Natural Resources Department

Mission and Vision

The Mission

The Natural Resources Department’s mission is to: Protect and enhance Tribal lands, natural resources on these lands, and the Tribe’s aboriginal and cultural heritage, ensuring that all natural and cultural resources are managed in a sustainable, well balanced manner that reflects the ecological, cultural, and economic priorities of the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians.

Department of Natural Resources, Background, and Summary Information

The Tribe’s role as stewards of the land is deeply ingrained within the culture and traditions of the Cow Creek Band of Umpqua Tribe of Indians, and is not restricted to only those lands under their direct ownership. The Tribe is culturally obligated to engage and assist in the environmental protection of its ancestral lands and the preservation of cultural sites throughout their ancestral territory. For this reason, the Tribal Board of Directors authorized the formation of a Tribal Natural Resource Department in 2004.

The Natural Resources Department is dedicated to the understanding, effective management, and sustainable use of the Tribe’s renewable natural resources. The Department’s disciplinary focus is broad in scope, ranging from individual organisms to landscapes, from natural to managed ecosystems, from wilderness to agricultural and urban systems, from local to national environments, and from resource preservation to utilization.

Understanding and then effectively and efficiently managing the Tribe’s natural and cultural resources requires long-term vision, creative thinking, and proactive and multidisciplinary approaches. All these involve department personnel working with people from other diverse disciplines across Tribal programs and departments. Additionally, it necessitates working with federal and state agencies, and non-governmental organizations.

Since 2004, the Natural Resources Department has expanded its capacity, capability, and focus. The Natural Resources Department is divided into five programmatic disciplines (Cultural Program, Water and Environmental Resources Program, Land and Wildlife Resources Program, GIS Program, and the Tribal Garden Program).

For more information, contact Jason Robison, Director of Natural Resources at 541.677.5575.

To see a report of the Natural Resources Department’s success, click here.