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Uniting Western Restoration Strategies and Traditional Knowledge to Build Community Capacity and Climate Resilience on the Navajo Nation

Wildflowers growing on hills in great basin national park

Sunflower flats, Great Basin National park, NV. Credit: Shanell Owen (FWS)

Project Summary

Principal Investigator(s):

  • Elise Gornish (University of Arizona)

Co-Investigator(s):

  • Jesse Mike (Navajo Nation)
  • Nora Talkington (Navajo Nation)
  • Molly McCormick (USGS Southwest Biological Science Center)
  • Kelsey Jensen (Navajo Nation)
  • Karletta Chief (University of Arizona)

Fiscal Year: 2022

Start Date: 11/01/2022

End Date: 10/31/2025

Project Overview 

Summary:  

Across the Navajo Nation, the negative effects of climate change are impacting soil and vegetation management practices to the detriment of ecosystem function, human health, cultural resiliency, and economic well-being. Conducting ecosystem restoration and shifting land management practices are critical elements of climate adaptation and dust mitigation strategies for the Navajo Nation. However, barriers to restoration exist. Restoration in drylands is incredibly difficult and nuanced, requiring the use of appropriate technologies, integration of multiple types of knowledge, appropriate high-quality locally-adapted native plant materials, and environmental professionals skilled in the techniques of dryland restoration in an increasingly drier and unpredictable world. Despite preliminary steps made by Navajo leaders and agencies to address some of the most pressing environmental concerns, there remains considerable need for ecological restoration. Tribal environmental professionals have identified a need for additional training to integrate information and build experience, a desire to build botanical expertise and learning/teaching gardens, and additional training materials to improve success of revegetation projects.

This project addresses the need for improving revegetation techniques across the Navajo Nation and increasing capacity of environmental professionals in ecosystem restoration. The researchers propose to explore links between plant species, financially feasible high desert restoration technologies, and climate resiliency in an experiment deployed in an area of the Navajo Nation most deeply impacted by climate change: degraded drylands. The research team will identify Navajo native plants that contribute to successful restoration of drought-degraded areas, identify easily measurable plant traits that confer drought resilience to guide restoration species choice, and identify inexpensive management practices that enhance effects of traditional restoration strategies. Project products will include recommendations describing best restoration practices to enhance climate resiliency within and external to the Navajo Nation, as well as field days, workshops, garden plantings, and seedball making demonstrations.

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