Garden planted in front of the historic 1920 Bismarck Tribune building in Northern Plains NHA, which now houses the Bismarck Downtown Artist Cooperative. Photo courtesy of Aaron Barth.

Pollinator Projects Sequester Carbon

NHAs and their partners engaged in pollinator habitat restoration are helping sequester carbon, which typically contributes to climate change. Native pollinator gardens help foster healthy soil, which sequesters—or captures and stores—carbon dioxide gas.

Three years ago, three Midwestern NHAs (Northern Plains, Abraham Lincoln, and Motor Cities) adopted Operation Pollination—an inclusive project that helps coordinate disparate pollinator advocacy groups, with native plant gardens. Since then, NHAs across the country have joined in this effort.

Janie Luster video shoot 2021. A palmetto weaver, showcases her craft as part of a Bayou Culture Collaborative project, LA. Photo courtesy of Kelsea McCrary 

Risings & Tidings

at Atchafalaya

Changing waterways, human intervention and climate change have all contributed to land loss along Louisiana’s coast. The Atchafalaya National Heritage Area, LA is working with the Bayou Culture Collaborative and Louisiana’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority to ensure communities and cultures are not washed away with the shoreline.

Protecting culture requires an understanding of history, ecology, arts, and social sciences. This knowledge of how culture and environment are intertwined has informed how decisions are made about preserving coastal Louisiana in the face of a changing climate.