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About BCCA

We're a coalition of Indigenous and non-Indigenous community-scale business leaders in the natural resource economy.

Advocating for community-scale business voices 

 

Our work is guided by a firm commitment to social equity, local and traditional wisdom, and triple bottom line solutions that restore social, ecological and economic health.

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BCCA is a fiscally sponsored project of the American Sustainable Business Network (ASBN), a movement builder in partnership with the business and investor community working to transform the public and private sectors toward a just and equitable economy. Learn more about their mission, vision, and values here. 

Team

The team of staff consultants facilitates the work of our coalition and lends policy, storytelling, and fundraising expertise to our members. 

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Fisheries policy advisor

Linda Behnken

Linda (she/her) is a commercial fisherman and the executive director of the Alaska Longline Fishermen's Association (ALFA). A longtime advocate for community-scale fisheries, Linda has led efforts to support small-scale fishermen and promote their access to Alaska’s fishery resources. Most notably, her work has effectively demonstrated that by engaging fishermen in research, management and stewardship, both the viability of small-scale fisheries and the ecosystem upon which fishing communities depend can be strengthened and sustained for future generations.

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Community outreach coordinator 

Leigh Belanger

Leigh (she/her) is a storyteller and network builder whose work has focused on many facets of our food system. She has led programming and outreach in the non-profit sector; written two cookbooks and countless editorial stories; spearheaded and launched a network, event series, and podcast for women food entrepreneurs; developed programming for public educational events, and taught writing and communications to hundreds of students. A native of coastal Massachusetts, Leigh lives in Boston with her partner and two young children, where she advocates for equity in the public school system and

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Alaska and Northwest policy coordinator

Ephraim Froelich 

Ephraim (he/him) leverages more than a decade of experience as a policy expert and relationships developed at the highest levels of government to achieve legislative and regulatory results. He was born and raised in Juneau, Alaska. He holds a bachelor’s degree in government from Dartmouth College and a J.D. from the University of Maryland School of Law. Froehlich worked for United States Senator Lisa Murkowski in Washington, D.C., as lead policy advisor on fisheries, wildlife, maritime transportation, environmental change, and the Arctic. He next joined Alaska Governor Bill Walker’s administration as senior advisor on fish and game and as the deputy director of federal relations. In 2018, Froehlich served on the board of the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute. Froehlich founded AKWA-DC LLC in 2019, a policy consulting firm focused on fisheries, maritime, and the environment. He enjoys getting outside whenever possible with his sons and partner to camp, hike, and fish and is an avid soccer and basketball player.

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Indigenous business coordinator

Terrius Harris

Terrius (he/him) is an Afro-Indigenous, LatinX aspiring humanitarian who has dedicated his life to leveraging global and domestic systems and frameworks to alleviate the disparities in international indigenous communities. He obtained a Master’s of Legal Studies in Indigenous People’s Law from the University of Oklahoma and three bachelor’s degrees in International Business, French, and Interdisciplinary Studies from the University of Mississippi. Terrius has served in many Indigenous communities worldwide, ranging from many Indigenous nations and tribes in North America, Tanzania, the Pacific Islands, and the Philippines. Consequently, while serving as the Indigenous Business Outreach Coordinator, he hopes to further build partnerships between Indigenous communities and BCCA to best uphold our commitment and support the growth of Indigenous-led businesses and communities.

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Communications and storytelling coordinator

Deenaalee Hodgdon

Deenaalee (they/them) is Deg Xit’an Athabaskan and Supiaq from the villages of Gitr’ingithchagg (Anvik) and Qinuyang (South Naknek), Alaska. Descended from fishing people, Deenaalee continues their relationship to the water as a subsistence and commercial fisherman on the F/V Cozy Ray, and in their work with the Business for Conservation and Climate Action. They are the Arctic Athabaskan Council's Youth Representative to the Arctic Council's Youth Permanent Participant Network and part of the Radical Imagination 2020-2021 Cohort through NDN Collective. Deenaalee hold their Bachelor's of Arts Degree in Anthropology with an emphasis in public policy, food sovereignty, Indigenous studies, urban design, and entrepreneurship. Since graduating in 2019, they have been nurturing the seeds of On The Land, where storytelling, audio technology, and a love of the land and water come together to envision Indigenous futurisms now. They find their joy in spending time working with their hands mending fishing nets and tanning hides, and feasting in community on traditional foods that were gathered, harvested, and grown locally.

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National policy coordinator

Noah Oppenheim

Noah (he/him) is a natural resource policy specialist working to support and lift up communities and their sustainable and equitable access to resources. He’s worked as a commercial fisherman in Alaska, a staffer in the US Congress, and has led a commercial fisheries trade association. He holds master’s degrees in marine biology and marine policy from the University of Maine. He lives and works on the ancestral lands of the Wabanaki People in Brunswick, Maine where he operates his company Homarus Strategies LLC.



Our mission is to establish national policies that recognize community-scale businesses as compatible with healthy lands and oceans, and to advocate for the inclusion of these businesses in conversations about resource access at every step of the decision-making process.

Our mission 

Our vision 



As a result of our work, Indigenous and community-scale business voices will form the core of the U.S. conservation and climate  movements.

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