Native Conservancy (NC) is the very first Native-led, Native-owned land conservancy in the United States. It exists to protect and restore Alaska Native ecosystems for coastal communities. NC’s central thread is Community Resiliency, and its programs include Social Enterprise, Indigenous Food Sovereignty, Landback and Land Conservation, and Oceanback and Habitat Restoration. Under Social Enterprise there are two main categories – those related to kelp farming, and those related to boat building.
In partnership with NDN Collective, NC started Giyah Boat Company in 2022 to help reclaim Indigenous ownership and build toward regenerative futures. Giyah builds and sells affordable safe boats so that Native people and fisherpeople can get out and back safely from ocean outings, whether for recreation, subsistence, or commercial purposes, includingharvesting their traditional foods and kelp.