Investing in the Next Generation of Land Stewards

Photo: Elaine Harvey, Wanuxni, enjoying a day harvesting huckleberries in August 2025.  Photo by Elaine Harvey.

L.I.G.H.T. Foundation (LF) is excited to share the work and wisdom of Indigenous activist, mother, and environmental leader Elaine Harvey, Wanuxni.  Tribal Nations and Indigenous Peoples in the United States (U.S.) and around the world acutely feel the impacts of development, resource extraction, and climate change – all topics Elaine has deep experience in.  Her work as Watershed Department Manager with the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRTIFC) spans many of these areas and overlaps with her heritage, passion, and advocacy to protect sacred sites, traditional food gathering areas, and wildlife habitat.  Belonging to the Kamiltpah Band of the Yakama Nation, Elaine is also a Kamiltpah traditional food gatherer and tireless advocate.  A recent topic she has invested much of her professional and personal time in is addressing the impacts of a green colonialism project in present-day Washington State, which is touted as a “clean” renewable energy project.  

Elaine is in support of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and renewable energy development, which are both vital to climate adaptation, but she is rightly wary of the methods and processes used to enact them.  Like many Tribal Nations throughout the U.S., the Yakama Nation has been adversely impacted by the construction of hydroelectric dams, wind turbines, and other renewable energy endeavors, such as solar and hydrogen development.  Unfortunately, the planning, permitting, siting and construction of these “clean” energy projects are frequently done without respect to Tribal sovereignty, consultation, or the free, prior, informed consent of Tribal Nations and Indigenous Peoples.  This undermining or neglect of Tribal sovereignty, willfully ignorant or not, in the space of climate adaptation and resilience is green colonialism, and Elaine shares with LF the story of one such project threatening a sacred First Food site of the Yakama Nation, called Pushpum.

Pushpum is a mountain located on treaty-reserved lands known to the Yakama Nation as the “Mother of Roots.”  In the 2025 documentary These Sacred Hills, Elaine is featured prominently, discussing the cultural and ecological value of Pushpum to the Rock Creek Band of Yakama.  Her advocacy brought this issue of green colonialism to sharp focus for the Yakama, leading to the development of the documentary, which recently won Best Feature Documentary at the World Culture Film Festival in Los Angeles, CA. In These Sacred Hills, Elaine and other Yakama Nation citizens tell the story of their fight against the Goldendale pump storage facility, a “clean” energy project threatening the desecration of Pushpum.  

Correspondence dated July 26, 2024 from the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation (ACHP) to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) noted that as early as 2018 and “at numerous subsequent points, FERC dismissed comments from the Yakama Nation regarding the presence of important properties of religious and cultural significance at the proposed project site” and that “FERC acknowledges that construction of the project reservoirs will permanently prevent culturally significant activities from occurring in the area occupied by the reservoirs.”  The final Environmental Impact Statement for the project identifies permanent habitat loss of 193.6 acres, acknowledging disturbance, destruction, degradation, and/or reduced access to archaeological and sacred sites, cultural and spiritual practices, and hunting and gathering areas of the Yakama Nation, Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Warm Springs, and Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Umatilla Indian Reservation.

Elaine fights for the First Foods and rights of Indigenous Peoples for future generations, succinctly reminding all that: “Tribes aren’t against renewable energy.  We’re against projects that destroy our lands, that push us out of the decision-making process until it’s too late.”  LF is fortunate to hear more of her perspective and teachings, specifically about the Native Plant and Pollinator Relatives she is fighting to protect.

At the L.I.G.H.T. Foundation, we believe native plants and pollinators are our relatives and that we should do all we can to protect and conserve their existence.  Please share with us a little about your roles and experiences in advocating for biodiversity and conservation of native plants and pollinators in ways which honor your traditions and cultural practices.  

Native communities are connected to the land through various native plant communities, and this relationship has existed for thousands of years from generation to generation. Native plant systems provide food to human populations through natural food webs. For example, salmonid species consume macroinvertebrates (freshwater systems) and zooplankton (ocean) which consume phytoplankton (plant sources). The salmon lifecycle has provided sustenance for Tribal communities and wildlife since time immemorial. Native pollinators also play a very important role in ensuring there will be another crop of roots, berries, and medicinal plants for the next year.

What would you say is one of the accomplishments related to environmental or native plants/pollinators protection, restoration, or education which you are most proud of?  

I worked for the Yakama Nation Fisheries Program and was fortunate to conduct riparian and headwater meadow restoration projects to improve fish and wildlife habitat for many years. I was also fortunate to work with the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) to conduct huckleberry restoration projects which included tree thinning and cultural burning in recent years. I also have conducted many ethnobotany field courses with youth of different backgrounds to discuss the importance of the natural environment and how it has sustained Native populations for many generations. I believe that our youth are our future and next generation of land stewards and it is important to invest time to share the benefits of conservation and restoration of lands and rivers.

We can learn so much from our plant/pollinator relatives, they are like our teachers.  Are there any that have helped teach you about resilience and strength? 

There are Native coyote, “Spilyi,” legendary stories which speak to the importance of pollinators to diverse landscapes where we gather our foods and medicines. Our Elders always emphasized that all life on earth has a purpose ranging from the smallest insect on earth all the way to largest carnivore mammals.  Our Elders always mention that everything is connected … the water, the land, plants, wildlife, fish, and we are a part of the natural world.

If there is an individual (or individuals) within your family, community, or Tribal Nation that has helped inspire your desire to protect and advocate for our Plant and Pollinator Relatives, will you share a little about them, and how they’ve supported or encouraged your work in this space?

The Elders of my community and Tribe have really shaped my perspective of the natural world and how we are the voice for all natural life. Plant and Pollinator Relatives do not have a voice to protect their habitats and it is up to us to advocate for them so they will be in existence for perpetuity.

Are there any additional insights about your journey that you’d like to share with us?  

Our Native communities are the original stewards of the lands of North and South America and carry the oral histories of the lands. It is important to include the Native People and their traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), as we are in a time of climate change and this demand for new energy sources. Many areas in Washington State focused for energy projects are in important shrub-steppe habitats where the Tribes gather foods and medicines, and those habitats remain important for wildlife. It took thousands of years for this habitat to develop, please think twice before permanently destroying these habitats.  Let’s plan energy projects in responsible ways and incorporate Tribal input and TEK. 

Elaine, thank you so much for sharing your Voice and fighting to protect our Plant and Pollinator Relatives!  We will carry your teachings, strength, and dedication with us and continue to support your advocacy work to protect Pushpum, encouraging others to join the movement at These Sacred Hills and sign the petition to stop the Goldendale pump storage project.