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Durant, Okla.—The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma (CNO) held a groundbreaking ceremony for the Emerging Aviation Technology Center (EATC) in October 2023. The state-of-the-art facility, located near Redden, Okla. will serve as a hub for cutting-edge research, development, testing, and evaluation for crewed and uncrewed aerial system technologies. City, state and federal officials, including Oklahoma Lt. Gov. Matt Pinnell, OAC State Director of Aeronautics Grayson Ardies, and members of the Federal Aviation Administration as w...
MI'GMAG'I, N.B.-In December, fourteen people from Mi'kmaw communities across New Brunswick became part of the inaugural cohort of Mi'gmaq Peacekeeping, Inc., an advocacy group that represents eight Mi'kmaw communities. They are now serving seven Mi'kmaw communities across New Brunswick, with the goal of providing an alternative to enforcement-based and conventional policing methods. "This is a huge milestone for these individuals and our communities," said Chief George...
COOS BAY, OREGON-In November, the Tribal Council of the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua and Siuslaw Indians passed a resolution opposing offshore wind energy development off the Oregon Coast. The resolution corresponds with the deadline for comments on the federal Bureau of Ocean Energy Management ("BOEM") two draft Wind Energy Areas ("WEAs") for development of wind energy in areas near Florence and Brookings. "The Tribe has not taken a position for offshore...
LAPWAI, Idaho-The Nez Perce Tribe's award-winning documentary, "Covenant of the Salmon People," has made such a media impact that it is now available through streaming, online, and at various PBS stations. The documentary covers the life and activities of the Nez Perce Tribe as they carry out their centuries-long promise to protect Chinook salmon, the main food source that has historically sustained the people of the tribe. The film covers the commitment the tribe has to save...
WASHINGTON, D.C.-More than 100 Native American youth attended the 2023 White House Tribal Youth Summit in early November. At the event, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced new resources to inspire Native American youth to explore Indigenous foodways and knowledge and highlight career paths at USDA and beyond. These efforts are part of USDA's commitment to empowering tribal self-determination and bringing Indigenous perspectives into agriculture, food, and...
CHICKASAW NATION, Okla.-The Chickasaw Nation is one of the first tribes to create classes to specifically help homeschooled students and those enrolled in online charger schools. The Chickasaw Nation Fit Force and STEM Home-School Academy programs are designed to engage children in sessions of invigorating physical fitness activities and immersive, hands-on problem-solving in science, technology, engineering and mathematics. Leaders point out that children can participate in...
TAHLEQUAH, Okla.-The Cherokee Nation Department of Juvenile Justice is empowering tribal youth to cope with and overcome their substance and alcohol-related use as well as other delinquent issues through a new program focusing on accountability, counseling services and supervision. The Juvenile Tribal Healing to Wellness Court program, which is located in Muskogee, recently finished their first cohort and are ready to begin the second. The program consists of a four-phase...
WASHINGTON-Gabriella Nakai said she has tackled the challenges facing Indigenous communities on her own, but that being surrounded by others who share her passion makes the load a little lighter. "Seeing all of the amazing work that all of these Native national youth leaders are doing pushes me forward and lets me know that when I am the only Native in these spaces people behind me are going to have my back," Nakai said. She was one of two Arizona "Champions for Change" – a...
On September 15–17, 2023, Indian Life Ministries held their 2023 conference in North Battleford, Saskatchewan. Cliff Bird provided keynote addresses, while Kene and Milly Jackson provided music. This particular conference was the first of its kind. The theme of the conference was "Every Story Matters . . . including Yours." Indigenous and non-Indigenous brothers and sisters in Christ shared their stories of hope and healing throughout the weekend. "The theme for the c...
WASHINGTON-On World Alzheimer's Day in September, the Indian Health Service reaffirmed its commitment to building tribal and urban Indian health system capacity to address Alzheimer's disease and related dementias by announcing $1.5 million in new cooperative agreements. The IHS Alzheimer's Grant Program 2023 awards represent a continued investment in locally developed models that incorporate comprehensive approaches to care and service for American Indian and Alaska Native...
AKWESASNE-The Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe announced that construction has started on the first tribal housing units on reacquired treaty lands-a major step forward in providing affordable housing for Mohawk families. "It has been our community's longstanding desire and Tribal Council's ongoing goal to reacquire lands within Akwesasne's land claim area for family housing," shared Tribal Chief Michael Conners at the groundbreaking. "I am filled with an immense sense of pride in...
We were so honored that so many dear friends joined us for Indian Life Ministries' annual fundraising banquet, as you've already read about in this newspaper. At the banquet, we gave a ministry report for 2023 that we'd like to share with our readers. This has been an exciting year for Indian Life Ministries. This past year, ILM enrolled 25 Indigenous believers in Emmaus correspondence discipleship courses, welcomed two new prison letter writers, sent out 72,000 copies of...
TULSA, Okla.-Oklahoma tribes, the state of Oklahoma, Indian Health Service (IHS) and communities are working together utilizing American Rescue Plan (ARPA) funds in a unified effort to improve the water infrastructure of communities within the state. These projects will help ensure the infrastructure improvements needed as part of sustainable management of water resources serving Oklahoma residents, businesses and communities. The Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma, Muscogee Nation,...
WINNIPEG, Manitoba-On October 18, Wabanakwut "Wab" Kinew was sworn in as Manitoba's 25th premier-and as the first First Nations premier of a Canadian province. During the ceremonies, Kinew also introduced his cabinet, which for the first time in Manitoba history includes two First Nations women: Nahanni Fontaine, who is the new families minister and will serve as minister responsible for gender equity and accessibility, and Bernadette Smith, the new minister of housing,...
WASHINGTON-The chairman of the Hopi tribe told a Senate panel Wednesday that promises of federal funding remain just that-promises-for smaller tribes for whom the money is inaccessible because of bureaucratic and financial hurdles. The remarks by Hopi Chairman Timothy Nuvangyaoma were part of a Senate Indian Affairs Committee roundtable on challenges tribes are facing in getting projects approved under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Inflation Reduction Act and others....
Indian Life Ministries is excited to announce two new books by Craig and LaDonna Smith now available: Indigenous Faith This is Craig Stephen Smith's newest book, in which he unpacks Scripture to help Indigenous believers discover how to live biblically healthy lives in the context of their cultures. Smith seeks to answer questions that not only Indigenous believers have, but also those asked by missionaries, pastors, educators, and others seeking to reach Indigenous people...
WASHINGTON-In mid-October, U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-Hawai'i), chairman of the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and U.S. Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska), vice chair of the Committee, announced more than $2.2 million in new fiscal year 2023 grant funding from the U.S. Department of Education to implement the Native American Language Resource Center Act, legislation led by the Senators and enacted earlier this year. "This funding will directly support educational...
LANGDON, Alb.-Indian Life Ministries is excited to announce that the Council Fire devotional book is now ready to be ordered. This is presumed to be the first 365-day devotional to be written exclusively by Indigenous followers of Jesus. A year ago, staff at ILM began to dream of a daily devotional book created solely by Indigenous writers, and the vision for Council Fire was born. The dream was revealed at the 2022 ILM annual banquet and the staff began to pray for finances...
In late October, Indian Life Ministries hosted a conference in Winnipeg for all those who support, or are interested in supporting, the outreach of ILM. The banquet was attended by 168 participants who came from Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario and Cass Lake, Minnesota. The ILM and advisors know how to do a celebration well! The program included music from Rochelle and Chris Creasy, Joel Jolly, and Kene and Milly Jackson. After inspiring music, Craig Smith stepped to...
ALBANY, N.Y.-This fall, the stadiums and playing fields will start to look different at many New York schools. Last April, the state Board of Regents adopted regulations prohibiting public schools from using names, mascots or logos inspired by Indigenous people. The mandate affects 60 public school districts A year before the mandate, at least 133 schools in 55 New York districts still had native-themed mascots, according to a report by the National Congress of American...
WASHINGTON-Three Oklahoma tribal nations will receive more than 40% of the initial $73 million in funding from a federal small business initiative that for the first time is being targeted directly to tribes. The Osage, Chickasaw and Citizen Potawatomi nations will get almost $30 million in small business funding from the State Small Business Credit Initiative, the Biden administration announced last week. The program, part of the pandemic-era American Rescue Plan, aims to...
COLVILLE LAKE, NWT-What do you do when you need to use gardens to grow food, but little soil is available? That can be a huge problem when you live on the Canadian Shield-the largest mass of exposed rock on the Earth. One Indigenous community 80 km above the Arctic Circle in the Northwest Territories, knows the problem too well. Their traditional lifestyle of fishing, hunting and trapping is flourishing, but every healthy lifestyle needs greens and other nutritions that come...
Some people think of fall days as lazy and sleepy since the air gets cooler and the sun doesn't shine as much. But our days couldn't be busier right now at Indian Life Ministries. We are so excited to let you know about a couple of updates on our 365-day devotional. The devotional will be called: Council Fire! Stories shared around the fire are such a vital, entrenched part of our Indigenous culture. Stories are passed down around the fire for teaching, for enlightenment, for... Full story
FORT MCMURRAY, AB- A First Nations group in northern Alberta has declared a state of emergency and launched a task force to tackle an escalating mental health and addictions crisis that they say has caused the deaths of dozens of community members. The Athabasca Tribal Council, which represents five First Nations in northern Alberta, says 60 community members have died this year from overdose, suicides, and self-harm. The council is calling on all levels of government for...
LANGDON, Alb.-Data is still being processed, but even before June, the summer 2023 wildfire season in Canada started breaking records-and especially affecting Indigenous communities. Wildfires are nothing new to Canadians. The statistics of a normal year are especially heart-breaking among Indigenous people. The Assembly of First Nations recently cited a report revealing that Ontario First Nations children aged 0 to 9 years are 86 times greater than non-First Nations children...
