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             White House Continues Focus on Empowering Tribal Youth

   by Aru Pande

   From tackling homelessness to empowering youth, the Obama
   administration is announcing a number of new steps in support of Native
   American tribes.

   In its seventh year, the [1]White House Tribal Nations Conference
   brought together leaders of 566 tribes and U.S. government officials
   Thursday to discuss ways to remove barriers to youth success and
   advance tribal sovereignty, including returning hundreds of thousands
   of hectares of land and schools back to tribal control.

   "All these actions we are taking now whether it's on education,
   tackling climate change or trust reforms are with an ear on those
   stories we have heard in travels across Indian country and an eye
   towards the health and prosperity of the next generation, including
   honoring tribal cultures, languages and traditions," said Interior
   Secretary Sally Jewell.

   President Barack Obama has made improving the lives of Native Americans
   a top priority since taking office, by investing in job training,
   tribal colleges, infrastructure and improving the tribal justice
   system.

   ''

   Obama was only the fourth sitting U.S. president to visit a Native
   American reservation when he traveled in 2014 to Standing Rock, which
   stretches across more than 800,000 hectares of North and South Dakota.
   About 40 percent of its residents live below the poverty level, and the
   unemployment rate is near 80 percent.

   This year, the president traveled to Alaska in September, where he
   announced new investments to help tribal communities vulnerable to the
   effects of climate change. Obama also announced the renaming of the
   tallest mountain in the United States, Mount McKinley, to its Koyukon
   Athabasan name,"Denali."

   In July, Obama traveled to the Choctaw Nation in Oklahoma where he
   launched an initiative to make high-speed Internet more accessible to
   tribal members.

   This year's White House summit continues its focus on Native American
   youth with the Generation Indigenous initiative launched last year,
   including providing grants to support strategies that address barriers
   to college enrollment and career readiness.

   The administration is also focusing on other areas including social
   services, criminal justice, housing and mental health.

   "We have got far higher rates of suicide, particularly among tribal
   youth than any other group identified across the nation. And so we are
   digging into the reasons why. And we are cooperating among our agencies
   to see if we can be more effective," said Jewell.
     __________________________________________________________________

   [2]http://www.voanews.com/content/white-house-continues-focus-on-empowe
   ring-tribal-youth/3038604.html

References

   1. https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2015/11/05/fact-sheet-7th-annual-white-house-tribal-nations-conference
   2. http://www.voanews.com/content/white-house-continues-focus-on-empowering-tribal-youth/3038604.html