More than 100 elders and youth from 42 villages in interior Alaska are meeting in Fairbanks for the annual Denakkanaaga conference.
Denakkanaaga, which means "the language" in Athabascan, has been holding the conference since 1988.
This year's theme is "Elders' Knowledge: Building a Strong Foundation."
Participants spoke about substance abuse as the conference opened on Tuesday. A 15-year-old girl named Laura talked about her family's struggle with alcohol before pledging not to drink.
“It’s just hard for me,” she said, The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner reported. “It’s hard for me, and I’m fighting it.”
Frank Turner, an elder, said he has been sober for 18 years. William McCarty, a traditional chief, said drugs and alcohol are the biggest problems in his village.
The conference concludes tomorow.
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Native youth, elders work to keep culture alive at conference
(The Fairbanks Daily News-Miner 6/6)
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