WASHINGTON (Interior Department) â  The U.S. Department of the Interiorâs Office of Insular Affairs applauds the Interior Museum for recently acquiring items donated by Nicole Yamase, who on March 11, 2021, became the first Pacific Islander to descend to the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench. The Interior Museum accepted the items this week in honor of Asian American, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander Heritage month.
âMay these items represent our strength, pride, resiliency, and the amazing accomplishments we will continue to achieve as Pacific Islanders,â said Nicole Yamase.
âWe often remark that our collection spans from West to East and from sea to sky, but to be given these items that have traveled with Nicole Yamase to the deepest known section of the Earthâs ocean is a first for the museum and incredibly special,â said Tracy Baetz, chief curator of the Interior Museum.