Adequate and healthful housing has long been recognized as a pressing need of Alaskan Arctic and Subarctic residents. The need is complicated by the requirement that the cost of purchasing, operating, and maintaining such housing be within reach of this predominantly low-income group.

In the past, lack of adequate shelter, sanitary facilities, and insufficient and unsafe water supplies have led to a mortality rate among Alaskan Natives that is many times higher than any peer group in the Nation. Infant mortality and tuberculosis have been especially high, and many of their causes relate to inadequate housing.

Wintertime temperatures, often falling below -40° F for long periods, are commonplace. Often these temperatures are accompanied by high winds which can create chill factors equal to -110° F and lower. Adequate housing to meet these needs should be high on our list of priorities.

The foremost design considerations are (1) adequate protection from the environment (this includes considerations of adequate space, insulation, ventilation, sanitation, and of utmost importance, durability), and (2) a price within the means of the average Native family. The second is a most difficult requirement to satisfy since it is almost diametrically opposed to the first, and Alaskan costs make it doubly hard to meet. The one asset most Native families have is time, which can offset the labor costs which constitute a large portion of the final construction cost.