Expanding Youth Access to Traditional Community Buffalo Harvests

Project Overview

YENC25-238
Project Type: Youth Educator
Funds awarded in 2025: $6,000.00
Projected End Date: 12/31/2026
Grant Recipient: Tanka Fund
Region: North Central
State: South Dakota
Project Manager:
Dawn Sherman
Tanka Fund

Commodities

No commodities identified

Practices

No practices identified

Proposal abstract:

Tanka Fund is the only known organization returning Buffalo to individual Native Buffalo caretakers. Tanka Fund will organize 4 traditional Buffalo harvests, in collaboration with regional Native Buffalo Producers, to increase Native K-12 youth access to knowledge of the reciprocal relationship between our lifeways and Buffalo relatives. Tanka Fund’s project utilizes storytelling to teach Native youth about our Buffalo relatives, the traditions and importance of caretaking the Buffalo, and career pathways in sustainable agriculture connected to the Buffalo, thereby fostering curiosity, excitement, care and pride for carrying on our traditions for the next seven generations.

Project objectives from proposal:

Objective 1: Increase K-12 Native student access to traditional Buffalo harvest methods, storytelling, and career pathways to connect with and carry on traditional lifeways

 

Objective 2: Host 4 traditional Buffalo harvests to increase access K-12 Native youth access to Buffalo meat

Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and should not be construed to represent any official USDA or U.S. Government determination or policy.