3rd Tribal Environmental Health Summit

Oregon State University, Corvallis OR

Investigators

Abstract

According to the Tribal Association for Solid Waste and Emergency Response, there are over 15,000 hazardous wastes sites on, or next to tribal lands, that present potential risks to tribal lifestyles. In tribal communities, environmental contamination disrupts the practice of many important cultural activities and increases Tribal exposures that adversely impact health. The biannual Tribal Environmental Health Summit (TEHS) recognizes that access to health information, including information on how to avoid hazardous chemicals, contributes to environmental injustice and susceptibility to environmentally-mediated disease. The 3rd TEHS will bring together Native Alaskan/American Indians scientists and collaborators who address environmental health issues which are disproportionally experienced by indigenous communities in North America. This biannual conference builds on the successes of the 2016 Summit held on the campus of Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, Arizona at their Native American Cultural Center, and the 2014 Summit which was held at Salish Kootenai College, a tribal college on the Flathead Reservation in Western Montana. The overarching goal of the 3rd TEHS is to highlight environmental health research in Tribal communities. It will accomplish this goal by: Aim 1) bring together various stakeholders in the realm of Tribal science, including researchers, governmental agencies and regulators, Tribal scientists and lawyers, Tribal educators, and students/trainees so that all parties understand each other?s goals and realities; Aim 2) Provide Alaskan Native/American Indian students at the high school, undergraduate, graduate, and postgraduate level with the opportunity to engage with researchers working on Tribal environmental health issues.; and Aim 3) Share information on how to develop and maintain long-term partnerships with Tribes and discuss solutions to environmental health issues experienced by Tribal communities. Finally, the conference organizers will develop a symposium paper of best practices and continuing needs based on the information presented at the Summit.