ARCUS | Arctic Research Consortium of the United States

6th Annual ARCUS Award for Arctic Research Excellence

Submitted by		Meda Snyder
Authors		Meda Snyder
Category		Social Science
Title		Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling Management Procedure: The future of Alaska's subsistence bowhead whaling
Affiliation		Rural Development, University of Alaska Fairbanks, Fairbanks, AK, USA

Abstract

The International Whaling Commission's Aboriginal Subsistence Whaling Management Procedure (AWMP) is expected to be based on a sophisticated computer model designed to predict the effects on a whale stock from different levels of subsistence take in hopes of ushering in a much-needed era of change in the IWC's role as the international body responsible for managing whale hunts. If the AWMP is adopted, it will shift the costs and benefits associated with the whaling issue for all stakeholders involved in this debate. This paper explores development of the AWMP and the implications it will have on Alaska's whaling communities and other aboriginal hunters, and the international whale protection community.