LLHS students assist, learn from indigenous youth in Alaska through unique project

Indigenous students at Los Lunas High School had an unforgettable experience in Alaska learning from different tribes while delivering fresh produce through a unique project developed by the students.

“Our group is Tribal Exchange for Food Sovereignty, also known as TEFS, and what we basically do is we grow food and we send it out to different tribes,” said Bau Howard.

TEFS was formed last summer under the guidance of Tish Howard, the high school Native American liaison with Los Lunas Schools. The idea was inspired by a June 2023 trip to the Native Youth Climate Adaptation Leadership Congress (NYCALC) in West Virginia, which some of the students in TEFS attended.

According to their website, NYCALC is a “youth-driven conservation leadership training for Native high school and college-aged youth.” Along with valuable training, youth also get to meet people from tribes all across the country and learn more about each other.

When talking to youth from Alaskan tribes, the students found out they do not have a lot of access to fresh produce, mainly due to the climate. TEFS member Isacc Martin said this is what inspired the idea to grow fruits and vegetables and ship it out to them so they could enjoy a variety of fresh produce.

“NYCALC provides grants for participants so they can work on something in the community,” said Tish. “The students were concerned about their Alaska friends and that’s when the discussion came about, so I applied for a grant.”

Having secured the grant, the students were ready to bring their vision to life and they utilized the funds to buy seeds, farming equipment and to cover the produce shipment expenses. The students then spent the summer tending to their crops.

“We divided into different groups and we chose which vegetables and fruits that we wanted to grow,” said Juan Jojola. “Some of us had a greenhouse, and some of us had fields to grow.”

Tish said this served as an engaging learning experience for the students as they got to learn about traditional growing techniques and traditional customs surrounding agriculture.

“Some of them have access to fields to irrigate, and they have individuals in their family who have been doing it for a long time and have taught them,” said Tish. “Then we have others who are new learners, but they have goals and this opened up something for them.”

By the end of the growing season, the fruits of their labor were revealed, represented by almost 100 pounds of harvested produce ranging from melons, corn, tomatoes, squash and more.

The produce was shipped out in batches as it became available, and after months of fundraising the group flew out to Alaska to learn from and connect with the people who were receiving the produce, mainly students and staff at Effie Kokrine Charter School, where the TEFS students stayed during the duration of their trip.

“Effie Kokrine is a Native charter school. They have a population of 100 students there, and they come from all the different tribes in Alaska,” said Tish.

“Everyone there was kind — the teachers, the students, they’re just really open hearted,” said Juan.

While there, the students enjoyed being immersed in indigenous Alaskan culture, and experiencing one another’s traditional cuisine was especially a fun highlight. The students agree that the chile tasting was a particularly memorable experience.

“We roasted them on the grill and they were really interested in how we were doing it,” said Juan. “They enjoyed it but, for some, it was too hot. We gave them a warning because they never had this type of food before, and they started running around and had to get milk a lot.”

The TEFS students also had their fair share of new culinary experiences in trying several exotic foods, such as whale, seal, moose stew and reindeer sausage.

“I think it’s a good way to experience other tribes and how they live in different environments,” said Isabella Jojola.

During their week in Alaska, the TEFS group were also able to visit cultural museums, explore Denali National Park and even visit the North Pole.

“I think it was a good opportunity for us to learn more outside of our community because I know most of us we’re not really out that often; we just stay in our state,” said Jordyn Yazzi.

Upon their return, the students presented their project at the Intertribal Agriculture Council Southwest Regional Summit and were surprised to see people take such an interest in it.

“They didn’t realize how big of a deal this project was,” Tish said. “A lot of local ranchers and farmers were there talking about different topics, and these guys were the only youth that were there and our tribal communities were just so intrigued and fascinated.”

Eager to keep the momentum going, the students are planning to grow and distribute pumpkins next year and focus more on local tribal youth. They are also excited to reverse roles and welcome some of their Alaskan friends to New Mexico next year to show them how they harvest and take them on tours of their pueblos.

“I have a really great group of students,” said Tish. “They really have taken the initiative to make this project what it is, and I appreciate that these kids have taken that leadership (role), because that’s the main goal of this project.”