Indigenous Governance Database
Economic and Community Development
Council of Energy Resource Tribes Enters $3 Billion Biofuels and Bioenergy Agreement
The Council of Energy Resource Tribes (CERT), an Inter-Tribal organization comprised of 54 U.S. tribes and four First Nation Treaty Tribes of Canada, has entered into a long-term development agreement for up to $3 billion in biofuels and bioenergy projects, states a CERT press release...
Fond du Lac Band touts economic power
The Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa poured more than $300 million into the regional economy in 2011 – and, despite its two casinos, less than half of its economic impact was from tourism. That’s according to a study by the Bureau of Business and Economic Research at the University of…
Moapa Solar Farm Enters $1.6 Billion Deal to Power Los Angeles Homes
The Los Angeles City Council has approved a 25-year, $1.6 billion deal to buy power from a solar plant on the Moapa River Reservation, reported the Las Vegas Review-Journal.The 350-megawatt farm will be the first commercial-grade solar project on tribal land in the U.S. The Interior Department fast…
Training Program Grooms Tribal Member To Succeed Pascua Yaqui Casino Del Sol CEO
Seven years ago, 30-year gaming veteran Wendell Long (Choctaw) assumed the helm at Pascua Yaqui Casino Del Sol in Tucson, Arizona as its chief executive officer. At the time, only about half of the staff was comprised of tribal members. “We implemented a management succession program to increase…
Gardens Flourish on Pine Ridge
John Yellow Hawk’s garden is one of many new feeders of Pine Ridge Indian Reservation’s developing economy. This past year, Yellow Hawk and 20 other Oglala gardeners each received a $1,000 loan and a $2,000 grant from Citigroup via Lakota Funds, a 26-year-old Native community development financial…
Business loans aim to boost Native American entrepreneurship
Even though the city of Bemidji is surrounded by three Indian reservations, there have been few Native American-owned businesses in town. Now, a Red Lake tribal member has opened a new restaurant. It's believed to be the first American Indian-owned restaurant in the city. Owner Marv Hanson tapped…
Indigenous Data + Open Governments
Presentations at the "Indigenous Data + Open Governments: 3rd International Open Data Conference" in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, featuring: "Developments in Indigenous Data Sovereignty: Insights from the United States & Aotearoa NZ." by Desi Rodriguez-Lonebear "Cheyenne River Voices." by Eileen…
Rebuilding The Tigua Nation
The Tigua Indians of Ysleta del Sur Pueblo in Ysleta, Texas produced this 16-minute film in 2013 to demonstrate how a Native American tribe can work hard with business skills and tribal customs to shape a prosperous future through education for all levels of the Tigua Nation.
Build Our Nation Convention
A local television news program chronicles the effort of the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe to deliberate potential changes to its constitution and system of governance.
The Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development and its Application to Canadian Aboriginal Business
This lecture is part of a course Stephen Cornell is teaching in Simon Fraser University's Executive MBA in Aboriginal Business and Leadership program. A panel of three joined Dr. Cornell in a discussion about the building of First Nation economies and the role citizen entrepreneurship can play in…
The 2013 Narrm Oration: Taiaiake Alfred
The 2013 Narrm Oration, "Being and becoming Indigenous: Resurgence against contemporary colonialism", was delivered by Professor Taiaiake Alfred on 28 November. Professor Alfred is the founding Director of the Indigenous Governance Program at the University of Victoria in British Columbia, Canada.…
SEEDocs - Owe'neh Bupingeh Preservation Plan and Rehabilitation Project
Re-creating a more vital Pueblo center and reinvigorating cultural heritage traditions through the rehabilitation of the historic Pueblo core was this project's focus. The Pueblo core is the spiritual, social and cultural center of the Pueblo. Community members were trained in traditional building…
Building a More Sustainable Future on Cheyenne River
This brief video showcases five of Four Bands Community Fund's loan clients who have used their loan proceeds to advance green and social entrepreneur concepts on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation.
Indian Pride: Episode 108: Economic Development
This episode of the "Indian Pride" television series, aired in 2007, explores the economic development efforts of selected Native nations cross Indian Country. It also features an interview with Lance Morgan, CEO of the Winnebago Trib'es Ho-Chunk, Inc., who provides an overview of the evolution of…
Membertou: Accountable to the Community
Leaders of Membertou First nation explain how a high level of accountability to citizens and partners has been key to its success in both governance and business.
Four Bands Community Fund
As a nonprofit organization and a Native community development financial institution (CDFI) certified by the U.S. Treasury, Four Bands Community Fund continuously strives to achieve its mission of creating economic opportunity by helping people build strong and sustainable small businesses and…
Cherokee Nation's Kawi Café offers small business training
The Cherokee Nation’s Kawi Café is now serving up its signature Cherokee blend coffee in downtown Tahlequah, while giving budding entrepreneurs firsthand experience running their own business. A ribbon-cutting was held Thursday at the café, which the Cherokee Nation opened last month in a 1,096-…
Cobell Settlement Land Buy-Back Program
In January 2014, the University of Arizona Native Peoples Technical Assistance Office and the Indigenous Peoples Law & Policy Program co-hosted a conference in Tucson on the Cobell Settlement Land Buy-Back Program. This conference detailed the history of allotted lands, the current status of…
2015 NCAI State of Indian Nations
During the annual State of Indian Nations address, NCAI President Brian Cladoosby, chairman of the Swinomish Nation, called on Congress and the Obama Administration to follow through on a policy action plan to improve economic opportunity, education, and innovation in Indian Country and for the…
Ramona Band of Cahuilla
Chairman Manuel Hamilton discusses his tribe's endeavors to become self-sustaining.