The Cherokee Preservation Foundation in Cherokee, North Carolina, has announced grants totaling $4.1 million to organizations working in the areas of cultural preservation, economic development, job creation, and environmental conservation.

The latest round of grants from the foundation includes awards to the Cherokee Chamber of Commerce, to help establish a fly-fishing museum; the Cherokee Youth Council, in support of leadership training opportunities, leadership development activities, and regional youth council development; and the Blue Ridge Resource Conservation and Development Council, to help restore a three-acre tract of river cane (the lone genus of bamboo in North America) along the Cane River.

Grants also were awarded to the Sequoyah Fund, to help capitalize its revolving loan fund and meet the increased demand from business startups in the Qualla Boundary region and western North Carolina; the Junaluska Memorial Site Museum, to help produce an archaeological report on the historic Fort Montgomery location in Graham County and digitize historical documents and materials as well as interviews with local residents; and the EBCI Economic & Community Development Office, in support of a plan to revitalize a local cultural district and gather input from the larger Cherokee community on a plan of action for the space.

Established in 2000 as part of the Second Amendment to the Tribal-State Compact between the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and North Carolina, the Cherokee Preservation Foundation is funded by gaming revenues generated by the tribe.