Achievement

Fall quarter fieldtrip to the Yakama Nation Reservation. This mandatory field trip provides most students their first exposure to a reservation and the IGERT Native American partners. Students interact with tribal members who are professionals engaged in holistic resource management practices on the reservation, seeing firsthand how the land and management practices seek to advance tribal economic, cultural and conservation objectives. Students gain a significant understanding of the value system that drives Yakama Nation management of its land-based resources. Student feedback on this fieldtrip has focused on new insights about the need to meld very different systems of thinking --traditional indigenous and scientific--into their project designs. They've also walked away with a new awareness of how research can limit or enhance community priorities.