Tribal Administration Handbook: A Guide for Native Nations in the United States ed. by Rebecca M. Webster and Joseph Bauerkemper (review)

Reviewed by: Tribal Administration Handbook: A Guide for Native Nations in the United States ed. by Rebecca M. Webster and Joseph Bauerkemper Traci L. Morris (bio) Tribal Administration Handbook: A Guide for Native Nations in the United States edited by Rebecca M. Webster and Joseph Bauerkemper Michigan State University Press, 2022 PUBLISHED IN 2022, the Tribal Administration Handbook is a sorely needed book for understanding the practicalities of tribal administration. Indian Country should applaud the editors and authors for using a tribally driven participa-tory approach. While aimed at various audiences, the book remains cohesive and accessible to most readers, despite being an edited volume. The volume is divided into three sections: "Tribal Management," "Funding and Delivery of Core Services," and "Sovereign Tribes Engaging Settler Governments." Each section includes authors who are practitioners and academics, many of whom are culturally embedded tribal citizens. As an academic and executive director of an applied policy institute working directly with tribes, I found the practitioner chapters particularly useful and recommended the book to several colleagues at the university while I was completing this review. While the utility of the authors' insights are applicable in many tribal contexts, it would have been beneficial to see this volume reach beyond authors in the Northwest and Midwest to diversify tribal perspectives and experiences. That said, the book is accessible, practical, usable, and generallyjargon-free. Each section's purpose, method, and objectives are clearly delineated, and the "Practitioner Perspective" section at the end of each chapter is easily applicable to real-world practitioners. The book's first part, "Tribal Management," provides excellent insight, but the third part, "Sovereign Tribes Engaging Settler Governments," could have been an excellent first section with a framework for understanding the importance of sovereignty, the legislative process, the federal budget process, and the intergovernmental and state relationship processes—all of which are useful for delineating the boundaries to which Native nations are subject. With those parameters in mind, the other chapters become practical guides for the structure and growth of tribal governments. In the first part, "Tribal Management," most chapters were very insightful regarding managing a tribe, including the chapters "Authorizing Environment," End Page 120 "Strategic Management," "Project Management," and "Tribal Government Human Resources." In addition, each of these chapters includes roadmaps that a tribal employee or tribal enterprise employee could use for structuring their work. Problematically, in the first part, a chapter by Laural Ballew states that the "theory of leadership is foundational and place-based in connection to each tribal nation. Tribal beliefs and principles are held up by oral traditions for most tribes, and the leadership skills of tradition and practice are fundamental qualifications for their leadership" (56). The author privileges more culturally intact tribes. What if a leader stepped up but was from an urban location? Should they not be eligible for a leadership role? Given that at least 70 percent of Native Americans live in urban areas, should they be deemed unfit for leadership? This chapter provoked more questions than answers. Part 2, "Funding and Delivery of Core Services," can serve as an excellent roadmap for tribal leadership. In particular, the chapters "Tribal Finance," "Building Tribal Economies through Economic Development," "Community Wellness," and "Tribal Natural Resources" delineate useful topics, procedures, and definitions; they provide concrete recommendations for practitioners and tribal leaders. The two chapters on finance and economies should be required reading for everyone working in a tribal government context. The chapter on wellness reads as a community practitioner or leader's guide with an excellent overview of tribal health systems and funding. The solutions section is instrumental. The chapter "Human Services" by Katie Johnston-Goodstar, Carey B. Waubanascum, and Donald Eubanks presents a very academic perspective, as some of the language may be inaccessible to practitioners unfamiliar with academic discourse on decolonization. Additionally, while criticism of human services being too Western-aligned may be accurate, it is essential to remember that these services are often tied to federal and state funding, which is not always flexible and provided by understaffed service departments. Overall, this book is an excellent resource and should be required reading for practitioners, academics, tribal leaders, elected officials, and graduate students. The book would...