Stewards of the Southwest 2025 Recap
On March 4-6, within the ancestral homelands of the Mescalero Apache Tribe, Trees, Water & People had the privilege of co-hosting the 2025 New Mexico Tribal Forest & Fire Summit. The gathering brought together nearly 200 Tribal foresters, natural resource experts, hydrologists, community leaders, and representatives from NGOs, state and federal agencies, academic institutions, and conservation businesses to focus on successes, futures, and associated challenges for Indigenous-led conservation.
The summit took place amidst unprecedented funding cuts, travel freezes, grant rollbacks, and a general hum of uncertainty about where the future of forest protection is headed.
But when the road ahead is uncertain, we are called to gather.
