For over 50 years, archaeologist Dr. Douglas Anderson, of Brown University, studied the Iñupiaq Natives of Northwestern Alaska. When one of the last excavations of his career shut down due to the discovery of human remains, he must rely on the relationships he has built with the Iñupiaq. Policy dictates that archaeological excavations on National Park Service land must stop when remains are found and all living descendants be notified.

Are the relationships between Anderson and the Iñupiaq based purely on his own academic pursuits? Or will they allow the dig to proceed as the continuation of Anderson working with them to examine their cultural history?