The Alaska Federation of Natives, a non-profit organization representing the twelve instate Alaska Native regional corporations, proposes to undertake a planning study of potential regional and statewide effects on Alaska Native communities of the March 1989, Prince William Sound oil spill. The study addresses the direct and indirect topics of concern with emphasis on subsistence and rural lifestyle choices; processes and methods for collecting pertinent information and data, mechanism of coordination with other existing and planned state, federal, public and private socio-economic activities, and identification of gaps and research opportunities to address Alaska Native concerns. The study will review previous socio-economic studies, interviews with key personnel, review of draft documents resulting from the oil spill and their responsiveness to Alaska Native concerns. Several university groups, with prior socio-economic expertise in Alaska will assist in the study. The results of this initial study will be applicable to assessments of resource development in other parts of the Alaskan Arctic. The study addresses the findings and recommendations resulting from the Arctic Research and Policy Act of 1984 in which Native Residents are a part of planning and conduct of research, particularly those aspects related to subsistence and related lifestyles. Further, it addresses several priority research areas identified in the 1989 National Academy of Sciences report, "Arctic Social Science: An Agenda for Action."
