2025-2026
Arctic Youth Ambassadors

Alexis Rexford

Alexis Aqavzik Rexford is a 23-year-old inuk from Sivuqaq, the village of Gambell located on St. Lawrence Island. She is Siberian Yupik and Lingít on her mother's side and Iñupiaq on her father's side. Alexis' parents are Delbert Rexford and the late Darlene Apangalook. Her maternal grandparents are the late Leonard Apangalook of Gambell and Millie Reese of Yakutat. Alexis' paternal grandparents are the late Burton Rexford and Sadie Hopson of Utqiagvik.

Alexis is an undergraduate at the University of Alaska Fairbanks College of Indigenous Studies, where she is pursuing a B.A. in Rural Development with concentrations in Human & Social Development and Entrepreneurship. Alexis identifies as a student of Western education as well as a lifelong learner of Iñuit knowledge systems or Iñuit Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK). She is passionate about the strengthening of Indigenous sovereignty through the protection of our lands, waterways, and animal kin. Alexis strives to step into her role as a young person with the responsibility to serve the communities that have raised her.

Audrey Leonetti

“Waqaa!!” Audrey, Iirpaq (Eegh-buck) is Yup'ik, Irish, and Italian. She was raised in Anchorage, and her family comes from Dillingham, Alaska. She is a Tribal Citizen of Curyung Tribal Council. Iirpaq's parents are Ed and Crystal Leonetti, and her little sister is Gigi.

Iirpaq graduated from Dimond High School in 2023 while serving as Student Body President. She is currently attending Fort Lewis College in Durango, CO. She is double majoring in Environmental Conservation and Management and Native American Indigenous Studies in hopes of going back home and helping her people by working with communities on the forefront of climate change.

Iirpaq is the 2024-25 Hozhoni Ambassador for Fort Lewis College. She represents and advocates for Indigenous students at the College. She is also involved in the Native Youth Climate and Adaptation Congress and has worked with Bristol Bay Native Corporation's culture camp for the past few years.

Iirpaq enjoys hiking, reading, beading, and yuraq (Yup'ik dancing). In the summer, she enjoys going back to her homelands and fishing.

Averon Katcheak

Averon Katcheak is Yup’ik from Stebbins, Alaska. He is 18 years old and studying Mechanical Engineering at the University of Alaska Anchorage. His goal is to help villages across the state of Alaska obtain infrastructure such as water and sewer systems and road systems.

Charlee Korthuis

Charlee Korthuis is Yup’ik from Bethel, Alaska, with family roots in Emmonak, located on the Lower Yukon River. A 2022 graduate of Mt. Edgecumbe High School in Sitka, Alaska, Charlee is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Anthropology with a minor in Alaska Native Studies at the University of Alaska Anchorage. She is also a University Success Student in the Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP).

Charlee has gained valuable experience through internships with the Bristol Bay Native Association Fisheries Program, Senator Lisa Murkowski in Washington, D.C., and the National Park Service’s Alaska Native Tribal Relations Program.

Additionally, Charlee has actively participated in the Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC) General Assemblies as an official observer, traveling to gatherings in Canada, Greenland, and Alaska, held every four years.

As an Arctic Youth Ambassador, Charlee is excited to meet and connect with other youth across the Arctic and is thankful for the opportunity to represent her people and community.

Deja Jackson

Deja Jackson is Yup'ik and African American from Bethel, Alaska. Deja is currently attending the University of Alaska Anchorage studying Natural Sciences with a concentration in Environmental Science and is a University Success Student with the Alaska Native and Science Engineering Program (ANSEP). She's had the opportunity of interning with US Fish and Wildlife Service, Orutsararmiut Native Council (ONC), and the National Park Service. Deja's passionate about bridging the gap between traditional knowledge and modern challenges, particularly in the face of environmental changes. She is excited to use her traditional skills and experiences to uplift the stories and voices of Alaskan's, ensuring their cultures and ways of life are preserved and shared with the world!

Emma Daniel

Emma Cungauyar Daniel is Yup'ik from Bethel, Alaska and attends the University of Alaska Fairbanks where she is pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources and the Environment, and possibly a minor in Yupik and/or Fisheries science. She is also an Alaska Native Science and Engineering Program (ANSEP) University Success student. Emma is interested in working with the environment/natural resources, particularly with fisheries and wildlife. During her free time, she likes to work on beading projects, crocheting, and taking walks outside. She also loves berry picking and working on fish in the summer time with family.

Felicia Johnson

Felicia Johnson is a 24 year old Unangax̂ woman from Nelson Lagoon, Alaska, which is located on the Alaska Peninsula. She grew up in a small fishing village with her family. Felicia had to move to Sand Point, Alaska to attend high school due to the school in Nelson Lagoon shutting down because of a lack of school aged children. After graduating high school, she attended college at the University of Alaska Southeast in Juneau from 2018-2023 and then moved back home to Nelson Lagoon where she now works for the Nelson Lagoon Tribe and Nelson Lagoon Enterprises Fuel Company. Growing up, Felicia has always been involved with the community. It’s one of her passions to keep her small community going and thriving. She loves learning about her own culture and others. She is very excited to be an Arctic Youth Ambassador!

Hope Uele

Hope Uele is Samoan (Pago Pago, Nu'uli, Upolu) & Kanaka Maoli (Kona & Oahu) having had the privilege of living & learning in many places like on MOWA Choctaw Lands in Mt.Vernon, Alabama, living on the Muckleshoot reservation in Auburn, Washington, and many more. She has spent the last 7 years in Alaska where she spent three of those years studying & learning at UAF in Fairbanks. She is currently pursuing her bachelor’s in Business Administration & Political Science.

Hope's favorite thing to do is storytelling. She alchemizes this through many different forms of art. She discovered the art of storytelling when she lived on the MOWA Choctaw reservation where she partook in Powwows and danced Fancy Shawl & traditional. She has learned different styles of dance from various cultures throughout the Pacific Islands, her comfort being in Hula & 'ori Tahiti. She is currently learning her native languages of Samoan and 'Olelo Hawaii as she wants to create songs in her native tongues. She loves cinematography, spending time making mini films as well as acting, having been in school plays, short films, local commercials, and countless self-tape auditions.

She spent time living in American Samoa and Hawai'i, where she has seen firsthand just how important the health of the 'aina (land) & moana (ocean) is connected to the health and well being of those who steward the lands. Her love for her people and homelands are what inspire her to continue her work in Climate Justice, using the arts as a tool for change, connecting with her cultures, and being apart of the 0.2% of Pacific Islanders to pursue higher education so she can be worthy of one of the the highest honors: being a voice for her people and home.

Kellie Miller

Kellie Miller is Inupiaq from Nome, Alaska. Her parents are Kacey and Jared Miller, her grandparents are Mary Miller (Keller) and Andy Miller, Jr. Her great-grandparents are Martha and Lester Keller, Sr. and Hannah and Andy Miller, Sr.

Kellie is currently attending Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH studying Earth Sciences and Native American and Indigenous Studies. At school, she plays rugby and enjoys spending time with the Native Americans at Dartmouth community. After college she plans to return home and work in her community.

Mary Simeon

Mary Simeon is Yup'ik and Tlingit and grew up in Bethel, Alaska. Her parents are David Simeon and Dolly Angstman. She graduated from Mt. Edgecumbe High School in 2023. Mary is currently attending the University of Alaska Southeast in Juneau pursuing a bachelor's degree in marine biology with an emphasis in fisheries science.

Miaja Coombs

Miaja Coombs (she/her/hers) grew up in Wasilla, Alaska, and is passionate about the intersections between Arctic communities, climate science, and policy. She is a senior at Brigham Young University, majoring in Environmental Geology with a minor in Mathematics, and plans to begin a Ph.D. in glaciology in the Fall of 2025.

Miaja became involved in statewide climate advocacy in high school through groups like Alaska Youth for Environmental Action and has continued her advocacy since, volunteering for various political campaigns that prioritize climate commitments and amplify Native Alaskan voices. She looks forward to collaborating with other Alaskan youth to strengthen Arctic policy that reflects the needs and supports the resilience of Arctic communities.

Nyché Andrew

Nyché “Skavaq Sivulliuqti” Tyme Andrew is Yup’ik and Inupiaq. She is an enrolled tribal member of Nome Eskimo Community, shareholder for Calista Corporation, and a lineal descendant of Bering Straits Native Corporation. Born and raised in Anchorage, Alaska, Nyché is passionate about using her education to strengthen her contributions to her people. She is currently studying at Yale University to earn a simultaneous award of a Bachelors and Masters in Political Science and a certificate in Education Studies in 2025. She is also a Mellon Mays and Bouchet Fellow studying the religious and political organization of Indian boarding schools in Alaska. Nyché plans to return to Alaska and advocate for Indigenous education and Alaska’s unique tribal governance.

Peter Olanna

Peter Olanna is an Alaska Native from Brevig Mission, Alaska. He enjoys subsistence hunting and playing sports.

Wynter Fournier

Wynter Fournier is from Fairbanks, Alaska. Each summer, she works with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game on the Yukon River Sonar Projects, monitoring salmon passage. During the winter, she enjoys skiing, ice fishing, and painting.

Wynter is deeply concerned about the decline of Chinook and Fall Chum salmon and its impact on rural communities. She is committed to raising awareness of the biological, environmental, and human factors contributing to this issue.

Zach Hingsbergen

Zachariah Hingsbergen is 18 years old from Selawik, a small village in Northwest Alaska with a population of around 900 people. He is very grateful to have this opportunity to do new things. Zach enjoys providing for his family that he loves by hunting and providing wood for them. He’s also learned to cut hair and provides the service to many of his friends and family.