Voices of Youth 2000 was a ten-month internship offering training for youth in northeastern Nevada in the mediums of photography, audio recording, and writing. Photography coach Bruce Hucko and oral historian Jack Loeffler trained and worked alongside eight teenagers providing them with tools to create an artful documentation of their communities and cultural heritage. This web site contains photographs and audio vignettes resulting from their work together.

All across the American West, rural communities are struggling to maintain their cultural integrity. Land management issues, development, population increases and decreases, and related economic concerns all create daily challenges.

Nestled in the mountains and valleys of the Great Basin region, the town of Elko, Nevada reflects a typical pattern of growth and decline found in many small towns in the rural West. With a land area covering over 17,000 square miles, Elko County is home to several different cultures, including ranching, mining, Native American, and Basque, among others. Each has its own traditions and lifeways that are at risk in this quickly changing world. With change at the doorstep, it is important for a community's youth to resolve questions of personal and cultural identity.

The eight teenage participants in the Western Folklife Center's Voices of Youth program visited ranches, gold mines, skateboard parks, theaters, and homes to explore these concepts of regional culture and personal identity through photography and recorded interviews. The resulting images and audio tapes together paint a portrait of Elko County and rural America in the year 2000.

The Voices of Youth program is made possible through the support of
The Nathan Cummings Foundation and
The Bretzlaff Foundation.

Voices of Youth 2000: A Traveling Exhibit from the Western Folklife Center

Program Staff:

Photography Coach - Bruce Hucko

Aural History and
Radio Production Coach - Jack Loeffler

Artistic Director - Meg Glaser

Project Coordinator - Janette Watts