Alaska Blanket Exercise
The Alaska Blanket Exercise program is a participatory history lesson – developed in collaboration with Alaska Native Elders, knowledge keepers and educators – that fosters truth, understanding, respect, and reconciliation among Indigenous and non-indigenous peoples.
Alaska Blanket Exercise
akblanketexercise@anthc.org
Through an experiential learning activity, participants will walk on blankets representing the land and into the role of Alaska Native people by reading scrolls and carrying cards which ultimately determine their outcome as they literally ‘walk’ through situations that include pre-contact, colonization and resistance. This exercise was adapted from a best practice exercise use by indigenous people in Canada.
Learning Objectives
- Participants will gain knowledge and understanding of Alaska Native history, since time immemorial.
- Participants will develop an understanding of the impacts of intergenerational trauma on Alaska Native people.
- Participants will develop an awareness of and gain an understanding of what they can do in their own lives and communities to break cycles of intergenerational trauma.
There are many ways to be involved in the Alaska Blanket Exercise (ABE) including: participating in person, virtually, becoming an ABE facilitator, or hosting an ABE for your organization. Please see upcoming events below.
Alaska Blanket Exercise (ABE) Upcoming Calendar:
Date | Topic | Location | Registration |
Oct. 17, 2024 | ABE Learning Community | Virtual | Register HERE |
Nov. 6, 2024 | Alaska Blanket Exercise | Virtual | Register HERE |
For inquiries about hosting an exercise or other opportunities, please see the fee announcement and complete the below interest form:
ABE Learning Community
The ABE Learning Community is a virtual, bi-monthly gathering to hear from Indigenous scholars and Elders on culturally relevant topics. It is for anyone who has an interest in or has participated in the ABE and would like to stay connected and engaged with the program.
ABE Learning Community’s Session Recordings
- Click here to view past session recordings in a Box Folder.
Supplemental Resources
Additional Online Resources
Alaska Native History
- ABE Resource List
- Project Jukebox – Digital Branch of the University of Alaska Fairbanks Oral History Program
- World Directory of Minorities and Indigenous People
- Anchorage Activities and Museums
- Alaska Native Heritage Center
- Fighting to Teach Alaska Native History
- Alaska Native Knowledge Network
- Calricaraq: Indigenous Yup’ik Wellbeing
- Alaska Federation of Natives
- Jane Haigh History of Alaska
Historical Trauma
Evaluation of the Program
Funding for these activities was made possible in part by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Grant: 5 NU38OT000277-02-00). The views expressed in written materials, or publications, or by speakers do not necessarily reflect the official policies of the Department of Health and Human Services, nor does the mention of trade names, commercial practices, or organizations imply endorsement by the U.S. Government.