"The older populations are definitely a smaller percentage of our population compared to middle age and much younger generations," Sims says. "As we lose elders, we also lose speakers and the cultural knowledge that they hold. It's really a race against time as to how much younger generations will be able to pick up in terms of language, but also then being able to acquire the things that come with that cultural knowledge. I like to call it cultural literacy. What is it that they learn in terms of the use of the languages within the settings of their homes and communities? That's what we stand to lose if we lose our elders."