On the Kuskokwim River, it’s not an easy decision to travel during breakup. There are chores to be done to prepare for summer, and flooding is a constant risk that keeps people close to their homes, standing guard. But on Monday and Tuesday, a group traveled to Bethel from nearly every village along the river to discuss how to protect the fish that swim by.

Thirty-three tribes live along the Kuskokwim and share all the fish within it. Four years ago, the tribes came together to form the Kuskokwim River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission. It was a historic agreement that allowed tribes to co-manage the Lower Kuskokwim salmon under federal jurisdiction alongside federal managers at the the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.