For more than 100 years, salmon had been absent from the Klamath Tribe’s lands — a fact that cut them off from funding sources to fix that.
B. ‘Toastie’ Oaster
B. ‘Toastie’ Oaster (they/them) is an award-winning journalist and a staff writer for High Country News writing from the Pacific Northwest. They’re a citizen of the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma. Email them at b.toastie@hcn.org or submit a letter to the editor.
Follow @toastie@journa.host
Posted inMay 2026: Pinecone Cowboys
Get to know the Pacific newt
From Vancouver Island newts to California’s high country newts, the toxic Taricha genus includes some unique and deadly Western species.
Posted inArticles
Tribal leaders reflect on a year of uncertainty — and possibility
Federal turnover and policy shifts have forced Indigenous communities to adapt.
Posted inArticles
Heavily contested pumped hydro-storage project gets federal go-ahead
The project in the Columbia Gorge would involve tunneling through a Ḱamíłpa sacred mountain.
Posted inJanuary 2026: Deep Time in the West
What does ‘time immemorial’ really mean?
An overused phrase goes under the microscope.
Posted inArticles
We need to talk about the pretendians in our midst
Indigenous scholar Dina Gilio-Whitaker wants Natives to approach a difficult topic rationally, vulnerably and honestly.
Posted inArticles
Washington approves over 99% of archaeological permits, records show
As tribes struggle to protect their heritage, the nation’s leading state archaeologist says she lacks the authority to stop development projects.
Posted inArticles
How I found hope while reporting on a metal fest
Peek behind the scenes at the challenges and joy of covering Fire in the Mountains.
Posted inNovember 2025: Precious Metalheads
Heavy metal is healing teens on the Blackfeet Nation
In response to youth suicides, teachers show students the power of headbanging at Fire in the Mountains festival.
Posted inSeptember 2025: Who Controls Our Food?
How to build a food sovereignty lab
Bureaucracy and budget constraints couldn’t stop CalPoly Humboldt’s Native American Studies Department from founding an Indigenous foods research lab.
Posted inJuly 2025: Seeds as Sustenance
Indigenous leaders at UNPFII underscore the need for genuine consent
Free, prior and informed consent is law in some countries. How are they making it work?
Posted inArticles
Trump admin speaker at UNPFII met with silence
During a discussion on the rights of Indigenous women at the United Nations Monday, a U.S. representative made a statement so strange you could hear a pin drop afterward.
Posted inIssues, March 2025: The Berry Pickers
The Indian education of Charles Sams
How the first Native director of the National Park Service drew from a legacy of federal boarding schools and Indigenous teachings.
Posted inArticles
Indigenous affairs stories you need to read
Beyond HCN’s coverage, the beat is expanding, highlighting the complexity of Indian Country.
Posted inDecember 2024: Land as Reparations
Can Farmington hide from its legacy of anti-Indigenous violence?
It’s a reservation border town problem, not just a local one.
Posted inArticles
President Biden to apologize for federal Indian boarding schools
The U.S. government hopes to assuage cynicism and begin a new chapter of healing for Native people.
Posted inArticles
Where have all the swifties gone?
This September, a beloved annual bird migration left Portlanders hanging.
Posted inOctober 2024: Latino Vote
The Native vote dilemma
Every election year, Indigenous people grapple with whether and
how to engage in electoral politics.
Posted inOctober 2024: Latino Vote
How do you describe a sacred site without describing it?
Western journalism puts Indigenous reporters in a tricky position where values don’t always align.
Posted inSeptember 2024: When Migrants Go Missing
What tribal leaders think about Interior’s dams report
The federal government has acknowledged the harms of Columbia River dams. Now what?