Tribal Natural Resources News

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Native American tribes around the West are making critical decisions regarding the management of their resources — land, water, fossil fuels and renewable resources. The Tribal Natural Resources Desk aims to produce objective reporting to tell stories of tribes empowering themselves through stewardship and decision-making around their resources.
Learning lessons from one Hopi dry farmer on his last day in the cornfield
Gary Tso reflects on three decades of Hopi dry farming his mother's corn and the spiritual lessons that come with living his faith on a single-acre field at the bottom of Second Mesa.
Hand-roasting Pima 60-Day Corn is hard and expensive, but essential to preserve heirloom products
Hand-roasting Pima 60-Day Corn is hard, but essential to preserve heirloom products
Ramona Farms, one of Indian Country’s leading commercial Native-owned farms, is safeguarding their community’s culinary heritage of heirloom products made with one of the world's fastest growing corns through commerce on the Gila River Indian Reservation.
Red Shawl Day on Nov. 19 honors missing and murdered Indigenous people
Each November 19th is recognized as Red Shawl Day, a national annual observance to bring attention violence committed against Indigenous peoples, particularly women and children.
Flagstaff workshop explores past, present and future of Navajo homeland
Flagstaff Public Library is hosting a free writing workshop on Saturday, Nov. 18, from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. It’s an interactive seminar exploring the past, present, and future of Dinétah, the homeland of the Navajo Nation.
Whats the future of tribal lands? A panel conversation
Gabriel Pietrorazio, KJZZ's tribal natural resources reporter, moderated a panel discussion on "Food, Water and the Future of Tribal Lands" on Wednesday, Nov. 29 in Tempe.
A Hopi farmer is using ancient practices to grow crops — with no irrigation
In the West, ongoing drought and drier future are forcing us all to think about how we use water differently. One farmer up in northern Arizona is using ancient practices to grow food.
Native veterans honored at Heard Museums national memorial
The 11th annual American Indian Veteran Sunset Tribute at the Heard Museum on Saturday was a night brimming with uniquely Native sounds emanating from downtown Phoenix.
Navajo Code Talker chosen as grand marshal for Phoenix Veterans Day Parade
Although there are more than 140,000 Native veterans are still living today, only three of them are Navajo Code Talkers. One of them, Thomas Begay, was selected as a grand marshal for the 2023 Phoenix Veterans Parade.
How Pascua Yaquis in Guadalupe honor deceased on Día de Muertos
A pair of religious holidays, including an ancient celebration of death and life, occurred last week among faithful Pascua Yaquis in the town of Guadalupe.
Apache Stronghold welcomes faith groups to save Oak Flat through prayer
The fate of Oak Flat, a holy site to the Apaches, remains uncertain after the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals recently heard the Apache Stronghold’s case after a prior ruling against them.
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Yaquis of Vista del Camino celebrate half a century in south Scottsdale
This weekend commemorates a milestone for the Penjamo neighborhood that had been home to many laborers who worked on the Salt River Project canal system around the turn of the 20th century.
This Native American teen was honored by the White House
Arcadia High School senior Gabriella Nakai was the only Indigenous young woman among 15 honorees nationwide at last month's White House Gender Policy Council celebration where she had the chance to meet First Lady Jill Biden.
Indian Health Service awards $200K grant to buy Native childrens books for Arizona clinics
10 medical centers in Arizona from downtown Phoenix to the Four Corners will give families a chance to read books written and illustrated by Indigenous peoples during check-ups and well-child visits.
An ASU students frightening story is featured in new Indigenous dark fiction anthology
Anishinaabe author Amber Blaeser-Wardzala's short story, titled “Collections,” bookends her time in the Creative Writing program at Arizona State University.
Guy Fieri picks fry bread to represent the Arizona Cardinals in new NFL T-shirt collection
The James Beard Award-winning Fry Bread House in Phoenix weighs in on Fieri's hand-picked graphic tee design for the Valley's professional football franchise.
DOT disburses $1.6M in road safety funding for 2 tribal communities
The Safe Streets and Roads for All program has disbursed federal funding to the Navajo Nation and Hualapai Tribe. And Arizona's six grantees have been collectively allocated more than $3.1 million in federal funding through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.
Navajo pro bull rider and Apache dance group shine in Glendale
Desert Diamond Arena was the home of Ridge Rider Days, a weekend-long professional bull riding competition that ended earlier this month. It was also an Indigenous showcase featuring a Navajo athlete and an Apache youth dance group.
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NATIVE HEALTH becomes 1st IHS facility to receive voter registration agency status in U.S.
Several high-profile local and federal guests arrived, including Arizona Secretary of State Adrian Fontes, who came to present a proclamation to the urban Native clinic during its annual open house and health fair on Saturday.
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From killer to caretaker: How and why Charles Jesse Jones brought buffalo to the Kaibab Plateau
The American buffalo was almost slaughtered into extinction in the 1800s before one of their biggest hunters turned caretaker and revived the species in Arizona. Hear the story of "Buffalo" Jones.
A conversation with Ken Burns on The American Buffalo
Documentary filmmaker Ken Burns discusses his latest PBS project, "The American Buffalo," with KJZZ News in an in-depth conversation about this iconic species and the Indigenous communities that share a traumatically intertwined history spanning hundreds of generations on this continent.
The Grand Canyon is struggling to control its buffalo population. Tribes are stepping up to help
Tribes from Arizona and beyond — all of whom are indelibly connected to these iconic symbols of the West — are helping sustainably manage the state’s oldest and largest free-ranging buffalo herd on the North Rim of the Grand Canyon.
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