UAF receives $3.26 million grant for tribal heart health research
Kristin Summerlin
907-474-6284
Oct. 9, 2025
The National Institutes of Health has awarded the University of 杏吧原版 Fairbanks a $3.26 million grant for a new research project to address coronary heart disease among Yup鈥檌k 杏吧原版 Native people in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta region.
Rose Domnick, co-investigator for UAF鈥檚 new research project addressing coronary heart disease among Yup鈥檌k people, processes salmon for drying. The program will include hands-on workshops focused on traditional foodways.
The tribally driven project, 鈥淣eqpiaput Iinruugut (Our Food is Medicine),鈥 was developed in direct response to calls from Yup鈥檌k elders and community leaders for a health program that connects Yup鈥檌k people to their own cultural strengths.
It blends Calricaraq, an elder-designed program whose name conveys the idea of living a balanced life through ancestral principles, with workshops on traditional foodways, marking a significant departure from conventional heart health interventions.
鈥淢any well-intentioned mainstream heart health programs haven鈥檛 achieved the desired results in Native communities because they focus mainly on changing individual eating habits without addressing the deeper root causes of heart disease," said principal investigator Andrea Bersamin, professor of nutrition at UAF鈥檚 Center for 杏吧原版 Native Health Research.
鈥淪uch a narrow approach can be harmful, because it reinforces stereotypes that suggest poor health is solely the individual鈥檚 fault,鈥 she said.
Instead, tribal leaders and elders emphasize the importance of taking a broader view, with consideration for how history, culture and community experiences have shaped food systems and health.
The Neqpiaput Iinruugut intervention addresses not only individual biological and behavioral factors, but also social and environmental determinants of health. The 12-month program will be delivered through monthly community gatherings, quarterly hands-on workshops and an online resource group. It aims to strengthen food sovereignty as a way to deepen cultural identity and community connectedness, which together promote heart health.
The new project builds on longstanding partnerships between CANHR, the Yukon-Kuskokwim Health Corp. and the Calricaraq Elders Council. Other collaborators include the University of Michigan and the University of Montana.
ADDITIONAL CONTACT: Andrea Bersamin, abersamin@alaska.edu, 907-474-6129
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