Climate Change and Air Quality

Native Americans face a variety of air quality problems including allergies, respiratory infections, higher rates of asthma than the national average, and lung cancer associated with poor indoor air quality. Climate change may exacerbate air quality issues. This webinar will focus on climate change impacts on air quality and on actions that Native people can and are taking to ensure the health of their communities and of the environment. For many Native people, air is a significant element found in many parts of their cultures, songs, and ceremonies thus playing a vital role in their daily and spiritual well-being.

ITEP is honored to have three speakers who work within the field of air quality at the local and national levels. Pat Dolwick, with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, was the one of the main authors for and will discuss the findings of the Air Quality Impacts chapter of a U.S. Global Change Research Program report, The Impacts of Climate Change on Human Health in the United States. Althea Walker, with the Gila River Indian Community, will provide insight into their climate change adaptation planning efforts, in particular with respect to air quality. Finally, Dr. Pat Ellsworth, with ITEP, will provide a brief overview of ITEP’s upcoming Air Quality Planning and Wildland Smoke course, which will include some potential adaptation strategies.

Food Sovereignty & Climate Resilience
At its core, food sovereignty is about tribal communities controlling their own food systems and ensuring local access to healthy, affordable, traditional and cultural foods. Climate change is already beginning to impact local food resources, especially in communities that rely on hunting and gathering for part of their diet. Food sovereignty is a tool that communities can use to achieve climate resiliency goals by creating and protecting local food sources. These projects can take many forms, including community gardens and food distribution networks.

This webinar will feature two speakers with extensive experience in a variety of food sovereignty projects. Vicky Karhu will provide examples of some ongoing projects and will discuss food sovereignty assessments and how communities can get started on making changes to their food system. Joanie Buckley will discuss food sovereignty projects she’s been involved with in her role at Oneida Nation. There will be time for audience questions. Please note that we will allow unlimited registration for the webinar. However, on the actual day of the webinar, only the first 100 people to sign in will be able to participate.

Forest Carbon Projects for Tribes – What They Are and How They Can Benefit Tribes
Developing forest carbon projects can be a complex undertaking in which forest managers must navigate regulations and relationships with government and non-government stakeholders. In return, these projects can become lucrative economic development opportunities for tribes while at the same time offering many co-benefits related to ecosystem health, forest management, and climate resiliency.

This webinar will provide an overview of forest carbon projects; including what they are, what benefits they provide, what they mean for forest management, and how a tribe can develop a project. Three speakers will share their perspectives on this topic, and there will be time at the end for audience questions.