ZUNI, N.M. (Oct. 26, 2026) — Last month, the Zuni Youth Enrichment Project joined fellow youth enrichment grantees from across New Mexico for two days of professional development, networking and shared learning in Albuquerque. Hosted by the 11th Hour Project’s N2 program at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, the Sept. 15-16 gathering brought together nonprofit leaders and community partners working to connect young people with nature and culture while advancing equity across the state.
N2, whose name stands for “nature and nurture,” is a program of the 11th Hour Project, the primary grantmaking engine at the Schmidt Family Foundation. For ZYEP Executive Director Tahlia Natachu-Eriacho, the gathering offered an opportunity to reconnect with colleagues, strengthen practical management skills and reflect on a partnership that has grown alongside ZYEP itself.
“N2 has been a pivotal supporter as we invested in getting our kiddos outside and connected to culturally significant sites,” Natachu-Eriacho said. “That also transformed into supporting our capacity as an organization and as leaders.”
Through ZYEP’s Connect to Land initiative, N2 support has helped Zuni youth explore ancestral homelands and culturally significant landscapes across the Southwest, including Grand Canyon, Zion, Arches and Canyonlands national parks. Along the way, cultural advisors have shared Zuni history, language and traditional knowledge, and park professionals have introduced youth to potential careers in conservation and public land management.
As that work has grown, N2 also has invested in the people and organizational infrastructure behind it. Natachu-Eriacho said the program has helped her access executive coaching, nonprofit compliance training and other professional development that nonprofit leaders often have to learn on the job.
“I personally am so grateful to the N2 team,” she said. “They listen and feel like true partners in this work.”
That investment in organizational leadership was evident during the first day of the September gathering. Senior leaders participated in management training facilitated by Tamara Osivwemu, managing partner at The Management Center, with sessions addressing team alignment, management foundations, effective delegation and staying engaged to achieve results.
Natachu-Eriacho said the training spoke directly to a challenge she sees throughout the nonprofit sector.
“People usually get into this work through their heart, passions and values,” she explained. “That doesn’t mean we know how to do administrative things that bring that heart, passion and value to life! So it’s great to get this kind of training so we can be more efficient, and it makes the work sustainable.”
The second day brought the larger grantee cohort together for conversations about culture, the outdoors, nonprofit governance and youth leadership. Participants could begin the day with a guided walk at Petroglyph National Monument, where two original community organizers shared the cultural history of the site and the story of the community effort to protect it from development.
Back at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, Anpao Duta Flying Earth of the Indigenous Genius Institute facilitated an interactive discussion on working with culture and the outdoors. Afternoon workshops gave participants a choice between exploring legal compliance and nonprofit governance or examining ways organizations can create meaningful opportunities for young people to become decision makers and share power with adults.
For Natachu-Eriacho, some of the gathering’s value came simply from being together. She said N2 has invested significant time and energy in building relationships among its grantees, creating a network that extends beyond the formal training sessions.
“It feels like a family reunion when all the grantees come together,” she said. “There has been some pretty powerful momentum coming from those connections too that is impacting equity work in New Mexico.”
The setting carried meaning as well. The gathering returned to the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center, an Indigenous-owned cultural and educational institution in Albuquerque. Natachu-Eriacho said she appreciated that the choice allowed dollars spent on the gathering to circulate back into New Mexico’s Pueblo communities.
This type of broad partnership has become increasingly important as nonprofit organizations navigate an unstable funding landscape. She noted that N2 has continued supporting not only its grantees’ programs, but also their people, professional development and connections with one another.
“They also work really hard to keep the spotlight on their grantees so the incredible work remains the focus,” she said.
For ZYEP, that means the partnership that has helped young people walk through their ancestral homelands also is helping strengthen the organization that makes those experiences possible.
To learn more about the Zuni Youth Enrichment Project and its programs, and for information about making donations, partnering with ZYEP, and volunteering, call (505) 782-8000 or visit zyep.org. For updates, follow the nonprofit youth organization on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
Founded in 2009, the nonprofit Zuni Youth Enrichment Project is dedicated to promoting resilience among Zuni youth so they will grow into strong, healthy adults who are connected with Zuni traditions. ZYEP fulfills its mission by providing positive role models, enriching programs, and nurturing spaces that contribute to the healthy development of Zuni youth. ZYEP strives to provide every child with the encouragement and opportunities they need to reach their full potential.
