August 2011

Camilla Bustamante

Sacred or secular, the sources of identity are grounded in ritual, practice and experience typically associated with ethnicity and culture. In northern New Mexico the availability of food cultivated along the upper Rio Grande is integral to the identity of place and the evolution of the Indo-Hispano and land-based people. Agriculture in this region is built on tradition, and in recent times, USDA support.

The Sostenga Center for Sustainable Food, Agriculture and Environment at Northern New Mexico College in Española is built on the premise that traditions of the northern Rio Grande define sustainable food systems. Equipped with a greenhouse, More >

The Las Conchas Fire has charred more than 16,600 acres at Santa Clara Pueblo – 80 percent of the tribe’s forests. It has destroyed about 45 percent of the the tribe’s watershed. Barriers have been set up to protect homes and infrastructure from flooding denuded land now virtually incapable of absorbing water. A large amount of ash has been detected in the Rio Grande from Santa Clara Canyon, a major attraction for visitors, with mountain ranges, lakes and sacred cultural areas. Effects to the Mexican spotted owl and the Jemez Mountain salamander may result in long-term loss of habitat for More >

Melissa K. Nelson

When I hear “red and green” in New Mexico I immediately think of that delicious combination of Hatch green chilies and red hot chilies smothered on an enchilada or tamale. It is a powerful and synergistic combination of colors, tastes, textures and temperatures. Some prefer one to the other, or one type of Chile for certain dishes. But the combination of the two creates a whole other phenomenon, kind of a holy union with emergent properties.

There is another merging happening today on a macro level that mirrors this “red and green” phenomenon. This is the confluence of the More >

Edited by Melissa K. Nelson 2008 Bear & Company

Original Instructions evokes the rich indigenous storytelling tradition in this collection of presentations gathered from the annual Bioneers conference, a meeting of some of the world’s most seminal environmentalists and social visionaries. The book depicts how the world’s Native leaders and scholars are safeguarding the Original Instructions, reminding us about gratitude, kinship, and a reverence for community and creation. Included are more than thirty contemporary indigenous leaders – such as Chief Oren Lyons, John Mohawk, Winona LaDuke and John Trudell. These beautiful, wise voices remind us where hope lies.

“…This book is a More >

William Becker

When I tell people what goes on at Zuni High School, their first response is often, “Students raise bees?” followed by, “Can I buy some honey?”

Although this is an important part of the class, it is not the defining activity; the class is so much more. I facilitate the transfer of knowledge concerning traditional Zuni farming practices. Mostly I try to teach as little as possible, while keeping these practices relevant to my students. This is accomplished by help from Zuni elders, Zuni community members and experts in select topics such as soils.

At first glance, it seems impossible that More >

Jaime K. Gaskin and Hayes Lewis

In addition to being an accredited, four-year institute of higher learning, the Institute of American Indian Arts (IAIA) is a Tribal Land Grant College as designated by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). In recent years, IAIA, through its Center for Lifelong Education (CLE), has worked to develop a strategic framework to develop its Land Grant capacity so tribes may benefit from resources and support in the areas of sustainable agricultural services, indigenous food systems development, youth leadership and community services needs. The Institute’s USDA services are led by Luke Reed, USDA Projects Manager.

Highlights More >

“I’ve been at the University of New Mexico for 15 years now, and director of Native Studies for 10 of those years. Being in touch with research going on all over the world with regard to indigenous studies, I’m able to really see some patterns starting to form in terms of the key issues.

“When you find indigenous populations in any part of the world involved in political action, generally it involves their land base, and also some sort of ecological connection. A lot of the issues revolve around land rights, and connected with that, water rights, and also human rights More >

Most everyone has heard some negatives attached to coal, the “cheap” fossil fuel that has propelled civilization’s progress since the 18th century. After all, where would we be if we hadn’t had this readily available energy source to fire the boilers for our factories, schools, homes and ships? Coal has been everywhere, from the steel mills producing the material to build those mighty ships that circled the globe, to the great iron horse – the steam engine locomotives that traversed our landscape to supply that civilization from sea to shining sea.

There was almost something oddly romantic about those smokestacks billowing More >

With support from Google’s Charitable Giving Fund at the Tides Foundation, Bioneers’ Dreaming New Mexico Project (DNM) and New Energy Economy (NEE) are collaborating on an innovative project focused on indigenous clean energy mapping. A short film will be produced detailing the Navajo Nation’s historic opportunity to act as a national and global leader in the transition to clean energy.

The Google Earth Outreach (GEO) team will assist in mapping existing renewable energy sites and then visualize the potential of solar energy on the Navajo Nation. As documented in Scientific American, the 95-square-mile area spanning the Four Corners region of New More >

Bryan Watchman

The Crownpoint Chapter House, the social and political hub of the community, now has independence from filthy coal that has polluted the land and water. Behind the chapter house, the sun’s life-giving energy is now being captured by a solar tracker.

This new technology can provide about 1,164kWh every month. It stays perpendicular to the path of the sun, and is 40 percent more efficient than solar panels that are installed on rooftops. The energy it generates is totally cost-free for the Chapter House and the two other buildings that share the property.

Unlike depending on the coal-fired power plant that More >