Looking Forward: Working the Land for Future Generations
Indigenous lands are ancestral lands. Ancestral lands are all lands.
This is an echo of the survival and resiliency of our ancestral lineage from the elders to the youth. In New Mexico there are twenty three sovereign Tribal nations that steward the land for preservation, restoration, protection, education and peace. These are the same beliefs our ancestors upheld and passed on through generations.
Solace in Return, Reverence for the Earth
Prior to the 19th century, these gentle giants roamed the Earth freely and abundantly, with population estimates ranging anywhere from 10 million to over 100 million at their peak. It’s harrowing to learn the history of how European settlers drove this species to near extinction; by 1889, only a few hundred remained.
Hope in ASOPROAJ’s Organizational Strengthening: A Path to Sustainability
The Association of Agroecological Promoters of Jalapa (ASOPROAJ), an indigenous organization of the Xinca people in Guatemala, represents a light of hope in the country's Dry Corridor, especially in the municipality of San Carlos Alzatate. Since its legal constitution in 2022, ASOPROAJ has grown to 80 promoters between men and women distributed throughout the region, there are currently 15 active members in leadership positions.
Tri-Pueblo Fencing Project Phase 1
From five thousand to ten thousand feet in elevation the landscape changes rapidly with every plant species and types of soil. Hundreds of sagebrush and cottonwoods sweep over the lower elevations, while ponderosa pines and douglas fir reach for the skies as they seem to blanket the mountainside.
Bridging Cultures: Championing Indigenous Sovereignty
It is satisfying to know that people around the world are intrigued with Indigenous Peoples and support the feats being endured. Working with Trees, Water & People (TWP), I have learned that this is one of our best and strongest virtues. We bring like-minded people to the table and our organization to move our mission and virtues forward.
Land, Water and Seeds: Millennial Heritage for Good Living
In November 2023, I had the opportunity to participate in the Gathering of Agroecological Promoters, titled "Land, Water, and Seeds: Millenary Heritage for Good Living." The event was collectively developed by a diverse group of 80 promoters representing approximately 13 indigenous communities.
Strengthening Sovereignty through Collaboration & Community
In the last two decades, wildfires have ravaged Tribal lands and its protective boundaries. As the fires were suppressed and recovery plans started to percolate, one key restoration item was never brought up - replacing and updating the pre-existing fence line.
Indigenous Peoples’ Day 2023
Trees, Water & People (TWP) was honored to co-host Fort Collins’ 2023 Indigenous People’s Day Celebration at the site of the new mural painted to honor the ancestral homelands of Arapahoe, Cheyenne, Pawnee, Lakota, Ute and other Plains and Rocky Mountain Tribes.
A Maestra Fogonera Leads a Network of Lenca Women in Honduras
At Trees Water and People (TWP) we recognize and value the fundamental role that women have historically played in agriculture, food production, and the development of their communities. To make decisions in these areas they have faced diverse challenges for the enjoyment and equality of rights for a dignified life.
Indigenous Sovereignty In Action
My last few months have been filled with exciting adventures and experiences. I was blessed to visit Central America in February, followed by a spontaneous trip to Washington DC last week. Both trips provided me with the opportunity to expand my lens in relation to what Indigenous Sovereignty means on a national and international scale.
Indigenous Sovereignty in Aldea de Suyapa, Honduras
One of Trees, Water & People 's priorities is to defend Indigenous sovereignty, where Indigenous communities have a say in any decisions that affect their land, resources, people, culture and governance.
In Honduras, the Indios Laborios de la Aldea de Suyapa are on the verge of a big win for their sovereignty, in declaring 5,000+ hectares of their communal forest a nationally registered Wildlife Reserve, to be co-managed by local communities.
What is Indigenous Sovereignty
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.