After years of collaboration between our Indigenous Lands Program and local collaborators, we are proud to be concluding the first phase of the County Road 39 Traditional Harvest Project in Southwest Colorado. 

While we are working to continue and expand this project regionally, the first phase focused on riparian restoration and planting of native species along 3 private easements of the Mancos River.

There’s a certain magic in serving others… especially when what you’re serving is Ben & Jerry’s ice cream on National Free Cone Day!

Stories of hope and adversity have echoed through the livelihoods of Indigenous voices for time immemorial. There are times for humilIty during a storm and times for resilience. Those stories show us when to have humility and when to have resilience.

Regina Lopez-Whiteskunk is a rockstar for Indigenous sovereignty, environmental justice, and gender equity and inclusion. She has been at the forefront of these initiatives in the southwest and has represented her Tribe as an everyday leader and previous member of the Tribal Council. A member of the Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, Regina grew up in southwest Colorado.

What is Indigenous sovereignty? The Merriam-Webster online dictionary tells us that indigenous sovereignty is “supreme power especially over a body politic,” or “freedom from external control.” But in practice, Indigenous sovereignty means much more than that, and means different things to different people.