Erin Brockovich, then a single mom and law clerk, became a household name after an Oscar-winning film starring Julia Roberts told the story of her dogged investigation into groundwater contamination in Hinkley, Calif. and the historic class-action lawsuit that followed. On Feb. 25, Brockovich gave her talk “The Power of One” in the Great Hall of the Gallagher Bluedorn Performing Arts Center.
Perched near the top of the world on the cusp of the Arctic Circle, the coastal indigenous communities around the Bering Sea exist at the intersection of the modern and ancient worlds.
In many ways, life for these Russian and Alaskan villages has completely changed. Snowmobiles and motor boats have replaced dog sleds and kayaks. Tents and yurts have transformed into houses made from modern materials. People own guns and buy gas.