Kwiyagat Community Academy

On October 13, 2022, second graders from Kwiyagat Community Academy (KCA) in Towaoc, Colorado, participated in a planting event in the Mancos Canyon on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation. Over the last few years, the Tribe has been restoring the Mancos Canyon by removing invasive tamarisk and revegetating with native plants. Many of the native plants that occupy the riparian corridors invaded by tamarisk are culturally important to the Ute People. As tamarisk out-competes the native plants, species used for food, materials, and tradition are becoming harder to find. This fall, the Tribe’s Environmental Programs staff worked alongside KCA students to plant cottonwood, important for Sundance and summer shade structures, and three leaf sumac, which is used to flavor beverages and in basket weaving. The students learn hand-in-hand the values of stewardship and the importance of plants in Nùìchù culture.