#TheYearofBelief | #TYBValuesInSeason

Living What You Believe: Living Out Values in Respectful Arctic Research

🌿 From the Land: When Values Come to Life

In Kotzebue, the long light of summer fills the days—and so do the responsibilities. For the Kramer family, this season isn’t about maximizing harvest. It’s about showing up in tangible ways.

Each summer for five weeks (including set-up and take-down), the Kramers pause their own subsistence work to host Kattivik Camp—a cultural and spiritual youth gathering where kids from across the region learn to cut fish, cut wood, maqi (take sauna), navigate the ocean safely, and live camp life grounded in Iñupiaq values.

It’s not just teaching skills. It’s a training of leadership, of spiritual grounding, of responsibility passed down.

And it’s not done alone. Volunteers travel from across the country—on their own time and their own dime—to support this work. Local and statewide organizations contribute funds, equipment, fuel, and food. Elders and parents check in.

The Kramer family doesn’t resume their own work until the last child is safely home and the last piece of equipment is put away for next year.

In this one effort, they have to opportunity to live out many Iñupiaq values:
Hard Work. Hunter Success. Responsibility to Tribe. Family Roles. Cooperation. Domestic Skills. Respect for Others. Respect for Nature. Humor. Humility. Spirituality. And above all, Love for Children.

Last week, Corina spoke with a research colleague in the lower 48 who said that learning about Iñupiaq values had reshaped their life—not just their research. Inspired by what they learned, they signed up to volunteer with a local youth program. They’ve started planning how to give more to their own community.

That’s how values work when they’re lived.
They ripple. They return.

When we talk about living out values in respectful Arctic research, this is what we mean. Not words on a grant narrative—but embodied practices of care, responsibility, and presence.

🏛️ From the Institutions: Indigenous Ethics in Action

What does it take to make values tangible in research?
Not a values statement. Not a slide.
But habits. Repetition. Practice.

In her first academic publication, your girl Cana Uluak Itchuaqiyaq writes about the Iñupiat Iḷitqusiat—a traditional ethical framework passed down through Elders—as an Indigenous system of ethics. Unlike Western ethics that center individual intent or external rules, Indigenous ethics are relational. They focus on community obligation, daily acts of care, and how you show up over time.

These values are not abstract ideals. They are guideposts you live by.

Cana writes:

Good intentions do not equal good methods. … These values were carried by my ancestors and loaned to me as a way of making sense of my place in the world.
(Itchuaqiyaq, “Iñupiat Iḷitqusiat: An Indigenist Ethics Approach,” 2021)

That distinction matters.

In equitable Arctic research, we don’t just describe our values—we’re accountable to whether they are demonstrated. Whether we slow down when someone needs time. Whether we stay after the grant ends. Whether we prioritize presence over productivity.

Kattivik Camp is one example of that. It’s not a research project, but a way to use what we know and then share it with others. It also teaches us something: that the people we serve can observe what we value based on where we show up—and what we’re willing to set aside to do so. This not only builds trust but can be inspiring and hopeful.

If we want to practice effective community engagement in equitable Arctic research, then our values must move from concept to action. Especially in the seasons when time feels scarce and the work is full.

That’s what makes belief visible.

🧭 TYB Framework: This Week’s Practice

• Know Who You Are
  What values are guiding your choices this season? What do you hope people notice in the way you work?
• Invest in a Community of Support
  Who helps you stay aligned with your values—even when things get busy? Who sees you clearly and is inspired?
• Do the Next Right Thing, Even Imperfectly
  Is there a decision or deadline where you could pause and ask, “What does my community need here?”
• Reinforce Hope with Grit
  How can your values help you find steadiness when the research calendar feels overwhelming?

This Week’s Challenge: Make Values Visible

Choose one value—whether from the Iñupiat Iḷitqusiat or your own life—and live it clearly in your research practice this week.

Ways to begin:

• Ask a collaborator: “What values do you want this project to reflect?”
• Block off time for something service-oriented, even if it won’t go in your CV.
• Reflect on a moment you didn’t live your values—and plan a do-over.

Here’s how I’m returning to my values this week—and who’s helping me stay steady.

Post your ideas for first steps in comments, on our EAR Facebook Group, ARCUS’s Connect the Arctic portal, or simply spend a quiet moment reflecting.

Remembering Forward

The season is full—and so are you.

Let your belief show through what you pause for, what you protect, and how you give your time.
When your research reflects your values, others feel it.
And that’s where real trust, real learning, and real equity begin.

#TheYearofBelief | #TYBValuesInSeason