About
Sealaska Heritage seeks to promote cross-cultural understanding, and one of the issues that arises time and again is cultural appropriation. The institute adheres to the publication Protocols for Native American Archival Materials and honors Tlingit, Haida, and Tsimshian traditional cultural beliefs that clans retain the intellectual property rights to clan crests, stories, and songs. Patrons who use or study clan crests, stories, or songs must credit clan ownership of them. SHI offers the following educational materials to help people better understand Indigenous property laws and issues of representation.
Select Lectures
Tlingit Property Law and Cultural Appropriation
In the presentation, Sealaska Heritage Institute President Dr. Rosita Worl highlights SHI’s goal of promoting cross-cultural understanding and how it applies to teaching Northwest Coast art. “This goal implies an ideal of symmetrical power between the Native and non-Native society in which an Indigenous society acknowledges a right to teach non-Natives about Native culture and Northwest Coast art.”
Indigenous Issues in Native Handicrafts and Intellectual Property
In the first of two talks, Jacob Adams introduces his work in the area of Indigenous intellectual property rights. Through his research, Adams, who is also a practicing attorney with law degrees from universities in Australia and the United States, is examining alternative means to protect Indigenous intellectual property using trademark law, with a focus on Northwest Coast culture and art.
The Fertile Environment for Legal Protections of Native Alaskan Handicraft Heritage
In the second of two talks, Jacob Adams discusses early findings from his field research, through which he examined alternative means to protect Indigenous intellectual property using trademark law, with a focus on Northwest Coast culture and art.
People’s Handiwork—Kaa Jí Eetí
The world loves the artistry—the handiwork—of Native Alaskans. But how can we show that love without understanding where it came from and what it means? This video introduces students and the public to the history and values of Alaska Native art, contrasts Western and Alaska laws, and discusses how to show respect for this treasure of heritage and culture.
