From the Culture of Aloha, a Path Out of Gun Violence
Beneath mainstream culture runs a current of domination, individualism, and exclusion that is harming our children. We assume this is normal—but is it really?
Native rights
Why I Returned My Queen Elizabeth Medal of Honor
A letter to Canada’s Governor General explains why Maude Barlow–together with Idle No More–are speaking out against the country’s new environmental rules.
Ta’Kaiya Blaney on First Nations: “We’re Awake and We’re Standing Up”
Video: She’s only 11 years old, but she’s already been working for environmental justice for a few years now. Here, she addresses the crowd at an Idle No More event in British Columbia.
Indigenous Women Take the Lead in Idle No More
Motivated by ancient traditions of female leadership as well as their need for improved legal rights, First Nations women are stepping to the forefront of the Idle No More movement.
“Flash Mob Prayer Circle” Shows Idle No More’s Spiritual Side
Speakers at an Idle No More event in Seattle drew comparisons between spiritual and political struggles, making the movement seem closer to Civil Rights than Occupy.
Welcome to Blockadia!
The corporate push to construct tar-sands pipelines is transforming the environmental movement across North America by increasing the involvement of local residents and normalizing the use of direct action.
In Rural Mexico, Student-Led Education Heals Old Wounds
Unitierra has no classrooms, no teachers, and no formal curriculum. Yet the school has successfully helped local people learn practical skills for years.
Idle No More Rises to Defend Ancestral Lands—and the Planet
Bill McKibben on the tradition of environmental activism he’s seen among members of First Nations, and the unique role of the Idle No More movement in the fight against climate change.
Why First Nations Movement Is Our Best Chance for Clean Land and Water
In an urgent pursuit for environmental justice and basic human rights, First Nations gather across North America under the banner of Idle No More.
Idle No More: Indigenous Uprising Sweeps North America
Idle No More has organized the largest mass mobilizations of indigenous people in recent history. What sparked it off and what’s coming next?
A Mall of America Flash Mob for First Nations’ Rights
Hundreds of supporters of the Idle No More movement performed a Round Dance flash mob, one of many similar actions around the world to fight for indigenous land rights.
Should Chiapas Farmers Suffer for California’s Carbon?
A California proposal would offset the state’s climate-altering emissions by paying for forest conservation in Chiapas. Could there be unintended consequences in a region with a history of human rights abuse and land grabs?
Traditional Foods Help Remind Us Who We Are
Tribes are pursuing a hands-on approach to finding and preparing Native foods that give spiritual sustenance, too.
Same-Sex Marriage Brings Healing to Me—and My Tribe
Heather Purser set out to win gay marriage rights within the Suquamish Tribe and found herself on a personal journey toward self-acceptance.
Henry Red Cloud: Solar Warrior for Native America
Bringing renewable energy and jobs to reservations.
The Healing of Wild Horses: Our Truths Come From Tenure on This Land
On the Trail of Tears, we walked from one history into more difficult times, and by the time we reached Indian Territory, Oklahoma, none of our ponies remained.
All in the Ohana
How Hawaiians embrace the land, its abundance, and their responsibility to each other.
Western Showdown: Saving the Klamath River
How the tribes of the Klamath stood up for the salmon—and won.
Ancient Traditions Keep Desert Waters Flowing
New Mexico's acequias—communal irrigation canals—still function as a tool to preserve and share scarce desert water.
Ecuador Offers a Half-Off Climate Swap
The ITT oil fields, located within Ecuador's Yasuní National Park, have become the center of an experiment that could bring equity and human rights into the climate equation.
Evo Morales: Indigenous Power
Evo Morales, Bolivia's first indigenous
president, is forwarding a socially just agenda that promotes
the country's sovereignty and
multiculturalism.
Surviving Hard Times: It’s not for sissies
Hopi and Iroquois prophecies draw on long
cultural memories, offering practical approaches to surviving
hard times.
Bringing Back Desert Springs
The Hopi people of the Black Mesa region know how to farm and thrive in the desert Southwest. But a giant coal company is draining the aquifer that feeds their sacred springs and makes their livelihood possible.
Tom Goldtooth: In the Native Way
For a sundancer and bundle-keeper in the Dakota tradition, the world and the spirit are identical.
Wild Rice Moon
The ancient, wild rice-centered culture of Minnesota's Anishinaabeg people confronts cultivated "wild" rice.
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