The Anatomy of A Silent Crisis The Anatomy of A Silent Crisis

Case Study
The human impact of climate change – Already serious today 73
Arctic communities — “Canary in
the coalmine” and climate change
adaptation
While global leaders debate how to reduce emissions and some still question if climate change
is real, hundreds of thousands of indigenous people in the Arctic must draw on ancestral resilience
to adapt to climate change in a rapidly changing world. 238,239 The 600 residents of Shishmaref located
on a small Alaskan island have witnessed it creep into every aspect of daily life, as rising seas and
fierce ocean-based storms have eroded land beneath their homes and ice has become softer
making every day activities like travel, hunting and fishing perilous. 240,241 Shishmaref residents have
raised awareness of their town’s plight, but their predicament is far from unique as nearly 90 percent
of Alaska’s 213 indigenous villages could face similar challenges in the near future due to habitual
flooding and erosion. 242 The voices from the Arctic sound an early warning of larger global changes in
the near future — the canary in the coalmine.
The Alaskan government has acknowledged that the impacts of climate warming in Alaska are
already felt — including coastal erosion, increased storm effects, sea ice retreat and permafrost melt. 243
A state-wide Climate Change Sub-Cabinet was formed in 2007 to build knowledge and develop
comprehensive adaptation policies. The citizens of Shishmaref are taking a lead role in adaptation and
have already begun relocation plans as staying on the island has been deemed to be too risky — the cost
is estimated at $180 million. 240 Over 160 additional Alaskan rural communities have been identified to be
at risk of serious erosion. 243 Emergency action plans are being developed, shoreline defenses are being
erected, and increased coordination between local, state and national efforts are underway.
The interconnectivity of man and nature is something that indigenous people have long understood
and a key element of successfully adaptation to a rapidly changing environment. For example, as ice
becomes less stable due to a warming climate, traditional dogsleds able to sense when a path is unsafe
may provide a safer alternative to snowmobiles. 244 Indigenous people comprising about 6 percent of the
global population thus have a powerful role to play in a warming world as native traditions can provide
useful tools to adapt to climate change. 244
Key Sources: Shishmaref Alaska Erosion and Relocation Coalition, Alaskan government and UNESCO