Board of Directors & Staff
Is Gwichyaa Gwich’in (house on the Flats) and from Gwichyaa Zheh (Fort Yukon), Alaska. Her parents are Mary Jonas Fields and the Late James Fields, both of Fort Yukon.
Kelly is a strong advocate on protecting the Interior of Alaska. She relentlessly fights to protect the Gwich’in way of life and the health and well being of the people in Alaska. She has worked for the Council of Athabascan Tribal Government for the past 14 years working in the health field.
Kelly leads a movement in Alaska in the fight against illegal drugs being transported into Alaska villages and helped to raise thousands of dollars to purchase a drug dog for the Alaska State Troopers for the Interior Alaska.
Kelly spends her time with her children and grandchildren and volunteering her time in the community putting on alcohol and drug free events.
Is Neets’aii Gwich’in, from Arctic Village and Venetie. RaeAnn serves as the Tribal Chief of Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government and is the daughter of Mike and Michelle Garnett. RaeAnn graduated from Effie Kokrine Charter School and immediately went to work for the Tribe as the enrollment specialist and has been involved in protection of the calving and post calving grounds of the Porcupine Caribou Herd in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge since her teen years and has participated in EIS & SEIS since 2018. RaeAnn is involved with NVVTG Tribal court, OVC Victim Services, Tribal Enrollment and volunteers endlessly for her community coordinating activities, games, dances, and fun events.
Dr. Charlene Khaih Zhuu Stern is from Vashraii K’oo (Arctic Village) and is a tribal citizen of the Native Village of Venetie Tribal Government (NVVTG). She holds a bachelor’s degree in American Cultural Studies from Western Washington University, a master’s in Community & Regional Planning from the University of New Mexico, and a Ph.D. in Indigenous Studies from the University of Alaska Fairbanks. Charlene has been active in efforts to protect the Porcupine Caribou Herd for over two decades including serving as an appointee on the International Porcupine Caribou Board (2019-2021) and as a technical advisor to the Arctic Village Council, Venetie Village Council and NVVTG.
Kyla Ross is a Teetl’it Gwich’in from Teetl’it Zheh (Fort McPherson). She is the daughter of James and Mary Ross and was raised with deep-rooted Gwich’in values, instilling in her a strong commitment to protecting the Porcupine Caribou Herd. As a Child and Youth Counsellor, Kyla is dedicated to working with her community and supporting the well-being of her people with passion and dedication.
I’m Vuntut Gwitchin and Tahltan First Nation from Northern BC. I currently reside in Old Crow, Yukon. For as long as I can remember, I have always had a strong passion for participating and being a part of community development, specifically around cultural practices. I have a deep understanding of Gwich’in governance, culture, way of life, and have been focusing my energy on being a healthy active community member. I enjoy working with Youth and jump at every opportunity to share my skills and life experience.
In my spare time I enjoy tanning hides and sewing/beading with the materials I make. The traditional hide tanning teachings/knowledge that have been shared with me have inspired me to think about land and wildlife management at different scales. Recently, I was appointed to the Gwich’in Steering Committee, as well as the Gwich’in Council International, where I will be able to share my knowledge/experience with land planning and resource management. I have a great respect for the land and all that it provides. The health of the land and water is my biggest passion.
Living with the land has been my biggest teacher, understanding the health of the land and animals allows me to better appreciate the value of the materials I use in my sewing. My Grandmother Ethel Frost beaded/sewed warm, practical, beautiful garments for her husband Stephan Frost Sr. and their eleven children (and grandchildren) with fur that Grandpa Stephan trapped. They are my biggest influence and I strive to build warm practical garments to keep the people I love on the land doing the things that keep our culture and traditions alive.
Rachael Johnson is driven by a deep commitment to sovereignty, justice, and collective liberation. Her work centers on partnership with Indigenous leaders to advance advocacy rooted in accountability, relationship, and care for the land. Born and raised in Athens, Georgia, the place that first taught her the power of story and community, she has lived in Colorado for the past 20 years.
Rachael’s heart has been with the Gwich’in and their fight to protect Iizhik Gwats’an Gwandaii Goodlit, the Sacred Place Where Life Begins, since she first began supporting the Gwich’in Steering Committee’s corporate accountability and international advocacy work in 2023. Her relationships with the Gwich’in continue to shape her understanding of land protection and land back.
Rachael earned her Bachelor of Arts in Ethnic Studies with a concentration in Native American Studies from Colorado State University. She brings 15 years of experience across Tribal, municipal, and higher education systems, with a focus on building relationships and translating complex ideas into grounded, actionable strategies that move systems toward change. She is of European, Indigenous, and Caribbeana descent, with roots in Panama, Barbados, and the United Kingdom, and lineage to the Guna Nation in Panama.
Outside of work, Rachael nourishes her creative side through beadwork and is happiest outdoors. She loves traveling to new places, being in water, making southern food, and watching Georgia Bulldogs football. She is the proud mom of one birth child, currently a senior in college, and carries many others in her heart as chosen family.
