Tribal Stewards

Sage Brown   Website

ONDA launched our Tribal Stewards program in 2019 to provide paid opportunities for Indigenous youth and young adults to work on restoration projects and gain experience in conservation and stewardship career paths. The goal of this program is to support emerging conservation leaders in tribal communities while completing projects to improve ecosystem health in Oregon’s high desert.

Through an immersive field‐based program, participants restore streams, uplands and trails on federal and tribal lands and conduct scientific research and monitoring. In addition to gaining practical training, the tribal stewards receive mentorship from natural resources professionals and explore potential career pathways.

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Great Horned Owls and Western Screech Owls

Great Horned Owls and Western Screech Owls

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Terry Butler, 2018 Volunteer of the Year

Terry Butler, 2018 Volunteer of the Year

“If I have to pick a favorite place in Oregon’s high desert, it would be Sutton Mountain, but I’m excited about all of the Wilderness Study Areas,” says Terry, adding, “Each is a gem to explore, and I hope they all get protection someday… I love the scale of the physical beauty of the desert.”

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Craig Terry, ONDA member and stewardship volunteer

Craig Terry, ONDA member and stewardship volunteer

“The people I have had the privilege to share time with each season keep me volunteering again and again. Who else but those ONDA staff leaders would make fresh coffee at dawn each morning or pack a watermelon all day to serve as a reward under a juniper in a steep canyon?” Craig, who grew up in northwestern Nevada, says ONDA connects him with places he loves and a mission he believes in. “My grandfather and his father put up wire fences for their ranching needs. Taking out barbed wire sort of completes a circle for me.”

Lace Thornberg

Sage Brown

Sage Brown   Website

Tribal Stewards Projects

ONDA partners with tribes, land managers, and other non-profit organizations to plan and coordinate Tribal Stewards projects throughout Oregon’s high desert.

Since 2019, the Tribal Stewards crews have worked across eastern Oregon on a range on restoration projects, including:

  • Retrofitting fence to be wildlife friendly and maintaining trails at the John Day Fossil Beds National Monument
  • Improving upland habitat through juniper abatement and seed collection on Burns Paiute Tribe’s Jonesboro property
  • Restoring native fish habitat along headwater creeks of the John Day River by building and maintaining beaver dam analogues and planting native vegetation in the Malheur National Forest
  • Completing fish surveys and native plant projects at Burn Paiute Tribe’s Logan Valley property
  • Building fences to protect headwater springs and creeks of the Malheur River in the Malheur National Forest

Tribal Stewards Program
Provides Career Mentorship

In early July, a crew of young adults – CeCe Andy (Warm Springs and Yakama), Monique Moody (Wasco and Northern Paiute) and Dakota Pablo (Pima and Navajo) led by Tiyana […]

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Look Back: Reflections from Tribal Steward Wesley Scott

Author: Renee Schiavone  |  Published: September 13, 2023  | Category: Look Back From getting the opportunity to reconnect with indigenous communities to finding work that truly interests him In 2021, […]

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