September 23, 2025

Washington Wild

Washington Wild has named Kat Brigham, enrolled member and former chair of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, the 2025 Conservation Voices Award recipient. The award honors her role in the Indigenous Climate Project in partnership with Washington Wild. Brigham worked closely with Washington Wild board member Steve Robinson to elevate traditional ecological knowledge from Pacific Northwest tribal leaders and highlight both the impacts of climate change and potential Indigenous-led solutions. She is a featured voice in the Indigenous Climate Project's oral history video series and appears prominently in the full-length documentary Climate Story. Brigham has been an advocate and participant in the “Tribes and Climate Change” curriculum teacher training workshops. She played a key role in workshops hosted by the Tulalip Tribes and Quinault Indian Nation and is currently helping plan upcoming trainings in eastern Washington with the Umatilla and Yakima Nations in 2026. Brigham will be recognized at Washington Wild's annual Wild Night Out celebration on Sept. 25 at the Woodland Park Zoo's Zoomasium Room in Seattle. Tickets are available at http://www.wawild.org/WNO. The Conservation Voices Award has been presented by Washington Wild since 2009 to individuals or organizations that have worked with Washington Wild to use their voice to support protecting wild lands and waters in Washington.