Salmon Public Outreach and Education 2022

The Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR), Department of Natural Resources (DNR), Cultural Resources Protection Program (CRPP) will utilize funding to educate the public and tribal community about the CTUIR’s DNR First Foods Mission and restoration efforts. DNR’s First Foods Mission guides the CTUIR in the protection, restoration and enhancement of the First Foods, which include water, salmon (all aquatic species), deer (all game and waterfowl species), cous (all below ground rooting plant species) and huckleberry (all above ground fruiting plant species) for the perpetual, cultural, economic and sovereign benefit of the CTUIR. Goals will be accomplished by utilizing traditional, ecological and cultural knowledge and science to inform the public about population and habitat management goals and actions; and Natural resource policies and regulatory mechanisms. DNR proposes two project components: 1. CTUIR Aquatic and First Foods Public Education and Outreach and; 2. CTUIR Cultural Continuity, Preservation, Education and Outreach.



Component #1: CTUIR Aquatic and First Foods Public Education and Outreach. This component assists us in educating the public about the CTUIR’s work related to watershed and species restoration efforts throughout the year. Outreach methods include indoor and outdoor class presentations, workshops, trainings, field tours and service-learning projects. We propose to provide outreach activities in the Walla Walla, Umatilla, Columbia and Snake River Watersheds, the CTUIR ceded lands, and usual and accustomed areas. Efforts will focus on providing education and outreach to the general public, local schools, and higher education institutes. Participants will learn the importance of the CTUIR’s efforts to protect, preserve and restore aquatic and First Food resources. Participants will also learn how they impact the ecosystems and how they can help by making responsible choices and by respecting the environment around them. CTUIR provides professional presentations to the local community, non-governmental organizations, and state and federal organizations upon request. These may include presentations, hands-on activities related to an on-going CTUIR project-related field tour including aquatic and First Foods related service learning projects. The Return to the River Festival Event celebrates the return of the spring chinook to the Walla Walla River after being extinct for more than 80 years. PCSRF funds will be used for advertising costs, staffing time, travel, mileage and supplies.



Component # 2: CTUIR Cultural Continuity, Preservation, Education and Outreach. This component will focus on coordinated community, first Foods harvesting excursions and associated cultural activities for CTUIR tribal members. Participants will learn about the DNR First Foods Mission, DNR’s restoration, protection and management efforts and how they benefit anadromous fish species as well as tribal members. Tribal members will learn about usual and accustomed fishing stations and gathering sites, how to legally access, harvest, process, and store First Foods, and how their treaty rights are tied to the First Foods and their culture. CTUIR staff will utilize traditional ecological knowledge and language to promote cultural continuity. The Public Outreach and Education Specialist will coordinate cultural continuity activities based on information developed by DNR. The preservation of information gathered will be essential in assisting in resource conservation and restoration and in identifying new strategies to revitalize CTUIR’s First Food cultural heritage. PCSRF funds will assist in providing transportation for participants attending gathering activities and supplies needed for preservation instruction activities. DNR technical staff, First Food gatherers, language speakers and advisors knowledgeable about the resources being harvested will lead activities.

Species that benefit from DNR’s outreach and education project include:

• ESA listed summer steelhead and bull trout,

• Reintroduced spring chinook and Pacific lamprey, and

• Inland redband trout and margined sculpin, listed as vulnerable under Oregon’s Sensitive

Species rule.

CTUIR DNR manages the entire river system including every component of the system from an ecosystem perspective following Tamánwit and nature’s ecological law that all resources are important and connected to one another. The salmon and all First Foods are ecologically related to each other and span across the landscape. The First Foods biodiversity is unique and reliant on one another as are the people who also rely on them. It is important that we manage our resources from ridgetop to ridgetop, down to the flood plain, and onto the ocean.



The projects support the DNR management approach and also focus on the wildlife and plant species connected to the same habitat areas that directly benefit from aquatic species restoration efforts. Educating the public about the significance of ESA listed species will increase support for habitat restoration projects and fish protection. Through education and outreach efforts within the schools, students return home and share information with parents and family. This sharing of information supports restoration efforts by increasing awareness about natural resource management curriculum and the impacts that students can have on their natural environment. The goal is to create young stewards to carry the mantle of natural resource protection and preservation into the future. The CTUIR is also working to increase public support and stronger partnerships for future salmon and watershed restoration projects.