National Park Service Grant for Ethnohistory & Ethnoarchaeology of Reindeer Herding on the Alaska Peninsula

This Funding Announcement is not a request for applications. This announcement is to provide public notice of the National Park Service (NPS), intention to fund the following project activities.

ABSTRACT

Funding Announcement: P11AT36177

Project Title: Ethnohistory & Ethnoarchaeology of Reindeer Herding on the Alaska Peninsula.

Recipient: UAF

Principle
Investigator: Patrick Plattet
Total Anticipated
Award Amount: $400,000

Cost Share: N/A

New Award
Or Continuation: New

Anticipated
Length of
Agreement: 5 Years

Anticipated
Period of
Performance: September 20, 2011-June 30, 2016

Award
Instrument: Cooperative Agreement

Statutory
Authority:Agreements Concerning Cooperative Research and Training on NPS Resources (16 U.S.C. � 1a-2(j)): The Secretary may enter into agreements with public or private educational institutions, States and their political subdivisions, for the purpose of developing adequate, coordinated, cooperative research and training programs concerning the resources of the National Park System, and pursuant to such agreements, to accept from and make available to the cooperator such technical and support staff, financial assistance for mutually agreed upon research projects, supplies and equipment, facilities, and administrative services relating to cooperative research units as the Secretary deems appropriate.

CFDA#: 15.945, Cooperative Research and Training Programs � Resources of the National Park System

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN
COMPETITION (or SINGLE SOURCE) FOR DISCRETIONARY COOPERATIVE AGREEMENTS

CESU Task Agreement: J9796110060
Ethnohistory & Ethnoarchaeology of Reindeer Herding on the Alaska Peninsula

BACKGROUND:

Ethnohistory & Ethnoarchaeology of Reindeer Herding on the Alaska Peninsula project will document a) the historic migration of Inupiat people to the central Alaska Peninsula (circa 1910) and b) the ethnohistory and ethnoarchaeology of reindeer herding in the Northern Alaska Peninsula (1910s-1940s). The University of Alaska will conduct the work under an agreement with Katmai National Park and Preserve. Project funding comes from PMIS Project #111099 Component A: Conduct Study of Reindeer Herding in Katmai and PMIS Project #117154 Components A and D: Document the Oral History of the Inupiat Migration to the Alaska Peninsula. The project will take place over three seasons, the final season involving compiling and presenting project results in a variety of media including written reports and the Project Jukebox Web page.

1) 505 DM 2 Single Source – Only one responsible source will satisfy agency requirements.

� Patrick Plattet, on the faculty of The University of Alaska Fairbanks, is uniquely qualified to direct this project based on his education and research experience. He has training and back ground in collecting oral histories from traditional people and has worked with reindeer herding people in the Eastern Russia. As UAF Staff he has access to the Project Juke Box oral history archive and the Alaska Native Language Centers Inupiat and Alutiiq (Sugpiag) language experts who are fluent in the languages and their historic development.
2) Nature and description of the deliverable required to meet the agency�s needs:

� 2011 � Develop detailed scope of work, detailed work plan and research design.
� 2012 � Conduct field work and provide report on results of the field work.
� 2013 – Develop dynamic and interactive multimedia support for making findings/information publicly accessible (create a �Jukebox Project� � http://jukebox.uaf.edu/site/). Communicate results to professional and technical audiences (i.e. publications, reports, posters, etc.).
� 2014Coordinate final visits to local communities (Summer 2014) to interpret artifacts and photos. Package and provide oral histories to resident communities.

3) Criteria for justifying award without competition. In order for an assistance award to be made without competition, the award must satisfy one or more of the following criteria. Please explain which criterion specifically addresses the proposed agreement.

Unique Qualifications �
� Patrick Platett, Assistant Professor, Dept. of Anthropology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, has first-hand experience with reindeer herding which make him uniquely qualified to be the Principle investigator of this project. He spent almost a year with Koryak and Chukchee reindeer herders in Northeastern Kamchatka from 1999 to 2007 giving him experience working with native people in an environment similar to Alaska. His PhD thesis is basically a comparison of past and present modes of hunting and reindeer herding in Kamchatka, an analytical framework that he developed that will be usefully applied in Alaska. He has collaborated on several occasions with archaeologists, in particular on a documentary film on reindeer skin processing. He has collaborated with national/state museums, providing them with first-hand ethnographic material on reindeer cultures. He has successful of record of obtaining funding for and managing important collaborative research projects. He has published extensively (in multiple languages) on reindeer herding in Northern Kamchatka. His international reputation is drawing motivated students to the University of Alaska Fairbanks anthropology department to do research on reindeer/reindeer herding. KATM and ANIA has a unique opportunity for Dr. Platett and his highly motivated students to apply his approach for conducting reindeer herding research on this project.

� The University of Alaska owns a rich archive of Alaska Native oral histories in many medias. UAF has a anthropology graduate program with professor expert in topics of northern cultures and access to graduate students who are motivated to work with them.

� The Department of Anthropology has access to the Alaska Native Language Center the staff of which includes the sole scholars who are expert in Alaska Native languages on the Alaska Peninsula.

4) A description of the market research that was conducted and the results, or a statement of the reason a market research was not conducted:

� This project researches a unique topic and the University of Alaska Fairbanks staff has the resources to conduct the work. No other institution or organization has the capacity to conduct this work.

5) Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition:

� This is a new project and there has been no previous deliverable related to this topic.

6) A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers for competition before any potential future agreement award:

� N/A
� UAF graduate students are acquiring experience on this project and may be qualified to conduct similar projects in the future.

Substantial Cooperation and Involvement by NPS

This project will be designed and organized cooperatively by the Katmai Lake Clark Historic Preservation Coordinator and by researchers at UAF-ANTH. Adjustments and review of design, as well as implementation will be accomplished through continuing dialog and cooperative work. Logistics and fieldwork will be coordinated and conducted primarily by UAF-ANTH, with substantial contributions in logistic support from NPS. Backcountry travel will be coordinated and provided by NPS. Annual reports will be prepared by UAF-ANTH, but reviewed and supplemented by NPS. Final reporting will be generated jointly by UAF-ANTH and NPS.