August 2023
News, Views, Events, and Actions

Dear Relatives,
 
As the hottest summer on record winds down, we at IEN turn our attention to Mother Earth’s autumnal cycles in the throes of the climate crisis, where our team have been planning and preparing for our busiest time of year to support, empower, and take action to protect Mother Earth. 


Looking forward to September, world leaders will attend the UN Secretary General’s Climate Ambition Summit in New York, meanwhile IEN staff will converge in NYC for the People’s Climate Week, September 17-24, 2023. Knowing fossil fuels - coal, oil and gas -  drive the climate crisis utilizing a destructive economic system that puts profits before people and the natural world, millions of people around the world will take to the streets to demand a rapid, just, and equitable end to fossil fuels. During the People’s Climate Week in NYC, IEN will host side discussion panels featuring representatives from frontline communities most negatively impacted by recent massive wildfires, overwhelming summer temperatures, mega storms, and hurricanes due to climate change. IEN along with our relatives from It Takes Roots will host a series of discussions and webinars at The New School during this week of action.


Moreover, down in the southern part of Turtle Island, our relatives are preparing for and already experiencing the hurricane season. After Hurricane Ida in 2021, IEN sent gear to the intertribal community and bayous of Bvlbancha, now Louisiana, setting up systems for crucial information sharing in a post-storm environment already overwhelmed by oil and gas. IEN longtime radio host, Govinda Dalton, over the summer has been preparing IEN’s media van and new mobile solar power trailer for a return to Bvlbancha to prepare in advance as an even more active 2023 Hurricane season looms.


While it might seem as though the future is one of “gloom and doom, ”positive things are indeed happening. IEN continues the work for a sustainable future through our Indigenous Just Transition Team led by IJT Coordinator Loren White (Arikara-Hidatsa-Mandan) and IJT Organizer Mary (Missy) Crowe (Eastern Band Cherokee), where they uplift real solutions that enable sustainable Native communities. They are hastily adding final touches to a robust curriculum that will educate and assist Indigenous communities to break the destructive cycle of Western forms of economic development for more traditional forms of development in accordance with our respective Original Instructions and responsibilities for protecting the sacredness and territorial integrity of Mother Earth.


As we defend our lands, waters and sky, and protect our sovereignty while putting our Traditional Indigenous Knowledge and skills into motion, we will continue to see victories like the recent Montana state court ruling in favor of youth who alleged the state had violated their right to a “clean and healthful environment” by promoting the use of fossil fuels. Nationally, it is the first ruling of its kind. See “In the News” below for more information.
 
On yet another positive note, the state of Minnesota approved a plan to set aside $900,000 over one year to assist homeowners by covering most of the cost to convert their lawns into bee-friendly habitat by planting wildflowers, clover and native grasses in an effort to slow the collapse of Minnesota’s bee population. Learn more about this project : [link removed] - along with the important work we are doing at the IEN headquarters in Bemidji, Minnesota to support our pollinator relatives at Gitigaan, IEN Teaching Garden : [link removed]. 


While it can seem the world is spinning out of control, it is spiritually and emotionally uplifting and empowering to observe that Indigenous Peoples throughout the world on a daily basis are dancing ancient dances, singing ancient songs, keeping our Original Instructions alive. Thereby, the continuous cycles unbroken, Mother Earth spinning, the web of the Universe intact and vibrating, as always.

IEN in Action

Attention Mining Impacted Communities!! Applications can now be submitted through Oct. 1, 2023
 

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If you need assistance or questions with your application, please contact WMAN’s Indigenous Caucus Coordinator, Sayokla Williams [email protected] : mailto:[email protected] or IEN’s Keep it in the Ground Mining Organizer, Talia Boyd [email protected] : mailto:[email protected] .
 

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IEN's Analysis of the Climate and Energy Provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act is NOW AVAILABLE!
The purpose of this research report is to provide an advocacy tool to Indigenous Peoples and environmental justice communities to help develop strategies, as well as to foster inquiry and information gathering regarding many of the IRA programs and funding schemes. Indigenous Peoples have recognition in the colonial legal system of Tribal Sovereignty, inherent customary rights, and Treaty reserved rights. In addition, Indigenous Peoples also have their respective Traditional Indigenous Knowledge which serves as a foundation among other things of their legal systems, inherent responsibilities to land, air and water, and the inherent relationships embodied in all of this. If unchecked, and without Free, Prior and Informed Consent, or at the very least meaningful consultation standards that are legally enforceable, much of what is in the IRA will potentially have impacts on many Indigenous Tribal interests. CLICK HERE TO READ AND DOWNLOAD : [link removed]

 

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March to End Fossil Fuels and the Climate Ambition Summit in NYC!

 

JOIN US, Sunday, September 17th. It will start at 1pm and end approximately at 4:30pm CLICK HERE TO LEARN MORE : [link removed] and bookmark this page for all the action and event updates as this all gets closer.
 
​What is the UN Climate Action Summit?
UN Secretary-General António Guterres called for a global climate action summit in New York City and the “ticket to entry” for countries will be tangible action to keep fossil fuels in the ground - in the form of policies, and not just empty declarations.
 
We're asking everyone who can to come to NYC but if it's not possible there are critical volunteer roles to make this march a success that can be done from anywhere. Sign up to volunteer here: will use text link: [link removed]: [link removed] or if you're able, donate to help fund the march.
 
For more information, to register, and all the important info for this pivotal show of solidarity during the week of actions. Join the Movement at People VS Fossil Fuels [link removed]: [link removed]
 

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We need to Stop CCS because it harms our communities!
To make a profit, corporations disproportionately poison the air, land, and water in environmental justice communities where they think they can get away with it. CO2 pipelines are the next attack– But @POTUS can STOP THEM with a#CCSMoratorium : [link removed]
 
Environmental justice isn’t just a BUZZWORD. Greedy corporations want to build CO2 pipelines in disproportionately impacted communities, poisoning their air, water and the land. It’s time for @POTUS to walk the talk and#STOPCO2PIPELINES : [link removed]
 
When corporations bring in “man camps” to build pipelines, sexual violence–especially against Indigenous women–rises as much as 70%. Time for @POTUS to put a MORATORIUM on dangerous unregulated CO2 pipelines and protect our communities! #norulesnoco2pipelines : [link removed]
 

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Don’t believe the “Hydrogen Hype”
Reject all applications for Department of Energy Regional Clean Hydrogen Hubs (H2Hubs) funding (DE- FOA-0002779) 
 
To create jobs and ensure a just and equitable transition to a sustainable economy, over 200 organizations across the country signed a letter urging DOE to reject all hydrogen hubs, and instead invest in true, community-supported, renewables like wind and solar. We should be building towards a truly just and equitable transition, that invests in community ownership of truly renewable, regenerative economies, that reduces consumption and exploitation, and protects the rights of communities globally from North to South. In doing so, DOE must secure the Free, Prior, and Informed Consent of Indigenous Peoples, end the violence of extraction-based economies, and support efforts to give #LandBack.
 
The climate crisis poses a grave threat to all life on Earth. DOE has the power to help lead a transformation to a more sustainable future. To do so, you must help phase out fossil fuels and reject false solutions like hydrogen. CLICK to READ the letter HERE : [link removed]
 

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It Takes Roots’ Strategic Meeting
From August 8–11 IEN joined members of our sister alliances from It Takes Roots for a strategic meeting in Northern California to plan, dream and conspire our shared agenda and strategies for climate week, COP28 and beyond. This four-day in-person gathering enabled our alliances to connect, affirm and solidify our strategies to build people power, intervene, and push for people-led solutions across our movement. 
 
It Takes Roots is a multiracial, multicultural, intergenerational alliance of alliances representing over 200 organizations and affiliates in over 50 states, provinces, territories and Native lands on Turtle Island; and is led by women, gender non-conforming people, people of color, Black and Indigenous Peoples.

Community Spotlight

In Solidarity with our Relatives in Maui 
The wildfires in Maui were a product of colonialism and corporate greed. We must support the community-led rebuilding efforts of the historic capital of the Kingdom of Hawai’i, Lahaina, in ways that center the leadership and vision of our Kānaka Maoli relatives.
Hawai'i People's Fund : [link removed]ā `Aikāne o Maui Cultural Center of Lahaina : [link removed]
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Bvlbancha Liberation Radio
Bvlbancha Liberation Radio is an Indigenous led, micro-grid communication and collective power building station based in Bvlbancha (New Orleans), providing Indigenous news, views, music and a community channel for environmental concerns in the greater Gulf South.


After Hurricane Ida in 2021, the Indigenous Environmental Network sent gear and an engineer down to equip our Intertribal community, from Bvlbancha and the bayous, to setup systems for crucial information sharing in a post storm environment and in case of emergency situations, supporting a clearing house for mutual aid groups while also engaging in mutual aid and cultural projects ourselves. Bvlbancha Liberation Radio has been and will continue to strategize pathways for communities to engage in and to influence our collective planetary well-being, knowing that a just and sustainable way forward is not possible unless our communities are able to reckon, repair, heal from and to prohibit the perpetuation of white supremacy mentalities, policies and practices. CLICK HERE : [link removed] to visit their website and learn more.

 

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Indigenous Presence and MMIW Advocacy Shine at Western Montana Fair
Jeannette Rankin Peace Center (JRPC) Coordinating Council members Dre Castillo and the Indigenous Environmental Network’s Indigenous Feminisms Organizer, Claire Charlo (right) checked in with All Nations before moving forward last spring to organize the dance presentations at the fair and rodeo. Last year, All Nations Health Center organized the dance presentations as well as the rodeo. This year, All Nations declined to participate. All Nations decided that they didn’t have the capacity for organizing the event which requires going to fairground planning meetings for 5-6 months before the fair.


[Claire] understood the importance of continuing to maintain an Indigenous presence at the fair.
 
“To have other Indigenous kids see other teens in regalia at the county fair and to have representation at the rodeo is important. If I didn’t say yes, we would lose around $10,000 from the bull riding event that we give to a local MMIW organization. That’s really why I said yes,” Charlo said. Read the story here : [link removed].
 

 

Community Spotlight Events
 

7 Directions of Service: Stop MVP Southgate: Impacted Communities Conference
4pm-6pm Meet & Greet Part 1: Impacted Community Members Meet & Greet with property rights experts to get all your questions answered and gain critical information and resources to navigate the steps ahead. Refreshments provided!6pm-7pm  Keynote Speaker: Jane Kleeb, known for her leadership uniting rural communities across differences to defeat the Keystone XL Pipeline; Founder & President of the Bold Alliance, which focuses on protecting property rights, water and the clean energy transition.7pm-8pm Meet & Greet Part 2:  Delicious meal and refreshments included with registration! For all the details and to register click here : [link removed]. 
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Water is Life Festival
Saturday, September 2nd, 2023 - 12:00 - 9:00 pm - Petoskey, Michigan


The Water is Life Festival has a new location this year, taking place at the Petoskey Waterfront! CLICK HERE for all the details: [link removed]: [link removed] 


Come help us celebrate the water and our connection to it. We strive to provide a memorable  experience through eclectic music, art, food, and of course, you, the attendees.


This is the 5th year of the festival and relatives are welcome to participate in this free, family friendly event brought to you by generous  sponsors, volunteers, committee, awesome musical talent and of course our relative, niibi (water).

Action Alerts

Mark Your Calendars:

ROUND TWO: Crippling NEPA: Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration 
 
While PHMSA : [link removed] is developing new regulations for CO2 pipelines, they aren't due until next year, meanwhile several carbon pipelines are projecting they will begin construction before the rules are even released. Thousands of impacted landowners, Tribal Nations, individual counties, cities and other communities across the U.S. have voiced major concerns about the terrifyingly large gaps in regulations on pipelines carrying carbon dioxide (CO2). 
 
CLICK HERE TO : [link removed]: Learn more and send Pete the message LOUD and PROUD that we will protect our families, communities, forest, farms, fields, and future generations and it is HIS responsibility to stop all planning, staging, and construction until there are solid safety regulations in place and enforceable! We encourage you to craft customized messages as most generalized comments carry less carry far less influence in these decision processes. 
 
Right now, developers are proposing a significant number of new interstate CO2 pipelines that would cross Midwest states including Nebraska, Iowa, South Dakota, North Dakota, Minnesota and Illinois. While none of these projects has yet obtained any necessary state agency permits, developers have already begun to use eminent domain to sue landowners who refuse to sell their land for these proposed pipelines. 
 
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MVP call to action...
 
Appalachians Against Pipelines has engaged in a persistent direct action campaign to stop the Mountain Valley Pipeline since 2018. And they're asking for more observers and water protectors to come and support this vital work...
 
Find more info, signup form, and more:[link removed]: [link removed]
 
AAP was formed when pipeline fighters took to the trees in the so-called Jefferson National Forest in Monroe County, West Virginia, where Mountain Valley Pipeline, LLC intended to drill directly through the mountain and beneath the Appalachian Trail. The limestone karst terrain of this mountain generates and filters drinking water, and also makes the area especially susceptible to landslides and sinkholes.
 
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Draft EA Comments needed by Sept 19th for North Dakota CarbonSAFE: Project Tundra DOE/EA-2197 
 
This Draft EA is ready for public comments : [link removed] - this EA analyzes the potential environmental, cultural, and socioeconomic impacts of DOE’s Proposed Action of providing cost-sharing funding of Project Tundra and of the No-Action Alternative. The Draft EA evaluated the resource areas DOE commonly addresses in EAs and identified no significant adverse environmental impacts from DOE’s Proposed Action.
 
The public comment period ends on September 19, 2023. DOE will consider late submissions to the extent practicable. 
 
Minnkota’s proposed project would include the design, construction, and operation of a carbon capture system at an existing lignite-fired coal power plant, the Milton R. Young (MRY) facility, in Oliver County, North Dakota. If built, Project Tundra would be the world’s largest post-combustion carbon dioxide (CO2) capture and geologic storage project, and would capture and permanently store CO2 emissions from the existing MRY facility.
 
 
IN OTHER NEWS
 
South Jersey Land Once Inhabited by Tribe is Returned to Native American Group A Native American conservation group has acquired a 63-acre property in South Jersey that was home to an ancient indigenous tribe. The Native American Advancement Corporation took ownership of the former Morningstar Fellowship Church property in Salem County last week. The property, located at 62 Gravely Hill Road in the Burden Hill forest area of Quinton Township, was the homeland of the ancient Cohanzick Lenape people for thousands of years, the group said in a release. Read more here : [link removed]
 
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Ecuadorians Vote to Ban Oil Drilling in the Amazon in ‘Historic’ Referendum Ecuadorians have voted to ban oil drilling in one of the most biodiverse places on the planet, the Yasuní National Park, situated in the Amazon rainforest. With more than 92% of the votes counted, nearly 59% of voters rejected the oil drilling while 41% voted in favor. The referendum comes as the impacts of human-caused climate change accelerate, as the world continues to burn fossil fuels. June  was the planet’s hottest month on record, and some scientists warn that the Amazon is heading towards a dangerous tipping point. Read more here : [link removed]
 
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Judge Rules in Favor of Montana Youths in Landmark Climate Decision ‘This is a monumental decision,’ said a lawyer for the young plaintiffs. The ruling could influence how judges handle similar cases in other states. Read more here : [link removed]
 
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It's Time to Cancel the Mountain Valley Pipeline—Just Ask the People of Maui After Hawaii saw the worst disaster in its history and people perished in a massive climate change-driven wildfire, the 4th Circuit felt they had no other choice but to dismiss lawsuits designed to protect our environment. Read more here : [link removed]  
 
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More than 1 Million Acres of Indigenous Land Flooded by Dams, New Study Finds More than a million acres of tribal land – an area larger than the state of Rhode Island – have been flooded by dams, compounding centuries of land seizures and forced displacement by settler colonials and the US government, new research has found. Land has always been central to Indigenous culture, sovereignty and prosperity, while land dispossession has been a mainstay strategy used to divide and disempower communities, by depriving Indigenous Peoples of clean water, traditional food sources, spiritual connections and economic opportunities. The study, published in the journal Environmental Research Letters, is the first attempt to calculate the amount of land lost by Indigenous Americans due to the construction of dams that re-engineered America’s rivers and lakes to store, divert and control waterways. Read more here : [link removed]
 
Biden’s Newest National Monument Blocks Uranium Mining Near The Grand Canyon President Joe Biden has protected nearly 1 million acres adjacent to the national park, answering calls from a coalition of Native American tribes. Read more here : [link removed] 
 

Minnesota Supreme Court rules against disputed mine, says state pollution officials hid EPA warnings The Minnesota Supreme Court has ruled that the state's Pollution Control Agency was wrong to issue permits for a long-contested copper-nickel mine. The Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that the state’s Pollution Control Agency improperly granted permits to a fiercely contested copper-nickel mine and concealed environmental concerns about the project, which critics say threatens to pollute Lake Superior and hurt tribal lands. Justices found that state regulators not only ignored concerns from the federal Environmental Protection Agency about the northeastern Minnesota mine, but attempted to conceal EPA warnings from the public. Read more here : [link removed]
 
 
 
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JOIN OUR TEAM

 

The Indigenous Environmental Network is seeking an experienced and energetic Financial Manager to join our team. The Financial Manager will play a crucial role in providing financial resource functions for IEN. These functions include accounting, financial management and analysis, budget analysis, benefits and risk management. CLICK HERE TO learn more and APPLY : [link removed]!

There's always more to read, view, and learn - follow us on social media and the web - ienearth.org : [link removed] : [link removed] : [link removed] : [link removed]  
Established in 1990, the Indigenous Environmental Network (IEN) is an international alliance of Indigenous Peoples whose mission it is to protect the sacredness of Mother Earth from contamination and exploitation by strengthening, maintaining, and respecting Indigenous teachings and natural laws. IEN works with Indigenous grassroots community organizations, Tribal governments, Indigenous national organizations, multi-cultural alliances, Tribal universities and colleges, as well as Tribal Knowledge holders and spiritual leaders. We work to empower and build the capacities of Indigenous Peoples and front line communities to develop mechanisms to demand environmental justice, protect our sacred sites, land, air, water, the health of our people and all living things, and to build sustainable communities.
 
Thank you for sharing our newsletters and our social media whenever possible.
 
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The Indigenous Environmental Network - PO Box 485 - Bemidji - MN - 56619

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