Flows Into: Buzzards Bay
As an Indigenous people at the heart of Plymouth in southeastern Massachusetts who have long worked to protect our homeland, the Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe understands well the need to preserve and protect our land and resources. In order to do so now and in the future, we have been working to create a cultural and environmental educational program that will preserve tribal community-based knowledge of the land, water and its ecologically significant areas; promote tribal values, especially concerning the cultural, historical, ecological and spiritual significance of the land, water, and wildlife in the region; and create opportunities for collaborations with other environmental and cultural organizations with related goals of land stewardship, water protection, conservation, youth and public education.
We believe that knowledge-sharing and educational programming that highlights Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) and demonstrates how it has been, and continues to be, implemented by tribal communities will benefit all of us in southeastern Massachusetts, and the ecosystem upon which we depend.
The cornerstone principles of TEK include respect, reciprocity, and responsibility, which are essential to relationships among human communities and between humans and the natural world. All are interconnected and interdependent. Our cultural heritage, our relationship to our sacred and ceremonial places within our ancient homeland, and our community-based values are the core of our Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribal identity and heritage. Our Tribal Council and our non-profit tribal organization (Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe, Inc.) are committed to ensuring that our members and youth will be prepared for a strong future as self-determining citizens of the Herring Pond Wampanoag Tribe of Plymouth County, Massachusetts.
