I learned a lot about these young students’ lives in Alaska and their plans for the future. James, a Gwich’in Athabascan from Arctic Village, who will attend the University of Alaska Fairbanks this year, said his dream in life is to keep the porcupine caribou safe from environmental harm; Haley recently participated in the Inter Tribal Youth Climate Leadership Congress and is a member of a whaling crew in her home town of Barrow, Alaska; and Byron Nicholai, who remarkably, has more than 18,000 followers on Facebook, is a talented musician from Toksook Bay who performed for U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry at the Arctic Council Chairmanship reception.

These young leaders are impressive!

We also discussed the challenges of building awareness of the Arctic. Even within Alaska, many young people from Alaska’s largest urban areas, like Anchorage, have never had the opportunity to engage with other youth from rural Alaska or been to a village. They know little about how the rapidly changing environment in more rural areas is affecting the daily life and culture of their peers. And urban and rural youth often lack the opportunity to participate in life-changing leadership experiences in the world of policy deliberation and decision-making. That’s a big reason why the Arctic Youth Ambassadors Program is necessary – to provide an avenue for youth to do just this.

Over the next two years, these young ambassadors will learn more about Arctic communities, cultures, and the environment that provides the basis for the food supply for Arctic families, as well as their cultural and spiritual identity. They’ll do so through a series of rural field expeditions, science seminars, and engagements with Alaska Native elders and other leaders from around the world.