Climate-Smart Markets For Tribal Buffalo

Climate-Smart Markets for Tribal Buffalo is a project funded by the Partnerships for Climate Smart Commodities grant program of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The USDA has awarded the InterTribal Buffalo Council a grant of approximately $5 million over a three-year period. This project expanded climate-smart buffalo meat markets in ITBC’s 83-member Tribal nations’ lands supporting farmers and ranchers with implementation and monitoring climate-smart practices.

WHAT IS THE PARTNERSHIPS FOR CLIMATE-SMART COMMODITIES PROGRAM?

USDA is committed to supporting a diverse range of farmers, ranchers, and private forest landowners through Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities. This effort will expand markets for America’s climate-smart commodities, leverage the greenhouse gas benefits of climate-smart commodity production, and provide direct, meaningful benefits to production agriculture, including for small and underserved producers.

USDA is investing more than $3.1 billion for 141 projects through this effort and all the projects require meaningful involvement of small and underserved producers.

ITBC Project Goals

Financial Support

CSAF Practices

This project’s Measurement, Monitoring, Reporting & Verification (MMRV) activities:

1. Training Tribal buffalo herd managers to use the Carbon Management Evaluation Tool (COMET) and related tools to evaluate carbon sequestration and GHG reductions.

2. Conducting field measurements including biological surveys on each enrolled site, along with recording climatic conditions, and herd management strategies, to track and verify GHG benefits associated with Tribally-managed buffalo herds over time and under different management scenarios.

3. Supporting a Native graduate student and rangeland managers on CSAF practices during all phases of the project.

The Tribal Buffalo Market Initiative will provide technical assistance for the development of market opportunities, providing outreach and education materials that market buffalo as climate-smart. Outreach products developed will be distributed to InterTribal Buffalo Council Member Tribes and their 1milion+ enrolled Tribal members, including educational materials highlighting buffalo as a climate-smart commodity, with infographics showcasing the buffalo’s place in the carbon cycle, along with educational videos, pamphlets, and other materials relating to the health benefits of consuming buffalo meat. An online platform will be developed to link partners and stakeholders and foster the development of market opportunities.

Tribal participation in what the USDA NRCS currently defines as climate-smart agricultural and forestry (CSAF) practices as they relate to Tribal buffalo production is limited. ITBC will employ a new position, a Climate-Smart Technical Service Provider to lead the development of a new program for CSAF practices as they relate to Tribal buffalo herd management. Tribally managed buffalo programs represent a wide range of geographies, climates, herd sizes, goals, and available resources. Current NRCS CSAF practices will be reviewed by the team and ones that relate to Tribal buffalo production will be adopted into the program.

For more information, please visit:

https://www.usda.gov/climate-solutions/climate-smart-commodities