In October 2018, over sixty representatives of first and indigenous communities met in Girdwood, Alaska, for a first-of-its-kind gathering: the first peoples’ Convening on Climate-forced displacement (hereafter, first peoples’ Convening). representatives came from Alaska (Atmautluak, Bill moore’s Slough, Chevak, Elim, Eyak, Golovin, Hamilton, Kotlik, Kwigillingok, Kivalina, Mary’s Igloo, nelson lagoon, newtok, nunapitchuk, port heiden, Shishmaref, teller, Unalakleet), louisiana (Atakapa-ishak, isle de Jean Charles, pointe-Au-Chien), Washington (Quinault indian nation), Bangladesh, and the pacific (fiji, Kiribati, palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of the Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, tuvalu). the group met for three days to powerfully share the ways in which rapid climate change is impacting their communities and traditional ways of life, share traditional knowledge and practices, and begin to develop a collective vision for the future.
Participants highlighted the urgent need for action to address today’s climate crisis by centering the rights and solutions of First and Indigenous Peoples.
The report, created by UUSC and the participants is masterful: One Story: A Report of the
First Peoples Convening on Climate-Forced Displacement