Pre and Post Field Trip

Main Question

How are the Se̓liš, Qlispe, and Ksanka tribes managing the Flathead Reservation’s natural resources?

Objective

Students will be able to understand how the CSKT Natural Resource Department is managing the Bison Range and other conservation areas.

Background

Learning more about how the Se̓liš, Qlispe, and Ksanka tribes are using traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) to manage their natural resources will create a deeper understanding of Tribal Land Stewardship and the long history connecting Native American people with their lands.

Procedure

Have students read the US Fish and Wildlife press release on the change of Bison Range Management from 2019.

Have students read the history of the Bison Range.

Have students get into groups and do their own research on TEK in the United States and find one of other example of a natural resource being given back to be managed by a Native American tribe.

Have each group discuss the differences between how the land was managed before and after the change. What did the tribes do differently? What did they do the same? Do the tribes provide any cultural reasons for the changes?

Discuss the answers as a class. Have each student prepare a ecological management question about the Bison Range.

Visit the Bison Range and tour the museum. On return, have the class report their answers.

As a class, discuss how the CSKT Natural Resource Department is using TEK to manage the Bison Range.

Vocabulary

Conservation

Management Plan

Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK)

Collaboration

Indigenous

Sustainability

Stewardship

Holistic

Discussion Questions

What are other names for Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK)?

When did Native American cultural practices start being considered in environmental science?

What are some examples of TEK being used in the United States?

Why was TEK originally not used in environmental science and government management?

What are some predicted changes for areas with TEK practices?