This summer, the Cheyenne River Youth Project will expand its growing teen internship program with the launch of the Lakȟól Makȟóčhe (Land Stewardship) Internship. This new opportunity has been designed to support Wakanyeja Kin Wana Ku Pi (The Children Are Coming Home), the nonprofit’s 39-acre, organic-certified property adjacent to Bear Butte State Park, and strengthen the connection Lakota youth have with their homelands.
Scheduled to launch in July, the paid internship will combine classroom learning with hands-on work at the property in rural Meade County. Participating teens will be able to explore the cultural, historical and ecological significance of land stewardship while developing practical skills in conservation and land management.
“We want our youth to understand what it means to be caretakers of the land,” said Julie Garreau, CRYP’s founder and chief executive officer. “This is about much more than environmental stewardship. It’s about sovereignty, identity, responsibility and, above all, healing.”
According to Garreau, CRYP’s founder and chief executive officer, the new program emerged from nearly two years of work at Wakanyeja Kin Wana Ku Pi and the nonprofit’s commitment to helping young people deepen their relationship with Unci Makha, grandmother earth.
“Unique initiatives like this don’t happen by accident,” she explained. “They are a direct result of a consistent, long-term model that prioritizes safety, trust and complete inclusivity. Crucially, this opportunity is designed for all youth, not just those who achieve or who conform to a certain Western standard of academic or institutional success.”
CRYP’s expanding teen internship program also includes tracks in Lakota culture, Native wellness, Indigenous cooking, food sovereignty and the arts. Like those opportunities, the Lakȟól Makoce Internship will provide youth with meaningful experiences that blend cultural knowledge, leadership development and real-world skills.
The interns will explore topics ranging from Indigenous land rights and the Land Back movement to prairie ecology and certified organic land management. They will examine vital Lakota landscapes, such as Mathó Pahá (Bear Butte), Pe’Sla (The Heart of Everything That Is), Mathó Tipila (Devils Tower) and Maka Oniye (Wind Cave, or “breathing earth”), and study contemporary approaches to reclaiming, restoring and protecting ancestral lands.
“Our youth will be learning about Indigenous rights, international frameworks such as the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and successful examples of land return,” Garreau said. “They will come to understand that caring for the land is both an ancient responsibility and a modern expression of sovereignty, and it requires learning how to navigate federal partnerships and co-stewardship arrangements.”
The internship is open to local youth ages 13-18 and includes an application and interview process. Participants who complete the program will receive a $500 stipend in recognition of their 50 hours of work and study.
As CRYP prepares for this inaugural cohort, staff members are looking forward to welcoming young people onto the land and supporting them in what is essentially a cultural leadership journey.
“We believe that high-standard, sustainable land care is a powerful tool of sovereignty and a meaningful way to honor our ancestors,” she said. “When our youth understand the cultural and practical aspects of stewardship, they are better prepared to become leaders in their communities.”
CRYP purchased Wakanyeja Kin Wana Ku Pi in early 2024. It sits near the base of Matȟó Pahá, a sacred site for the Lakota people that is roughly two hours from the Cheyenne River Sioux Reservation.
While a casual observer might look at a land initiative from the outside and see only “land back,” the reality runs much deeper. As Garreau points out, CRYP’s stewardship of this property is grounded in cultural reclamation and healing.
“To raise a healthier youth population and ensure the long-term future of our tribal nations, we must provide the exact pieces that allow healing to happen: connection to land, culture and community,” she said. “When we invest in creating these spaces, we aren’t just managing land. We are investing in the inherent potential of every single child.”
Wakanyeja Kin Wana Ku Pi hosts CRYP’s seasonal culture camps, teen internship activities and workshops. It also is a critical home base near the Black Hills, allowing program participants to easily access other sacred sites in the region.
“Our children belong here, on our land,” Garreau said. “The new internship is one way we can help bring them home.”
To learn more about the Cheyenne River Youth Project and its programs, and for information about making donations and volunteering, call (605) 964-8200 or visit www.lakotayouth.org. And, to stay up to date on the latest CRYP news and events, follow the youth project on Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Vimeo and YouTube.
The Cheyenne River Youth Project, founded in 1988, is a grassroots, nonprofit organization dedicated to providing the youth of the Cheyenne River reservation with access to a vibrant and secure future through a wide variety of culturally sensitive and enduring programs, projects and facilities that ensure strong, self-sufficient families and communities.
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