Progress 03/01/24 to 02/28/25
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience of this project includes tribes, county and city officials, community leaders, scholars in rural economic development, entrepreneurs, small business owners, representatives from agencies, nonprofit organizations, and other key stakeholders. UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO Steven Peterson provided analyses to project partners who will incorporate them into the feasibility reports and disseminate them to the tribes and other target audience members. Alex Maas presented results to the T-HUB advisory board and integrated them into feasibility studies. UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO EXTENSION Danielle Scott shared project results with Nez Perce Tribal members, departments, and enterprises. COEUR D'ALENE TRIBE James and Laumatia shared project results with Coeur d'Alene Tribal members, departments, and enterprises. NEZ PERCE TRIBE McCormack shared project results with Nez Perce Tribal members, departments, and enterprises. ARROWLEAF CONSULTING Arrowleaf staff shared project results with Nez Perce Tribal members, departments, and enterprises; Coeur d'Alene Tribal members and multiple tribal departments; helped coordinate and plan the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit in partnership with McCormack, Laumatia, James, Scott, Nomee, and Native woman-owned Tahoma Peak Solutions. Changes/Problems:UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO Alex Maas' initial MS student was going to work through the summer following her graduation to complete the manuscript but was offered and accepted a position with the State of Virginia. The time needed to find another student to continue this work has delayed the delivery of the final peer-reviewed product. UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO EXTENSION After the departure of Shaina Nomee (assigned to the Coeur d'Alene Reservation), the involvement of University of Idaho Extension has been limited to the participation of Danielle Scott (assigned to the Nez Perce Reservation). ?ARROWLEAF CONSULTING Arrowleaf staff no longer have access to records to calculate FTEs worked or other data held by the University of Idaho, so the numbers provided are estimates for the staff previously employed by the University of Idaho (Saul, Newman, Cruz). Arrowleaf staff no longer directly receive emails from AFRI. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO Steven Peterson deepened skills for modeling value-added agriculture products using IMPLAN modeling software and data tools; and Lightcast data analytics (Objective 1). Alex Maas - 1) the MS student who previously worked on this project has graduated and is now working for the State of Virginia (Objective 4); 2) as an extension of this work, Maas has begun working with two Native American scholars to investigate the implications of the Bracker Balance test of reservations' sovereignty. UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO EXTENSION Danielle Scott 1) attended the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit held in March 2024 and helped plan, organize, and implement the event; 2) attended tribal food business tours in the Bellingham, WA area in September 2024. COEUR D'ALENE TRIBE Aiyana James attended tribal food business tours in Bellingham, WA area in September 2024, developing her professional networks, bringing partnership opportunities back to the CDA Tribe, and deepening her understanding of and capacity to support Native food systems, and research and outreach projects. ARROWLEAF CONSULTING The advisory board meetings, meetings with Tribal Enterprises and other Tribal Programs staff, literature reviews, focus groups, key informant interviews, tours of tribal food businesses, and feasibility study components we have completed have deepened our understanding of NW tribal food security, regional food sovereignty initiatives, and food-based economic development opportunities. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO Steven Peterson is integrating the results of the investment analyses and economic impact assessments into the larger feasibility studies and will distribute them soon. Alex Maas included the results from his analysis in the report to the T-HUB advisory board and integrated it into the feasibility study reports for both tribes (Objective 4). NEZ PERCE TRIBE McCormack presented a report on the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit to the Nez Perce Tribe during the semi-annual General Council (May 2024). Approximately 450 tribal members were in attendance (Objectives 1 - 4). UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO EXTENSION Danielle Scott disseminated information on 2024-2025 events and activities to the University of Idaho and the Nez Perce Tribe through Qualtrix reports, social media, and in group settings with Tribal leaders and members. ?ARROWLEAF CONSULTING Arrowleaf Consulting staff have had multiple meetings with Nez Perce Tribe Enterprises and representatives of several Coeur d'Alene Tribe departments, including food security programs, to discuss interests, needs and opportunities for milling, livestock, poultry, and other enterprises, including disseminating information from our feasibility studies to date and about grant opportunities to fund the projects the Tribal Enterprises and other teams are interested in implementing. The results of the project evaluation activities were reported to those responsible for planning and facilitating the event (Objectives 1, 2, 3, & 6). We also integrated the community survey results into the feasibility studies for each Tribe and delivered a survey results summary handout for each one. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO Steven Peterson - Project wrap-up and final dissemination of reports (Objectives 1 - 3). Alex Maas - A second MS student has been hired and will begin working on the project in May 2025; anticipated work includes the remainder of deliverables in Objective 4. UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO EXTENSION Danielle Scott - Will co-facilitate the Shared Kitchen 101 event in April 2025 (Objective 5); continue to offer opportunities to gather Indigenous foods and medicines to youth and adults on the Nez Perce Reservation (Objective 5); and present to youth and adults on forest edibles and how to grow mushrooms at home (Objective 5). COEUR D'ALENE TRIBE James and Laumatia - Project wrap-up, final dissemination of reports, and evaluation of survey results. Contribute to final deliverables, including manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals. NEZ PERCE TRIBE McCormack - Project wrap-up, final dissemination of reports, and evaluation of survey results. Contribute to final deliverables, including manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals. ?ARROWLEAF CONSULTING Staff at Arrowleaf Consulting will coordinate and facilitate team and advisory board meetings; complete the feasibility study reports for both tribes; and generally make sure all aspects of the project are wrapped up according to the current work plan, including peer-reviewed publication (Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4).
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO Steven Peterson 1) conducted economic impact assessments on a variety of scaling-up value-added scenarios, including raspberry and blueberry growing and processing, a variety of USDA-certified beef and animal processing scenarios, specialty mushrooms, flour milling, and other related scenarios (Objective 1); 2) conducted investment analyses for each of these scenarios (Objective 1). Alex Maas 1) Graduate student, Katie Burton, completed and defended her master's thesis in May 2024, which included the discrete choice experiment using survey data collected from a national sample to estimate the price premium possible for tribally branded food products (Objectives 1 and 4); 2) a manuscript has been drafted based upon the results of the initial discrete choice experiment survey (Objectives 1 and 4). UNIVERSITY OF IDAHO EXTENSION Danielle Scott 1) participated in regular team meetings to help inform advancement of strategies for agricultural and food system-based business development for the Nez Perce and Coeur d'Alene tribes and tribes with similar interests (Objective 1); 2) attended the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit held in March 2024; helped plan, organize, and implement the event (300+ attendees) with a strong focus on the youth track (Objectives 5 & 6); 3) presented on Indigenous foods at the Kamiah Culture Fair in Kamiah, ID to 400+ school-age children and their teachers in May 2024 (Objective 5); 4) presented a class on culturally respectful and responsible wild animal tracking and harvesting in Orofino, ID to 25 youth in May 2024 (Objective 5); 5) presented on cultural food gathering to youth from Clarkston, WA in May 2024 (Objective 5); 6) provided a presentation at the Nez Perce Tribe Home Fair on how to make and market jerky in June 2024 (Objective 5); 7) took 24 youth and adults huckleberry picking in August 2024 (Objective 5); 8) took 28 youth and adults to the mountains to gather tea, roots, and cedar for medicine and food in August 2024 (Objective 5); 9) attended the Northwest Tribal Food Sovereignty Coalition Gathering in Yakima, WA in September 2024 (Objectives 1 & 3); 10) co-taught a Dutch Oven Cooking Class using Indigenous ingredients in October 2024 (Objective 5); 11) co-taught a Wheat Grinding/Waffle Making Class to youth at Nez Perce Tribe Boys & Girls Club in November 2024 (Objective 5); 12) HIPT ("Helping Indigenous People Thrive" Nez Perce Tribe food coalition, hipt is the Nez Perce word for food) in-person meeting to plan for the Shared Kitchen 101 Training to be held in April 2025 (Objective 1). COEUR D'ALENE TRIBE Laura Laumatia and Aiyana James represented the Coeur d'Alene Tribe as co-PIs throughout this reporting period. They 1) participated in regular team meetings to help inform advancement of strategies for agricultural and food system-based business development for the Nez Perce and Coeur d'Alene tribes and tribes with similar interests (Objective 1); 2) co-facilitated the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (May 2024) (Objectives 5 & 6); 3) participated in case study tours and key informant interviews on the Lummi and Tulalip reservations and in and around Bellingham, WA (Fall 2024) (Objectives 1 - 4). NEZ PERCE TRIBE In this reporting period Ann McCormack, representative from the Nez Perce Tribe's Economic Development Planning Office, 1) participated in regular team meetings to help inform advancement of strategies for agricultural and food system-based business development for the Nez Perce and Coeur d'Alene tribes and tribes with similar interests (Objective 1); 2) co-facilitated the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (March 2024). A report summarizing results was produced (Objectives 5 & 6); 3) provided input into the development and implementation of the survey of Nez Perce tribal members (Objectives 1 & 3);4) participated in case study tours and key informant interviews on the Lummi and Tulalip reservations and in and around Bellingham, WA (Fall 2024) (Objectives 1 - 4); 5) facilitated and participated in meetings with Shelby Leighton (Nez Perce Tribe Enterprise Business Operations Director), Corey Roof (Nez Perce Tribe Agricultural Coordinator), Stacia Morfin (Nez Perce Tribe Director of the Small Business Development program), and other development stakeholders to continue to ensure project outcomes and deliverables align with Nez Perce food sovereignty and economic development goals (Objectives 1 - 6). ARROWLEAF CONSULTING In this reporting period, Arrowleaf Consulting 1) organized and facilitated advisory board and regular co-PI meetings (Objectives 1 - 6); 2) helped facilitate the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (March 2024) (Objectives 5 & 6); 3) deployed evaluation surveys for the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit and analyzed results and produced a summary report for organizers (Objectives 1, 3, 5, & 6); 4) deployed tribal community surveys for the Nez Perce Tribe and the Coeur d'Alene Tribe, analyzed results, created summary reports for stakeholders at each tribe, respectively (Objectives 1 & 3). Integrated survey results into the respective feasibility studies;5) continued drafting feasibility study reports for both tribes that explore multiple potential enterprises, including milling, meat processing, specialty mushrooms, and small-acreage produce growing and processing (Objectives 1 - 4); 6) completed six key informant interviews involving 7 participants, including tribal representatives and technical assistance providers (Objectives 1 - 4). We also analyzed this data and have started integrating it into deliverables; 7) drafted articles for peer-reviewed publications (Objectives 1 - 4).
Publications
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Progress 03/01/23 to 02/29/24
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience of this project will be tribes, county and city officials, community leaders, scholars in rural economic development, entrepreneurs, small business owners, representatives from agencies, nonprofit organizations, and other key stakeholders. University of Idaho Steven Peterson - Participated in meetings with Nez Perce Tribal Enterprises and their prospective commercial mill partner, reporting on preliminary results and to gather information needed to support economic and financial assessments. Alex Maas - Preliminary results have been presented in seminar form with the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences. We will present final results to our advisory board this spring/summer (Objective 4). University of Idaho Extension Shaina Nomee - Works with youth and other community members, organizations, and businesses on the Coeur d'Alene Reservation. Nomee helped organize and facilitate the focus groups. Specific groups that participated in the interactions were Tribal youths from the Lapwai, Coeur d'Alene, and Warm Springs reservations, Tribal food sovereignty organizations, the American Indian Health Commission, and the NW Food Sovereignty Coalition. Danielle Scott - Works with youth and other community members, organizations, and businesses on the Nez Perce Reservation. Scott helped organize and facilitate the focus groups. Coeur d'Alene Tribe James and Laumatia partnered with tribal departments and leaders to coordinate, recruit for, and implement focus groups with Coeur d'Alene Tribe community members (30 community members were engaged). They also partnered with many tribal departments, leaders, businesses and community members to help organize and coordinate planning for the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit. Nez Perce Tribe McCormack partnered with several Nez Perce Tribe departments and leaders to coordinate, recruit for, and implement focus groups with Nez Perce Tribe community members (30 community members were engaged). ?Arrowleaf Consulting Nez Perce Tribal members, departments, and enterprises. Coeur d'Alene Tribal members and multiple departments. Helped coordinate and plan the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit in partnership with McCormack, Laumatia, James, Scott, Nomee, and Native woman-owned Tahoma Peak Solutions. Changes/Problems:University of Idaho Extension Shaina Nomee will be resigning from her position effective April 26th, 2024. Coeur d'Alene Tribe The Tribe has not experienced any major challenges; with the reassignment of project roles, the project is on track, and the Tribe has coordinated with the partners on several major tasks, including the planning of the food sovereignty conference. Communications regarding administrative and fiscal responsibilities have also been smooth. Arrowleaf Consulting Arrowleaf staff no longer have access to records to calculate FTEs worked or other data held by the University of Idaho, so the numbers provided are estimates for the staff previously employed by the University of Idaho (Saul, Newman, Cruz). Arrowleaf staff no longer directly receive emails from AFRI. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?University of Idaho Alex Maas - trained one MS student through her thesis (Objective 4). University of Idaho Extension Shaina Nomee - The development of the Food Summit's youth track have resulted in ongoing networking with Tribal leaders, organizations, and young people to explore further opportunities for youth to engage in food sovereignty through various programs. This opens up doors for more young people who are interested in agriculture, stewardship, and environmentalism to pursue such opportunities. Danielle Scott - attended the Alaska Food Policy Council's Alaska Food and Farm Festival conference held November 10-12, 2023, including supporting co-PIs Saul and Newman (Arrowleaf Consulting) in two in-depth key informant interviews. Coeur d'Alene Tribe Aiyana James (Climate Resilience Coordinator, Environmental Programs Office, Coeur d'Alene Tribe) joined the project as a collaborator in August 2023. She had the opportunity to work with the sociological research team to help organize, present at, and help facilitate the Tribal community focus groups held November 6th, 2023. These planning and facilitation roles were new to her and represented a useful professional development opportunity relevant to her career (Objectives 1 and 3). Arrowleaf Consulting The advisory board meetings, meetings with Tribal Enterprises and other Tribal Programs staff, literature reviews, focus groups, key informant interviews, and feasibility study components we have completed have deepened our understanding of NW tribal food security, regional food sovereignty initiatives, and food-based economic development opportunities. We also provided mentorship for co-PI Maas's graduate student by giving her the opportunity and needed feedback to develop and integrate useful materials, including crop maps created in ArcGIS, into the feasibility study reports for each Tribe. The sessions and key informant interviews we completed at the Alaska Food and Farm Festival conference held November 10-12, 2023, also afforded us professional development. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?University of Idaho Steven Peterson No final results to disseminate yet. Alex Maas We have not started disseminating results yet. Before presenting results publicly, we plan to discuss their implications with our tribal advisory board members (Objective 4). University of Idaho Extension Shaina Nomee Results have not yet been disseminated. Danielle Scott Results have not yet been disseminated. Coeur d'Alene Tribe Laumatia and James, co-PIs representing the Coeur d'Alene Tribe, co-presented with co-PIs Newman and Saul (Arrowleaf Consulting) the preliminary results of this project to-date at the Coeur d'Alene Tribal community member focus groups on November 6, 2023, which had 30 community members in attendance. The presentation before the focus group discussions started helped orient participants to the development scenarios under consideration as well as preliminary results from case studies and interviews from key informants representing other Tribes (Objectives 1-4). Nez Perce Tribe McCormack co-presented with co-PIs Newman and Saul (Arrowleaf Consulting) the preliminary results of this project to-date at the Nez Perce Tribal community member focus groups on October 23rd and 30th, which had 30 community members in attendance. The presentation before the focus group discussions started helped orient participants to the development scenarios under consideration as well as preliminary results from case studies and interviews from key informants representing other Tribes (Objectives 1-4). Arrowleaf Consulting We co-presented preliminary findings to date at the beginning of all six focus groups with Tribal community members. Arrowleaf Consulting staff have had multiple meetings with Nez Perce Tribe Enterprises and representatives of several Coeur d'Alene Tribe departments, including food security programs, to discuss interests, needs and opportunities for milling, livestock, poultry, and other enterprises, including disseminating information from our feasibility studies to date and about grant opportunities to fund the projects the Tribal Enterprises and other teams are interested in implementing. We shared preliminary feasibility study findings related to milling enterprises with a commercial mill company that Nez Perce Tribe Enterprises is currently considering partnering with to build a mill on one of several potential sites on the Nez Perce Reservation (at the request of Nez Perce Tribe Enterprises). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?University of Idaho Steven Peterson - Will complete the economic impact and investment assessments of milling, meat processing, and other identified scenarios, including incorporating results into the reports for each tribe and preparing a peer-reviewed publication in collaboration with co-PIs. Alex Maas - Will oversee Kati Burton's (MS Student) thesis being turned into a manuscript for peer-reviewed publication. Additionally, we will present these results to the advisory board, and if appropriate, put together a one-page fact sheet summarizing our results that can be disseminated to other tribes interested in food production (Objective 4). We will also incorporate the results of Burton's thesis into the feasibility study reports for each tribe. University of Idaho Extension Shaina Nomee - Will co-facilitate/coordinate the youth track of the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (Objectives 5-6). After the Summit, Shaina will resign from her position from UI Extension and will not continue in this project. She is in the process of transitioning her remaining responsibilities on the project to Scott and other co-PIs as applicable. Results of this reporting period will be disseminated via newsletters, online, and in group settings with Tribal leaders and members. Danielle Scott - Will co-facilitate/coordinate the youth track of the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit with Nomee (Objectives 5-6). She will participate in key informant interviews and tours of farm and food-related operations at other tribes in September 2024 (Objectives 1-4). Results of this reporting period will be disseminated via newsletters, online, and in group settings with Tribal leaders and members. Participant feedback from the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit Youth Track will be analyzed and used to plan future summits and educational activities. Coeur d'Alene Tribe Laumatia and James will complete the following tasks towards accomplishing project goals in the next reporting period: Help coordinate and implement the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (March 6-9, 2024) (Objective 6). Help implement the Coeur d'Alene Tribe member survey (May 2024) (Objectives 1 and 3). Participate in case study tours and key informant interviews (September 2024) (Objectives 1-4). Present at a conference (Objectives 1-4). Continue ensuring project outcomes and deliverables align with the Coeur d'Alene Tribe's food sovereignty assessment and climate goals (Objectives 1-6). Nez Perce Tribe McCormack will complete the following tasks towards accomplishing project goals in the next reporting period: Help coordinate and implement the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (March 6-9, 2024) (Objective 6). Help develop and implement the Nez Perce Tribe member survey (May 2024) (Objectives 1 and 3). Participate in case study tours and key informant interviews (September 2024) (Objectives 1-4). Continue ensuring project outcomes and deliverables align with the Nez Perce Tribe's food sovereignty and economic development goals (Objectives 1-6). Arrowleaf Consulting Staff at Arrowleaf Consulting will coordinate and facilitate team and advisory board meetings; plan and implement a final trip visiting successful tribal food enterprises and to interview key informants; collect, analyze, and write up tribal community member survey data; complete key informant interviews; finalize scenarios essential to the feasibility work aspects of the project; complete the feasibility study reports for both tribes; and generally make sure all aspects of the project are enabled and proceeding according to the current workplan (Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4). We will also support the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit by analyzing and writing a summary report of the adult and youth track evaluation surveys (Objectives 5 and 6).
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
University of Idaho Steven Peterson attended meetings with advisory board and representatives from both Tribes to gather information and data needed for the economic impact and investment analysis components of the feasibility studies/other deliverables and started building models (Obj. 1). Alex Maas completed and deployed consumer surveys. Completed analyses to estimate the price premium associated with tribally branded food for three products (bison meat, blueberries, and mushrooms) (Obj. 4). Interviews of managers of high-end retail and service end-markets have begun. The purpose of the interviews is to evaluate potential market for direct sales from tribal communities to restaurants, etc. (Obj. 4). University of Idaho Extension Shaina Nomee Organized and planned the youth track of the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (March 6-9, 2024, which will be in the next reporting period) (Obj. 5 and 6). Provided input into interview, focus group, consumer survey, evaluation survey, and tribal member survey instrument development (Obj. 1-6). Helped organize, plan, and implement three tribal member focus groups, including one youth specific group (Obj. 1-4). Collaborated with Scott to develop and pilot the NW Food Sovereignty Coalition of Portland, Oregon Youth Day. The event was hosted on the Coeur d'Alene Reservation at the Yvanne Abrahamson Longhouse in DeSmet, ID. Youth from ID, WA, and OR participated in the event where they learned how to make gaff hooks for salmon fishing, cooked waffles with traditional and indigenous foods, engaged in fish printing, and toured the Coeur d'Alene Tribe's Aviary. They also interacted with Tribal Elders, networked with other youth, and provided feedback that was used to develop the 2024 NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit, which was designed based on their interests in traditional and medicinal foods/plants, animal harvesting and processing, and tool making (Obj. 5 & 6). Danielle Scott Attended the Alaska Food and Farm Festival conference held Nov. 2023, and helped conduct two key informant interviews there (Obj. 1, 2, 3, & 4). Organized and planned the youth track of the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (March 6-9, 2024, which will be in the next reporting period) (Obj. 5 & 6). Provided input into interview, focus group, consumer survey, evaluation survey, and tribal member survey instrument development (Obj. 1-6). Helped organize, plan, and implement three tribal member focus groups (Obj. 1-4). Collaborated with Nomee to develop and pilot the NW Food Sovereignty Coalition of Portland, OR Youth Day, details of which are above (Obj. 5 & 6). Coeur d'Alene Tribe Laura Laumatia continued representing the Coeur d'Alene Tribe as a co-PI and Aiyana James (Climate Resilience Coordinator, Environmental Programs Office, Coeur d'Alene Tribe) joined the project as a collaborator in August 2023; they completed the following activities: Participated in regular team meetings to help inform advancement of strategies for agricultural and food system-based business development for the Nez Perce and Coeur d'Alene tribes and tribes with similar interests (Obj. 1) and to begin evaluating opportunities for tribes to participate in an intertribal food economy. Provided input into the survey (led by co-PI Maas) evaluating price premiums possible through tribally branded products (Obj. 4). Helped organize meetings with representatives of Coeur d'Alene Tribal Departments, key informants, and other development stakeholders to gather their input into the project and scenarios (Obj. 1 & 3). Helped plan, organize, and facilitate three focus groups of Coeur d'Alene Tribal community members held in Plummer, ID, Nov. 6th (Obj. 1-4). Participated in regular meetings to plan and coordinate the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (held March 6-9, 2024, which will be in the next reporting period), including helping to develop two evaluation questionnaires and coordinate the Coeur d'Alene Tribe's Institutional Review Board review of the questionnaires (Obj. 5-6). Nez Perce Tribe Ann McCormack, representative from the Nez Perce Tribe's Economic Development Planning Office, completed the following activities: Participated in regular team meetings to help inform advancement of strategies for agricultural and food system-based business development for the Nez Perce and Coeur d'Alene tribes and tribes with similar interests (Obj. 1) and to begin evaluating opportunities for tribes to participate in an intertribal food economy. Provided input into the survey (led by co-PI Maas) evaluating price premiums possible through tribally branded products (Obj. 4). Facilitated and participated in meetings with Shelby Leighton, Nez Perce Tribe Enterprises Business Operations Director, and other development stakeholders to gather their input into the project and scenarios (Obj. 1, 3, & 4). Helped plan, organize, and facilitate three focus groups of Nez Perce Tribal community members held in Kamiah, ID, and Lapwai, ID. Participated in regular meetings to plan and coordinate the Northwest Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (held March 6-9, 2024, which will be in the next reporting period) (Obj. 5 & 6). Arrowleaf Consulting Organized and facilitated advisory board and regular co-PI meetings (Obj. 1-6). Facilitated regular meetings with Nez Perce Tribal Enterprises Business Development stakeholders to inform our feasibility studies and to ensure our research is directly useful and relevant to investments in milling, meat processing, and other food-related enterprises the Tribe is currently considering (Obj. 1-4). Facilitated information gathering co-PI Peterson needs for the economic and investment analyses components of the project (Obj. 1 & 4). Continued reviewing literature relevant to developing data collection instruments and framing articles for peer-reviewed publications (Obj. 1-4). In partnership with co-PIs at each tribe, lead planning and implementation of six focus groups in fall 2023 (3 with Nez Perce Tribal community members and 3 with Coeur d'Alene Tribal community members), including developing focus group questions, presentation materials and resource handouts, recruitment materials, tracking and administration, data analysis, and results write up. A total of 60 community members participated in the focus groups (Obj. 1, 2, 3, & 4). Completed eight key informant interviews involving 11 participants--including representatives of the Intertribal Agricultural Council--at the Alaska Food Policy Council's Alaska Food and Farm Festival conference held November 2023 (Obj. 1, 2, 3, & 4). We also analyzed this data and have started integrating it into deliverables. Helped organize and plan the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit (March 2024, which will be in the next reporting period) (Obj. 3, 5, & 6), including participating in regular planning meetings and support tasks. Developed evaluation surveys for the adult and youth tracks of the NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit and set them up in Qualtrics (Obj. 1, 3, 5, & 6). Completed a funding landscape assessment and report (Obj. 2), and integrated it into feasibility studies for each tribe. In partnership with co-PIs at both tribes, developed the survey instrument for a tribal member survey to be implemented in May 2024 (Obj. 1 & 3). Began developing feasibility study reports for both tribes that explore multiple potential enterprises, including milling, meat processing, and small-acreage produce growing and processing (Obj. 1-4). The reports include the focus group results, summary of relevant secondary data, a funding landscape analysis (Obj. 2) and is informed by the key informant interviews. It will also integrate the forthcoming NW Intertribal Food Sovereignty Summit evaluation data and Tribal member survey data.
Publications
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Progress 03/01/22 to 02/28/23
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audience of this project will be tribes, county and city officials, community leaders, scholars in rural economic development, entrepreneurs, small business owners, representatives from agencies, nonprofit organizations, and other key stakeholders. University of Idaho Alex Maas We do not yet have results to present and therefore have not identified the specific target audience besides those mentioned above. University of Idaho Extension .Through tours and advisory board meetings, Nomee and Scott engaged with multiple tribes, community leaders, entrepreneurs, small business owners, representatives of nonprofit organizations, and others. Specific audiences engaged during tours include Salish-Kootenai Extension Green House and Liberty Garden, Mission Mountain Food Enterprise Center, Confederated Salish-Kootenai Tribal Food Sovereignty Center, Confederated Salish-Kootenai Tribal Bison Range, Western Montana Grower's Cooperative, University of Montana Peas Student Farm, Clark Fork Organics Farm, Flathead Lake Cherry Growers, Oxbow Cattle Company, Blue Mountain Food Enterprise Center, Chesed Farms, Rez Chicks, and Umatilla Tribe. Nez Perce Tribe Via Regional Food Summit Planning: All ATNI Tribes (57 total), individuals connected to tribal food sovereignty initiatives in the Northwest. Arrowleaf Consulting Nez Perce Tribal members, enterprises. Yakama Nations Farm staff and stakeholders. The Wave Foundation, who is a collaborative stakeholder in Columbia Basin tribal food security efforts. Changes/Problems:University of Idaho Steven Peterson Peterson transitioned into the project director role at the University of Idaho when Saul, Newman, and Cruz moved from the University of Idaho to Arrowleaf Consulting. As such, Peterson has had to learn and lead the administrative processes at the University, including updating the Institutional Review Board human subjects protections protocols and budget/personnel changes. Coeur d'Alene Tribe Co-PI Peter Mahoney representing the Coeur d'Alene Tribe had a job change and therefore stopped working on this project about halfway through this reporting period. In May 2023, Laura Laumatia, the tribe's Environmental Programs Manager, became the new co-PI to replace Mahoney. Laumatia has worked with most of the project team in previous roles and projects and helped establish the Coeur d'Alene Reservation's One Sky Food Coalition. The Environmental Programs department is also involved in several synergistic activities, including the development of a proposal with University of Idaho and the Nez Perce Tribe for NSF Engines for developing equitable resilient economies that may support seed funding for enterprises developing commodities that align with NIFA AFRI program efforts (this proposal is currently under review with the funder). The Tribe is also still working with the University of Idaho to have the NIFA awarded subcontract issued to them. Nez Perce Tribe This project has been severely hindered by the disruption of the time schedule for completion due to separation of faculty and staff from U of I to join Arrowleaf Consulting. Arrowleaf Consulting There has been a significant delay to the project workplan due to the length of time it to took for the University of Idaho to issue a contract to Arrowleaf Consulting. Darin Saul, original PI, initiated the process on October 1st, 2022, and a subcontract was not completed until mid-June of 2023. Saul and Soren Newman (formerly at UI, now at Arrowleaf Consulting) were leading many aspects of this project. Having them out of contract stalled many activities, which will be restarted over this coming summer 2023. Specifically, expected data collection activities (key informant interviews and focus groups and surveys of tribal members) and the second group trip to visit successful Tribal food enterprises was postponed until Fall of 2023. This has impacted all aspects of the project and will likely lead to a request for a 1-year extension, although it is too early to know for sure. Some parts of the project are still on track, while others are behind schedule. Arrowleaf staff no longer have access to records to calculate FTEs worked or other data held by the University of Idaho, so the numbers provided are estimates for the staff previously employed by the University of Idaho (Saul, Newman, Cruz). What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?All team members completed human subjects training and were added to the UI IRB research protocol. Saul and Newman also completed the Coeur d'Alene IRB process designed and administered by the Coeur d'Alene Tribe. University of Idaho Steven Peterson While most of the project management work for the project continues to be completed by the Arrowleaf team, Peterson has taken over the official PD role at UI. This has involved learning new administrative processes and systems, budgeting, and other project management and project administration skills. Alex Maas Maas trained a graduate student in choice modeling, who also completed a year of graduate course work in Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology at the University of Idaho. With direction from Maas, the graduate student conducted a literature review, documented currently available tribal/native food products (e.g., Tocabe Indigenous Marketplace, Sweetgrass Trading Company), and identified high-end restaurants and food service industries most likely to pay premium prices for tribally produced food products and collected descriptive statistics about reservations in the Northwest US (arable land, population, water supply, etc.) (Objectives 3 and 4). ?Arrowleaf Consulting The advisory board meetings, field tours, and literature reviews we have conducted have deepened our understanding of NW tribal food security, regional food sovereignty initiatives, and food-based economic development opportunities. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Arrowleaf Consulting During the tours through western Montana and southeast Washington/northeast Oregon, Saul, Newman, McCormack, Scott, and Nomee exchanged information about our project and objectives while learning more about what other initiatives are doing and learning. Arrowleaf Consulting staff have met with Yakama Nation Farms multiple times to discuss opportunities and constraints, met with Nez Perce Tribe Enterprises to discuss current livestock, poultry, and seafood processing capabilities, including disseminating information about grant opportunities to fund the projects the Tribal Enterprises team is interested in implementing. The results of the tours have begun to be disseminated as they inform the food sum planning discussions and consultant recruitment. Arrowleaf Consulting staff have also conducted several presentations and meetings to discuss the project with groups such as The Wave Foundation, Salmon-Safe, and others who have access to high-margin niche markets with strong potential for tribal food enterprises (Objectives 4 and 6). What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? University of Idaho Steven Peterson We will construct our economic CGE and/or Input-Output models for the purpose of conducting an economic impact assessment of the various tribal food system alternatives. We will also collect data for the financial feasibility analyses for each scenario. We will be conducting the majority of our analyses this coming project year (summer) and integrating our findings into the overall project results and conclusions (Objectives 1, 2, 4). Alex Maas Maas and his student will finalize and deploy survey related to tribal food labels and value-added products; Interview managers for several high-end retail and service end-markets; Write up results into a manuscript; andpresent results to tribal members. University of Idaho Extension Shaina Nomee Educational activities led by Nomee will launch in year 2. Danielle Scott Educational activities led by Scott will launch in year 2. Coeur d'Alene Tribe Laura Laumatia (co-PI) from Environment Programs at the Coeur d'Alene Tribe will attend required meetings, and plan to travel to at least one state outside of Idaho to learn from successful tribal and nontribal food enterprises as well as assist in data collection (surveys, focus groups of Coeur d'Alene tribal members). Laumatia will help ensure project outcomes and deliverables align with the Coeur d'Alene Tribe's food sovereignty assessment and climate goals (Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4, 6). Nez Perce Tribe Ann McCormack (co-PI), Economic Development and Planning staff at the Nez Perce Tribe, will continue to work with the 2024 Food Summit planning committee to prepare for the event. McCormack will continue to attend required meetings, and plan to travel to at least one state outside of Idaho to learn from successful tribal and nontribal food enterprises, bringing back recommendations to Nez Perce tribal leadership (Objectives 1 and 4). McCormack will help plan data collection from Nez Perce tribal members, including a survey and focus groups. A "Save the Date" for the 2024 Regional Food Summit will be released by Tahoma Peak Solutions through all available media platforms after a June 29th, 2023, planning committee meeting (Objective 6). Arrowleaf Consulting Staff at Arrowleaf Consulting will facilitate team and advisory board meetings, plan and implement a second round of trips visiting successful tribal food enterprises, begin full-scale data collection (surveys and focus groups of tribal members at both participating tribes and key informant interviews), refine scenarios essential to the feasibility work aspects of the project, and generally make sure all aspects of the project are enabled and proceeding according to the workplan, albeit delayed due to the unexpectedly slow contracting process (Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4).
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
University of Idaho Steven Peterson Peterson participated in team and advisory committee meetings to discuss challenges and opportunities for tribal and intertribal food economic development and to help plan field tours and to learn the outcomes, which will help inform the economic analyses he will lead starting in the next reporting period. Alex Maas This reporting period was spent training a graduate student in choice modeling. As part of this preparation, we conducted a literature review as well as documented currently available tribal/native food products (e.g., Tocabe Indigenous Marketplace, Sweetgrass Trading Company). We identified high-end restaurants and food service industries most likely to pay premium prices for tribally produced food products and collected descriptive statistics about reservations in the Northwest US (arable land, population, water supply, etc.) (Objectives 3 and 4). University of Idaho Extension Shaina Nomee Nomee helped plan and participated in two field tours (one in western Montana and another in southeast Washington and northeast Oregon) of other tribes' and non-tribal food/agricultural programs and projects, which included networking, semi-structured interviews, and case studies to help advance research objectives 1-4 and the development of the intertribal food summit (Objective 6). Nomee and Scott used the travel time during the tours to begin planning the youth educational experiences extension programming (Objective 5). Nomee also helped recruit project advisory board members and participated in advisory board and team meetings and is participating in planning meetings for the 2024 Regional Food Summit. Danielle Scott Scott also helped plan and participated in two field tours (one in western Montana and another in southeast Washington and northeast Oregon) of other tribes' and non-tribal food/agricultural programs and projects, which included networking, semi-structured interviews, and case studies to help advance research objectives 1-4 and the development of the intertribal food summit (Objective 6). Nomee and Scott used the travel time during the tours to begin planning the youth educational experiences extension programming (Objective 5). Scott also helped recruit project advisory board members and participated in advisory board and team meetings and is participating in planning meetings for the 2024 Regional Food Summit. Coeur d'Alene Tribe Laura Laumatia, the current Coeur d'Alene Tribe representative, recently joined the project team in May 2023 to replace Peter Mahoney as a co-PI. She has been involved in the planning process for the 2024 Regional Food Summit (Objective 6) and has participated in a food sovereignty presentation at the Affiliated Tribe of Northwest Indians' mid-year conference in May 2023 (Objectives 1, 3, 6). Nez Perce Tribe Ann McCormack, the project representative from the Nez Perce Tribe's Economic Development Planning Office, attended all required team meetings, providing guidance as the project began to take shape. McCormack traveled with Arrowleaf staff (Saul and Newman) and UI Extension educators for the Nez Perce Tribe and Coeur d'Alene Tribe reservations (Nomee and Scott) on a tour of successful Northwest tribal food enterprises as well as nontribal food enterprises producing products of interest to the tribes involved in this project (Objectives 1 and 3). The tribe hosted the sixth Nez Perce Tribe Food Summit, a one-day event that drew 120 attendees (Objectives 1, 2, 3). In coordination with the University of Idaho Extension and CALS Office of Grant and Project Development, the Nez Perce Tribe hired Nora Frank-Buckner, Planning Director & Lead Consultant at Tahoma Peak Solutions, to help plan and coordinate a regional food summit in February 2024. The planning group for this event held two planning meetings during this reporting period. We expanded the planning committee to include AIANTA, Kellie Hepler, Agritourism Specialist, and applied for an internal education grant that will cover travel costs for elders wishing to travel to the 2024 summit. The Economic Development Planner for the Nez Perce Tribe (co-PI McCormack) successfully requested and was granted by resolution from tribal leadership, the deposit for the 2024 food summit venue (The Coeur d'Alene Resort) (Objective 6). Arrowleaf Consulting Arrowleaf Consulting staff (Saul, Newman, Cruz) (who were employed at the University of Idaho for the first several months of this project) organized a data collection/reconnaissance trip involving several project members (Saul, Newman, McCormack, Nomee, and Scott) to visit successful tribal food enterprises as well as nontribal enterprises who could serve as models for development of future tribal food enterprises in October 2023 (Objectives 1, 2, 3, 4). Staff also conducted a basic literature review, participated in meetings discussing the intertribal economy, met with Yakama Nation Farms multiple times to discuss opportunities and constraints, met with Nez Perce Tribe Enterprises to discuss current livestock, poultry, and seafood processing capabilities, and identified opportunities to conduct surveys (Objective 3). Staff participated in discussions involving the planning of the upcoming food summit, organized and facilitated team and advisory group meetings, and conducted several presentations and meetings to discuss the project with groups such as The Wave Foundation, Salmon-Safe, and others who have access to high-margin niche markets with strong potential for tribal food enterprises (Objectives 4 and 6).
Publications
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