Alaska Native villages face relocation due to climate change

April 23, 2025

In Hooper Bay, Alaska, environmental changes, including warming temperatures, flooding, and thawing permafrost, have made survival increasingly difficult for its 1,400 residents. A recent FRONTLINE documentary highlights the potential relocation of the Native Village of Paimiut due to severe coastal erosion and rising sea levels. The loss of sea ice, once a protective barrier, exacerbates the problem. Many residents, like Agatha Napoleon, fear the erosion will soon force them to leave their ancestral lands. For more information, watch Alaska’s Vanishing Native Villages on PBS starting April 22, 2025.

1.FRONTLINE.

1.FRONTLINE.

We provide the independent reporting that non-Native, extractive outlets often overlook. We give our communities the context and the facts they need to make informed decisions.

Jodi Rave Spotted Bear

Founder and Editor in Chief

As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, we exist to illuminate tribal government decision-making for everyone who cares about transparency about Native issues. Because the consequences of restricted press freedom affect our communities every day, our trauma-informed reporting is rooted in a deep, firsthand expertise. Every gift helps keep the fire burning. A monthly contribution makes the biggest impact.