Zuni Youth Enrichment Project: Reconnecting to Land, Culture and Self
Zuni Youth Enrichment Project – Pueblo of Zuni
Read their story by The Semilla Project: semillaproject.org/zuni-youth-enrichment-project/
For the Zuni Youth Enrichment Project (ZYEP), connecting young people to the outdoors means more than getting outside. It’s about strengthening cultural identity, supporting community wellness and creating opportunities for Zuni youth to shape the future of their community.
Based in Zuni Pueblo, ZYEP provides youth programs that connect young people with their culture, community and the land. Support from the New Mexico Outdoor Recreation Division’s Outdoor Equity Fund and Trails+ Grant programs has helped ZYEP expand those opportunities, from outdoor excursions to hands-on trail planning and stewardship.
Connecting youth to ancestral landscapes
Through its Connect to Land programming, ZYEP gives young people opportunities to experience culturally significant landscapes and learn about their connection to the land. Outdoor Equity Fund support has helped provide transportation, equipment and cultural education for these experiences.
Since becoming an OEF grantee, ZYEP has taken more than 700 youth on outdoor excursions, including trips to Chaco Canyon, the Gila Wilderness and the Grand Canyon.
These experiences give youth opportunities to develop outdoor skills and deepen their understanding of their cultural history while building relationships with mentors and cultural educators.
“Our kids are realizing that they belong in these outdoor spaces, not just as visitors, but as future leaders, conservationists and land stewards,” said ZYEP Executive Director Natachu-Eriacho
Preserving ancestral routes and building the future
ZYEP’s work extends beyond getting youth onto trails. Through their 2023 Trails+ Grant, the organization is engaging Zuni youth in planning and stewarding the community’s trail system through a built-environment apprenticeship.
The project engaged eight Zuni youth ages 15–24 in two apprenticeships, giving participants hands-on experience in trail planning and stewardship while exposing them to education and career opportunities in outdoor recreation and related fields.
The project builds on Zuni’s deep relationship with the land and the community’s vision to preserve ancestral walking routes, connecting today’s residents with the same paths their ancestors traveled for generations.
For ZYEP Executive Director Tahlia Natachu-Eriacho, that connection is central to the project’s impact. “The ability to connect our current population to the same paths our ancestors walked for thousands of years is a powerful tool to uplift our cultural identity and values around wellness.”
The Trails+ Grant is also helping ZYEP develop solutions that reflect the community’s own priorities rather than adapting an urban model to a rural and culturally distinct setting.
Creating opportunities to lead
Together, ZYEP’s nine OEF and Trails+ Grant projects create a continuum of opportunity: young people can experience the outdoors, learn about their cultural relationship with the land, develop outdoor skills and explore careers that allow them to help shape and steward their community.
For ZYEP, the goal is ultimately bigger than a single program or trail. It’s about giving Zuni youth the tools and opportunities to help build a healthier future for their community, on the same land their ancestors have walked for thousands of years.
“The Trails+ Grant and the amazing ORD team has provided us the guidance and support to pursue our own endeavors and solutions from a culturally centered approach. We appreciate that our vision of success and progress was respected,” said Natachu-Eriacho.
