Benny Shendo, Jr.
Jemez Pueblo
It is an honor to share our 2023 Annual Report. We value this opportunity to reflect on the
year, capture the stories of our Community Partners, and express our thanks for the steadfast interest and support we receive for our mission.
year, capture the stories of our Community Partners, and express our thanks for the steadfast interest and support we receive for our mission.
We do this in 2023 through the theme Protecting, Preserving, and Prevailing, noting how our work at First Nations continues to be focused on Native strengths and lifeways. We know Native communities are steadfast in upholding our cultures, traditions, and long-tested approaches, whether they are teaching Native languages, passing down Native art, stewarding Native lands, investing in Native food systems, or creating strong Native economies.
Our job is to provide support for that Native ingenuity through financial assistance, resources, and opportunities to learn and share with one another. The good work is happening in Native communities, and it is there – with the backing of First Nations Development Institute –
that those Native lifeways will prevail.
that those Native lifeways will prevail.
In this letter, I add more to the alliteration of our theme with the ideas of Perspective and Progress.
A Native Lens, A Native Perspective
In 2023, we continued to explore the broad territory of justice, be it social, economic, or environmental. Adding to our insights from our Reclaiming Native Truth project, we further amplified our Native narrative, exploring how justice is defined by us, as Native people. What does justice look like and how does it need to look in the future? It was exciting this year to see Native perspectives shared through a new project, Building a Movement for Native Justice. The project elicited input from Native writers, researchers, scholars, and artists to explore just what justice means for Native communities.
As the project continues in 2024, further insights will be synthesized and published, adding to the bank of knowledge and providing a framework for equal justice at all levels – a framework developed not on Native Americans, but by Native Americans, as we again take back our narrative, and ensure Native people are heard and represented.
A Focus on Progress
With that perspective amplified, there will be progress. We have already seen so much. The community partners we serve are implementing programs and initiatives across multiple areas, from those that serve Native youth and elders or strengthen Native food systems and economies, to those that reclaim ancestral lands.
This year, we were able to convene in person for our 2023 L.E.A.D. Conference, where we heard from many of our partners in these communities. We explored environmental justice, specifically around the Bear Ears National Monument where multiple coalitions came together to advance political strategies and educate audiences within tribes in Utah and across the United States. Presenters shared lessons learned to further work together to protect Native lands, water, and cultural rights.
We also heard from a few of the Native land stewards involved with First Nations’ Native Farmers and Ranchers Apprenticeship Network. These professionals talked about the practices and values that continue today to protect our lands and resources, as a new generation of Native farmers and ranchers emerge. We also worked to increase inclusion of Native peoples in conversations about conservation practices, tools, and resources. With the creation of a Tribal Conservation Toolbox, we explored new ways to bring in conjunction Western conservation statutes, public-lands law, and federal Indian law, with deeply held traditional practices and tribal values.
This year, we continued many projects and initiatives that we know are having an impact on Native communities. We launched more cohorts of our Luce Indigenous Knowledge Fellowship program and our Native Fundraisers Community of Practice project, and set the stage for an active funder-facing cohort in the Indigenous Food Systems Community of Practice.
In addition, we came together through an intensive strategic planning process to assess our progress to date and the landscape of projects and initiatives across Indian Country. We also explored where our support, technical assistance, and outreach would and could have the most impact. We created a plan for succession of leadership, an internal infrastructure to build on, and a map for performance and sustainability that will guide our next five years.
Ready for the Future
Going forward into 2024, there will be more progress and successes. At First Nations, we are building capacity to best support all that we know is possible. We remain committed to Native values and Native ingenuity of our community partners. They are the ones doing the hard work, and we are here to invest in that work, amplify their good news, and always celebrate their approaches and solutions.
Of course, this is all possible thanks to the support and dedication of our many funders, partners, and donors. This year we highlight all of these organizations and individuals in a special publication. This supplement is published on our website, along with our financial information.
As we move into 2024, we do so with continued gratitude for this support, and reverence to the Native communities we serve. We honor the role of knowledge, culture, and lifeways that have sustained Native people for millennia. And, we protect and preserve heritage, knowing it will always prevail.
Respectfully,
Benny Shendo, Jr. | Jemez Pueblo
Chairman, Board of Directors
First Nations Development Institute
Chairman, Board of Directors
First Nations Development Institute
