This thesis involves a study of the attitudes of the children of the Dene Tha' of Chateh, Alberta toward their natural and social environment as determined by their exposure to traditional subsistence activities and to traditional knowledge in the form of storytelling or Native American spirituality. Conservationism and communitarianism are at the center of the relationships of the Dene Tha' to nature and people and are defined as positive attitudes towards nature shown by the efficient use of natural resources and preservation and towards the community based on cooperation and reciprocity. The study found that the greater the exposure children have to traditional knowledge the more conservationism and communitarianism they demonstrate as measured by maps of their community (see Traditional Land-Use and Occupancy Study , Arctic Institute). Finally, an ambivalence theory is proposed as a model for understanding contradictory characteristics of the Dene Tha', with implications for other Subarctic populations.