Summer Wildbill Attends 2023 White House Tribal Youth Forum

NPAIHB Youth Delegate Summer Wildbill Represents CTUIR at 2023 White House Tribal Youth Summit

Summer Wildbill

Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation

NPAIHB 23'-24' Youth Delegate

November 6, 2023 | Tribal youth, leaders, and mentors gathered in Washington, D.C., for the annual 2023 White House Tribal Youth Forum. The event occurred in the Hubert H. Humphrey Building on November 6, 2023. It comprised 140 tribal youth from around the country and youth representatives from Brazil, Canada, Colombia, Guatemala, Honduras, and Mexico.

Along with 140 youth, the Northwest Portland Area Indian Area Health Board (NPAIHB) got the opportunity to send a youth delegate as a representative for the organization. Summer Wildbill was the delegate who attended as a representative,

as she is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation and is in her second year serving as a youth delegate for NPAIHB.

The White House Tribal Youth Forum allowed for collaboration. It addressed issues Indigenous communities face, such as climate resilience strategies, mental health, substance use prevention, and career opportunities and development. The forum allowed youth to have a platform to advocate

for the voice of young and future leaders. The addition of international leaders allowed additional perspective through shared issues that are faced by Indigenous youth.

The forum allowed for youth representation to impact the policy-making process and be engaged for now and future generations. It further allowed youth to raise concerns and dialogue on issues in their communities and allowed for development and solutions to the problems while empowering youth nationwide and worldwide.