Pioneering Perspectives: American Indian and National Forest History

Tribal Nations and Indigenous Cultures have been marginalized in American society and long denied a seat at the table of public land management. In the United States, National Forests were all, at one time, tribal lands. Tribal Nations have dealt with changes to their traditional homelands of which federal management and use have often created clashes over how the nation's forests should be valued and cared for.  Tribes and foresters have committed to ethical conservations ethic regarding areas of shared conservation. In the Eastern Region of the Forest Service, there are 14 National Forest, one tallgrass prairie, and 89 Tribal nations. Each continuously seek to understand and collaborate in managing these lands and resources today and for future generations. Hear from Jen Youngblood ’03 (Muskogee Creek), Deputy Forest Supervisor on the Chippewa National Forest, about working with Tribal Nations to recognize tribal sovereignty, honor trust responsibility and to manage forests while incorporating a multi-use mission.