Tallequah, Okla.-Preserva-tion of Cherokee heritage comes in a wide array of forms. There are Cherokee Nation preservationists in areas like language, which is spoken and written.

There are song and dance traditionalists, and master artisans devoted to traditional Cherokee arts like carving, pottery and basket weaving. One of the other most popular and highly participatory efforts to preserve heritage has been food preservation through the Cherokee Nation seed bank program.

The effort, led by Senior Director of Environmental Resources Pat Gwin, is something almost any Cherokees nationwide c...