Photos by Kaycee Prevedel
How the Buffalo are helping teach the next generation of Tribal leaders
The weather yo-yoed from hot and sunny to cold and rainy as dozens of 12-to-18 year old students descended upon the high desert Wyoming plains to learn amongst the Buffalo.
Last month, the Youth Climate and Culture Camp had a successful third year at the Wind River Tribal Buffalo Initiative (WRTBI). The event was a three-day educational extravaganza and welcomed environmental conservation organizations from across the state to set up booths to teach groups of students about the importance of protecting water and land. The whole camp was centered around a tipi put up the first morning. Inside, elders from both the Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone Tribes told stories and imparted lessons to the young students.
Over the span of the three years of its existence, the camp has taught approximately 200 students from all over the Wind River Reservation.
“We’re here to tell you about your history and your culture,” Wes Martel said as he addressed the crowd of students and volunteers. He’s with the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, a conservation group focusing on preserving the area’s natural resources, and he’s also a former council member of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe and a local expert in tribal water rights. He is Board Chair of WRTBI.
“You are young leaders. We are training the next generation,” he said.
The format is simple. Individual groups of half a dozen students from St. Stephens, Wyoming Indian, and Arapaho Charter would rotate between stations for interactive lessons. Students asked questions, or thoughtfully listened.
One station put on by the Wyoming Outdoor Council educated participants on the uses of local native vegetation, while another station instructed students on the benefits of prescriptive burns. Learning about what different parts of the Buffalo was used for, and a crash-course in tribal water history were also stations students engaged with.
Other groups who participated included folks from Bridger-Teton National Forest, Arapaho Schools Language Program, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Teton Science Schools as well as others.
“We are trying to get opportunities for kids to think beyond school,” said Colleen Friday, Northern Arapaho, with the Greater Yellowstone Coalition. She thinks the future of the program will be bright, and she is also a new board member of WRTBI.
This year also had two special guests in attendance. Ruby Red, a newborn Buffalo that the Initiative is bottle feeding, and Sand Dune the newborn colt. The two interacted with students, napped in the sun, and reinforced the importance of protecting their shared homelands.
Ruby Red, a newborn Buffalo and Sand Dune, the newborn colt, pictured with Jason Baldes
Over the last few years of putting on the event, Friday has seen students engage with the event and get excited about protecting wildlife and water. Having Sand Dune and Ruby Red were great to help to engage the kids, and she appreciated the guidance WRTBI provided in explaining that Ruby Red is not a pet; she is wildlife and will be returned to the Buffalo herd as soon as she gets a little older.
“I definitely saw kids interacting with them but we also are trying to make sure they don’t see them as circus animals,” Friday said. “They are not ours, they’re going back.”
“I definitely saw kids interacting with them but we also are trying to make sure they don’t see them as circus animals,” Friday said. “They are not ours, they’re going back.”
Camps like this one have been shown in studies to empower youth to provide a meaningful bridge between culture and tribal conservation. Like in Alberta, Canada Indigenous land-based education camps teach berry picking, fish processing, and hide tanning.
“Land-based activities are important in reducing climate change; however, more people need to take action,” one study shared.
The Youth and Climate Camp put on by the Greater Yellowstone Coalition and the WRTBI is a part of a bigger, global conversation. Throughout the world there have been recent moves to support Indigenous youth conservation efforts. In 2024, in New York the United Nations hosted their annual Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, one of the largest global gatherings of Indigenous Peoples. The theme that year was of self determination and youth, providing avenues for young people to address the future of protecting their homelands.