About
Castle Rock and view to Sierra Valley from Loyalton Ranch © Elizabeth Carmel
About the Wášiw-šiw Land Trust
The Tribal Council of the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California formed the Wášiw-šiw Land Trust in 2025. We seek to return land throughout our vast Sierra Nevada homelands to the ownership and care of the Washoe people.
Restoring Our Lands to Our People
The Washoe lived here for thousands of years before we were forcibly displaced by the arrival of Spanish and European immigrants. Returning this land to Washoe ownership will allow our people to come home, and care for the land as we have for centuries. The land has suffered in our absence, but will heal under our care.
Our Homelands
Our core homelands stretch across a 3.47-million-acre region, from south of Lake Tahoe north to Honey Lake and west to the Sierra Crest. They include Sierra Valley, Long Valley, Independence Lake, Carpenter Valley, Truckee, Martis Valley, Lake Tahoe, the Northern Sierra Crest, Hope Valley, Carson Valley, and Truckee Meadows (Reno/Sparks).
Our Priorities
Our work is guided by tribal elders and other tribal members and rooted in the principles of Washoe Ecological Knowledge.
Camas © Andrew Wright/Lighthawk Photo
Together we will:
Acquire and restore land in our Washoe homelands
Protect sacred sites
Re-establish traditional gathering places and ceremonial lands
Revitalize the abundance of native flora and fauna that sustain our traditional foods, tools and medicines
Steward lands for current and future generations.
Pinyon pine © Elizabeth Carmel
Thank You to Our Partners and Funders
We thank the following organizations, agencies and individuals for supporting the launch of the Wášiw-šiw Land Trust and the return of land to the Washoe people.
The 11th Hour Project
Elizabeth Carmel
Feather River Land Trust
March Conservation Fund
Northern Sierra Partnership
Spaht Family Foundation
Wildlife Conservation Board
Dan Kalafatas and Hadley Mullin
Prairie falcon © Elizabeth Carmel
In our culture, land, language, food and life are bound together, inseparable.
Mule’s ear and lupine, Tamia Anderson
When our people were displaced from the land, we were separated from everything that sustained us. The impacts were devastating. The creation of the Wášiw-šiw Land Trust is a cultural and economic turning point for our people. By supporting our work, you can join us in creating a new future for our people, and for the land that sustains us.