OUR MISSION

As a non-profit organization, the Society's mission is to assist Native American and Alaska Native Tribes with the conservation, protection, and enhancement of their fish and wildlife resources.
As a 501(c)(3) public charitable non-profit Colorado corporation, all contributions are tax-deductible in accordance with IRS regulations.

OUR PURPOSE

The Society's purposes are charitable, educational, scientific and cultural, as well as the following:

To assist in the facilitation and coordination of inter-tribal communication in regards to fish and wildlife matters, including issues with treaty rights, court cases related to fish and wildlife, and hunting and fishing regulations.

To protect, preserve and conserve the wise use and management of tribal fish, wildlife, and recreation resources.

To educate Native Americans involved in fish and wildlife management, policy decision makers, community members and others similarly dedicated to tribal natural resource management, of the best management practices.

To provide administrative support, expertise and advice to tribal governments, relating to tribal fish, wildlife and recreation resources.

To improve the general welfare of tribal people through educational, charitable, as well as fish and wildlife enhancement activities.

To provide professional publications and promotional activities for disseminating information about Native American fish and wildlife resources to members, organizations, public officials, and the general public.

The Native American Fish & Wildlife Society (NAFWS) is a national tribal organization established informally during the early 1980's. NAFWS was incorporated in 1983 to develop a national communications network for the exchange of information and management techniques related to self-determined tribal fish and wildlife management.

Office

Our National Office is located at:

8333 Greenwood Blvd., Suite 260

Denver, CO 80221

We can be reached at 303.466.1725

Members

The Society has evolved into a dynamic organization that represents professional biologists, natural resource managers, technicians, and conservation law enforcement officers. The Society strives to be responsive to the emerging needs of political and technical decision-makers. In addition, the Society shares educational, legislative, bio-technical, economic, legal, fiscal, and enforcement programs to help form a progressive agenda of tribal management pursuits.

Land Base

Federally-recognized Indian tribes within the lower 48 United States have jurisdiction over a reservation land base of over 52 million acres, or 81,250 square miles. Alaskan Native lands comprise another 45 million acres, while the Canadian Native lands total is beyond our estimation. Some tribes control resources outside of reservations due to federal court decisions and voluntary cooperative agreements which allow a co-management status between tribes and states. These lands are called Ceded and Usual and Accustomed Areas and equal over 38 million acres. In these areas, tribes maintain co-management jurisdiction for fisheries and wildlife management and utilization. Thus, tribal lands coupled with the Ceded and Usual and Accustomed Areas total a natural resource base of over 140,625 square miles, containing more than 730,000 acres of lakes and impoundments, and over 10,000 miles of streams and rivers. This land combined would constitute the fifth largest state in the United States.

To Native Americans this land provides a cultural, religious, and economic subsistence base. This substantial resource base is also being utilized by both Indians and non-Indians for outdoor recreation purposes. These areas constitute an additional wilderness resource for the country. They contain habitat which is critical to the recovery of a number of species that are listed as threatened or endangered, from fish and birds to big game.

Asserting Their Rights

Tribes are now being recognized as prominent fisheries and wildlife managers and anticipate full participation in national fisheries and wildlife initiatives.
Indian tribes are reasserting their treaty rights concerning the management of fish and wildlife resources. The tribes wish to ensure that the environmental quality of their life, and that of the fish and wildlife, is not threatened. As demand for fisheries and wildlife recreational facilities in this country has increased so has the pressure on Indian resources. Today, Indian reservations contribute significantly toward meeting the national demand for fishing and hunting opportunities. Unfortunately, the funding options open to tribes have not kept pace with the expanding cost for management and authority of these fish and wildlife resources.

Preserving Our Precious Resouces

To ensure that these vast resource bases are kept in tact for future generations, the NAFWS aims to support tribal decision-makers in their efforts towards astute natural resource management. Native Americans as a group have always demonstrated environmental sensitivity towards the earth's precious resources and are looked to by many to 'show the way' to replenish the earth's resources. In today's changing world, however, tribes are faced with a complexity of situations demanding a marriage of traditional management practices with the cutting-edge of biological management. This task places enormous strain on those in leadership and management roles. These leaders are charged not only with the maintenance of diminishing resources, but with the responsibility of shaping resource management into a flexible entity sensitive to the needs and concerns of Native Americans. To this end, the Society strives to provide assistance to tribes and tribal leadership, and support them in their self-determined march towards a secure natural resource future.

"This vast territory was composed of some of the finest and best land for the home and use of the Indian ever found in this country. The woods and prairies teemed with buffalo, moose, elk, bear and deer; with other game suitable to our enjoyment, white its lakes, rivers, creeks and ponds were alive with the very best kinds of fish, for our food."

Black Hawk, Sauk (Sac)