PORTLAND, Ore.—November 23, 2021—Faced with near-constant threats on their sovereignty, cultures, and ways of life, in addition to the theft of their lands and waters, Indigenous leaders through the ages have dedicated themselves to ensuring their collective future. Today, the nonprofit Ecotrust is announcing the Indigenous Leadership Briefing Series, a free, four-event series that spotlights the historical context of issues tribal communities have confronted over time and the ways Native leaders responded and continue to respond.

The hour-long briefings are opportunities to hear directly from a powerful group of Pacific Northwest and Alaska Native leaders about the challenges and ongoing efforts to protect their sovereignty and improve the lives, cultures, and lands of Indigenous peoples.

The topics and speakers are:

• Negotiating a Future: Indigenous Leadership through the Ages with Roberta “Bobbie” Conner (Nez Perce/Cayuse) and Ron Allen (Jamestown S’Klallam) on December 15, 2021.
• Termination: The Attempt to Destroy and the Rebuilding of the Siletz Tribes with Ed Ben (Siletz) and Bud Lane (Siletz) on Wednesday, January 19, 2022.
• The Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act: Impacts on Alaska Native Communities with Joe Nelson (Tlingit) and Nicole Borromeo (Athabaskan) on Wednesday, February 16, 2022.
• Breaking the Chains: Transformative Federal Legislation and Tribal Peoples with Robert Miller (Eastern Shawnee) and Dave Tovey (Cayuse/Joseph Band Nez Perce) on Wednesday, March 16, 2022

The Indigenous Leadership Briefings were created for a broad audience, from students to policymakers. The briefings are live online events that are free and open to the public at 11 a.m. on the second Wednesday of each month, beginning December 2021. Pre-registration is required and is now open online through the hyperlinked titles listed above.

The Briefing Series is organized by the Indigenous Leadership Program at Ecotrust and is the run-up to the 2022 Indigenous Leadership Awards, which will be presented in Portland, Ore., on Thursday, April 14, 2022.

The Indigenous Leadership Awards (ILAs) is a celebration of the determination, wisdom, and continuum of Indigenous leadership across our region. Since 2001, the ILAs has recognized 56 outstanding Indigenous leaders throughout the region for their unwavering dedication to strengthen tribal sovereignty and uplift the environmental, cultural, economic, and social conditions of their communities and homelands. Ecotrust has been honored to work alongside Indigenous communities from Alaska to northern California since the organization’s founding in 1991, and we celebrate the return of the ILAs after an eight-year hiatus. Learn more about the ILAs at: https://ecotrust.org/indigenous-leadership-awards/.

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About Ecotrust
Ecotrust creates and accelerates triple-bottom-line innovations to benefit our region and inspire the world. Our work is rooted in the region from California to Alaska that holds productive lands and determined people. On the farm, at the coast, in the forest, and across our cities, we work in partnership towards an equitable, prosperous, climate-smart future. We recognize the legacy of colonialism and the deep inequities of this place, and we believe that radical, practical change is possible and necessary. Since 1991, we have created durable change and sparked ideas across the globe. Join us at ecotrust.org.