About our Logo

The Elakha Alliance logo has a multi-generational story.

Army Corps of Engineers Col. Kenneth Hatch (Siletz/Aleut) took up Pacific Northwest formline style woodcarving in his retirement in the late 1990s and designed the sea lion image below.

“Sea Lion” by Ken Hatch
Dave Hatch

Not long after, Ken’s son Dave Hatch was searching for an indigenous name for a sailing dinghy he’d just built with his son Peter and found the word Elakha, which means “sea otter” in a Chinook Jargon dictionary. This chance find led him down a path of activism to raise awareness to everyday Oregonians and scientists alike about the extirpation of sea otters from Oregon, their key ecological role, and the possibility of their return.

A civil engineer and draftsman in his own right, Dave adapted his father’s sea lion design as a logo for his effort, entitling an informal advisory group the Elakha Alliance in the 1990s. As a formalized organization that grew from those roots, we remain indebted to Dave’s foundational work.

Two decades later, the Elakha Alliance is proud to display our logo and continue Ken and Dave’s legacy with Dave’s son Peter’s assistance as a founding member of our board.