Many tribal governments have functioning natural resources departments with expertise in the particular natural resources found on the reservation. Various natural resource departments and programs possess of significant collections of survey and other data on the local environment. Many tribal residents still depend upon utilizing the natural resource base in the pursuit of traditional economies such as hunting, fishing, trapping, and gathering of materials for various medicinal, crafts or other industries. Along with the more formal data referred to above is a wealth of ongoing personal experience with the natural environment. Tribal colleges, located and operated by tribes on many reservations, can serve as centers for resource data collection, monitoring and interpretation within the scientific model and can also serve as a link to the traditional knowledge base carried by the tribal elders.
Tribes have associations, organizations and networks with each other.
Tribal members have participated in various training programs and work experiences which related to aspects of climate change. Tribal emergency response teams have experience dealing with such natural disasters as fires and floods. Indian tribes can make significant contributions with regard to documentation and interpretation of climate change indicators. Tribal communities are located in every region of the United States. They are the longest continuous resident populations in their regions.