Chumash Maritime Lifeways: Land and Water
At Wishtoyo, we know that the youth we teach today will become the leaders, policymakers, scientists, parents, and advocates of tomorrow.
Get to know more about our unique program!
What is the Chumash Maritime Lifeways: Land and Water program?
Wishtoyo’s Chumash Maritime Lifeways: Land and Water education program is a 3-hour field trip program that integrates marine science education with Chumash culture.
All field trips will include a combination of the following element, depending on your learning context as well as seasonal staff and resource availability:
A fireside welcome circle
Artwork with traditional materials
Lunch time (BYO lunch!)
Marine and terrestrial conservation lessons
An experience of the village and surrounding environment
Where is the program located?
CML is held at the Wishtoyo Chumash Village, located in Malibu near Nicholas Canyon Beach on a 8,000 year old Chumash village site.
Note: This special place is not open to the public- field trip or event registrants only!
Who benefits from this program?
School groups or youth education programs.
Though our most frequent visitors are youth grades 3-6, this field trip is open to all learners grades K-12.
We do not accommodate visits for individuals or individual families.
When are programs held?
10am-1pm
Tuesdays and Thursdays
During that academic school year
To inquire about CML field trips outside of these time and date ranges, please reach out directly dmartinez@wishtoyo.org
Why is a culturally-based marine science education so important?
Wishtoyo’s unique approach combines contemporary and traditional Chumash lifeways, rooted in 15,000 years of Indigenous history, to provide a more in-depth environmental education to the students that we serve, inspiring a new generation to be practitioners of nature and see the world through a lens of reciprocity. As the original caretakers of these lands and waters since time immemorial, Chumash people have an intimate connection and knowledge of what it means to live in harmony with nature. Indigenous people hold the answers to the problems climate change and overconsumption cause in our world today.
The Chumash Maritime Lifeways field trip centers increasing the 3 R’s: Respect, Relationship, and Reciprocity. Both our ancestral teachings and our lived experiences show us that the most abundant and resilient land and ecosystems are the ones that interact with people when there is a reciprocal relationship of care and respect. Students who participate in CML gain an important perspective that they don’t often receive through a standardized curriculum. Our programs give the opportunity for students to connect to place and increase awareness of their belonging in the natural world. Utilizing Indigenous-centered values and practices, our children will be the ones to continue the work needed to bring our world back into balance. This is why it is so important to guide young people towards a respectful relationship with their natural environment and inspire them to develop a sense of responsibility for the spaces they inhabit.
Would you like to go on a Chumash Marine Lifeways field trip?
Have you already applied to our program and been accepted?
