Indigenous Communities

In the Western U.S., extreme wildfires are damaging tribal lands. Climate change has only made the situation more dire. That’s why the Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California is working to reintroduce intentional, cultural fire. These are once-banned burning practices they use to restore the health of their forests and plants.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has a new plan to strengthen its collaboration with tribes and help them build more sustainable food systems.

Last week, Our Living Lands highlighted the challenge of living without electricity. Now, hear from Navajo families who are getting power for the first time through a life-changing mutual aid program.

A new report reveals Indigenous-owned businesses contribute more than $46 billion to the U.S. economy each year. A lot of that activity is happening in the Western U.S.

Nationwide, nearly 17,000 homes on tribal lands still need electricity hook-ups. A majority of them are spread across the Navajo Nation, where climate change is making it harder for families to keep cool. In recent years, however, a mutual aid program has been helping change lives.

The U.S. Forest Service is spending another $20 million to remove flammable underbrush and logs from forests to reduce wildfire risk. Some of the funding will be used to turn that chopped timber into firewood for Indigenous families in parts of the Mountain West to heat their homes.

The National Park Service this month issued a first-ever director’s order to strengthen its consultation with tribes in the Mountain West and beyond.

More than 70 tribal leaders have endorsed the Harris-Walz presidential campaign, including several tribes in Nevada.

A group of Indigenous community members walked roughly seven miles in memoriam of a massacre that took place where a lithium mine is under construction north of Winnemucca on Saturday. KUNR’s Lucia Starbuck was invited to join and document the journey.

A new federal investigation has found nearly 1,000 Native American children died while attending boarding schools created to strip them of their culture. The report, commissioned by Interior Secretary Deb Haaland, calls on the government to apologize.