JUNEAU, AK (April 1, 2022) – The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recently announced nearly $9 million in initial sustainability grant awards for 25 projects throughout the region. The grant awards are part of a long-term commitment under USDA’s Southeast Alaska Sustainability Strategy to invest approximately $25 million in financial and technical resources to support economic, cultural, and natural resources sustainability in Southeast Alaska.
The announcement was made this week while officials from three of USDA’s agencies were in Southeast Alaska to meet with tribes, Alaska Native corporations, as well as other regional and local partners.
“This level of collaboration is an exciting step forward that reflects new opportunities for local control and decisions,” shared President Richard Chalyee Éesh Peterson. "This is an example of thinking outside of the box and removing barriers so that our programs can truly succeed and address local needs rather than having to be shoehorned into existing federal programming."
USDA first announced the Southeast Alaska Sustainability Strategy in July 2021. Since then, USDA has consulted with Alaska tribes and Alaska Native corporations, and engaged with stakeholders, communities and partners in a collaborative process to identify opportunities.
Of the projects funded, Tlingit & Haida was awarded a total of $1.7 million in USDA grants for three projects that will be led by the Tribe’s Native Lands & Resources division:
-
Alaska Youth Stewards Program: This program will be relocated from the Southeast Sustainable Partnership to Tlingit & Haida and supports youth to participate in decision making processes that have potential or direct effect on traditional ways of life.
-
Wildland Fire Program: This program will be developed in partnership with the USDA Forest Service as the first Native Wildland Fire program in Southeast Alaska. The program will build out a Wildland Fire Handcrew of 18-20 members to be deployed to fire response situations throughout the United States.
-
Cultural Interpretive Training Program: This program will be developed in partnership with the USDA Forest Service to implement a comprehensive cultural interpretive training program grounded in local Indigenous knowledge, approaches and teachings.
"The Native Lands & Resources division extends its gratitude to the U.S. Forest Service for the investment in our homelands and our partnership of stewardship and co-governance of the Tongass National Forest," shared Native Lands & Resources Manager Desiree Duncan.
The remaining $16 million in USDA sustainability grants for Southeast Alaska are expected to be released within the next 6 months or more.
