WAPAS NAH NéE SHAKU: COMMUNITY GARDEN

Wapas Nah Née Shaku

NAYA’s Community Garden is part of a vision to reclaim our land, and to create a space where Indigenous Food Sovereignty is practiced and honored. We believe in the power of cultivating our own food to feed our community and fostering a sense of tradition through sustainable gardening practices. Located at Neerchokikoo, an ancient Native encampment and gathering site near the confluence of the Columbia and Willamette River, NAYA is creating a welcoming space for our community to gather and connect with the land and their culture.

‍

Indigenous first foods

We grow a variety of greens, herbs, vegetables and tubers in the vegetable garden. Two plants that we are stewarding are the Makah Ozette potato and Inchelium Red garlic. Inchelium Red is the oldest known variety of garlic strain in North America. It has come from the Colville Confederated Tribes Reservation and is now a food being revitalized by the Colville people. Inchelium Red garlic is planted in the fall and harvested in late June.  

The Makah Ozette potato was grown by the Makah Tribe prior to colonization. It was left on the coast near Ozette by Spanish colonizers that brought it to the Pacific Northwest (PNW) from the Andes and left it in a garden when they abandoned their fort. This potato has no genetic relationship to European potato varieties and so is very much a Native American potato. We’re excited to be stewarding these foods that have a history in the PNW and making them available to people today.  

‍

First Foods

A large area of our garden is dedicated to First Foods. We’ll have the three sisters (corn, beans, squash), sunflowers, amaranth, sunchokes, as well as experimenting growing Wasco/Ichiskin roots: bitterroot, biscuit root, and wild carrot. Camas root is growing in our hedgerow alongside our other native plants. Camas is probably one of the more widely known roots in the PNW. Camas grows all over the PNW and is valued for its versatility and the number of ways it can be cooked and stored. Its bulbs resemble those of an onion, and have a sweet taste when cooked. All of the aforementioned roots are included in the order of first foods for many Northwest tribes. The roots are honored at the annual root feasts held at longhouses across the region in springtime. The feasts are an honoring of the first foods and also mark the beginning of the gathering season.

‍

Portland Clean Energy Fund Grant

As a part of Portland City Council’s approval of clean energy grants, NAYA received a $3.69 million, 5-year grant from the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund for renewable agriculture and green infrastructure.  Funds will be used to convert 4.2 acres of former baseball fields, located in the back of our main campus in Northeast Portland, into a farm, traditional medicine garden, community gathering space, and playscape.  

The PCEF grant will help us develop a Native Food Sovereignty project centered on traditional agricultural practices that honor the agricultural practices of our ancestors on Turtle Island. For generations, these practices have nourished our people and nurtured the land we call home.  

We recognize that the climate crisis and the dispossession of Indigenous lands are deeply rooted in the legacy of colonialism. Our mission is to directly address these interconnected issues by focusing on Indigenous land sovereignty and reviving ecological stewardship practices. In doing so, we pay homage to the wisdom of our past and lay the groundwork for a resilient and sustainable future.

‍

Volunteer Opportunities

NAYA’s Community Garden thrives with the support of volunteers and volunteer groups. Over the past few years, the garden’s footprint has grown with the help of hundreds of volunteers who chose to create a new UnThanksgiving tradition and nurture our land. Throughout the season, volunteer days are held on Mondays and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. to till, prepare our beds, plant, mulch, cultivate, weed, harvest, and then prepare for the winter months. The cycle continues year to year.

‍

Northwest Indigenous Food Sovereignty Alliance

NAYA is proud to be a member of the Northwest Indigenous Food Sovereignty Alliance (NIFSA). The alliance is made up of numerous community partners working toward true food sovereignty in the Portland Area.

Collectively, each partner is committed reclaiming Indigenous people’s’ ability to access and manage traditional food sources.

NAYA’s community garden contributes to the food sovereignty movement in several ways including:

• Providing space for the food and medicine garden
• Sustainable harvesting
• Ecosystem restoration
• Food and medicine distribution to elders and others
• Networking and resource sharing
• Opportunities to connect with land