Numerous Native American cultural traditions are related to connection to nature and are seen as critical for the health and well-being of children and families. Educational and health care professionals should recognize the importance of these traditions and acknowledge or integrate them into their work with Native American children and families.

Participating in cultural activities in nature is important to the health of American Indian and Alaska Native children with disabilities

The participation of American Indian and Alaska Native children with disabilities in cultural activities (e.g., annual canoe journey, berry picking) is important for their well-being. Families try to facilitate children’s participation in these activities. However, children with disabilities and their families face numerous barriers, such as appropriate accommodations to attend the activities. In addition, cultural activities are rarely acknowledged by the rehabilitation professionals working with Native children with disabilities.  Considering cultural traditions and sharing decision-making with children and families would help meet the needs of these children.
Fuentes, 2019. Culture, health, function, and participation among American Indian and Alaska Native children and youth with disabilities: An exploratory qualitative analysis.

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Integrating Navajo traditions into school nutrition and gardening lessons may help reduce obesity among Navajo children

Navajo traditions were intentionally integrated into a pilot garden-based intervention program for students attending a small Navajo Nation school in New Mexico (U.S.). The ultimate aim is to address obesity concerns by increasing students’ fruit and vegetable consumption through a strong emphasis on the Navajo language and culture, including integrating Navajo traditions. Formative assessment suggested that students enjoyed the hands-on garden activities and using what they grew for preparing snacks. School staff noted the importance of aligning the programming with state academic standards and Diné educational standards.
Ornelas et al., 2021. Engaging school and family in Navajo gardening for health: Development of the Yéego intervention to promote healthy eating among Navajo children.

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There are several ways for early childhood educators to support Native Americans’ cultural and environmental identities. Peers, parents, and teachers can provide support, guidance, and model behavior for children to understand their place in nature and their role in ecology and sustainability. Additionally, play-based learning via tools such as dioramas can help both Native American and non-Native American children learn about ecological relationships.

Involvement in harvesting deepens Alaska Native children’s connection to cultural identity and values

This study engaged 5- to 6-year-old Southeast Alaskan Indigenous children in a sensory exploration of their lived experiences while harvesting medicinal plants. Teachers and parents were observed supporting and providing guidance to the children, and parents modeled appropriate behaviors important for the children to understand their place in nature. Exploring traditional harvesting, acquiring new skills, and learning through storytelling are subtle ways that knowledge is passed to young children to develop their cultural values and learn to respect the Land.
Lunda & Green, 2020. Harvesting good medicine: Internalizing and crystalizing core cultural values in young children.

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Diorama play is useful in understanding children’s ecological cognition and the role of Native American culture and expertise in play behavior

The use of a three-dimensional forest diorama with 4-year-old rural Native American, urban Native American, and urban non-Native American children indicated that all three groups engaged in realistic ecological play, with rural Native American children demonstrating the most engagement. Native American children were twice as likely to take the perspective of the animals in their play than non-Native children. Early childhood science education may benefit from the use of dioramas for ecological play.
Washinawatok et al., 2018. Children’s play with a forest diorama as a window into ecological cognition. 

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Rural Native children have a strong environmental identity promoted by their subsistence-based lifestyle

Five- to 7-year-old children from a Native village in western Alaska took part in participatory research on their interactions with nature. Children demonstrated strong trust in nature, grounding their sense of autonomy in nature, which permitted exploration and experimentation. Children learned about their local ecology, increasing their environmental competency, which promoted engagement in their culture’s subsistence lifestyle. Subsistence practices are important to consider in early childhood education for sustainability.
Green, 2017. Children Environmental Identity Development in an Alaska native rural context.

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Modern understanding of Native American history recognizes the role of colonization in the destruction of Native culture and associated impacts on health and well-being. However, Western culture continues to pose a threat to Native cultural practices, subsistence livelihoods and the health of the land. Recognition of the value of, and a return to, Indigenous traditional ecological knowledge can contribute to restoration of culture, health, connection to nature, and resilience in the face of ecological crises for Native and non-Native Americans, with positive implications for the health of the land.

Inupiaq youth in the Alaskan Arctic face challenges navigating Indigenous and Western worlds which can impact how they view their future

Inupiaq youth were engaged in intergenerational dialogue with the adults and Elders in their community to understand future challenges. Inupiaq cultural identity is tied to subsistence and spending time on the land, speaking the native language, and engaging in cultural activities. However, Inupiaq youth face challenges whilst straddling their Indigenous world and the Western world – the latter contributing to loss of Native culture. Understanding how some youth navigate their two worlds successfully can provide a model for creating a narrative of hope for the future.
Trout, Wexler & Moses, 2018. Beyond two worlds: Identity narratives and the aspirational futures of Alaska Native Youth.

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The experience of Native American people illustrates how environmentaldegradation can inflict emotional as well as physical harm

This study, conducted collaboratively by an academic researcher and a Karuk Tribal member, found that the natural environment strongly influenced the Native people’s emotional experiences, which helped shape their sense of identity, social roles, and resistance to racism and ongoing colonialism.  Their emotional response to environmental degradation included anger, shame, and grief — signal functions confirming structures of power in relation to identity, social interactions, and ongoing colonialism.
Norgaard & Reed, 2017. Emotional impacts of environmental decline: What can Native cosmologies teach sociology about emotions and environmental justice?.

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Indigenous traditional ecological knowledge may help ecopsychology play a more important role in addressing the global challenges of climate change

This conceptual paper highlights three ecopsychology lessons from Indigenous traditional ecological knowledge (ITEK), which is viewed by Indigenous people as a way of life more than a body of knowledge. ITEK encourages listening to voices typically excluded from Western discourse, recognizes the danger of Western modernity that can denigrate Indigenous beliefs, and re-frames modernity as a contributor to environmental challenges.
Coope, 2019. How might Indigenous traditional ecological knowledge (ITEK) inform ecopsychology?. 

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Indigenous ecological attachment can promote ecological empathy and mindfulness, important for enhancing nature connectedness 

This study developed an assessment of ecological attachment, empathy, mindfulness, and green action from an Indigenous perspective using tools and measures. It used the measures to assess a behavioral intervention to reconnect non-Indigenous participants to nature. Results suggest that ecological attachment actions can improve ecological empathy and mindfulness in non-Indigenous participants. Returning to an Indigenous perspective and knowledge might be the way to help reverse ecological crises, but policies and political changes are also needed.
Kurth et al., 2020. Indigenous nature connection: A 3-week intervention increased ecological attachment.

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Land management decisions should consider the varying outdoor activities and ecosystem values of different populations

Native Americans reported higher rates of consumptive activities such as fishing and religious or sacred activities and had higher preferences for the natural characteristics of the environment compared to Caucasians. The authors propose a model for integrating information gathered from the assessment of activity patterns and perceptions of the environment of both groups into land management decisions.
Burger et al., 2012. Frequency and rates of outdoor activities, and perceptions of places to perform these activities by Native Americans and Caucasians interviewed in Tennessee.

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