In partnership, the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe and the Kurt Grinnell Aquaculture Scholarship Foundation held the second Indigenous Aquaculture Summit (“IAS” or” Summit”) on September 15-18, 2025, at the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribe’s 7 Cedars Resort and the Jamestown S’Klallam Tribes Administrative Center and Plaza in Blyn, Washington.
The Indigenous Aquaculture Summit is a forum for Indigenous peoples to learn from one another about their aquaculture operations, practices, problems, issues and opportunities and strengthen relationships between Tribes and First Nations. The Summit is an opportunity to reaffirm Tribal and First Nations shared commitment to sustaining and revitalizing traditional aquaculture practices that have nourished communities for generations. The summit also serves to deepen connections through collaboration, learning, and mutual support. Another major goal of the IAS is to provide the ingredients for networking, establishing new partnerships, and identifying how Tribes and First Nations are involved in aquaculture and how these practices are or can be tethered to cultural practices and how aquaculture supports economic opportunities, community health, welfare, resilience, seafood security, and finally Tribal and First Nation sovereignty and self-governance.
The IAS had three distinct elements, a welcome reception, presentations and discussion and aquaculture operations and research site visits. These field visits are an opportunity to see and learn about viable operating aquaculture operations, innovative research and possible avenues for pursuing commercial level aquaculture.
Sponsorships are essential to the event, and support at every level is welcome. We gratefully acknowledge last year’s support from the NOAA Office of Aquaculture and the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture. We also thank Jamestown Seafoods, Hama Hama Oyster Company, Bill Dewey, Taylor Shellfish, and Pacific Aquaculture for donating seafood for the Welcome Reception. Monetary contributions from Northwest Resource Law LLC, Rangen Feed Company (Wilbur-Ellis Corporation), and individual donors helped offset event costs, while Builders Initiative, a nonprofit foundation, provided substantial additional support. We thank all our sponsors for helping make the Indigenous Aquaculture Summit possible.