News Release
Yurok Tribe
The Yurok Tribal Council supports California Governor Newsom’s proposal to invest $100 million in tribal projects that advance the state’s ambitious climate and conservation goals.
“Climate change poses a serious threat to the Klamath River, the lifeline of the Yurok people. The Yurok Tribe is currently implementing a series of strategies to make our forests and streams more resilient to the new climate regime and we need additional funding to accelerate this important work before it is too late,” said Joseph L. James, the Chairman of the Yurok Tribe. “The climate crisis is a direct result of the removal of tribal people and tribal land management practices from the landscape. Through his support for tribal land recovery and restoration projects, Governor Newsom is righting an historic wrong and improving the health of the planet. We strongly encourage the California legislature to incorporate this timely proposal into the state’s budget.”
The Governor announced the forward-looking funding opportunity at today’s meeting of California’s Truth and Healing Council. The proposal seeks to provide direct financial assistance for the following tribal projects: research, development and implementation of traditional knowledge, workforce training, capacity building and technical aid, tribal nature-based climate conservation programs, and more.
“Too often, California Native American tribal communities are overlooked and suffer many of the worst impacts of climate change,” said Governor Newsom. “The California way is not to hide from our past, but to embrace it with a commitment to build upon our values of inclusiveness and equity for everyone who calls this state home.”
“Similar to many of California’s many tribal nations, the Yurok Tribe is bearing the brunt of climate change. Every year, we have less snowpack and more major forest fires. There is so little water in the Klamath River that our salmon can barely survive. We haven’t been able to harvest enough fish to feed our people in seven years because the runs have been so low. Much of the forest in our ancestral territory has been reduced to ash due catastrophic wildfires,” added Yurok Vice Chairman Frankie Myers, who is an appointed member of the state’s Truth and Healing Council. “If we are to slow and then reverse climate change, we need to employ nature-based solutions, such as cultural burning and habitat restoration, on a landscape-scale. These traditional land management practices can be employed throughout the state to improve forests and watersheds, which is good for all California residents.”
Last week, the Yurok Tribal Council travelled to Sacramento to meet with California Natural Resources Agency, cabinet members and state legislators to advocate for the inclusion of tribes in the May revision of the state budget. The Tribal leadership informed the state representatives about the many ways the Tribe can help California solve complex environmental challenges.
In 2020, Governor Newsom issued Executive Order N-82-20, which fast-tracks the deployment of nature-based solutions to confront climate change. Two major initiatives originated from the order, including a commitment to preserve 30 percent of state lands and coastal waters by 2030. The Yurok Tribe provided detailed feedback on the state’s participation in the international 30X30 conservation program and its development of the Natural and Working Lands Climate Smart Strategy.
“In order for the state to be successful in meeting its conservation goals and executing its first-ever climate-smart land management strategy, Tribes must be at the forefront at every stage, ranging from planning of these complementary efforts to implementation. The Yurok Tribe has practiced climate-smart land stewardship since the beginning of time and we have much to offer the state as well as the world,” concluded Chairman James.
