San Carlos Apache youth celebrate a successful hunt for gloscho (desert woodrat), a highly nutritious staple of the traditional Western Apache diet. (Photo: Traditional Western Apache Diet Project)
"Our traditional foods are critical to understanding the fundamental importance of life. They boost your mind, your body, your spirit, and your outlook on life. You become rich in the values we teach as Apache."
– Louie Lorenzo, Jr., Substance Abuse Prevention Coordinator, San Carlos Wellness Center
Seeking to reconnect the Western Apache people to the natural world and the physical, cultural, and spiritual sustenance it provides, the San Carlos Apache Tribe has spent the past three decades exhaustively documenting the diversity, expanse, and nutritutional benefits of the pre-reservation Apache diet. Through its Traditional Western Apache Diet Project and the various informational and educational resources the Project shares across the reservation and beyond, the Tribe is training and guiding tribal members to embrace their traditional foodways as an irreplaceable pathway to individual, family, and community wellness and prosperity.
CONNECT:
Ø Twila Cassadore, Project Assistant, Traditional Western Apache Diet Project, San Carlos Apache Tribe, 928-475-2329, tr_cassadore@yahoo.com
Ø Seth Pilsk, Botanist, Forest Resources Program, San Carlos Apache Tribe, 928-475-2329, sethpilsk@gmail.com
To learn more about the Traditional Western Apache Diet Project, click on the case study and related resources below.
Note: Development of this case study was supported by a grant from the Native American Agriculture Fast Track Fund. Fast Track funding was part of the settlement of the Keepseagle v. Vilsack national class action lawsuit, which also led to the creation of the Native American Agriculture Fund (NAAF), the largest philanthropic entity supporting Native American farmers and ranchers through grants that focus on business assistance, technical support, and agricultural education, and advocacy.
Food Sovereignty: SAN CARLOS APACHE TRIBE