White Earth Land Recovery Project CI Report – Final

What has been most instrumenta to your progress?

Communication has been the most instrumental aspect for the Upper Midwest Indigenous Seed Keepers Network. One of our partners, Dan Cornelius, our Intertribal Ag Technical assistant has provided us use of conference call numbers. It’s essential for our network, which consists of community leaders from over 14 tribes in the Upper Midwest region (MN, WI, IA, ND, MI) to communicate on a regular basis. We have monthly conference calls to exchange ideas to strengthen indigenous seed sovereignty efforts. We also gathered in person at the Indigenous Farming Conference March 4-7, 2018. Keeping good communication with all of the partners lets us know how everything is going at each individual community as well as the general strengths and needs of all the communities.

The Native American Food Sovereignty Initiative, Seed Savers Exchange, Museums, and Universities (Michigan), are working together to bring the Indigenous Seed Keeping effort to the national scale and rematriate these seed back home to the tribes where they were from.

We host four 2-day seed workshops in each of the native communities per year. This is an essential part of the ‘train the trainers’ seed keeping program. We hire nationally acclaimed native seed keeping educators such as Rowen White and Terrylynn Brandt as well as plant breeders Frank Kutka and Walter Goldstein, local presenters, storytellers, native chefs, and requested guests. The agenda is made with people from each community with project advisor, mohawk seed keeper Rowen White and provide essential seed saving basics, stories, and information the communities are seeking to help form their individual seed sovereignty projects and seed banks. After the training, we provide the community with necessary training materials to host continued workshops and gatherings. We also have room in the agenda for discussion on the successes and challenges.

In the 2017/2018 year we have identified Jessika Greendeer from Ho Chunk as a seed keeping leader in the Upper Midwest Region. She has been growing out her family’s corn and attended many of Rowen White’s seed saving trainings. Jessika is a great educator and is very passionate about the work.

The three school garden managers from three reservation schools (Pine Point, Naytahwaush, and Circle of Life Academy) on the White Earth Reservation has provided positive weekly gardening programs at each elementary school locations. Each garden manager is hired to manage both the gardens at the school and to get 10 kids out to the gardens each week for a few hours. The garden managers are using the Anishinaabe nutrition curriculum created by our staff. This 13-month seasonal curriculum is focused on youth from 4-12 that are in each of these three schools. The youth in the schools learn about eating healthy, and culturally seasonal food.

The 13 Moons Anishinaabe Nutrition Curriculum has been published by WELRP by April 2018. The protocol of the curriculum was discussed at the Indigenous Farming Conference in March 2018. Together, we co-wrote a protocol for non-native educators as well as native educator whom need help with language to get the cultural support they need with the tribal community they are working with. This enables more people including SNAP Educators to use this culturally appropriate curriculum in native communities as well as connect with community members.

Key lessons learned

I have learned patience listening to all of the many people involved in our project. It is not a sole responsibility to direct this project, but always takes a coordination and circle discussion. I bring decisions to be made to our monthly phone calls or group emails. I listen to everyone and when writing up a decision, I’ll send this back to the group so they can sign off on it, as I do not want to misrepresent anyone. There hasn’t been a case where I have misrepresented the group or individuals in a negative way, but I am sensitive and careful not to do this. As program manager, I have a lot of responsibility to be a voice for the group, and I have an Advisor, Rowen White whom I go to with advise on how to handle specific situations. I have managed the Indigenous Farming Conference for the last four years with over 300 members. I find that the conference is formed from listening to core individuals who are invested and using those ideas to collectively work together.

In the summer months, I manage up to 10 people as part of this project which was difficult at times but through working together we got through.

Reflections on the community innovation process

Collaborative has been the most important element in our work. We work with over 14 tribal nations and communities and supporting each other is an essential aspect of the success of this work. I am proud of our group and all of our successes. I believe it has to do with our ability to speak about our work with confidence and ask for help when needed. There has been much ancestral agricultural knowledge lost during the colonization period, and many native individuals are in a healing process. Working with plants and seeds is healing work and we find it relatively easy to remain rooted and positive with each other and our work. It makes me happy to see the collaborative efforts of our work grow and witness the eagerness to learn from each other. It is a strong point in our Indigenous Seed Network that will last for generations to come.

Other key elements of Community Innovation

An element that is not mentioned that has contributed to our progress is how we conduct our meetings and gatherings. We have a protocol around the seeds as well as a general protocol for our gatherings. We smudge and have an opening and closing circle. This is the way that our group of native communities gather up and honor the earth, wind, fire, air, creator and all beings. There is a connection to these parts of life that make our group and our work stronger. Our intention is to be connected to the earth and to help heal the earth as we heal ourselves, and grow good nutritious food, while restoring old seeds grown for thousands of years. Because our work has to do so much with seeds and life, there is a great mystery behind all we do and we collectively appreciate that mystery individually and together.

Progress toward an innovation

We are closer now to a more sovereign seed system in the Upper Midwest Indigenous Seed Keeping community because we have pooled our resources, worked with elders, youth and community members from 14 tribes. Our shared experience and resource is much more valuable together than separate. Connecting individuals and programming has been the key to making our initiative a success. May people were inspired by Mohawk seed keeper, Rowen White having the opportunity to come to their tribe, see their garden, sit down and visit as well as provide useful information to help save their seeds from both a scientific and indigenous background as well as strategies for long term stewardship.

What it will take to reach an innovation?

N/A

What’s next?

We will be continuing the Upper Midwest Indigenous Seed Keepers Network with one of our strongest partners, Dream of Wild Health (DOWH). There are a number of reasons why they are the best candidate to carry this work forth including being centrally located, having capacity for bringing this work to the next level which includes cooking with nutrient-dense traditional foods, continued seed rematriation projects and providing food sovereignty economic sustainability models for tribes in the region. Diane Wilson, the ED of DOWH has a wonderful process and vision for the seed work in the area and works well with all of out partnered tribes. White Earth Land Recovery Project will continue to manage the Indigenous Farming Conference, White Earth Seed program, and house the 13 moons Anishinaabe Nutrition Curriculum.

If you could do it all over again…

There would be a lot of things I would tell myself. I was a little shy in the beginning of the project. I would tell myself that there was nothing to be afraid of earlier on and could have possibly gotten some more things accomplished in the first few months. I was trying to gain everyone’s trust in the beginning because I am not native, and think that is important too. We are now getting in touch with more Anishinaabe tribes from Michigan and Nationally. I think this extension could have been made earlier on as well. These Michigan tribes will now be able to benefit from our newly made Anishinaabe nutrition curriculum as well as attend our traveling 2-day seed workshops.

One last thought

Thank you for this opportunity. This project has made such a positive impact on not only the individuals and community members of the 14 tribes, but the seeds and plants themselves.