Land acknowledgment & blessing protocol

Land acknowledgment

“We gather today in Wenatchee, on the hereditary lands of the šnp̓əšqʷáw̓šəxʷ — the P'squosa, or Wenatchi people — whose villages stood along the Wenatchee River from time immemorial, and who today live on as part of the twelve bands of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. We acknowledge the treaty territory of the Yakama Nation that reaches this valley, and we honor the Spokane Tribe of Indians and all fire-affected tribal communities east of us this week. We thank the tribal nations represented in this room for the use of their hereditary lands, and for their enduring care of these lands and waters.”

Wenatchee River Institute · Wenatchee Valley College

Blessing protocol — facilitator note

Invite an elder or designated representative from the tribal delegations present to open the morning with a blessing, arranged with an honorarium before the event. The blessing belongs to its giver: it is never scripted by us and never AI-drafted. If no representative is available, hold a moment of silence for fire-affected communities. Confirm specific nations represented with Expo tribal liaisons before the event.

After the blessing, the room goes dark for 90 seconds: Rise From the Ash — the film.

Community-response context

The Colville Tribes run the Mount Tolman Fire Center. A unified command of tribal, state, and federal agencies demonstrates local ownership, named roles, and public receipts. Read the community / helper pages before presenting fire facts.

Whose land is modern-day Wenatchee — confirmed

• Wenatchee sits on the ancestral homelands of the šnp̓əšqʷáw̓šəxʷ — the P'squosa (Wenatchi) people, whose villages stood along the Wenatchee River, Icicle Creek, and the mid-Columbia. Wenatchee River Institute · WA Department of Ecology tribal-resources review
• The Wenatchi are today one of the twelve bands of the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation. Wenatchee Valley College
• The same valley lies within the Yakama Nation's 1855 Treaty territory; Wenatchee Valley College names the Wenatchi, Entiat, Chelan, and Yakama peoples specifically for its Wenatchee campus. WA Department of Ecology · WVC commencement program

The six counties

NCW Tech Alliance serves Adams, Chelan, Douglas, Grant, Ferry, and Okanogan counties and works with the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation through the NCW Digital Access & Equity Coalition. NCW Tech Alliance — About · NCW Tech Alliance — Tech Help

Words of this land

These published words are reproduced exactly from the cited tribal and tribal-affiliated language materials. Lowercase is intentional. Use them with care; do not extend them into a full translation or spoken version without commissioning it from the nations.

• t́iĺ x̌əšt · x̌ašt šx̌lx̌əlt in nxaʔamxčín. Wenatchee River Institute · Interior Salish word book
• way̓ · way̓ x̌ast sx̌lx̌ʕalt in n̓səl̓xčin̓. Sinixt/Okanagan language video · Salish School curriculum greetings sheet
• x̣est sx̣lx̣alt in n̓sélišcn̓. Interior Salish word book
• Ichishkíin is named with respect; greeting text should come from the Yakama Nation's own language program. Yakama Nation treaty-territory context · Follow the commissioning protocol

Full translations & spoken versions — the protocol

Translations and recordings must be commissioned from the nations, compensated, approved, and credited. They are never machine-translated and never AI-voiced. No AI tool, including ElevenLabs, is ever used to synthesize a tribal language or voice.

1. Colville Tribes Language Program offers translation services and access to fluent speakers for n̓səl̓xčin̓, nxaʔamxčín, and n̓sélišcn̓. Commission a written translation and, only if the program agrees, a recording by a fluent speaker; offer an honorarium.
2. Request Ichishkíin text and audio through Yakama Nation language resources.
3. Salish School of Spokane can provide n̓səl̓xčin̓ pronunciation coaching for facilitators.
4. Credit each translator and speaker by name in the program and on this kit page, with the nation's approval.