FORT WASHAKIE, Wyo. — A $619,500 grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s America the Beautiful Challenge has been awarded to the Wind River Indian Reservation, the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapahoe Tribes and the Greater Yellowstone Coalition (GYC) to restore a tribal bison herd.
According to the announcement by GYC, the grant will be used to grow the bison herd on the reservation from the current 150 animals on 3,000 acres to 1,000 animals on 100,000 acres. Funds will also be directed toward habitat restoration on the Big Wind River at Crowheart Warm Springs, home to trumpeter swans in the winter.
“The mission of the Greater Yellowstone Coalition – working with all people to protect the lands, water and wildlife of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem – fits in with Indigenous values and beliefs,” GYC Senior Wind River Conservation Associate Wes Martel said in the announcement. “We believe water is life, buffalo is power and food is healing. Thanks to the grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, our team is ready to elevate Tribal conservation priorities within this important corner of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.”
The grant will also support community engagement and programs that promote food sovereignty and “opportunities for climate resilience.” Field trips designed to engage Tribal youth, Elders and community members in the sharing of Indigenous Traditional Ecological Knowledge are also part of the plan.
“The Indigenous Peoples of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem are the steadfast stewards of this remarkable region,” GYC’s announcement said. “Since time immemorial, a deep and evolving repository of Traditional Ecological Knowledge has been used to live in dynamic reciprocity with nature.”
The America the Beautiful Challenge received more than 450 applications; 74 projects received funding totaling $141.3 million.
“We need to begin addressing the impacts of drought and climate change that we have seen in recent years and work with the Elders and communities of both Tribes to make sure the coming generations have a reliable source of clean water,” Lokilo St. Clair, Acting Tribal Water Engineer for the Wind River Reservation, said in the announcement. “This planning grant from the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation will enable the TWE Office and tribal communities to start developing an understanding of the challenges that lie ahead as we seek to protect lands, water and wildlife and our connection to Mother Earth.”
