The Human Resilience Project Identifies Four Pillars of Iñupiat Resilience as Nome Expedition Concludes

NOME, Alaska - Rezul -- The Human Resilience Project (THRP) has concluded its third expedition, a fieldwork period spent with the Iñupiat community in Nome and the nearby village of Teller. Dr. Constance Scharff, THRP's founder and principal investigator, conducted thirteen interviews across both communities, examining how residents sustain psychological resilience on a landscape reshaped by permafrost thaw and changing subsistence harvesting opportunities.

The expedition carried Explorers Club Flag No. 12 and an Explorers Club Rolex watch, awarded through the Explorers Club's relationship with the Rolex Perpetual Planet Initiative, continuing THRP's practice of conducting expeditions under the Club's formal recognition of rigor.

Four themes emerged from the interviews as central to how the Iñupiat in Nome and Teller understand and practice psychological resilience.

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Sharing (Pikkaagupsi Aitturalui). At the opening of moose hunting season, when this expedition occurred, harvested animals, berries, and other resources move immediately to others in the community, with particular attention to its most vulnerable members. The certainty that a share is coming gives people a felt sense of security.

Reverence Toward Nature (Kammaktui Nunamiituat). A subsistence way of life, still practiced to a significant degree, has produced a deep working knowledge of seasons, weather, animals, and land. Respect for the environment here is integral to personhood and community. Community members understand themselves as part of the land, and treating it accordingly is inherent to both survival and community integrity.

Spirituality (Ukpaisun) and Humility (Qinuinnaq). The community distinguishes these two traits, but THRP's findings treat them as interconnected. Being right with oneself and with spirit produces the capacity to act with grace and connection. From outside, this can look like humility, but it runs deeper than being humble; it's a core of gratitude.

Avoidance of Conflict (Aziusrat Sugunnai). People in Nome and Teller are as capable of friction and error as anyone. But the population is small enough and the climate severe enough, that petty disputes cannot be escalated without endangering the group. Extreme cold is a great equalizer. Community members hold boundaries and stand their ground, but do so in ways that work to avoid escalation.

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"These are ideals, and it's certainly true that people fall short of ideals in their actions," said Dr. Scharff. "What matters is that this community has identified these practices and collectively strives to reach them. That is resilience knowledge that can be applied not only here, but in other communities worldwide."

THRP thanks Fred A. Eningowuk of the Nome Eskimo Community, an enrolled Native Alaskan, who served as community liaison for the expedition and whose invitation made this fieldwork possible. THRP also thanks Julianne (Tata) Shaffer, who served as the expedition's photographer, for documenting the fieldwork in Nome and Teller.

Nome is the third of ten planned THRP expeditions investigating resilience at the intersection of climate change and conflict. The project has already completed fieldwork with the Gabra of Kenya and the Māori of New Zealand. The fourth expedition, departing in October, will work with the Guarani of Paraguay. Findings from all ten expeditions will inform THRP's synthesizing book on human resilience, due in late 2028.

About The Human Resilience Project

The Human Resilience Project is a global initiative documenting how Indigenous and remote communities sustain psychological resilience amid climate disruption and conflict. Founded and directed by Dr. Constance Scharff, THRP is conducting fieldwork across ten planned expeditions under a framework of Respect, Relevance, Reciprocity, and Responsibility, positioning the communities it works with as partners in the research rather than its subjects. More information is available at www.THRProject.com.