Sauyaq Solutions

What I do: (see previous work)

I conduct research, evaluations, and technical assistance (from grant writing, developing methodology, working with communities, and dissemination)

I support organizations through mentorship, talks, advising, trainings, workshops, etc. to engage in equitable work with and to support Indigenous Peoples. Note that each engagement is unique, based around the request. Topics include:

• • Colonization, Indigenous sovereignty, and Indigenous data governance

  • Relationship building with Indigenous Peoples 

  • Equitable partnerships with Indigenous Peoples, including: group agreements, meeting facilitation, cultural humility, equitable/inclusive hiring, conflict management, and more

  • Multiple ways of knowing, science communication, knowledge translation, science diplomacy

  • Indigenous-led research, co-developing knowledge, and more

  • Workshops on planning and futures visioning (supporting planning)

I also give keynotes and emcee.

Outside of consulting, O advise graduate students, mentor Indigenous youth and scholars, and work to advance Indigenous leadership in land and water management for a sustainable and healthy planet through research and advocacy.

About Sauyaq Solutions:

I am passionate about increasing resources and opportunities for/to/with Indigenous Nations and communities. Our histories of colonization have taken so much from us. I engage in research and evaluation projects that help develop policy to increase funding for Indigenous Nations to support our cultures and languages. 

Having been in academia, the federal government, and at a nonprofit; supported Tribes; co-lead the developing of research priorities; co-organized a global conference; and served as a committee member of a National Academies of Sciences, I have a vast array of experiences to draw on and an ability to work across power structures and knowledge systems.

Sauyaq Solutions has the mission of Kamagigikput Sivulliavut: "We honor our ancestors." I work to both honor my ancestors and build bridges for future generations. Sauyaq is the Iñupiat community drum (Kawerak dialect) which brings our people together. I think of Sauyaq Solutions as centering the drum and community, through community-led solutions.

My work looks at Indigenous culture as a protective factor from colonization and historical trauma, missing and murdered Indigenous relatives, how to work with Indigenous Peoples in research, environmental justice, sustainability science, futures research, climate change, food security, and subsistence rights in Alaska. I also work on advancing Indigenous leadership.

I work with Tribes and communities, Indigenous, federal, and nonprofits, as well as researchers working with Indigenous communities.