Confronted with the frustration of false narratives and intergenerational trauma that surround her, Tlingit skier and scientist Ellen Bradley returns to her traditional homelands in Southeast Alaska. Here, she uses skiing as a tool to reclaim her connection to the land she belongs to. The abundance and biodiversity of Lingít aaní (Tlingit land) have shaped the People of the Tides since time immemorial, molding all aspects of traditional and contemporary Tlingit life. Meanwhile, the outdoor industry depicts Alaska as a resource-rich landscape waiting to be conquered and exploited. Just like the ancestors of Ellen’s paternal clan, the Dog Salmon, have always done, people are meant to live in a reciprocal relationship with the land. Weaving ancestral knowledge, scientific understanding, and passion for her sport, we follow Ellen’s journey to help her community reclaim its place at the forefront of the stories told about their homelands. By dismantling barriers to accessing snowsports for Alaska Native youth, she empowers a generation to reclaim their relationship to the land in hopes that the mountains can teach them what it will take to endure the fight to protect their culture, language, and home forever.

United States