The San Juan Islands Conservation District (SJICD) is honored to collaborate with the Northwest Indian College in the formation and development of the Coast Salish Guardians Program on the Lummi Reservation. The Guardian Network in Canada now currently supports more than 200 tribal programs across Canada, supporting indigenous youth returning to their ancestral homeland and serving as the eyes, ears, and hands of the land. The Coast Salish Guardians program is part of a growing body of tribes establishing Guardian programs in the United States, programs seeking to provide education and employment pathways for indigenous youth in conservation. In addition to receiving grant funds to support program development, the SJICD conservation corps program – the Islands Conservation Corps – has received funding to conduct collaborative training opportunities in forest restoration, prescribed fire, and cultural resource assessments with Guardian members. This provides cross-cultural opportunities for knowledge sharing, and to support non-indigenous natural resource professionals in learning how to understand the role of indigenous stewardship in the landscape and advocate for Tribal rights for managing ancestral homelands.
In an arid landscape dominated by dryland grain production and rangeland, this pilot focuses on reducing soil loss, improving water availability, and supporting habitat health. By tracking conservation practices and applying watershed tools, the work helps partners better understand how voluntary conservation supports resilient working lands under changing conditions.
In a working lands landscape shaped by dryland farming, grazing, and irrigated agriculture, this pilot focuses on reducing erosion, keeping soil on the land, and improving stream and habitat conditions. By tracking conservation practices and applying watershed tools, the work helps partners better understand how voluntary conservation supports resilient farms and healthy watersheds.
Within a productive agricultural landscape shaped by dairy and crop production, this pilot focuses on improving water quality, managing nutrients, and reducing flood risks. Monitoring and conservation tracking help partners understand how voluntary conservation supports both farm viability and long-term watershed health.
