Focus on the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge

What's this all about?
The Burke developed this webpage to help people learn more about the Arctic Refuge, its cultural and natural history, and the politics of one of the most controversial landscapes on the planet.

In 2005, the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was the subject of two exciting programs at the Burke Museum. The first was an exhibit of 49 photographs by Subhankar Banerjee. For two years beginning in March 2001, Banerjee traveled some 4,000 miles on foot, raft, kayak, snowmobile, and bush planes, visually recording this extraordinary area. His photographs have helped reveal the beauty and diversity of the Refuge to thousands of people.

The Burke also partnered with the University of Washington’s Program on the Environment, which put together an intensive class focused on the natural and cultural history and politics of the Refuge. In addition to reading about the Refuge and listening to experts, the twelve students in the class traveled to Alaska and spent eight days rafting across the coastal plain, the area proposed to be opened for drilling. The students also talked with geologists, activists, ecologists, writers, and politicians in Alaska and then traveled to Washington D.C. to meet with legislators and to share their experiences.