Iñupiaq life today

Today few Iñupiat live exclusively by hunting and fishing. Living in villages with modern comforts such as electricity, central heating, satellite TV, access to health services, schools and supermarkets (Figs 7, 8), many hold salaried jobs. The most important employers include local Native corporations, government agencies, and private enterprises. Exploitation of natural resources, especially oil and minerals, and development are important for all three regional corporations in the Iñupiaq area: the Bering Straits Native Corporation (BSNC), the Northwest Alaska Native Association (NANA) Regional Corporation, and the Arctic Slope Regional Corporation (ASRC). Links to their websites can be found in the Bibliography.

Nevertheless, subsistence activities remain an integral part of Iñupiaq life, important to everyone. Game is shared widely among relatives and friends in the community, providing them with food from the land, the raw materials for certain tools, and some important items of clothing. Subsistence activities also play a significant role in keeping cultural values and environmental knowledge alive. In this way, they are crucial in sustaining the cultural identity of the Iñupiat.

For the Iñupiat living on the coast of Bering Strait and the Beaufort Sea, the bowhead whale hunt continues to be of particular importance (Fig. 9). Sharing and distributing the whale meat and blubber remains a central activity today, maintaining and strengthening relationships both within and between Iñupiaq communities.