Reduce Your Risk
Although your community has little control over exposure to climate impacts such as increasing temperatures or thawing permafrost, you can still reduce your vulnerability by decreasing your sensitivity to climate risks.
Things you can do

Jaqueline Ramsey, Alutiiq Pride Shellfish Hatchery, describes the process for analyzing water samples for ocean acidification to the Alaska Ocean Acidification Tribal Working Group.
Having a diverse economy reduces the likelihood that climate-driven disruptions such as wildfires or severe storms will have widespread and costly negative impacts.
You can reduce risk by starting small businesses that can thrive with local resources, instead of depending on outside resources that must be shipped from the Lower 48.
You can also support local businesses that align with community values and create jobs for community members, providing additional income and skills in the community.
Resources for reducing your risk
Categories: Economy, Emergency, Health & Culture, Infrastructure, Mitigation
Title | Summary | hf:categories |
---|---|---|
Alaska Climate Resilience | Alaskans have been working in diverse arenas to reach common goals of ensuring economic opportunity, health, and safety for everyone in Alaska—now, and in the years to come—as our environment continues to change. Learn how the State of Alaska is working to increase resilience. | data-expertise economy emergency health-culture infrastructure mitigation monitoring |
Alaska Fisheries Business Assistance (Fishbiz) | Resources for managing the business side of an Alaska commercial fishing operation. | economy |
Alaska Food Policy Council | Works to create a healthier, more secure, and more self-reliant Alaska by improving our food system. Its newsletters often include grants for food-related projects. | health-culture |
Alaska Native Cultural Charter School | Maintains Alaska Native culture and curriculum in Anchorage. | education health-culture |
Alaska Native Knowledge Network | Provides resources for Indigenous knowledge in education and other applications. | education health-culture |
Alaska Partnership for Infrastructure Protection | Works to integrate the private and public sector critical infrastructure owners into the municipal, state, and federal emergency framework, participating in all stages of the disaster cycle, from preparedness and mitigation through to response and recovery. | emergency infrastructure |
Alaska Sea Grant Marine Advisory Program | Helps Alaskans with the practical use and conservation of the state’s marine and freshwater resources. | economy health-culture leadership |
ANTHC Climate Change Assessments | To assess climate change impacts on public health, ANTHC completed Climate Change Health Assessments for several Alaska communities. | health-culture |
Catalog of Federal Resilience Programs for Alaska | Helps Alaska communities identify federal resources that can support local efforts to gather and evaluate information about the risks posed by coastal erosion and other hazards. | infrastructure |
Climate Science Primer and Projections for the Middle Kuskokwim | Covers the basics of climate science, including models, trends, and impacts on temperature, precipitation, permafrost, vegetation, wildfire, hydrology, invasive species, and subsistence resources for Georgetown, Alaska. | health-culture |
Coastal Erosion Assessment for Alaska Communities | The Alaska Coastal Hazards Program investigates how the coastline has evolved and how it will respond to hazardous events and long-term changes. | infrastructure mitigation |
Community Partnerships for Self-Reliance | Works with UAF researchers to support rural Alaska communities in long-term self-reliance and sustainability through community-driven research. | data-expertise health-culture |
Environmental Health Field Services | Works with Tribal partners and communities to prevent the spread of disease and protect the health of Alaska Native people. | data-expertise health-culture |
Foundations for Modular Buildings, Unstable Soils, and Floodplains | Multipoint Foundations was developed in response to continued demand for a foundation strong enough to withstand the rigors of flooding, permafrost, and other variable soils. | infrastructure mitigation |
Get Help with Hazard Mitigation Planning | Hazard Mitigation Plans may be integrated into community or comprehensive plans. FEMA requires baseline data of normal conditions to which changes resulting from disaster or hazardous events can be compared. | emergency |
Iñupiaq Immersion School | The only Iñupiaq immersion school in the United States. | education health-culture |
Ilisagvik College | A two-year tribal college in Utqiagvik. | education health-culture |
Native Voices from the Frontlines of Climate Change | An online video library focused on climate change, its impacts to Savoonga and Shaktoolik, as well as their response strategies. | mitigation vulnerability |
Personal Preparedness Guidelines | Offers guidelines and a checklist for personal emergency preparedness, including a set of guidelines specifically for Alaska Native communities. | emergency |
Port Heiden Vulnerability Assessment | A vulnerability assessment developed from a One Health perspective. | economy health-culture workshop vulnerability |
Rural Alaska Monitoring Program | RAMP is a tribally-designed, village-based, resident-operated program to monitor existing and emerging climate-mediated threats to village food and water security, and to provide data for adaptation strategies. | health-culture monitoring |
Scenario Planning for the North Slope | Scenarios that describe how resource development could occur and what monitoring efforts would be useful to help protect people and the environment as conditions change. | economy |
Sitka Landslide Risk Dashboard | In response to landslides that took place in 2015, the Sitka Sound Science Center has created a tool for forecasting landslides in the Sitka region of Baranof Island. The landslide warning system launched in the format of a “Landslide Dashboard” web page in the Spring of 2022. | emergency monitoring |
Solar Design Manual for Alaska | Solar photovoltaic (PV) modules continue to improve, and efficiencies above 20% are becoming common for commercially available panels. Learn more in this manual. | infrastructure |
Yuut Elitnaurviat | Provides training for local jobs that combines intensive academics and on-the-job training in Bethel. | education health-culture |