This issue was underway prior to the global Covid-19 pandemic. The issue was imagined as a collaboration of identity including ontological and epistemological representations; First Nations, Native American, Indigenous, Hawaiian and Alaska Native, and Western identities coming into conversation around the concepts and applications of remote sensing in archaeological, cultural heritage, and resource management contexts.

The pandemic has global impacts that are disproportionately realized among First Nations, Native American, Indigenous, Hawaiian and Alaska Native, Black, and Latina/o communities as well as those without proximal or economic access to health care. This has been amplified by the racialized violence fueled by the centering of white supremacy in politics and the ongoing loss of Black, Latina/o, and Indigenous lives at the hands of police violence and other displays of power.

This issue is dedicated to the loss of elders, family members, and relations in our First Nations, Indigenous, and Native communities and those who have been grossly impacted by loss and devastation. This includes those who contributed and those who had planned to contribute to this issue. We mourn with you; your loss is felt among us. We hope this issue honors you and we send it as a blessing/prayer/energy for the safe passage of your loved ones.