By Alex Day, Marketing/Communications & Database Director
The Food Sustainability & Native Plant Education project, a collaborative effort between North Cascades National Park, the Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, Glacier Peak Institute, and many other dedicated partners, has been a beacon of change since its inception in 2020.
Aiming to provide educational outdoor experiences, place-based learning, native plant education, and food sustainability for adult and youth participants, this award-winning initiative has left an indelible mark on the region’s communities. And that impact has been made possible in part thanks to funding from generous donors to Washington’s National Park Fund.
“It’s a great partnership between us and local tribes.”
According to North Cascades National Park Superintendent Don Striker, the Food Sustainability Project makes a lot of sense for the National Park Service.
“We’re able to interact with the Sauk-Suiattle and help them preserve their culture,” he explains. This partnership benefits both the park and the tribe. “We get to share the combination of our modern scientific knowledge and the fact that we have, in many cases, preserved the native seeds of the area that were traditionally here – and to combine that with the traditional indigenous knowledge that the tribes have.”
A pivotal aspect of the project centered on an underserved gateway community, where the park seeks to provide students with unique opportunities to delve into the park’s offerings, fostering their understanding of native plant cultivation and food crops.
This year, 57 students from Darrington Elementary and High Schools were engaged through in-class lessons and immersive park field trips. One of their accomplishments? They rolled up their sleeves, and alongside park rangers, teachers, and community volunteers, completed the planting of an ethnobotanical garden at the park’s North Cascades Visitor Center.
For many of them, this was their first experience at the park – and now, every time they return, they will be able to see their impact through the garden right outside the visitor center’s doors. Talk about getting their hands dirty!
Read our blog to step into the shoes of a Darrington High student on a food sustainability project field trip.
This year, the project extended its impact to the Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, offering support for their garden initiatives and aiding in the establishment of a greenhouse on tribal land.
This work was made possible thanks to the dedicated champions of Glacier Peak Institute, a passionate community of mentors, educators, and families who believe that a stronger future for the Glacier Peak Region starts with our kids – and believes that getting them outdoors benefits us all.
The collaboration aims to invest in the future of food sovereignty within the tribe as well. Ultimately, donated funds will allow for internship opportunities for tribal youth, enabling them to drive sustainable food systems and progress toward food sovereignty within their communities.
Dalton Meister, former Nutrition and Greenhouse Coordinator at Glacier Peak Institute, has seen the impact this funding has had first-hand.
“I think the funding and the capacity that it’s created for us has been absolutely instrumental,” he shared. “That material support and the funding has been a vehicle for us to create opportunities for staffing, and in part funds my role and the role of some of my colleagues in affecting these changes in the communities we serve. It has also created capacity for us to develop opportunities for youth, whether it’s field trips that we take them on to North Cascades National Park, opportunities for us to purchase things like this greenhouse for the tribe, or the materials that are helping to develop it.”
There’s a range of things that this funding has provided these communities, but I don’t think that could all be summarized in a paragraph. I just can only say thank you – that it is creating capacity for us that will go on to affect generation after generation down from here. And it’s going to be a vehicle for a lot of wonderful changes. So, thank you.
The collaboration has not only strengthened partnerships between the gateway community, the Sauk-Suiattle Indian Tribe, and the park, but has also bolstered food sustainability and sovereignty endeavors – a wonderful merging of several of Washington’s National Park Fund’s project priorities, including expanding stewardship among visitors and volunteers and supporting Washington’s national parks as they explore new ways to embrace inclusion and welcome new visitors.
The impact of the Food Sustainability project stands as a testament to the power of collaborative efforts in fostering community resilience and environmental stewardship within the North Cascades.
And it wouldn’t have been possible without support from passionate donors to Washington’s National Park Fund.
Your contribution can help sustain and expand projects like these, nurturing education, cultural preservation, and sustainable practices in North Cascades National Park. By donating to initiatives that bridge communities, empower youth, and preserve cultural heritage, you play a vital role in shaping a more sustainable and interconnected future.
Washington’s National Park Fund is the official philanthropic partner to Mount Rainier, North Cascades, and Olympic National Parks. With your help, we raise private support to preserve and protect Washington’s national parks, funding scientific research, youth and family experiences, and projects that will keep these parks strong and vital now and forever, for everyone. You can support projects like this one at wnpf.org/donate.
Cover photo by Mason Cummings/The Wilderness Society