IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/pal/palcom/v12y2025i1d10.1057_s41599-024-04122-x.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

From paternalism to self-determination: examining evolving tribal-federal relationships and co-management arrangements through three case studies

Author

Listed:
  • Clarita Lefthand-Begay

    (University of Washington Information School)

  • Lauren Redmore

    (USDA Forest Service)

  • Christopher Armatas

    (USDA Forest Service)

  • Jesse Brisbois

    (University of Washington Information School)

  • Kunsang Choden

    (University of Washington Information School)

  • Dara Craig

    (University of Oregon)

  • Angelo Baca

    (Rhode Island School of Design)

  • Jaime Martin

    (The Snoqualmie Tribal, Governmental Affairs and Special Projects)

  • Michael Ross

    (The Snoqualmie Tribal, Governmental Affairs and Special Projects)

  • Regina Lopez-Whiteskunk

    (Ute Mountain Ute Council)

  • Alfred Lomahquahu

    (Hopi Tribal Council)

  • Monte Mills

    (University of Washington School of Law, William H. Gates Hall)

Abstract

As governments around the world seek to develop and implement co-management practices with Indigenous peoples and local communities, there are many questions about how to foster collaborative and just agreements that support self-determination. Despite policy advancements enabling more co-management and shared stewardship within the United States (U.S.), possibilities for co-management are complicated by historical injustices that have hindered Tribal access to ancestral land and cultural practices. We use a multiple case study approach, examining three case studies from the Western U.S. that illustrate challenges facing Tribes and interventions used to improve land management relationships. The first case study focuses on the relationship between the Oglala Sioux Tribe and the U.S. government and highlights that historical injustices continue to affect Tribal land management. The second case study explores the collaborative management of Bears Ears National Monument, showcasing a decolonized approach endorsed by Tribes seeking to reclaim their inherent rights to the land. The third case study examines the Snoqualmie Tribe as an example of a sovereign Tribe embodying the concept of “Land Back.” Tribes have utilized strategies, such as co-management, coalition building, and land reacquisition, to maintain control over lands important to their populations. These strategies promote power-sharing, resource distribution, trust-building, and the integration of Indigenous knowledge with Western science. Nonetheless, failure to recognize and account for the weight of broken treaties, discriminatory laws and policies, and the historical trauma caused by these injustices emphasizes the importance of understanding the dynamics surrounding Tribal land management. As government-led land management paradigms around the world shift to consider self-determination of Indigenous nations and communities as a critical piece of improved stewardship, decision makers have many historically-informed dynamics to consider when shaping future co-management practices. KEYWORDS: co-management, Indigenous, “Land Back”, stewardship, Tribes, and sovereignty.

Suggested Citation

  • Clarita Lefthand-Begay & Lauren Redmore & Christopher Armatas & Jesse Brisbois & Kunsang Choden & Dara Craig & Angelo Baca & Jaime Martin & Michael Ross & Regina Lopez-Whiteskunk & Alfred Lomahquahu &, 2025. "From paternalism to self-determination: examining evolving tribal-federal relationships and co-management arrangements through three case studies," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 12(1), pages 1-14, December.
  • Handle: RePEc:pal:palcom:v:12:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1057_s41599-024-04122-x
    DOI: 10.1057/s41599-024-04122-x
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://link.springer.com/10.1057/s41599-024-04122-x
    File Function: Abstract
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1057/s41599-024-04122-x?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Greta L. Asay & Hannah Z. Hendricks & Elizabeth Long-Meek & Michael R. Cope, 2022. "Charting Sustainable Land Management Futures by Looking to the Past: The Case of Bears Ears National Monument," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(1), pages 1-10, December.
    2. Tero Mustonen & Antoine Scherer & Jennifer Kelleher, 2022. "We belong to the land: review of two northern rewilding sites as a vehicle for equity in conservation," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-9, December.
    3. Jeffrey J. Brooks, 2022. "Genuine tribal and Indigenous representation in the United States," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 9(1), pages 1-6, December.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Sibel Hoştut & Seçil Deren het Hof & Hediye Aydoğan & Gülten Adalı, 2023. "Who’s in and who’s out? Reading stakeholders and priority issues from sustainability reports in Turkey," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 10(1), pages 1-13, December.
    2. Jeffrey J. Brooks & Hillary E. Renick, 2024. "The benefits of Indigenous-led social science: a mindset for Arctic sustainability," Palgrave Communications, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 11(1), pages 1-11, December.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:pal:palcom:v:12:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1057_s41599-024-04122-x. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Sonal Shukla or Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.nature.com/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.