Radical Noesis - Thinking outside the box

Checking in for information on Shishmaref at City-Data is illuminating. They have the information for the disappearing Shishmaref, and for the "new" Shishmaref - complete with residence, apartment, and rental information. The population is "diversifying" according to the information at City-Data:

Races in Shishmaref:
* American Indian (94.5%)
* White Non-Hispanic (5.3%)
* Two or more races (1.4%)
* Hispanic (0.5%)
Ancestries: English (2.3%), Irish (1.8%).

It is unlikely that the people of Shishmaref want to be part of a larger community. According to the Reuters' article:

"Consolidation into a larger community is unacceptable and "would have a devastating impact on how we exist and who we are," Eningowuk said.

The village has its own distinct culture, including a reputation for finely crafted Inupiat arts and sled-dog racing, and it has maintained its food-gathering traditions."

So Shishmaref will ultimately be moved, but it is only one of 184 Alaskan villages under siege by global warming.

If one thinks that only isolated villages are going to be swamped, or made unlivable by global warming, that is highly unlikely. What is more likely is that millions will have to "relocate" and the cost will be over the moon.

But there are other costs for some populations, costs that no dollar amount can fix or repair. That is the loss of culture, and the loss of whole societies. That is the threat that faces to people of Shishmaref, and the 184 other villages in Alaska - not to mention the others in the Arctic areas of Canada. As ice opens, arctic tundra turns to swamp and then erodes, as the polar bear, caribou, fish, and birds disappear. As peoples are moved into other areas with other peoples, the ways of the people will die.

That is perhaps the greatest theft of all, and it is caused by others. For the indigenous peoples of the north have had no hand in producing global warming. They are however among the first to feel its catastrophic effects - the destruction of their lives and ways and sacred lands. What price tag do you put on that?

Here is a link to pictures of the damage being caused by land-loss at Shishmaref.

Sources
6/09/05 Reuters, Climate changes spur plan for Alaska village move

2/01/05 JuneauMLS, AP, Army Corps tabulates costs to move Shishmaref

City-Data.com, Shishmaref, Alaska

Shishmaref pictures as posted on the Community Services section of the Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Management website.