The inaugural Tribal Justice Summit will be held September 30-October 3rd 2019 in Nome Alaska at the Mini Convention Center. The summit is hosted by Kawerak Inc, with the intention of bringing members from communities across the Bering Strait Region together to learn and discuss how to start or strengthen tribal courts in their communities.
“We are excited to bring this information to the region” says summit coordinator and Kawerak Staff Attorney Meghan Topkok. “Experts from around the State will come to present success stories, offer advice and assistance, as well as facilitate conversations for participants in exploring the benefits of establishing and strengthening Tribal Courts in their communities.” Kawerak is sponsoring around 6 individuals from each community to attend, including the Tribe’s president (or designee), VPSO (if any), tribal coordinator, tribal family coordinator, a youth and an elder.
Kawerak’s strategic plan includes regional capacity building, so we have made it a priority to host trainings, share information, and identify barriers Tribes are facing to increase their quality of life. Offering Tribes the resources to start their own Tribal Court system falls right in line with these goals.
Sessions from the summit are planned to be recorded for future training opportunities, and the goal is to have more summits like this in the future. The current summit is sponsored through a grant from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, Office of Tribal Justice.
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