Northwest Treaty Tribes

08/21/2026

The Makah Tribe's treaty right to harvest gray whales depends on the survival of the species itself.

Thirty gray whales have been found dead in Washington this year. For the Makah, the health of the species is linked with culture, conservation and treaty rights.

08/19/2026

Restoring the Flow: Seizing opportunity at dead-end culverts.

Fixing culverts that block fish passage is a clear win for salmon recovery and benefits orcas and our communities too.

Reopening dead ends beneath our roadways is worth the price.

08/18/2026

The history behind the treaties between Indian tribes in western Washington and the U.S. is layered and nuanced.

"They aren’t just for Indian people. The treaties bind all people, Native and non-Native, together around these ideas of relationality, of how to interact with each other.”

The Treaty of Point Elliott bears the signatures of over 80 Indigenous leaders representing more than 20 tribal nations from the Pacific Northwest. Contemporary leaders from some of those nations explain what their treaty means today.

08/17/2026

A new tourism guide highlights tribal reservations and cultural landmarks of tribes in Washington state.

More than 10,000 copies of the Tribal Cultural Roadmap have been sent to museums, libraries, schools and other organizations across the state.

08/14/2026

08/07/2026

The tribe undertook a 10-year effort to upgrade a local wastewater treatment plant, in part to help ensure shellfish are safe to harvest into the future.

“Clean water is essential to public health in our environment and in our way of life,” said Terrence Adams, vice chairman of the Lummi Indian Business Council.

A project to upgrade the Gooseberry Point Wastewater Treatment Plant is among five projects to be nationally recognized as “exceptional.”

08/06/2026

"Ceremonies change lives. Ceremonies and the practices of our culture save lives."

Young people were among those carrying tradition forward as part of this year's tribal canoe journey, which was hosted by Nisqually Indian Tribe .

Tribal families from around the Northwest paddled to Nisqually for this year's canoe journey. “It teaches a lot of our youth that we still have culture,” said youth skipper Aliya Choke.

08/05/2026

Bad news for tribal harvests and the local shellfish economy: All of Hood Canal is shut down to shellfish harvest due to a potentially fatal biotoxin.

Scientists sounded the alarm in June that a potentially deadly biotoxin was detected in shellfish. Tests have found levels way over the state health limit.

08/04/2026

The canoes have come ashore in the traditional lands of the Nisqually Indian Tribe and the Medicine Creek Potlatch Journey continues. You can watch participating tribes' songs and dances during protocol here.

Join us as we celebrate and share culture with Canoe Families and other indigenous peoples from across the world.

08/03/2026

Nisqually Indian Tribe welcomed more than 100 canoe families Friday at Sequalitchew Creek Beach. The annual journey typically draws canoes paddled by and representing Indigenous people from he Pacific Northwest and beyond.