A youth council to empower the youth of the Coalition Tribes
The Bears Ears region holds profound cultural, spiritual, and historical significance to the five Tribes of the Coalition as they have been stewarding the lands for time immemorial and still strive to pass on those stewardship responsibilities on to the next generation. In 2025, Leaders of the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition ratified and created the Bears Ears Youth Council (BEYC). The Bears Ears Youth Council was established to empower Tribal youth by creating an inter-generational program that strengthens Tribal governance in Bears Ears National Monument and builds relationships with youth, providing opportunities for youth advocacy, building Tribal capacity to engage in Collaborative Management of the Bears Ears National Monument. The BEYC also fortifies youth with hands-on experience in land stewardship that can be applied in future career and educational endeavors. This program represents an inter-generational approach to so-called public land management that honors Tribal sovereignty and incorporates Traditional Indigenous Knowledge (TIK) to protect the Monument’s cultural belongings and its cultural landscape as a whole. This program hopes to grow and cultivate future land stewards of the five Tribes.
How the Bears Ears Youth Council will enact Tribal Sovereignty
The Bears Ears Youth Council aims to assist the Bears Ears Commission and the Inter-Tribal Coalition in goals to honor, protect, and conserve the Bears Ears landscape through the lens of Traditional Indigenous Knowledge and Tribal governance. The BEYC will accomplish the following:
- Assist in Collaborative Management: The Youth Council will assist the Commission in learning about and cultivating Traditional Environmental Knowledge that applies to the cultural well-being of the Bears Ears cultural landscape.
- Advocacy for Indigenous Rights: The Youth Council will receive opportunities to advocate for Tribal sovereignty by working with Tribal Leaders in the development of a written proposal to the Bears Ears Commission in the collaborative management process and advocating for the protection of sacred places in their respective communities.
- Build Capacity for Tribal Nations: The Youth Council will be mentored by Tribal leadership and Coalition staff on Tribal perspectives on collaborative management and reciprocal relationships between Indigenous Nations and land.
- Strengthen Relationships between Land and People: The Youth Council will have opportunities to reconnect with their ancestral lands through a site visit where they learn about their cultural ties to Bears Ears while gathering skills to advocate on the protection of sacred sites.
Program Timeline:
Application Deadline: May 1, 2025
Notification of Selection: May 16, 2025
Bears Ears Youth Council Virtual Meetings:
- June (TBD): Virtual Meeting 1: Introduction with to the Bears Ears Commission and Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition
- June (TBD): Virtual Meeting 2: Collaborative Management
- July (TBD): Virtual Meeting 3: Site Visit Expectations
Site Visit to the Bears Ears National Monument
- July-October (TBD)
- Lodging, meals and travel expenses to be provided for site visit to and from the monument
- Co-draft proposal to be presented to the Bears Ears Commission
Additional mentorship opportunities provided by at the discretion of the Tribes.
Program Details
Age range: 18-24
Must be from one of the five Tribes of the Coalition
Applications must be submitted by the application deadline of May 1 through the form below or can be submitted via email to HGorman@BearsEarsCoalition.Org.
Apply Here
Bears Ears Youth Council - Application form
This form is an application for the Bears Ears Youth Council. Application Deadline: May 1, 2025. If you have trouble with submitting the form through the website, please contact Harrenson Gorman at (505) 728-1300.