Indigenous Governance Database
Governance
Native nations and the rise of self-governance
The unmistakable resurgence of Native nations within the United States this past 40 years is often credited simply to self-governance. While certainly true as far as it goes, the progression from subjugation and the despair of a disenfranchised people to today’s Native governments, is one of the…
20 Pounds? Not Too Bad, for an Extinct Fish
For most fishermen, a 20-pound trout is a trophy, but for Paiute tribe members and fish biologists here the one Matt Ceccarelli caught was a victory. That Lahontan cutthroat trout he caught last year, a remnant of a strain that is possibly the largest native trout in North America, is the first…
Economy, distrust complicate allocation of tribal settlement money
When the Obama administration announced in April that it would pay 41 tribes some $1 billion to settle a lawsuit over federal mismanagement of trust funds, many saw it as a sort of stimulus package for Indian Country -- a chance to invest in long-term development and infrastructure, such as schools…
Rebuilding Native Nations Builds Leadership
The late Hopi leader Thomas Banyacya once said, “Do not look outside yourself for a leader.” That’s good advice for those with inherent leadership qualities. Now the Native Nations Institute for Leadership, Management, and Policy at the University of Arizona is offering an in-depth program to help…
Navigating VAWA's New Tribal Court Jurisdictional Provision
President Obama signed into law the reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA), a federal statute that addresses domestic violence and other crimes against women. As initially conceived in 1994, VAWA created new federal crimes and sanctions to fill in gaps, provided training for…
Tribal Strength Through Economic Diversification
The potential impacts of Internet gaming legalization was a major topic at last month’s National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA) convention. Another critical topic, not surprisingly, was economic diversification and Tribes’ ability to pursue and manage the process of planning for change.…
Rebuilding Native Nations: Strategies for Governance and Development
Based on two decades of research, the Native Nations Institute (NNI) at the University of Arizona has worked hard to develop a curriculum for tribal leaders that can assist tribes in achieving true economic self-determination. The essays in Rebuilding Native Nations, published in 2007, are the…
Unlikely Alliances
In the 2010s, new “unlikely alliances” of Native peoples and their rural white neighbors are standing strong against fossil fuel and mining projects. In the Great Plains, grassroots coalitions of Native peoples and white ranchers and farmers (including the aptly named “Cowboy and Indian Alliance”)…
A 'historic day' at pueblo
Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar called it a “historic day” as he signed regulations at Sandia Pueblo on Thursday morning that will allow the tribe to lease land without federal approval. The pueblo is only the second tribe in the country to take advantage of a law, called the HEARTH Act (Helping…
Mohawk Council of Akwesasne and Federal Bridge Corporation Limited Sign Memorandum of Understanding for North Channel Bridge
The Mohawk Council of Akwesasne (MCA) announced that it has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Federal Bridge Corporation Limited (FBCL) for a new bridge that will cross the North Channel of the St. Lawrence River between Kawehnoke (Cornwall Island) and the City of Cornwall.…
Dayton signs tribal consultation executive order
With the White Earth Nation flag and tribal and state representatives standing behind him, Gov. Mark Dayton signed an executive order Thursday directing state agencies to develop policies to guide them when working with tribal nations...
American Indian tribe OKs same-sex marriage, lets gay couple wed
The head of an American Indian tribe in Michigan signed a law approving same-sex marriage on Friday, joining at least two other tribes nationwide in doing so, then immediately wed a gay couple who had been together for 30 years but never thought they would see this day come...
The Pueblo of Sandia's leasing regulations and what businesses need to do to enter into leases
The Pueblo of Sandia ("Pueblo") was the first tribe in New Mexico, and the second in the United States, to receive approval by the Secretary of the Interior for its tribal leasing regulations promulgated under the Helping Expedite and Advance Responsible Tribal Homeownership ("HEARTH") Act…
Advancing the State-Tribal Consultation Mandate
This summer, in the face of an impending private land sale of Pe’Sla, a Lakota/Dakota/Nakota Indian sacred site in the Black Hills, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, S. James Anaya, directed that authorities in South Dakota “engage in a process of…
Two Spirit/LGBT Rights Toolkit for Tribal Governments Introduced
A first-of-its-kind guide complete with sample legal language is now available for tribal governments to adopt or amend their laws to recognize the rights of all their citizens, including Two Spirit and lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people...
Colville Tribes Manage Wolves With Own Program
As controversy rages over the killing of the Wedge wolf pack in Washington State, the Confederated Tribes of the Colville Reservation are quietly managing one of the state’s eight remaining packs, with a second one possibly to be identified come spring, the pup-birthing season...
Successful Tribes Are Reshaping Governance
American Indian communities are often offered up as the gold standard of dysfunction in America. With our high rates of entrenched poverty, we top the lists of addiction, suicide and other social ills. It’s platitude that, frankly, gets tiring to hear. We in the media like to describe the best and…
Hatching Success: Ak-Chin Indian Community's Industrial Park Home to Only Egg Producer in Arizona
Finally, an answer to that age-old question: “Why did the chicken cross the road?” To get to the Ak-Chin Indian Community’s Industrial Park–the site of Hickman’s Family Farms with enough hens to generate 4.3 million eggs per day. In 2002, the egg producer built a ranch at the Ak-Chin Industrial…
Potawatomi Tribes Receive $4.2 Million Children's Health Grant
Three Potawatomi tribes in Michigan have received a grant of almost $4.2 million from the federal government to help promote children’s wellness through a five-year Project LAUNCH program. The federally-recognized Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi, Pokagon Band of Potawatomi and Gun Lake…
A new Native American village based on tradition helps a Tribe reclaim its sustainable roots
The Ohkay Owingeh Tribe and Pueblo in New Mexico has returned to its roots with an award-winning, mixed-income housing project based on traditional Native forms. It's an exciting and inspiring project. Built by the Ohkay Owingeh Housing Authority explicitly as an alternative to sprawl-type housing…