*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE*
Date: February 25, 2026
Contact: voiceofthearctic@marathonstrategies.com
A statement from Nagruk Harcharek, President and CEO of Voice of the Arctic Iñupiat (VOICE). VOICE is a nonprofit organization established in 2015 by the region’s collective elected Iñupiat leadership and is dedicated to preserving and advancing North Slope Iñupiat cultural and economic self-determination. In 2024, VOICE was the first organization to file a lawsuit against the Bureau of Land Management to challenge the 2024 National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska (NPR-A) Rule, which was crafted without meaningful engagement with those who live on the North Slope and presented serious risks to survival of Indigenous communities and North Slope Iñupiaq culture.
“Today, the District Court of Alaska agreed to dismiss the case without prejudice. In November, the Department of the Interior (DOI) rescinded the 2024 NPR-A Rule, which resolved the lawsuit’s complaint. This is a huge victory for the people of the North Slope and the communities within the NPR-A.”