DZIDZILALICH WAY, SEATTLE — Muckleshoot’s ties to the Seattle Waterfront received eminent recognition last month when Gov. Jay Inslee, King County Executive Dow Constantine, Seattle Mayor Bruce Harrell and other dignitaries joined Tribal leaders to celebrate the grand opening of the Seattle Aquarium’s Pavilion.

The Muckleshoot Indian Tribe partnered with the Seattle Aquarium and the new Ocean Pavilion in part to recognize the Tribe’s history with the land on which the facility was built.

“This partnership reflects the Muckleshoot Tribe’s deep connection to the Seattle waterfront where our ancestors celebrated the return of the salmon since time immemorial, as well as our support of the Aquarium’s cultural and science education programs, and our shared mission to inspire conservation in our marine environment," said Muckleshoot Tribal Council Chair Jaison Elkins.

Elkins opened his address to the gathered throng of elected officials, civic leaders and the public with a strong reminder about history and the ground on which they all stood.

“I want to welcome you all to the ancestral homelands of the Muckleshoot people,” Elkins said.

“Not a lot of people know the true story of this land. So we're constantly just trying to educate people about the importance of protecting it.”

The Seattle Aquarium points out that the Coast Salish people have stewarded the lands and waters of the Pacific Northwest for more than 10,000 years and continue to do so today.

It wants to honor its location in this revered space and our ongoing collaboration with Coast Salish peoples as it reimagines its role as a 21st-century aquarium.

Co-creation with members of the Indigenous community has guided the Ocean Pavilion project for years, according to the Aquarium’s website. That collaboration is evident in and around the new building with displays of paddles made by Indigenous carvers from the Pacific Northwest, Alaska, Samoa and the Indo-Pacific symbolizing the universal connection between people and the ocean. It also features Native plantings on the rooftop patio designed with guidance from Muckleshoot traditional ecological knowledge-keeper Valerie Segrest and an installation by Lummi glass artist Daniel Joseph Friday at the entrance.

“You guys have been very intentional and working with the indigenous people so we can make sure we get these things right from day one,” Elkins said. “We appreciate that partnership and that work to connect the downtown area to the waterfront. We're going to be able to inspire and educate millions of people from all over the world.”

Following Elkin’s speech, Muckleshoot Indian Shaker Church Bishop Dennis Anderson Sn. invoked hope for the future through prayer and song. He concluded by highlighting what’s at stake.

“Water is life,” Anderson said. “Climate change is changing everything that we have here, our pharmacy, our medicines, our food, our clothing, all that we lived on…It's our water. We have to protect it, all of us here have to protect Mother Earth.”

Watch a video about the partnership at WeAreMuckleshoot.org.