Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner

Dan and Maggie Inouye Chair in Democratic Ideals

Poet and activist Kathy Jetn̄il-Kijiner is a climate envoy for the Marshall Islands Ministry of Environment and co-founder of the youth climate nonprofit Jo-Jikum. Her poems, performances, videos, and art installations explore her culture’s storytelling traditions as they confront external shocks, from US nuclear testing to the climate crisis. She is the author of Iep Jāltok: Poems from a Marshallese Daughter.