega Bay and Tatitlek, Prince William Sound, Alaska. I argue that Alutiiq identity is based upon ties to the land and kinship which are actively fostered through the practice of subsistence related activities. Adopting a phenomenological dwelling perspective, I build on previous studies undertaken within my region by showing how identity, subsistence and well-being are integral to one another and are embedded in the c ontexts of social relationships within the local environment. By examining the processes of hunting, fishing, gathering, food preparation, consumption and sharing, I explore how the Alutiiq perception and knowledge of the surrounding environment is embedd ed within contexts of relationships in practice and activity within the environment. Secondly, I my thesis discusses the immediate and long-term environmental impacts of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, its perceived threat to cultural security and attem pts at cultural recovery from the disaster. I argue that these issues can be more deeply understood in relation to the notion of 'dwelling' compared to anaylses currently offered by anthropologists exploring the issues of cultural security and the continu ity in relation to the long-term environmental impacts of the oil spill by exploring the long-term impacts of the oil spill on subsistence practices and the Alutiiq relationship with the environment in relation to ideas of dislocation, re-adaptation, orie ntation, 'wayfinding' and sensory attunement.