Michaela Stith

I am a lifelong Alaskan with a passion for environmental justice in the Arctic. My goal in research and scholarship is to encourage more meaningful engagement of local and marginalized peoples in environmental policies and management.

As one of three 2018-2019 Hart Leadership Fellows, I engage in community-based research service-learning with the Arctic Council Indigenous Peoples’ Secretariat (IPS) in Tromsø, Norway. At IPS, we facilitate the active participation of Indigenous peoples’ organizations in the world’s leading forum on Arctic environmental policy and sustainable development. My research project focuses on the inclusion of traditional and Indigenous knowledge in the work of the Arctic Council. Xavier is my Research Advisor.

Prior to beginning the fellowship in July 2018, I earned a degree in Environmental Science and Policy with a concentration in Marine Conservation at Duke University. During my last two years, I (1) wrote a thesis on local concerns about taxing cruise ships in Iceland and Alaska and (2) researched justice practices in service-learning. Additionally, I spent one summer session and a semester at the Marine Lab, where I completed the Co-Lab course Community-Based Marine Conservation. These experiences have significantly informed my service and research in the Hart Fellows Program.