January 21, 2015

Native Youth Enrichment Program (NYEP) 2014

The mission of the Native Youth Enrichment Program’s summer institute is to bring together a cadre of American Indian & Alaska Native elementary and middle school students to explore institutional as well as traditional pathways to health and wellness. The focus of this year’s program was “Lessons of Indigenous Foods & the Environment,” how science and nutrition education as well as traditional lifeways can help reduce health disparities, especially diabetes and other chronic diseases.  The NYEP program helps to develop youth ambassadors that educate themselves as well as their families and communities about traditional foods and wellness.  The Native Youth Enrichment Program is an annual summer program put on by the Indigenous Wellness Research Institute of the University of Washington. This year’s funding was provided by a Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation grant, “Partnering for our Future, Investing in Native Student Success.” Students from all over the State of Washington participated in NYEP, including members of the Yakama, Colville, and Lummi tribes. During the three week program, students explored on and off campus–visiting the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration’s Western Regional Center, Cedar River Watershed, Science Adventure Lab at the Children’s Institute, UW Medicine, and Burke Museum, as well as other educational venues.
For more information, contact Polly Olsen, Director of Community Relations and Development, IWRI, at polly@uw.edu.