Today's guest, Emily Washines, MPA and scholar, is an enrolled Yakama Nation tribal member with Cree and Skokomish lineage. Her blog, Native Friends, focuses on history and culture. On the Board of Columbia Riverkeeper, she has been Board President since 2022. Building understanding and support for Native Americans is evident in her films, writing, speaking, and exhibits. Her research topics include the Yakama War, Native women, traditional knowledge, resource management, fishing rights, and food sovereignty. Emily speaks Ichiskiin (Yakama language) and other Native languages. Yakima Herald-Republic lists her as Top 39 under 39. She received a Single Impact Event Award for her 2018 presentation from the Association of King County Historical Organizations. She is also a board member of the Museum of Culture and Environment and Artist Trust. She is adjunct faculty at Yakima Valley College.
Emily researches and speaks on the historical aspects of missing and murdered Native women on the Yakama reservation, with particular emphasis on women and girls who were raped and murdered in the years leading up to the Yakama War of 1855-58. She searches for descendants of the Yakama War to stand by her side. Emily lives on the Yakama reservation with her husband and three children.