President Obama announced that Alaskan mountain Mount McKinley would be renamed Mount Denali on Sunday, according to the New York Times.
Obama plans on using his executive power to restore the mountain's cultural importance, according to the New York Times.
He will officially rename the continent's tallest mountain on Monday in Anchorage, according to USA Today. The mountain will be renamed Mount Denali – an Athabascan name widely used by Alaska Natives, meaning "the great one."
Many hope this change will work to improve relations with Native Americans, according to the Washington Post. In an interview on Sunday, Julie Kitka, president of the Alaska Federation of Natives, commented on the move.
"It's symbolic, but the practical thing is now on all the maps and all the descriptions it will have the traditional name. That is wonderful, it is timely and the right thing to do," she said, according to the Washington Post.
The White House also announced that the president planned on widening the scope of programs aimed at allowing Alaska Natives to have a hand in developing their own resources and including them in local fishery businesses, according to the New York Times.
President Obama has made more of an effort to engage with the Native American community since June of last year, according to the New York Times. His visit to Cannon Ball, N.D. was the first visit in 15 years by any president to Native American tribal lands.
