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The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is ready to assist tribes as part of its response to Tropical Storm Hilary.

According to FEMA, Hilary hit more than 60 tribes in three states – California, Arizona, and Nevada.

Kelbie Kennedy is FEMA’s National Tribal Affairs Advocate.

“We’re currently working with FEMA region 9 in coordination with tribal nations. There’s a lot of rain, landslides, mudslides many impacts coming from the tropical storm that we’re making sure we’re being connected with tribal leadership and keep an eye out in case they have requests for assistance at this time.”

Kennedy says way before the tropical storm, tribes have been working with the agency on disaster preparedness plans.

“We’re constantly working with tribal nations even on blue sky days outside of disasters to make sure that we are supportive of their priorities on how they want to build their emergency management departments and that could be anything from building up training and exercises, building up different plans like their emergency operations plans, mitigation plans and really making sure that Indian Country is fully prepared by the time we get to an active disaster like what’s happening right now.”

Post-Hilary, Kennedy advises tribal nations and tribal citizens to continue to listen for local alerts, not to drive through water logged areas, keep food and water on hand, and check in on neighbors including elders.

“I know the goal of so many tribal leaders is to make sure anybody in your community, Native or not, is safe during a disaster and so anything we can do at FEMA to help support tribal nations in that effort we’re more than happy to do that to make sure everyone is safe.”

As of Monday afternoon, Kennedy says there were inquiries from tribal leaders, but there were no official requests for assistance.

Minnesota saw a record 5.7 million people visit food shelves last year.

While there’s still concern about households not having enough to eat, new community-level solutions are taking shape, thanks to pandemic aid.

One tribe was able to boost its bison program.

Minnesota received nearly $14 million in American Rescue Plan funding to assist hunger relief efforts.

The grants went to food shelves, meal programs, SNAP outreach, and tribal nations.

The Grand Portage Band of Lake Superior Chippewa used its grant to accelerate its bison ranch.

Program administrator Jared Swader says being a food desert, they stocked up on products to hand out right away. But they also saw long-term opportunities.

“We’ve had a bison project in the works for about 10 to 15 years but there was no bison on land – it’s just all kind of in the planning phases. Well, with this funding we were able to buy some of the last minute things – get some hay on board and get some equipment and things like that.”

They now have bison for the ranch, and Swader says they plan to secure additional resources for reproduction. He says that would establish food sources for years to come, without having to worry as much about costs and other barriers in buying food in bulk.

This story is provided by the Minnesota News Connection

Nuch’ishtunt, which means “the place protected from wind” and is otherwise known as Point Woronzof in the Anchorage, Alaska area, is being celebrated this month for its long history as a summer salmon fish camp for the Dena’ina.

Hannah Bissett from our flagship station KNBA has more.

The Nuchishtunt was of a specific importance for the Knik, Łajat, Niteh, Idlughet (Eklutna) and more, because the camp was a large part of the winter food supply.

During the early and mid-20th century, the Dena’ina harvested salmon at Nuch’ishtunt with more modernized methods of set gill nets for both commercial and subsistence purposes.

Then in the 1950s, federal authorities closed the site to commercial fishing, causing Dena’ina families to move their camps.

Nuch’ishtunts’ newest name comes from Lt. Joseph Whidbey.

A member from the 1794 expedition to Cook Inlet, although he never stepped foot on Alaska.

The celebration of history is supported by the Indigenous Place Names Project, and is part four of a 32-part project to bring Dena’ina names and history back into Anchorage.

The project is provided by the Anchorage Assembly, Rasmuson Foundation, Atwood Foundation, CIRI, CIRI Foundation, Anchorage Museum, Anchorage Park Foundation, and U.S. Fish Wildlife Service.

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Many Guatemalans are still celebrating the presidential victory of Bernardo Arévalo, the once-unlikely reform candidate who won a commanding 57% of the vote.

He received substantial support among Indigenous voters, who make up at least 40% of Guatemalans.

Maria Martin reports.

Traditional fireworks rang into the night in Indigenous communities throughout Guatemala to celebrate the resounding victory of Movimiento Semilla (Seed Movement)’s Arévalo.

Arévalo had surprised everyone when he came in second-place in June’s first round elections for the runoff.

He had campaigned in heavily Indigenous areas, calling for an end to centuries of racism and marginalization of the Maya and other Indigenous and ethnic groups.

Arévalo’s runoff election rival, former First Lady Sandra Torres, has a strong political machine in heavily Indigenous states like Huehuetenango, San Marcos, and Quiche.

Recent polls showed Torres would win rural areas, but the vote was close with Arévalo.

Indigenous leaders and organizations have been among the most vocal sectors of Guatemalan society against corruption – the hallmark of Arévalo’s campaign.

Groups of spiritual elders sent messages via social media Sunday to voters and to Guatemala.

Indigenous chefs are racking up prestigious awards for their cooking.

But this wasn’t always the case – and there’s still room to grow.

Now, these chefs are working to share their cuisine while highlighting their history.

KUNC’s Emma VandenEinde reports.

Chef Sean Sherman (Oglala Lakota) says the absence of Native restaurants resulted from many wrongdoings by the federal government.

Bison were killed at alarming rates.

Federal boarding schools stripped Indigenous peoples of their culture and forcing them onto resource-poor reservations put them in a systemic trap. 

He says they haven’t had time to heal yet, let alone evolve.

“The more you dig into it, the more inequality you see in the more racist structures that you can see that are still built into the system.”

Chef Andrea Murdoch (Indigenous Andean) wants to shed light on this through her cooking.

She’s made food for several fundraising dinners that focus on issues like missing and murdered Indigenous relatives and Indian boarding school trauma.

“Yes, I’m a chef, but I’m using that platform to bring awareness to cultural issues.”

This summer, she helped with Denver EATSS, hosted by the American Indian College Fund.

It raises tens of millions of dollars each year for Indigenous students to attend tribal colleges.

Cheryl Crazy Bull (Sicangu Lakota), the college fund’s CEO, loves hosting the event.

“Events like this for me are that opportunity for us to showcase the kinds of things that we as Native people contribute to society.”

The dinner portion featured Indigenous chefs preparing dishes with pre-colonial ingredients, like a hen of the woods mushroom soup or a three sisters hors d’oeuvre. 

Ben Jacobs (Osage), the co-founder and chef of Tocabe American Indian Eatery in Denver, also cooked for the event.

With each dish, he tries to tell a story and make food for people, not for a profit.

“The point is being able to provide people food that’s meaningful and not worry about, ‘At the end of the day, I’m only here to make money,’ because we’re not. We’re here to make impact.”

Murdoch wants to do the same. By cooking at events like this, she hopes to uplift the cuisine and causes of her community while inviting others into the discovery.

“Food is a common necessity, one of the few common necessities that everybody needs, no matter what. Like, we need it for survival. So why not have a conversation about where your food came from?”

Listen to part one of Emma’s report

 

The Lummi Nation in Washington state says it’s saddened by the death of Tokitae.

The orca died in captivity at the Miami Seaquarium last week.

In a statement, the Lummi Nation says it stands in solidarity with Lummi members working to bring her home and will now begin talking about what’s next.

Listen to Tokitae singing the song her mother from L-Pod taught her, recorded in the early 1990s in Miami

 

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Indigenous college students face many obstacles in higher education, including overwhelming costs and not feeling culturally connected on campus.

But those behind a Wisconsin project say another barrier is not having support in seeking financial aid.

Mike Moen reports.

The University of Wisconsin–Madison’s Student Success Through Applied Research – or S-STAR Lab – is using a $500,000 foundational grant to create a “one-stop-shop” for Indigenous students to find scholarship programs and other forms of financial relief specifically geared to them.

Project co-leader Gresham Collom says the searchable database seeks to create more awareness that slipped by him when he was a college student.

“I’m a first descendent member of the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Tribe, which means I’m not a formally enrolled member and a lot of these scholarship policies are based on formal enrollment in a federally recognized tribe. ”

But he later found out when his sister was enrolling that there were a handful of schools in the US with free tuition programs for first descendent Natives.

Collom says as more states add scholarship and grant initiatives, these individuals need up-to-date information.

Collom hopes the effort compels more higher education institutions to expand opportunities and update policies, which he adds can go beyond traditional financial aid.

“A lot of Indigenous students come from low-income areas where they have Pell Grant funding and what I would like to see is a lot of these programs expand their offerings to cover costs like childcare, health care, basic cost of living.”

He says those “wrap around” issues often get in the way of Indigenous students advancing their college careers.

Collom predicts the database will not only be web-friendly, but mobile-friendly too, knowing that many Native students come from tribal areas with limited access to high-speed internet.

Support for this reporting was provided by Lumina Foundation.

The Barbie doll has been getting much attention with the release last month of the Barbie movie.

In Alaska, mother Angela Gonzalez and daughter Ermelina of Anchorage, posted their doll titled, “Fish Camp Barbie” on social media, which features an Athabascan Barbie doll dressed in traditional clothing.

It’s gained thousands of views.

KNOM’s Ava White reports.

The iconic slogan of Barbie, “you can be anything,” is brought to life in a culturally rich way.

In this scene, a Barbie doll proudly wears a vibrant hot pink kuspuk, complemented by a beaded necklace, stylish moosehide cuffs, and headband.

Positioned on a nearby table is a fish made from salmon skin, aligned with beadwork.

Barbie is holding an Ulu, ready to skillfully prepare the fish.

All clothing was handmade by Ermelina Gonzalez.

Angela Gonzalez’ family’s fish camp was located along the Koyukuk River, where her family frequented when she was a young girl.

She has played with Barbies since she was a little kid and says her grandmother used to make accessories for her dolls.

“All the dolls would have their little ulus, and we would have a little fish camp scene with fish racks and leaves. Leaves from willows would be our little fish.”

Angela Gonzalez explains the importance of sharing culture towards younger generations and why it’s important for Alaska Native children to feel equally represented.

“I think that it’s just good that they will be able to see themselves represented, even though it’s not for the mass market or anything like that. They can be inspired to create what they want to create, you know, if they have a different way of life, maybe they can make a fishnet or a dip net, you know, just something that that can inspire them to be able to feel like they have permission to customize something that will represent themselves.”

Barbie has a reputation for embracing numerous roles, ranging from a CEO to a gymnast, a construction worker, and now, a skilled fisherwoman at a subsistence camp.

Through the innovative creation of their own Barbie scenes, Angela and Ermelina Gonzalez have succeeded in fashioning a compelling narrative focused on culture.

Their efforts serve as an inspiring testament for young girls across various Alaska Native cultures, conveying the powerful message that they too can embody the spirit of Barbie in their unique ways.

Ermelina Gonzalez is an intern at KNBA, Koahnic’s flagship station in Anchorage.

 

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A Native group is advocating for Native Hawaiian-led solutions to address the Maui wildfires.

NDN Collective along with its Native Hawaiian partners and board member are urging tourists not to travel to Maui at this time while residents work to recover.

Read NDN Collective’s Statement about the Maui Wildfires

They say there are already very limited resources.

They’re advocating for community-led rebuilding efforts to center on Indigenous knowledge and ways of life of Native Hawaiian people.

Native Hawaiian NDN Collective board member Camille Kalama says they’re mobilizing resources and support for the Native Hawaiian community and are encouraging grassroots efforts, including local mobilization and community-led solutions.

They’re also asking people to seek out vetted donation funds that are supporting immediate mutual aid efforts.

Fire has devastated their ancestral homelands, destroyed cultural and historical sites, and burned businesses and homes, displacing people and separating many who are still searching for their loved ones.

The Arizona School Boards Association has, for the first time in the organization’s 80-year history, chosen an Indigenous woman to be president to its board of directors.

Alex Gonzalez reports.

The ASBA is a nonprofit group that provides training and other services to public school governing boards across Arizona.

Desiree Fowler, a Navajo Nation tribal member, says she is committed to representing Native communities and border towns, as well as working to address the unique challenges rural and urban school districts face.

“A large percentage in Northern Arizona is going to be Navajo, so I just felt that our voices weren’t heard at the state level and I felt that it was important that we continue to advocate at the association level to be able to be transparent and, you know, just be diverse in every aspect.”

Fowler calls the new appointment a “milestone” for her and for all Native Americans as she says she is opening doors for future generations.

Fowler has served in other positions with the ASBA and adds those experiences have given her the tools and knowledge to be a “strong advocate for public schools and equitable education.”

Fowler has also served on the Page Unified School District, which borders the Navajo Nation, where 80% of the students in the community are Native American.

At the administrative and school board level, Fowler says she is the only full-blooded Native American that represents that 80%, which she calls a “sad” situation.

“But in reality, I’m the only one that lives out on the reservation. And I purposely do that, because I want to continue to make it known that we can make changes happen. We can accomplish big things.”

Fowler says when it comes to Northern Arizona and Native communities, things such as infrastructure, lack of access, and cultural differences can make getting an equitable education more challenging, but she hopes to help change that.

Ada Deer, a prominent Native leader from the Menominee Nation in Wisconsin, passed away this week.

She was a longtime advocate for Native rights who helped with Menominee federal restoration, which led to her becoming the first woman to chair the tribe.

Deer was also involved in state and national politics.

She became the first Native woman to hold the position of Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs – leading the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

In a social media post, Menominee Nation News announced her passing saying “she was a true inspiration and her legacy will continue to live on.”

She recently celebrated her 88^th birthday and was honored by Wisconsin with August 7^th as “Ada Deer Day.”

The Associated Press reports she died of natural causes.

 

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“Looks like a bomb went off there, it’s totally wiped out.”

That’s how the Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement’s CEO Kuhio Lewis describes the Maui wildfires.

Lewis says fire has destroyed Lahaina, which is significate in the history of Native Hawaiians as the capital of their kingdom where chiefs made decisions.

“What most people see as a cool tourist destination, this cool old town hangout, it has so much sacredness to it, our chiefs are buried there. This is also where we had our part of our immersion school our Hawaiian language revitalize program that has also burned. And the stories we are hearing of where families have to watch their loved ones parish right in front of them is just heart breaking. This emotional toll in addition to the cultural significance is a lot.”

Lewis has assessed the devastation firsthand in order to better help those in need.

“We’ve been very active on the ground to try and buy supplies. It’s been overwhelming from around the world people have been sending support, love, and I really feel through this we are going to get through this, that spirit of aloha that vibrancy that everyone they get to experience when they come to Hawaii will carry us forward.”

Last week, the organization launched a donation drive they’ve raised about $1.5 million from corporate donations and the community has matched funds bringing it to nearly $4 million.

“We’re going to need a lot of resources right now and these are things that FEMA might not cover, the state won’t cover. We’re already hearing families have been denied assistance from FEMA so we’re going to have to step up and fill the gap. We have containers arriving on the island to ensure people have food to eat, water to drink, clothes to wear they’ve lost everything. They don’t even have identification. They had to evacuate so quickly.” 

Lewis says it’s going to be a long recovery.

As Guatemala’s turbulent electoral campaign draws to a close with runoff elections on Sunday, Indigenous women came to that nation’s capital for a “weave-in” to protest government interference in the elections.

Maria Martin has this report.

Dozens of Maya weavers knelt on the ground while working colorful fabrics on backstrap looms and their leaders recited the message they’d all come to deliver.

“Tejemos cuidadania, tejemos democracy, y tejemos comunidad.”

“While we weave culture, we weave democracy… we weave stories… we weave hope and joy… while the justice department weaves corruption and pimps for criminals.”

Spokesperson Iris Sactic of the National Movement of Maya Weavers said the women represented more than twenty different ethnic groups are protesting actions by Guatemala’s attorney general and some judges and prosecutors who have attempted to block Movimiento Semilla (Seed Movement) party candidate Bernardo Arévalo.

Arévalo surprised everyone by coming in second in the June first-round election.

Now polls show him leading — and if he wins next Sunday, it would be the first time for a center-left government in Guatemala in more than 70 years.

And these women, like many among Guatemala’s substantial Indigenous voters, have high hopes Bernardo Arévalo will make changes to help Guatemala’s marginalized Maya communities.

 

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Indigenous people in Winnipeg are continuing to raise concerns and call on officials to search landfills for their missing and murdered relatives.

Among the Indigenous women they want found and brought home are Morgan Harris, 39, and Marcedes Myran, 26.

Police believe the women are victims of an alleged serial killer and that their remains could be in a landfill.

Two camps have been set up in efforts to keep pressure on officials and draw awareness to Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls, Two Spirit, and Gender-Diverse People.

On an August morning, firekeeper Shining Gold Star, who lives in Winnipeg, talks about Camp Marcedes, named after Marcedes Myran.

He’s been there since it was first set up in July in the city, next to the Canadian Museum For Human Rights.

“It’s to honor the missing and murdered especially the landfill, its focus is on search the landfill.”

Gold Star walks around the camp where there are a handful of tents and a camp kitchen.

Signs are posted all around – some read “we are not garbage,” “search the landfills,” and “no more stolen sisters.”

There are red handprints and art drawn on sidewalks and benches along walking paths near a river and park.

There are also a number of empty red dresses displayed, symbolizing those who’ve gone missing and murdered.

“The government does not want to look, not only are they in there, there are other people in there and they’ll have to explain things… I’ve had people come up to me with shovels from every community – black, white and blue – and they all say the same thing, we’ll do it.”

A more than 30 minute drive from Camp Marcedes is the city operated Brady landfill where distress flags fly at Camp Morgan, named after Morgan Harris.

There are also red dresses positioned around the camp, tents, a wigwam, and teepees.

Some people say they’ve been in the area since December while others like Ida Manuel, from British Columbia, felt compelled to come here this summer.

“My heart, going out to the families affected and I just had to answer that call. How could you, how could you be human any other way?”

Remains of Rebecca Contois, 24, another victim, were found at Brady last year.

A blockade at the road leading up to the landfill had previously been set up, but was dismantled.

Now, dumping continues.

“For us to stand and say we are not trash and still not be heard. You know, it really needs to be connected – Canada’s lack of respect… with colonialism set out to do to Indigenous.”

The other landfill, Prairie Green, is privately operated outside of Winnipeg.

The Manitoba government is citing costs, and health and safety concerns for not conducting a search at Prairie Green for Harris and Myran.

Advocates say they’re prepared to camp through the winter.

They’re also hoping new leadership of the province will be elected in October to offer assistance.

Last year, Jeremy Skibicki, 35 at the time, was charged for the murder of the three women and a fourth unidentified woman.

The Winnipeg Police Service are asking anyone with information about this investigation to contact the Homicide Unit at 204-986-6508.

NNN stringer Rhonda LeValdo contributed to this story. Photos taken at both camps and the Prairie Green landfill featured in slideshow:

 

Native Hawaiian organizations are accepting donations to help those being impacted by devastating wildfires on Maui.

The Council for Native Hawaiian Advancement says last week it partnered with another organization on a fundraising drive.

They started with $100,000 in matching funds, which and has since grown to more than $1.5 million.

The Native Hawaiian community is not only losing possessions, but also historic and cultural sites have been destroyed.

 

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Members of the Native American Journalists Association voted to change the organization’s name to the Indigenous Journalists Association.

The name change received a vote of 89 to 55.

Members had various opinions on whether or not to change the name.

Longtime member and KYNR radio host Roy Dick from the Yakama Nation in Washington was against the name change.

“To me, they’re trying to make it international. We’re used to what we worked for. Like myself, I’m a radio man. Everyone turns the radio on to see what I have to say, and I tell them I’m a part of NAJA. They ask me, ‘What’s NAJA?’ I say ‘Native American journalist’, and that includes radio, TV, and print. And to me that identifies us as a special group of people.”

Others, like first-year member Darla Ponace, intern from Eagle Feather News from Saskatchewan, voted to change the name.

“It thought that Indigenous was more, it included more Indigenous people from Canada, the U.S., across the ocean, so I thought it made it seem more inclusive for other indigenous people. That’s why I voted to change the name. Not to step on anyone’s heels or toes.”

The vote took place as members from the U.S. and Canada celebrated 40 years of the organization in Winnipeg last week.

The University of Oregon and the Coquille Indian Tribe are partnering up on research to reduce carbon emissions.

KLCC’s Brian Bull reports.

The UO has a five-year, $3 million grant to study ways to cut climate-changing carbon.

It’ll incorporate environmental findings, artificial intelligence, and Indigenous knowledge to help address challenges to the environment.

Jason Younker is Chief of the Coquille Tribe, as well as UO assistant vice president and an advisor on government-to-government relations for the administration.

He says it’s important for traditional ecological knowledge to be included.

“Our whole world is warming up. That’s affecting the water, it’s affecting the salmon, it’s affecting everything. And what can a small little tribe on the southern Oregon coast do to help be an example for other people?”

The National Science Foundation-funded study aims to involve more Indigenous perspectives and offers a range of carbon-cutting actions that communities can choose to carry out.

Advocates urged President Joe Biden to rapidly phase out fossil fuels and stop endorsing what they say are false climate solutions like hydrogen and carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) during a recent visit to New Mexico.

Members of the New Mexico No False Solutions coalition (NMNFS) unfurled banners that said, “Keep [it] in the Ground, and Invest in Renewables,” along Interstate 25 during the President’s stop in Belen, N.M.

Under President Biden, the Department of Energy is promoting hydrogen across the country.

New Mexico, along with other states, is seeking federal funding to build out large-scale hydrogen projects.

In June, NMNFS sent a letter to the Department of Energy urging it to reject New Mexico’s application for federal hydrogen funding, highlighting climate, environmental justice, health, and safety concerns.

NMNFS member Sofia Martinez warned that a hydrogen economy will lock in dirty fossil fuels in the state at a time when New Mexico needs to rapidly transition away from oil and gas.

“First it was nuclear, and now hydrogen is coming into New Mexico. We are tired of being the testing grounds and sacrifice zones for untested sources of energy.”

According to the group, climate-fueled disasters have had massive human and financial costs.

The group says last year alone, communities in the U.S. experienced 18 separate weather and climate disasters, causing almost $170 billion in damages and at almost 500 direct or indirect fatalities.

About 95% of hydrogen is produced using fossil fuels.

 

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The wheels of the legal system continue to grind in a lawsuit filed earlier this year by the state of Alaska, challenging whether the federal government can designate new parcels of land as Indian Country.   

Last week, Attorney General Treg Taylor (R-AK) asked the U.S. District Court of Alaska for a summary judgment in its lawsuit against the Bureau of Indian Affairs and Tlingit and Haida, the regional tribal government for Southeast Alaska.  

In January, Assistant Secretary of the Interior Bryan Newland (Ojibwe) granted Tlingit and Haida’s request to take a small parcel of land in downtown Juneau into trust.   

A.G. Taylor says Asst. Sec. Newland didn’t have the authority to do that because the 1971 Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act doesn’t allow new trust land to be created in Alaska.

The settlement created Native Corporations that were given cash and legal title to 44 million acres of land.  

And although the piece of land in question is tiny – less than 800 square feet – the state says if it remains in trust, it creates the equivalent of a reservation, which the Claims Act sought to prevent – a huge issue in a state with more than 200 tribes.  Two other tribes, Ninilchik and Fort Yukon, have land-into-trust requests pending, as well as Tlingit and Haida.  

The state’s request for a summary judgement is a pretrial motion, in which the judge can decide some issues and set others aside for later.

For now, both parties are submitting written arguments to the court.

A spokesperson for the Alaska Department of Law says there may be oral arguments at some point.       

Tlingit and Haida says putting land into trust gives it economic benefits and access to federal and tribal programs 

Earlier this month, the School for Advanced Research was awarded two grants from the Institute of Museums and Library Services (IMLS) for initiatives by SAR’s Indian Arts Research Center (IARC). 

SAR received a grant of almost $50,000 for the IARC’s project to improve the stewardship of its collection of over 12,000 items of Indigenous Southwest art and history. 

SAR also received an IMLS National Leadership Grant for Museums of approximately $175,000 for the IARC’s creation of the Indigenous Collections Care Guide.

The guide will provide museums with a framework to re-center collections stewardship practices around the needs and knowledge of Indigenous community members.

At the conclusion of the project, 175 tribal community representatives and museum professionals will have had a voice in the development of the guide, which will be made freely available for tribal community representatives and museums of all sizes.

The Bishop Paiute Tribe, which is located at the foot of the Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains in Bishop, Calif. and is the fifth largest tribe in California, is celebrating a newly installed 49 kW DC system as part of the tribe’s overall sustainable energy plan.

It seeks to improve energy efficiency for reservation residents through the addition of renewable energy resources.

The project was installed in part with funding from the California Solar on Multifamily Affordable Housing (SOMAH) Program at Coyote Mountain Apartments, an affordable housing and sober living facility.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held August 9.  

The project is the first SOMAH Program incentivized installation to be completed within a tribal reservation in the state.

The more than $180,000 system is projected to save the 24 households almost $500,000 on their energy bills over the lifetime of the system.  

California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) Commissioner John Reynolds shared his enthusiasm about the completed project.

“I congratulate the Bishop Paiute Tribe and GRID for completing the first tribal solar project under the SOMAH Program. This is exactly the kind of community-based and community-led solar project we need more of, and as the Public Utilities Commission considers ways to improve the SOMAH Program in the future, I hope we hear from tribes and organizations like the ones here today about what we can do to make sure solar reaches everyone.”

The solar project is a partnership between the Bishop Paiute Tribe Community Development Department and GRID Alternatives’ Inland Empire office.  

 

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Gov. Max A. Zuni of Izleta Pueblo in New Mexico has issued a call for action after a recent fire at a plastic storage facility near the tribal community this last weekend.

In a letter sent out to more than 16 surrounding communities, he said, “When the area was first planned, it was billed for housing, retail, and office space. Now, however, it houses industrial facilities, which impacts all of our neighbors, including the pueblo of Isleta.”

The Tribal community is located near Albuquerque.   

Gov. Zuni says the Albuquerque-Bernalillo County Air Quality Program and the Isleta Fire Department issued health advisories Sunday warning residents to remain indoors through Monday morning to avoid the hazardous pollution.

Gov. Zuni said the fire threatened the community’s health during a heat wave, leaving residents to decide whether to use their evaporative air conditioners and expose their homes to hazardous pollutants, or to suffer through the extreme temperatures.

The Pueblo is calling on local governments to take action and collaborate with the Pueblo.

The Pueblo is concerned about health impacts to people and the environment.  

The Alaska Federation of Natives (AFN) is fishing for photos to share at its convention this October and offering prizes for the ones which best reflect this year’s theme, “Our Ways of Life.”

The contest opened at the beginning of the month, and Ben Mallott, AFN’s Vice President of External Affairs, says there’s already been quite a catch.“

Mallott says the contest will help to generate interest in the convention but also has another important purpose.

“We tend to use the photos that we get throughout our convention materials. Look at our app, look at our convention guide. Hopefully we could use photos that show our ways of lives throughout all of our materials.”

Mallott says the more photos the better, so they can be used after the convention to help AFN continue to advocate for Native causes.

“AFN works in so many different arenas and so many different policy areas that sometimes having the right picture. It really brings it home.” 

AFN wants photographs that capture Alaska landscapes, hunting, fishing, families, elders, youth, regalia, and other daily activities or special events. 

So far, many of the photos capture children and elders taking part in subsistence activities.

Mallott says one his personal favorites is a snapshot of a little boy, posing alongside a freshly caught fish, making a “fish face.”  

The first prize is two roundtrip Alaska Airlines tickets, with $500 in cash for second place and $250 dollars for third.

The Alaska Travel Industry Association has created a new seat on its board, set aside for tribal representation.   

The head of the association, Jillian Simpson, says it’s not only the right thing to do, but good for business.

“I think people want to have an authentic experience, when they travel someplace. And Alaska is the only place in the world that has the living cultures of Alaska Native people.”

Camille Ferguson, a Lingít from Sitka, currently holds one of the ATIA’s 24 board seats.

She says it’s important that tourism marketing is culturally authentic, and a tribal representative would have the most expertise in that area.

“Authenticity from imagery content and video. It’s so important to have somebody who is at the table to help them.”

Ferguson worked for the American Indian Alaska Native Tourism Association based in New Mexico, where she saw how tribal representation helped the travel industry develop culturally sensitive practices.  

She says not all states collaborate with tribes, but should, not just for diversity’s sake, but to improve the overall tourism experience.  

She says until recently, the Cruise industry defined the portrayal of Southeast Alaska – limiting its focus to Alaska Natives to only Ketchikan, Russian history in Sitka, and glaciers in Juneau.

Ferguson says Alaska’s travel industry is finally coming around to recognizing the untapped potential of cultural tourism.  

The tribal seat on the ATIA board is open to members of a federally recognized tribe or an Alaska Native corporation shareholder, and should bring more involvement from tribal travel and tourism leaders.

Board elections are in September.

 

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President Joe Biden has designated the Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument.

President Biden signed a proclamation Tuesday during a visit to Arizona.

In remarks at Red Butte, a sacred Havasupai site at the southern part of the monument, President Biden said the action honors tribal nations; protects sacred places, wildlife, and water; and conserves public lands.

He reiterated his commitment to tribes.

“I made a commitment as president to prioritize (and) respect tribal sovereignty (and) self-determination; to honor the solid promise the U.S. government made to tribal nations; (and) to fulfill trust and treaty obligations. I pledge to keep using all the available authority to protect scared lands. My administration has worked alongside tribal leaders, many of you here today to keep that promise.”

President Biden says this marks the fifth new national monument he’s created and will conserve nearly one million acres of greater Grand Canyon landscape.

Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland (Laguna Pueblo) and a number of tribal leaders were at the signing ceremony.

Kodiak, Alaska’s Alutiiq Museum is publishing a coffee table book that highlights contemporary Native art.

As KMXT’s Brian Venua reports, museum staff say the book will include more than 200 pieces and feature dozens of Indigenous artists.

The Alutiiq Museum received a grant for nearly $150,000 from the Institute for Museum and Library Services to develop a book of modern Native art.

Amy Steffian is the chief curator of the Alutiiq Museum.

She says the goal is to show that Alutiiq tradition is a living culture, expressed in many different ways.

“The book looks at the contemporary art collections from the Kodiak History Museum and the Alutiiq Museum – we’re going to combine our collections to show artwork that’s been made since about the mid 1980s. That’s about when the heritage movement started, and that’s when there’s an explosion in contemporary art production.”

The hardcover book will have images of artifacts and feature essays about the art and biographies for artists.

Museum staff plan for it to be a coffee table-style book up to 300 pages thick.

The book will feature artists from Kodiak and others with Alutiiq roots.

She says they will feature both traditional pieces like baleen carvings and masks, as well as western pieces made by Indigenous artists.

“They’re quite diverse – they range from everything from skin sewing and things like weaving and carvings to more western art forms like oil paintings, for example.”

Some of the grant funding will go towards a first printing of 1,000 copies to be distributed around Kodiak for free.

Steffian says the ultimate goal is to share the book with as many people as possible.

“Our partner at the Kodiak History Museum will have a number of copies to share, we’ll give them to Tribes and corporations and schools. We also then will have a number of copies available for free public distribution if people want to come to the museum and pick one up.”

Steffian says they’ll likely print more copies to sell at their store after the first thousand are gone.

The museum will also have an e-book on their website for the public to access for free.

The grant gives the museum a deadline to complete the project within three years, but staff hope to publish in the next two.

The Native American Journalists Association is celebrating 40 years.

The organization is hosting journalists in Canada.

Among agenda items, members will vote on whether or not to change the organization’s name to the “Indigenous Journalists Association” and hold a listening session for Two-Spirit LGBTQIA+ members and community.

The conference begins Thursday in Winnipeg.

 

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