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After two dark years, the Gathering of Nations Powwow returns as an in-person event. That follows the successful completion of Denver March last month, and the Crow Fair last July. The events and the many others that are planned are a force of optimism even as coronavirus cases continue to climb in certain places. We’ll celebrate the celebrations and calculate the lingering risks as people head back to the powwow trail.

 

GUESTS

Dennis Bowen (Seneca), Gathering of Nations emcee

Whitney Rencountre (Crow Creek Sioux), co-founder of the Social Distance Powwow and the associate director of the Indian University of North America

Derek Matthews, founder and director of Gathering of Nations

Chenoa Scippio (Dine and Santa Clara Pueblo), co-president of Kiva Club

Alicia Gallegos (Acoma, Laguna, and Dine), secretary of Kiva Club

Break Music: Pow Wow Song #7 (song) Red Lake Singers (artist) Old Times (album)

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During the nomination hearings for Department of Interior Secretary a year ago, Deb Haaland was labeled a “radical” by some of her conservative opponents. At the same time, Indigenous people looked to the Laguna Pueblo citizen as a long overdue symbol of Native representation at the highest levels of federal government. Now that she has a one-year track record in office, we’ll discuss her progress on the issues that many Native people track. Those issues include oil leases on public lands, solving cases of missing and murdered Indigenous women, and tribal consultation.

GUESTS

Pauly Denetclaw (Diné) – political correspondent for Indian Country Today

Dr. Laura Harjo (Muscogee Creek Nation) – associate professor in Native American studies at OU and an affiliated faculty in the University of Oklahoma’s regional and city planning program

Amber Torres (Walker River Paiute) – tribal chairman of the Walker River Paiute Tribe

Break music: Coming In “Tewa” Song (song) Sidney Poolheco (artist) Heartfelt Songs (album)

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Native Americans are less likely to have reliable access to adequate wastewater systems than any other population in the country. Not only is that a health threat for individual Native people, it also poses significant environmental concerns. Tribes with resources can develop sophisticated treatment networks. Some individuals are able to maintain home treatment systems. There are many others who fall through the cracks. But there is hope on the horizon with new infrastructure money and recognition that addressing the wastewater gap is necessary.

 

GUESTS

David Harvey, deputy director of the Indian Health Service Division of Sanitation Facilities Construction

Rex Kontz (Navajo), deputy general manager at Navajo Tribal Utilities Authority

Ronson Chee (Navajo), founder and principal engineer of Riley Engineering

Break Music: Navajo Waltz (song) Jonah Littlesunday (artist) Gratitude (album)

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The FBI is seeking leads into those responsible for spray painting graffiti over petroglyphs on Bureau of Land Management land near Santa Fe. In January, vandals destroyed rock art in Texas’ Big Bend National Park dating back thousands of years. They’re the latest in an ongoing stream of vandalism on sacred and important Native treasures around the country. We explore what drives people to disrespect irreplaceable Native items and what can be done to prevent it.

 

GUESTS

Reno Franklin (Pomo), chairman of the Kashia Band of Pomo Indians and member of the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation

Monty Bengochia (Paiute), tribal historic preservation officer for the Bishop Paiute Tribe

Linea Sundstrom, chair of the conservation and preservation committee for the American Rock Art Research Association

Break Music: Stick Game Song #9 (song) Judy Trejo (artist) Stick Game Songs of the Paiute (album)

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New Mexico is the latest state to allow recreational cannabis sales to the public, setting up a potential new revenue stream for that state’s tribes. The trouble is, New Mexico tribes are in a precarious limbo between the new state law, and the federal government, which considers cannabis an illegal Schedule 1 controlled substance. We check in with tribes on the possibility of new economic development and hear from others that are veterans of the business.

 

GUESTS

Shaun Griswold (Laguna/Zuni/Jemez), senior reporter for Source New Mexico

James Bucaro (Iipay Nation of Santa Ysabel), general manager for Santa Ysabel Botanical Facility

Jeremy Wilson (Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians), government affairs liaison for Principal Chief Richard Sneed and chairman of Qualla Enterprises

Break Music: Ideal Dub (song) Casper Loma Da-Wa (artist) Honor the People (album)

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Modern medicine relies heavily on pharmaceutical remedies for many mental health disorders like depression and anxiety. But there is some evidence that traditional ceremony and cultural connections can also provide a measure of healing. There is hope that adherence to traditional methods might be part of a regimen to improve the outsized representation of Native people for outcomes such as suicide and substance abuse. They may even be linked to improving some physical health maladies.

GUESTS

Dr. Joseph Gone (A’aniiih Gros Ventre), professor of anthropology and global health & social medicine at Harvard University, clinical community psychologist, and president of the Society of Indian Psychologists

Dr. Melissa Lewis (Cherokee), assistant professor at University of Missouri

Jonathan Tsosie (Navajo), first year UNM medical student

Break music: Intertribal (song) Tha Tribe (artist) Woodland Groove (album)

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Spring often fuels the impulse to plant seeds in the ground and create a garden. Veteran Native gardeners have taken steps throughout the winter to prepare for the start of the growing season. There’s room at the vegetable patch for gardeners of all levels. And traditional knowledge has guidance on the right methods for your region.

 

GUESTS

Addie Lucero, seed keeper, traditional farmer, and small business owner

Sterling Johnson, farm manager and a mentor at the Ajo Center for Sustainable Agriculture

Break music: Blackbird Song (song) Emma Francisco, Frances Manuel, Joaquin Garcia & Lorenzo Pablo (artist) Tohono O’odham

 

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Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 56:28 — 25.9MB) | Embed

Building effective systems where people live and work takes planning. And the Colonial-based planning methods that grew from a viewpoint of dispossessing Native people might not be the best starting point for sustainable and evolving Native places. We take a look at Indigenous community planning ideas and discuss the importance of including Indigenous voices and knowledge when it comes to making places that welcome Native people.

 

GUESTS

Dr. Lyana Patrick (Stellat’en), assistant professor and faculty member in Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University

Chelsey Begay (Navajo), the program coordinator for the Indigenous Design and Planning Institute at the University of New Mexico and a grad student in the community and regional planning program

Moises Gonzales (Genízero), associate dean at the University of New Mexico’s School of Architecture and Planning

Vidal Gonzales (Santa Clara Pueblo and Isleta Pueblo), graduate student in the Community & Regional Planning Program at the University of New Mexico with a concentration in Indigenous planning

Break music: Dance for the People (song) Warscout (artist) Scouts (album)