Government Funding of Native American Cultural Foodways, Conservation and Land Management

Tribes in the Pacific Northwest (PNW) are working to increase First Foods access, heal ecosystems, preserve their cultures, and prepare future generations to culturally manage First Foods landscapes as their ancestors have done for millennia. This paper examines present-day government food system funding and advocates for the integration of tribal governments into funding systems and to address the funding gaps where agricultural funding does not reach First Foods cultures. 

This paper explains how Pacific Northwest First Foods cultures are unique from agricultural tribes in many other regions of the U.S. and explores how funding structures built for individual businesses do not match the cultural and environmental context for First Foods. 

This paper seeks to bring attention to regional funding needs for tribal governments in the Pacific Northwest and contribute to the national Indigenous food policy agenda. Lastly, this paper also seeks to outline the funding discrepancy for tribal governments, spark regional conversations to build consensus around First Foods funding needs, and prepare tribes for potential First Foods funding in the future. 

Based on interviews with staff and leaders from 4 tribal governments, funding policy recommendations were developed that include tribal government capacity building, tribal consultation, cultural resources, outreach, education, workforce development, First Food diet and public health, tribal community infrastructure, Land Back, cultural land management, climate crisis risk-reduction, extinction prevention for rare species, and other unique First Food funding needs.