UNITY announces the newest class of its Native youth Earth Ambassadors Leadership Program

Mesa, Az - May 3, 2019 – United National Indian Tribal Youth, Inc. (UNITY) has announced the recipients of its 2019-2020 UNITY Earth Ambassadors Leadership Program. The environmental stewardship program (which was started in the 1990s) was re-established in 2015 with the support of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community.

The 2019-2020 class of UNITY Earth Ambassadors are:

• Alec Lee (Navajo), 19, New Mexico

• Angela Noah (White Mountain Apache Tribe), 19, Oregon

• Hope Long (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians), 16, North Carolina

• Jeidah DeZurney (Confederated Tribes of Siletz), 20, Oregon

• Kaylene Nevaquaya (Comanche Nation), 18, Oklahoma

• Marco Ovando (Shoshone-Paiute Tribe), 19, Nevada

• Sage Lacapa (White Mountain Apache Tribe), 15, Arizona

• Samuel Lopez (Tohono O'odham Nation), 16, Arizona

• Sky Wildcat (Cherokee Nation), 23, Oklahoma

• Zunneh-Bah Martin (Diné), 22, New Mexico

"We are excited to work with our new class of UNITY Earth Ambassadors. These youth leaders are committed to preserving and protecting our land and environment. Their passion and contributions to dialogue and action-planning are important to our sustainable future," said Mary Kim Titla, Executive Director of UNITY.

The 2019-2020 class will participate in training sessions and informational workshops to increase their knowledge of environmental issues affecting Native America, learn to serve as an ambassador to increase awareness of the issues affecting the environmental quality on Native lands, and promote the efforts to address environmental concerns within the nation's Native communities. Topics will focus on, but not be limited to, recycling, conservation, regeneration, and restoration.

The newly selected ambassadors were nominated by a member of their community, meeting criteria that included demonstrating leadership potential, showing an interest in protecting the environment, and experience and participation in community service projects. They will receive leadership training and be officially recognized at the National UNITY Conference in Orlando, Florida, July 4 – 8, 2019.

In addition, the UNITY Earth Ambassadors will be provided special opportunities, coordinated through UNITY, to take their message to tribal and governmental agency representatives, as well as lawmakers and others committed to environmental stewardship.

For more information about UNITY, its programs, and the 2019 National UNITY Conference, visit http://www.unityinc.org.

About UNITY

Founded in 1976, United National Indian Tribal Youth, Inc. (UNITY) is a national network organization promoting personal development, citizenship, and leadership among Native Youth. UNITY's mission is to foster the spiritual, mental, physical, and social development of American Indian and Alaska Native youth ages 14 -24, and to help build a strong, unified, and self-reliant Native America through greater youth involvement. UNITY's network currently includes 274 affiliated youth councils in 34 states. Youth Councils are sponsored by Tribes, Alaska Native villages, high schools, colleges, urban centers, and others.

UNITY's signature event is the National UNITY Conference, held each summer in various states. It is the longest largest Native American and Alaska Native youth leadership conference in the country, with more than 2,000 attendees annually.