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tasmitchell.bsky.social
Todd Mitchell
@tasmitchell.bsky.social
2.1K followers 670 following 110 posts
Native American (Swinomish)/Asian (he/him), Indigenous Scientist, Geologist, Environmental Protection @ Swinomish Tribe. Husband & Dad. Certified Indigenous science teacher. Skeets my own. IG: @tasmitchell; @swinomishdep; Swinomish territory, WA, USA 💙🚴🐈
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tasmitchell.bsky.social
It’s the season for Scary Stories (Tee by @ntvsclothing ).
Happy Indigenous Peoples Day!
#IndigenousSTEM 🐡🧪🍎⚒️
Author wearing dark shirt with graphic in style of “Where the wild things are” but of a native boy telling a monster a scary story of explorers ships.
October 14, 2025 at 2:38 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
25+ years (and 3 boxes of biz cards) at Swinomish doing Geology, Environmental, and Indigenous Science work. And as department director for 12 years!
Thanks to all those who've helped along the way and my Tribe for putting their faith in me to protect our homeland!
3 business cards on a wood background. Top card says: Swinomish Indian Tribal Comnuminty Office of Planning & Community Development Todd Mitchell Environmental Specialist - Water Resources. 2nd card says: Swinomish Indian Tribal Comnuminty Office of Planning & Community Development Todd Mitchell Water Resources Manager. 3rd card says: Swinomish Indian Tribal Comnuminty Department of Environmental Protection Todd Mitchell Environmental Director.
October 3, 2025 at 8:24 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Pesto smelling the flowers!
a fluffy ragdoll cat wearing a harness is outdoors in the grass smelling a tall yellow flower
September 6, 2025 at 7:09 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
We gave away 1st Salmon Ceremony children’s books written by my late father, Raymond Mitchell, at the Swinomish 1st Salmon Ceremony-Blessing of the Fleet on Thursday and joining our table was a Swinomish Archives display of past ceremonies!
#IndigenousSTEM 🧪🍎🐡⚒️
Two people holding up 1st salmon ceremony books standing behind a table with stacks of the books. to one side is a display board with photos and captions of past 1st salmon - blessing of fleet ceremonies, to the other side is a big poster of the 1st salmon ceremony books standing behind cover. swinomish gym full of people seated at tables waiting for the table blessing for lunch. four Tribal youth standing and holding salmon and berries offerings near Swinomish Channel. they are preparing to go the four compass directions to return the offering to water bodies in each of the directions.
May 17, 2025 at 1:05 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Camas in my garden going big blooming flowers now!
The bulbs are a traditional food for indigenous people in the Coast Salish region.
I’ve been growing it for years to collect seeds to propagate for restoration plantings.
#IndigenousSTEM 🧪🍎🐡⚒️
Several camas flower clusters blooming with big pretty purple flowers!
May 8, 2025 at 1:03 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Anneka (my Daughter) and I will be reading our Swinomish children’s books (The Enormous Camas & Time of Salmonberries) at the Mount Vernon Library Commons tomorrow, this Saturday, April 26th, 1 PM! Come join us!
Poster advertising DIA Children’s Day & Book Day, Saturday 26th of April, 1-3 PM at Mount Vernon Library Commons. Free event. Free books, folkloric dance, music, face painting, games, snacks, crafts. Featuring storytime w/ Anneka & Todd Mitchell
April 25, 2025 at 7:08 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Happy Earth Day!

#IndigenousSTEM
🧪⚒️🍎🐡
A prairie meadow on Kukutali Preserve with purple camas blooming near a saltwater bay with islands in the background.
April 23, 2025 at 3:44 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
pədx̌ʷi”w̓áac,
pud-hway-WAHTS,
Moon of Whistling Robins signals the music of springtime as the robins return to build nests to lay their eggs.

This Swinomish 13 Moon is time when spring plant shoots and fern roots are gathered, halibut are fished, and canoes and baskets made.
#IndigenousSTEM
🧪⚒️🍎🐡
A beaded hat pin of a Robin in side profile, with lots of orange red beads making up the breast of this chubby robin, and grey and black beads for its back.
April 20, 2025 at 5:29 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Great to catch up with friends who helped us learn about camas to start our Swinomish Camas Project!
Each presented our own projects at Cascadia Prairie Oak Partnership conf.
I gifted them my daughter’s book “The Enormous Camas” whose idea came on first trip with them in 2019.
🧪🐡🍎⚒️ #IndigenousSTEM
3 people holding up hardback copies of the Enormous Camas book arm in arm with me.
April 17, 2025 at 3:59 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Tulips in my planting bed getting ready to show all their colors!
Many Skagit Valley fields are either well into bloom or nearly there.
big pink tulips in a tulip bed, many open flowers in foreground and many budding flowers in background
April 10, 2025 at 7:46 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
waqwaqus, is the Moon When Frog Talks. It is when the pacific tree frogs come out and chorus the beginning of spring!

This Swinomish 13 Moon is a time of herring, smelt, and halibut fishing as well as gathering the first nettle shoots for food. 🧪🐡⚒️🍎 #IndigenousSTEM
A pacific tree tree made of beads. you looking at the frog head on. It is beaded with shades of light green body and shades of cream and white for underbelly with golden eyes.
March 22, 2025 at 4:57 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Spring is coming!
single blooming daffodil in a plot of many green bulb leaves.
March 12, 2025 at 3:50 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
The paper on our indigenous science work at Swinomish has just arrived in the published book "Indigenous Critical Reflections on Traditional Ecological Knowledge"!

Thanks @ecohugger.bsky.social for getting this published! & thanks @kjrm.bsky.social for helping with all the work!
#IndigenousSTEM 🧪⚒️🍎
a hand holding up the paperback book, "Indigenous Critical Reflections on Traditional Ecological Knowledge". on the cover is an eagle silhouette in white in front of a starry background and above green stylized flower leaves and yellow flowers with red petals. first page of table of contents of "Indigenous Critical Reflections on Traditional Ecological Knowledge" book. Chapter 6 is titled: Swinomish Place-based Science, Culture, and Environmental Education: An Indigenous Approach to Environmental and Resource Issues, By Todd A. Mitchell swəlítub, Page 86. Indigenous Critical Reflections on Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Edited by Lara A. Jacobs. "Indigenous Peoples have shared values, but we live them out in ways that reflect the places where our Tribes emerged as People and the communities in which we live. Jacobs has created a touchstone in these collected essays and reflections from Indigenous Peoples throughout the so-called Americas and beyond, giving voice to the various ways we live out relationships, reciprocity, and responsibility. I will return to these words again and again, and so will you." -PATTY KRAWEC, author of Becoming Kin: An Indigenous Call to Unforgetting the Past and Reimagining Our Future With more than 50 contributors, this book offers important perspectives by Indigenous Peoples on TEK and Indigenous value systems. The book aims to educate and inspire readers about the importance of decolonizing how Indigenous Knowledges are considered and used outside of Native communities. By including the work of Indigenous storytellers, poets, and scholars from around the globe, Jacobs and chapter authors effectively explore the Indigenous value systems—relationships, reciprocity, and responsibility—that are fundamental to Indigenous Knowledge systems and cultures. Indigenous languages and positionality statements are featured for each of the contributors to frame their cultural and geographical background and to allow each Indigenous voice to lead discussions and contribute critical discourse to the literature on Indigenous Knowledges and value systems. By creating space for each of these individual voices, this volume challenges colonial extraction norms and highlights the importance of decolonial methods in understanding and protecting Indigenous Knowledges. This is an essential resource for students, academics, members of Tribal, state, and federal governments, Indigenous communities, and non-Indigenous allies as well as a valuable addition to environmental and Indigenous studies collections.
February 25, 2025 at 9:13 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
📣We have a new paper out on our work developing a wetland rating system that incorporates Tribal cultural values and functions to create a more robust and culturally relevant wetland rating system.
🌿 Congrats to all my co-authors who have worked on this project! 🧪🍎🐡⚒️ #IndigenousSTEM
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Native strawberry white flowers cluster surrounded by its strawberry leaves.
February 21, 2025 at 6:39 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Happy 3rd birthday to Pesto aka Smols!

He got a pack of 100 toy springs!

May he not lose them like the old original pack of 20 that are nowhere to be found in the house.
#IndigenousSTEM
A mostly white bi-color ragdoll cat with blue eyes, pink nose, and brown ears looking at camera seated next to a clear bag package of multi-colored springs (green, yellow, blues, and pink), with each spring about 1 inch diameter and 2 inches long, like short sections of spirals from spiral bound printed documents.
February 17, 2025 at 10:58 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
səxʷpupuhigᵂəd (suhw-POO-POO-ee-gwud),
Moon of the Windy Time,
2nd moon of the Swinomish 13 Moons cycle.

A time to hunt water fowl, elk, and deer; make tools and baskets like those made from ironwood.

Cloud & Wind hat pin beaded by forest.valley.craft! #IndigenousSTEM 🐡🍎⚒️🧪
February 16, 2025 at 10:24 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Great day at Swinomish DEP’s Between Two Worlds (BTW) Indigenous Science class screening and discussing the MARCH POINT movie done by Tribal youth and former LaConner High students Nick Clark, Cody Cayou, and Travis Tom in 2005-2008 as part of Native Lens. (1/3)(redo w/pix)🧪🍎⚒️🐡 #IndigenousSTEM
Swinomish Tribal youth filmmakers Cody ( behind camera), Travis, Nick and Todd on a beach, holding clam forks on a sunny day in summer. Selfie with Swinomish Indigenous science teachers Todd and Jen Willup wearing beaded lanyards with school IDs and standing in front of a whiteboard.
February 8, 2025 at 1:58 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
170 yrs ago our ancestors signed away most of their land but reserved the rights to continue harvesting natural resources in ceded lands. Times after Treaty of Point Elliott marked changes to our way of life but our resource protection and storytelling traditions are well alive. #IndigenousSTEM 🐡🍎🧪⚒️
Author standing in front of many children seated with back to camera and on the floor of school gym. Photo Via LaConner School District FB, https://www.facebook.com/share/p/15ohYjWQ57/
January 23, 2025 at 6:20 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
The Return of Science Facts just in time for the inauguration!
Started in 2020 during COVID and waned for a bit, it’s re-installed by the busy-ish sidewalk in our front yard with quick facts about nature, geology, chemistry, indigenous science, astronomy, plants, etc. #IndigenousSTEM 🧪🍎⚒️🐡
A pedestal like sign holding a sheet of paper in a frame. it’s by a sidewalk and walkway to a house. Walkway is lined by short Hebe bushes covered in Xmas lights. House has Xmas lights on front steps and stoop. Close up of Science fact of the day with a gray and white cat face graphic. Sheet says, Cats typically have 24 whiskers on their muzzle and also some on eyebrows, chin, and forepaws. A pink handwritten post-it note says, the return of (almost daily) science facts! Enjoy 😃
January 20, 2025 at 2:12 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
pədx̌aʔx̌aʔ - Moon of the Sacred Time, the last and beginning moon of the Swinomish 13 Moons cycle; a time to reflect, recharge your spirituality, and plan for the next year. This moon encompasses, Xmas, New Year's, and my Bday!!
My hat pin beaded by forest.valley.craft! #IndigenousSTEM 🐡🍎⚒️🧪
Northwest coast salish style circular beaded moon mask face image made in hat pin. Beads are mostly in white with eyes, eyebrows in black, nose and rounded O mouth in red. Inner circular ring in black, with 13 light blue arcs representing 13 Moon next, more white, then a final ring of silver beads.
January 19, 2025 at 2:55 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Please pass the word!

We are hiring an Environmental Grants Administrator!

This position will coordinate and administer grants for the Swinomish Department of Environmental Protection.

Full job description:
tr.ee/bWEMMwmpgQ

More details in ALT text.

#IndigenousSTEM 🧪⚒️🍎🐡
WE ARE HIRING! Environmental Grants Administrator. KEY RESPONSIBILITIES: • Administration of 30+ funding sources. • Act as a liaison between project proponents, grant program officers, funding agencies and Tribal finance department. • Assist with grant renewals, amendments, and reporting. • Research grant opportunities and assist in grant applications. Coordinate and administer all grant functions for the Department, managing 30+ grants/accounts funding environmental programs. SALARY: $30.29 - $35.67 . TO APPLY VISIT: https://www.swinomish-nsn.gov/human-resources . Full job description: https://tr.ee/bWEMMwmpgQ . 💲$30.29 - $35.67/hour, depending on qualifications 📅 Priority review begins on January 20th, 2025, open until filled. 📝 To apply, fill out a Swinomish Employment Application - visit www.swinomish-nsn.gov/human-resources . 📧 Submit application, resume, and cover letter to hr@swinomish.nsn.us .
January 7, 2025 at 4:06 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
What happens to pencil thin green onions that you forget and turn slimy in the fridge then you plant them in the garden?

They just get bigger (and unslimy)!

A lot bigger.

#IndigenousSTEM
A narrow green onion held in a hand with the onion about the thickness of a grocery store carrot when they are usually pencil wide.
January 5, 2025 at 11:52 PM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Soft cat paws but also quite pokey in bits.
#IndigenousSTEM
close up of two cat paws in all white fur
December 31, 2024 at 5:00 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
#ThankYouJimmyCarter RIP, Mr. President
#IndigenousSTEM
A dozen peanuts in shell in a brown paper dish.
December 30, 2024 at 3:32 AM
tasmitchell.bsky.social
Another great time giving out the 3 new children’s illustrated books at the Swinomish Community Dinner this week! They are authored by 3 generations of the Mitchell family! 🧪🐡🍎⚒️ #IndigenousSTEM
Authors Todd Mitchell and Anneka Mitchell standing by a table with the following books spread out on it and book announcement poster behind on easels: First Salmon Ceremony story was written by the late Ray Mitchell, with artwork by Jeannette Quintasket. Time of Salmonberries was written by Todd Mitchell, with art by Roger Fernandes. Enormous Camas was written by Anneka V.R. Mitchell, with art by Roger Fernandes. also , table has a black table cloth printed with DEP’s logo of a coast salish salmon art by Swinomish carver/artist Kevin Paul with logo text “Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, Department of Environmental Protection”. Easels are on par of basketball court under a rim in the Swinomish Gym and an inflatable Santa and penguin in the background as part of the Swinomish Community dinner! mmm, ham, turkey, and elk stew was served, yummy ! Graphic and text flyer announcing the book distribution and short synopses of each book along with each cover’s picture
December 20, 2024 at 2:37 AM