This award will be used by the alaska eskimo whaling commission to manage bowhead whale harvests to the standards of the cooperative agreement with NOAA and standards of the international whaling…

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration awarded the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission a $1.403 million cooperative agreement on October 1, 2025, under the Marine Mammal Data Program (CFDA 11.439) to manage bowhead whale harvests in compliance with NOAA and International Whaling Commission standards.

The recipient will expand and implement a hunter training program to optimize efficiency and humaneness of harvest activities; identify and mitigate threats to bowhead whales and their habitat; collect, analyze, and report management data; and conduct education and outreach to subsistence harvesters, communities, federal partners, and academic institutions. Work encompasses harvest monitoring, indigenous knowledge integration, food security, subsistence use management, and cooperative management frameworks.

Performance runs through September 30, 2028, at Utqiagvik, Alaska. The Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission, a federally recognized Indian tribe and community development corporation, serves as the critical federal partner for managing Alaska Native subsistence whaling practices that represent an essential cultural and food security resource for Indigenous communities in Alaska.

This award will be used by the alaska eskimo whaling commission to manage bowhead whale harvests to the standards of the cooperative agreement with NOAA and standards of the international whaling commission. Award activities will work toward these ends by expanding and implementing a hunter training program to optimize efficiency and humaneness of harvest activities; identifying and mitigating threats to bowhead whales and their habitat; collecting management data, analyzing that data, and reporting findings; and conducting education and outreach for all affected parties, from subsistence harvesters to communities, federal partners, academicians, etc. NOAA priority areas covered by projects include harvest monitoring, indigenous knowledge, food security, subsistence use management, education and outreach, international priorities, and cooperative management.