A new story is unfolding for the Tongass National Forest where federal public land management and rural economic development is being co-created by the people of Southeast Alaska for the people of Southeast Alaska.
The communities of the Tongass National Forest have embraced an approach where differences can be set aside and Alaskans can work together, across identities, to achieve the best outcomes for the forest and communities. The region has come a long way from the boom of industrial-scale old-growth and clearcut logging that defined the last decades of Tongass management, leaving gouges on the landscape, a legacy of conflict in our communities, and national level decision-making detached from local-level priorities.
“As we reflect on the past years, our approach in Southeast Alaska stands as a testament to what is possible when partnership, respect, and shared vision guide our work,” said Chad VanOrmer, regional forester for the U.S. Forest Service’s Alaska Region. “By walking alongside Tribes and community partners in ways we never have before, we unlocked new paths toward sustainability – culturally, economically and ecologically. This approach is more than a strategy; it is a promise for the future. Together, we have shown that stewardship is strongest when it is shared, and the roots we have planted this year will grow for generations to come.”
Marina Anderson slices salmon into strips on a table by her family’s smokehouse. Anderson shows the strip to youth crew members from the Prince of Wales Alaska Youth Stewards crew who had caught the salmon the day prior, were learning to process the fish and would eventually share through community distribution. (Photo by Lee House)
In 2019, individuals and entities including tribal governments, conservation organizations, tourism operations, local businesses, forestry and timber interests, economic development groups, and more shared diverse input to help inform a new vision for the region. The vision, compiled into the Tongass Blueprint, acknowledged the need for stable economic diversification, true and rightful consultation and collaboration with tribes, centering of community priorities, and continued stewardship of the lands and waters of this region.
The Forest Service has joined regional leadership including Central Council Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska, Spruce Root, Southeast Conference, the Sustainable Southeast Partnership, Sealaska, and more by setting a course for the collaborative and community-driven way of working in Southeast Alaska. This shift in approach came hand-in-hand with the Southeast Alaska Sustainability Strategy (SASS) and $25 million in locally-driven investments, signaling a new way of doing business on the Tongass — putting local communities first.
According to an economic impact report on SASS, with just $6 million of that initial $25 million investment spent in 2022 and 2023, the initiative has already “catalyzed $8.8 million in economic activity, created 114 jobs (after converting all full, part-time, and temporary positions into year-round equivalents), and paid $3.6 million in local wages to Southeast residents.” The impact of this relatively small investment goes to show how a little support can go a long way when leveraged and put to work by local partners and rural communities.
Left to right: Heath Whitacre (U.S. Forest Service), Jason Gubatayao (Sealaska), Khaax̱wáan Dawn Jackson (Organized Village of Kake) sit on the bridge over Yeíl Héeni (Raven’s Creek) discussing points on a map of north Kuiu Island. (Photo by Lee House)
Turning the page to a new year and the next chapter of this approach in Southeast Alaska, we reflect with voices from the region who have worked alongside each other to carry this transition forward on the Tongass and ensure that it lasts.
“Our collective responsibility to future generations”
“These lands are the traditional territory of our people. As a federally recognized tribe, it’s our responsibility to steward these lands on behalf of our people,” said Richard Chalyee Éesh Peterson, president of the Central Council Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska (Tlingit & Haida).
In the last years, the Forest Service and Tlingit & Haida have focused collaboration to support the growth and expansion of the tribe’s stewardship programs, including the Seacoast Indigenous Guardians Network (SIGN) and Alaska Youth Stewards, while formalizing a new agreement to co-steward the Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area (MGRA) in 2023.
As part of the first year of the MGRA co-stewardship agreement, Tlingit & Haida rolled out the Cultural Ambassador Program to provide Indigenous-led education to visitors at the Mendenhall Glacier Visitor Center. Tlingit & Haida’s SIGN program has also made headway, signing ten partnership agreements with tribal governments in the region, and working to catalyze beach debris cleanups, facilitate culture classes with local youth camps and conferences, and participate in resource management councils.
“Tlingit & Haida welcomes this profound shift that acknowledges and respects Indigenous knowledge and stewardship,” Peterson said. “I want to thank the U.S. Department of Agriculture and our regional partners for their leadership. The traditional homelands of Southeast Alaska are not just resources; they are the foundation of Tlingit and Haida identity and our collective responsibility to future generations. This effort is a model of co-management and ensures the land remains a source of life and culture for everyone. There is still much to do, and Tlingit & Haida is committed to the power of this partnership to preserve the ecological and cultural integrity of our shared lands.”
“Grounded in local values and priorities”
Spruce Root promotes economic development and job creation in Southeast Alaska by supporting entrepreneurs across the region, empowering business owners through increased self-sufficiency, and serving as the backbone organization for the SSP.
“In our current financial system, often the people and projects at the ground level have limited access to the financial resources needed to make critical progress and decisions that are best for the people and environment in that place,” said Spruce Root Executive Director Alana Peterson. “It’s been refreshing to have a federal agency willing to explore a new way of deploying financial resources that utilize local financing hubs (like Spruce Root) to support a more effective deployment of that capital. We are excited to continue this momentum and center community based needs with other federal agencies as well as the private and philanthropic sectors.”
The Angoon stewardship crew hosted by Kootznoowoo Inc. alongside Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition (SAWC) and the U.S. Forest Service. From left to right: Roger Williams, Walter Washington, Rob Cadmus (SAWC), Jamie Daniels, Justin Turner, Dean Anderson (Forest Service). The crew and partners kicked off work on the Cube Cove restoration project on Admiralty Island in 2024. (Photo by Lee House)
In addition to providing access to loans, business coaching and financial literacy, Spruce Root’s community development expertise also lies in facilitation and finding meaningful ways to engage with Southeast Alaskans. In 2024, Spruce Root partnered with the Forest Service to design and implement community engagement for the Tongass National Forest Plan Revision, a land management plan that will guide the next 15-20 years for the Tongass.
“Forest health is foundational to our way of life,” reads the top line of “Voices of the Future”, the recent findings document on the 2024 public engagement published by the Forest Service.
“We created an online survey form for public feedback, designed the community meetings, and trained Forest Service staff to lead over 25 in-person workshops. Our Community Planner, Val Massie, also led a workshop with Forest Service staff and professionals to support the plan revision engagement process. Spruce Root and the Forest Service have built effective regional engagement, marking a meaningful shift toward forest planning grounded in local values and priorities.”
“More aligned than ever”
Southeast Conference (SEC) is a state and federally designated regional economic development organization for Southeast Alaska. SEC undertakes and supports activities that promote strong economies, sustainable communities, and a healthy environment in Southeast Alaska.
“Southeast Conference is incredibly grateful to be working with the USDA and our fellow regional strengthening partners, Tlingit & Haida and Spruce Root, on our shared mission to undertake and support activities that promote strong economies, sustainable communities, and a healthy environment in Southeast Alaska,” said Executive Director Robert Venables.
“SASS investments are building on the foundation of our collaborative regional economic development strategy, building capacity and empowering local projects that strengthen the local communities and the regional economy.”
“We are excited to be a part of this game-changing shift and its innovative, flexible approach to sustainable economic development and building community capacity. Together we are seizing the moment when priorities are more aligned than ever to create a model that we hope becomes the ‘new norm’ and overcomes longstanding management issues.”
Brainstorming in a breakout group during a 2023 visioning session hosted by the U.S. Forest Service’s Alaska Region. The convening brought together thirty representatives from federal agencies, leaders from Central Council Tlingit and Haida Indian Tribes of Alaska (CCTHIA), and regional organizations to focus on the Southeast Alaska Sustainability Strategy and the future of land management and rural economic development in the region. From left to right: Raymond Paddock III (CCTHIA), Alana Peterson (Spruce Root), Sara Doyle (National Park Service, Glacier Bay National Park), and Ann Fischer (U.S. Natural Resources Conservation Service). (Photo by Lee House)
“Address everything holistically”
The Sustainable Southeast Partnership (SSP) is a network of local and regional entities that work collectively to strengthen cultural, ecological, and economic resilience across Southeast Alaska. The network envisions self-determined and connected communities where Southeast Indigenous values continue to inspire society, shape relationships, and ensure that each generation can live on healthy lands and waters.
“Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought, when I was in high school, that there was any path towards regaining our stewardship and the management of our lands, I didn’t think that there was any workforce development or career development to build my skills locally and be part of this industry — but times have changed,” SSP Program Director Marina Anderson said.
“We know that the way we’re working in Southeast Alaska is a way that works. We’ve been working in this collaborative way for a decade now through the SSP, supporting priority projects defined by our local partners. This new partnership with the USDA is going to take some time. We’re in the baby step phases and as we continue to gain trust and make these small shifts in the way that we work, we’ll be able to address everything holistically.”
“Because when we’re thinking about the future of the forest and of this place, we’re also thinking about the future of our people and creating local workforce development opportunities, we’re thinking about regenerative economies, sustainable food systems, and the uncertainties that we navigate through climate adaptation work. We tie it all together by looking at how in each area we also need healing in our communities to truly thrive.”
“Local stewardship crews a win, win, win”
The Southeast Alaska Watershed Coalition (SAWC) partners with local groups to supply resources, share capacity, and provide in-field support to collaboratively restore and steward watersheds across Southeast Alaska. SAWC is an essential player in providing support for communities to launch their own local forestry and stewardship crews. SAWC has supported the work of the Hoonah Native Forest Partnership, Ḵéex̱’ Ḵwáan Community Forest Partnership, Klawock Indigenous Stewards Forest Partnership, Ketchikan Indian Community Stewardship Crew, Yakutat Salmon Partners, and most recently catalyzed the Angoon Stewardship Crew.
“Across the Tongass, we’ve found that when you start working together to manage the land, it grows to become so much bigger,” said SAWC Executive Director Rob Cadmus. “It becomes about taking care of the land as a whole, ways of life, future generations, workforce development, and a whole host of important things that you can’t do on your own — it’s done through partnerships.”
“Most recently, we’ve supported the community of Angoon, the tribe, and the Alaska Native corporation to launch a crew to restore the Cube Cove area, a previously clearcut piece of their traditional homelands. This project is really exemplary because it is a win, win, win. We’re restoring fish and deer habitat, bettering the environment of this place in a direct and meaningful way, we’re hiring locals and giving them jobs and opportunities, and third, we’re creating a partnership — we have the Forest Service out here, we have folks from Angoon out here, we have SAWC, and we’re working together hand-in-hand to steward and take care of this place.”
“I really think that is the future of what the Tongass National Forest is. We have a lot of small, Alaska Native communities who have always been a part of this land, and building those communities into the way that the Tongass is managed is the future here.”
“Working with tribes, supporting local voices and decisions”
The Organized Village of Kake (OVK) is a federally recognized Tribal Government serving Ḵéex̱’ Ḵwáan (Kake). OVK’s mission includes a core purpose of strengthening Tribal community and culture with the core values of respect, collaboration, endurance, safety, and security.
“I’m thankful that the Forest Service is making this shift,” said Khaax̱wáan (Dawn Jackson), OVK’s executive director. “That they are having these discussions and having people in our corner, taking our comments, getting our perspective on what’s best for our land. I know that their heart’s in the right place when they want to see things happen together. When they need to work with tribes, supporting local voices, and supporting local decisions.”
“On Kuiu Island for example, it’s seen its heyday in logging, so now we are working together to shift on what is feasible for the Forest Service in regards to budgets and activities for roads, infrastructure, use, and maintenance. I want our tribe to take on those programs so that it’s locally administered and sustainable.”
“A lot of our families have a lot of history in those bays. It’s their homelands, and I want to get to a place as we shift what that land over there is meant to do, healing it, making it an every season destination for our people here in the community, harvesting, and getting that food that is part of their DNA back in their body. Those are the things that tie people to place. I’m very proud of our people having the mindset of “we gotta heal it” because we’re still here, and we’re never going to leave.”
Now more than ever, the Forest Service is working closely together with tribal governments, Alaska Native corporations, agencies, and regional networks – building trust through real relationships, and striving for highly collaborative partnerships and interdisciplinary work. In contrast to the past of litigation and turmoil that has defined the last decades of this region, the USDA is stepping up to the call to ensure that the management of the country’s largest national forest benefits the ecosystem, bolsters the region’s rural economies, and puts local hands to work on their local lands.
• Lee House who seeks to share stories that embody respect, collaboration, stewardship, and positive change throughout Southeast Alaska. Lee is currently working in a storytelling position for the Sitka Conservation Society and the USDA Forest Service, Alaska Region, in collaboration with the Sustainable Southeast Partnership to highlight accomplishments of the USDA’s Southeast Alaska Sustainability Strategy (SASS).
