“Being environmental ambassador is taking up a platform to represent your tribe in the issues you are facing. More Native youth are needed to engage in discussions with others, that may or may not have the same problems as your community, to learn from each other and brainstorm solutions. As an environmental ambassador is that it is your job to discuss and teach other people within your tribe about the environment and what effects it is having on where you live. Native youth voices can have an impact on our environment.” – Mahala Rain Billie-Osceola, Seminole Tribe of Florida
Small ways to make a Big Impact:
The ways I’m planning on addressing environmental concerns within my tribe is by planning youth group meetings to discuss our concerns and how we should deal with them. Talking Circles can help bring youth together to address many issues as well. For now, I’m starting small by doing weekly clean ups on my reservation every weekend. Every little bit matters. I am soon hoping that this idea will spread to the other reservations of my tribe. My hope is to see it grow to more recycling on my reservation too. I will start out small and on my reservation at first and after a few good clean ups, I will try my best to spread this idea to the other reservations.