CHEROKEE, NC, January
18, 2005—Cherokee Preservation
Foundation announced today an important
multi-year grantmaking initiative designed
to help the Eastern Band of Cherokee
Indians strike a balance between the
cultivation and use of natural resources
that go into traditional Cherokee crafts.
The Revitalization of Traditional Cherokee
Artisan Resources (RTCAR) initiative
is being undertaken to teach, protect
and promote Cherokee traditional art,
resources and land care for present
and future generations.
RTCAR’s
director, Dr. David Cozzo, will serve
as an extension of Cherokee
Preservation Foundation’s staff
in this endeavor. Operating through
Western Carolina University’s
Cherokee Studies program, his focus
will be on identifying grant applicants
and other partners with whom RTCAR
can collaborate, primarily parties
who want to undertake habitat restoration
projects, conduct research projects
concerning sustainable harvesting techniques,
and develop cultural preservation projects
that will provide Cherokee artisans
with access to rivercane and other
natural resources essential to their
craft.
Potential partners include
artisans, university researchers, landowners,
government agencies (EBCI, federal
and state), and other funders (private
foundation and government agencies)
that would consider RTCAR’s endeavors
to be good investments. Applicants
may be located beyond the Qualla Boundary
and the seven-county area in western
North Carolina that Cherokee Preservation
Foundation generally serves (Cherokee,
Clay, Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon
and Swain Counties), provided that
the natural resources they develop
will be available to Cherokee artisans.
The
natural resources used by Cherokee
artisans for centuries are becoming
scarce and some are non-existent on
the Qualla Boundary and in other local
areas. Rivercane used for double-weave
basketry is very difficult to find
locally, and artists generally must
go to Georgia to find it. White oak
also used for baskets is becoming scarce
and is difficult to grow, and dyes
used in basket-making are equally hard
to find and can be destroyed if harvested
improperly. Potters and carvers have
similar difficulties — Cherokee
potters must obtain their clay and
stone from Georgia and Florida, and
wood used for carving is often in remote
locations that are hard to reach.
“
Initially RTCAR will focus on basket
making materials,” said Cozzo,
RTCAR’s director. “The
project will eventually expand to include
dye plants, quality clay for potters,
good materials for carvers, and culturally
significant edible and medicinal plant
resources. Teaching Cherokee youth
about the Eastern Band’s artistic
traditions is another aspect of RTCAR.
Elders will teach young members of
the tribe not only the artisan skills
that are part of their heritage, but
also the spiritual and cultural values
that are unique to the Eastern Band.”
Cozzo
is an ethnobotanist who earned a Ph.D.
in anthropology from the University
of Georgia and an M.A. in Appalachian
Studies (with an emphasis on medicinal
plants) at Appalachian State University.
A team of cultural and
natural resource experts in the region
is collaborating
to set RTCAR’s strategic direction
and policies. The group consists of
Tom Hatley, the Sequoyah Distinguished
Professor at Western Carolina University
(WCU); Roseanna Belt, director of WCU’s
Cherokee Center; Carmen McIntyre, Environmental
Preservation Director for the Eastern
Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI); Rob
Hawk, a project director for the North
Carolina Cooperative Extension Service;
Russ Townsend, the EBCI’s Tribal
Historic Preservation Officer; and
James Bradley, program director for
Cherokee Preservation Foundation.
“
RTCAR is a very important initiative
that will help us restore the traditional
Cherokee balance between maintaining
and using natural resources, not just
within the Qualla Boundary, but also
throughout western North Carolina,” said
Susan Jenkins, Executive Director of
Cherokee Preservation Foundation. “RTCAR’s
strategic initiatives will include
the mapping and creation of a complete
inventory of natural resources in the
region, the establishment of a clearinghouse
for sharing information on the availability
and location of natural resources,
and an education program for Cherokee
youth. Cherokee elders are expected
to be involved in all areas of the
RTCAR initiative.”
“The Cherokee community and surrounding region will receive significant
long-term benefits from RTCAR’s initiatives,” said Roseanna Belt
of WCU’s Cherokee Center. “The health and well being of the land
are integral to the Cherokee way of life. We cannot afford to lose our traditional
artisan resources. With RTCAR, we take important steps to preserve the past and
insure our future.”
“
RTCAR will demonstrate what we can accomplish by thinking regionally and
collaborating with others to achieve common goals,” said Tom Hatley
of WCU’s Cherokee
Studies program. “We anticipate that RTCAR’s outcomes will include
new cultural tourism opportunities for visitors such as botanical trails,
more thoughtful land management that benefits the artisan economy, and renewed
appreciation
both outside and within the Eastern Band of the tribe’s rich heritage.”
The
first RTCAR grant cycle will begin January 19, 2005, and extend through
January 28, 2005. Proposed projects
must fall within RTCAR’s focus
and into one of three categories: Planning,
Capacity or Project Specific. Planning
and Capacity
grant requests cannot exceed $20,000. Project Specific Grants requests
may
be over $20,000. Grantees must be nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3)
exempt
status under the IRS code. They must also be focused on environmental protection
or reestablishment of artisan resources on Cherokee lands or in the Southern
Appalachian region. Successful applicants will receive their grant funds
by April 1, 2005, and must complete their projects by April 1, 2006.
Applicants
who want to submit proposals during
RTCAR’s second grant cycle
in 2005 must apply between May 1, 2005, and June 9, 2005.
Anyone seeking
additional grant criteria or further
information about RTCAR may contact
David Cozzo at cozzod@wcu.edu or
(828)-488-8495.
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