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INDIGENOUS POLICY
JOURNAL OF THE INDIGENOUS STUDIES NETWORK (ISN)
Vol. XXVII, No. 3
Winter 2015-16
On The Web at: http://www.indigenouspolicy.org/
COMPILED December 15, 2015? - ISSN 2158-4168
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Indigenous Policy (IPJ) publishes articles, commentary, reviews, news, and announcements
concerning Native American and international Indigenous affairs, issues, events, nations, groups
and media. We invite commentary and dialogue in and between issues.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ISN and IPJ information
p. 1
Upcoming Events
p. 5
Ongoing Activities
Environmental Activities
p. 20
U.S. Activities
p. 29
International Activities
p. 33
Indian & Indigenous Developments
Environmental Developments
p. 45
U.S. Developments
p. 86
International Developments
p. 185
Dialoguing:
Islamic Declaration on Global Climate Change
p. 229
John Atcheson, "The Paris Climate Conference: Playing Craps
With Our Planet's Future"
p. 239
Indigenous Peoples Take Lead at D12 Day of Action in Paris –
Official response to COP21 agreement
p. 242
Press Release: We Stand With San Carlos
p. 243
Mark Trahant, "#NativeVote16 Election progress one race at a time"
p. 245
Marci McLean, "Reservations A Step Closer To Satellite Voting"
p. 246
Mark Trahant, "Indigenous voices are needed to make U.S. a stronger democracy"
p. 247
Southwest Tribal Nations Food Sovereignty Conference Resolution
p. 249
Articles
As IPJ is a refereed journal, articles may be posted on a different schedule from
the rest of the journal. We will send out an e-mail announcement when the next set of
articles are posted when they are not posted with a regular new journal, and they can
be downloaded as a pdf file. Current articles are available with list on line at:
http://www.indigenouspolicy.org/ .
Research Notes:
Mark Trahant, "A changing Arctic presents incredible challenges and
opportunities for Indigenous People"
p. 251
Mark Trahant, "Reversing diabetes in Indian Country"
p. 253
Mark Trahant, "Court affirms Affordable Care Act again; good time
to step up Indian Country’s participation"
p. 254
Mark Trahant, "Alaska says yes, boosts Indian health system by expanding Medicaid" p. 256
Mark Trahant, “NativeVote16-Insdian Country with More Representation in the States” p. 258
Dr. Yossef Ben-Meir, "Implementing the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals"
p. 262
Mark Trahant, "#NativeVote16 Canada’s new government and the music of elections" p. 264
Mark Trahant, "Five lessons for Indian Country from the Canadian elections"
p. 266
Reviews:
The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America
by Thomas King, Reviewed by María José Belmonte Sánchez
p. 268
Stephen M. Sachs, “A Review: Will Taegel, The Mother Tongue: Intimacy in the Eco-field
And Glenn Aparicio Parry, Original Thinking: A radical Rethinking of Time,
Humanity and Nature
p. 269
Media Notes
p. 271
Ph.D. Dissertations from Universities Around the World on Topics Relating
to Indians in the Americas
p. 274
Useful Websites
p. 275
Announcements
p. 280
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Co-Editors:
Phil Bellfy, American Indian Studies Program, Michigan State University, 262 Bessey Hall,
East Lansing MI 48824, (517)432-2193, [email protected].
Thomas Brasdefer, [email protected], Web Master.
Thaddieus (Tad) Conner, Mew Mexico State University: [email protected].
Jonathon Erlen, Ph.D., History of Medicine Librarian, School of Medicine,
University of Pittsburgh (412)648-8927, [email protected].
Leo Killsback, American Indian Studies, Arizona State University, Discovery Hall, Room 356,
P.O. Box 874603, Tempe, AZ 85287-4603, (480)727-0061, [email protected], Editor.
Paula Mohan, Political Science Department, 305 Salisbury Hall, University of Wisconsin,
Whitewater, Whitewater, WI 53190 (262)472-5772 (o), (608)233-2812(h),
[email protected].
Ignacio Ochoa, M.A., Director, Nahual Foundation / Fundación Nahual, A Think Tank by and for
the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas, 2a Avenida Norte 6 B, Antigua Guatemala,
Sacatepéquez. Guatemala. Of: (502)7832-0167, Cell: (502)5985-4954,
[email protected], [email protected], www.nahualfoundation.org,
www.fundacion-nahual.org.
Michael Posluns, Daytime & Cell: (416)995-8613, [email protected].
Annalise Romoser (410)230-2800 ext. 2845, [email protected].
Steve Sachs, 1916 San Pedro, NE, Albuquerque, NM 87110 (505)265-9388,
[email protected], Senior Editor, Coordinator of Editorial Board.
Jay Toth, M.A., Professor of Anthropology, SUNY Fredonia , [email protected].
William (Bill) Taggart, New Mexico State University, Department of Government, Box 30001,
MSC 3BN, Las Cruces, NM 88003, (575)646-4935, [email protected].
Mark Trahant, Atwood Journalism Chair, University of Alaska Anchorage,
[email protected].
David Weiden, Assistant Professor of Political Science and Native American Studies,
Metropolitan State University of Denver, King Center 494, Campus Box 43, P.O. Box 173362,
Denver, CO 80217-3362, 303-556-4914, [email protected], Book Review Editor
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ISN Program Co-Chairs:
Sheryl Lightfoot, University of Minnesota, [email protected].
Laura Evans, [email protected].
~~~~~~*~~~~~~
Advisory Council
Our thanks to all the members of the advisory council who review article submissions:
David Armstrong, Phil Bellfy, JoLee Blackbear, Bennis Blue, Stephen Brandon, Patricia
Campbell, Ward Churchill, Shane Day, Larry French, Susan Gorgan, Burke Hendrix, Thomas
Hoffman, Sheree Hukill, Lilias Jarding, Ezra Rosser, Mickey Poslum, and Stefanie Wickstrom.
IPJ IS SEEKING TO BUILD AN EDITORIAL COMMITTEE
TO WORK WITH THE NEW EDITOR IN RUNNING THE ARTICLE REFEREEING
PROCESS
IPJ is seeking volunteers to join the Editorial Committee to collaborate with Leo Killsback,
our a new Editor in coordinating the refereeing process for submitted articles, sending
submissions round to advisory committee members for review, and making final decisions on
articles based on reviewers' advice. If you are interested in on the Editorial Committee, please
contact Leo Killsback, [email protected].
IPJ INVITES VOLUNTEERS TO SERVE ON ITS ADVISORY COUNCIL,
REFEREEING SUBMITTED ARTICLES. If you are interested in being a reviewer of
submitted articles in the IPJ refereeing process, please contact Leo Killsback, [email protected].
Book Review Committee:
IPJ has a book review committee. People wishing to review books, often receiving a
copy to review, and those wishing to have a book review should send a copy, to David
Weiden, Assistant Professor of Political Science and Native American Studies, Metropolitan
State University of Denver, King Center 494, Campus Box 43, P.O. Box 173362, Denver, CO
80217-3362, 303-556-4914, [email protected].
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS FOR THE NEXT ISSUE IS June 8
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
INDIGENOUS POLICY PLANS FOR 2015-16 - WE INVITE YOUR HELP AND INPUT
We wish you a fine New Year. Indigenous Policy journal is available on the web with email notification of new issues at no charge. Indigenous Policy puts out two regular issues a year
(Summer and Winter), and since summer 2006, what is now a fall issue serving as the
Proceedings of the Western Social Science Association Meeting American Indian Studies
Section. We are seeking additional editors, columnists and commentators for regular issues, and
editors or editorial groups for special issues, and short articles for each issue. A new
development is that, thanks to long time compilers Jonathon Erlen and Jay Toth, we are
developing a regularly updated and searchable data base of Ph.D. Dissertations from
3
Universities Around the World on Topics Relating to Indians in the Americas, compiled
from Dissertation Abstracts, with recent dissertations also listed separately in each of our
regular Summer and Winter issues.
As IPJ is a refereed journal, articles may be posted on a different schedule from the rest
of the journal. New articles may go up either at the same time as regular issues, or be added to
already posted issues, and may or may not remain up when issues change, until replaced by new
articles. Notices go out to our list serve when new issues are posted, and when new articles are
posted. To be added to the list to receive e-mail notice of new postings of issues, and new
postings of articles, send an e-mail to Steve Sachs: [email protected].
Jeff Corntassel and colleagues put together a special winter 2002 issue with a focus on
“federal recognition and Indian Sovereignty at the turn of the century.” We had a special issue on
international Indigenous affairs summer 2004, on Anthropology, Archeology and Litigation –
Alaska Style spring 2012, on Exploring the Governance Landscape of Indigenous Peoples and
Water in Canada, Spring 2014, and are about to have additional special issues. We invite
articles, reports, announcements and reviews of meetings, and media, programs and events,
and short reports of news, commentary and exchange of views, as well as willingness to put
together special issues.
Send us your thoughts and queries about issues and interests and replies can be printed
in the next issue and/or made by e-mail. In addition, we will carry Indigenous Studies Network
(ISN) news and business so that these pages can be a source of ISN communication and
dialoguing in addition to circular letters and annual meetings at APSA. In addition to being the
newsletter/journal of the Indigenous Studies Network, we collaborate with the Native American
Studies Section of the Western Social Science Association (WSSA) and provide a dialoguing
vehicle for all our readers. This is your publication. Please let us know if you would like to see
more, additional, different, or less coverage of certain topics, or a different approach or format.
IPJ is a refereed journal. Submissions of articles should go to Leo Killsback,
[email protected], who will send them out for review. Our process is for non-article
submissions to go to Steve Sachs, who drafts each regular issue. Unsigned items are by Steve.
Other editors then make editing suggestions to Steve. Thomas Brasdefer posts this Journal on the
IPJ web site: http://www.indigenouspolicy.org.
GUIDE TO SUBMITTING WRITINGS TO IPJ
We most welcome submissions of articles, commentary, news, media notes and
announcements in some way relating to American Indian or international Indigenous policy
issues, broadly defined. Please send article submissions electronically attached to e-mail to
Leo Killsback, [email protected], who will send them out for review. All non-article
submissions (including Research Notes, which usually are non refereed articles) go via email to Steve Sachs: [email protected], or on disk, at: 1916 San Pedro, NE, Albuquerque,
NM, 87110. If you send writings in Word format, we know we can work with them. We can
translate some, but not all other formats into word. If you have notes in your submission, please
put them in manually, as end notes as part of the text. Do not use an automated
4
footnote/end note system that numbers the notes as you go and put them in a footer such
automated notes are often lost, and if not, may appear elsewhere in the journal, and not in your
article, as several writings are posted together in the same file. If you use any tables in a
submission, please send a separate file(s) for them, as it is impossible to work with them to put
on the web when they are an integral part of a Word text. Some other format/style things are
helpful to us, and appreciated, but not an absolute requirement. As we publish in 12 point Times
font, with single spacing, and a space between paragraphs, it saves us work if we receive writi ngs
that way. Many thanks. We look forward to seeing what you send us.
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UPCOMING EVENTS
ISN PROGRAM AT APSA 2016 IN Philadelphia, PA, September 1-4, 2016
The Indigenous Studies Network (ISN) 0oans to put on at least one panels and a business
meeting/networking session at the 2016 American Political Science Association (APSA)
Meeting, Philadelphia, PA, September 1-4, 2016, at the Philadelphia Convention Center. For
more
information
contact
ISN
Program
Coordinators:
Laura
Evans,
[email protected] (University of Washington) and Sheryl Lightfoot (University of
British Columbia): [email protected]. More information about the APSA meeting will be
available, by early summer, including the program, at: http://www.apsanet.org/, Room locations
will be in the printed program available at the on-site conference registration.
WSSA 2016 AMERICAN INDIAN STUDIES SECTION PROGRAM, April 13-16, 2016
The American Indian Studies Section of the Western Social Science Association, at its 58th
meeting, expects to again have a full program of panels at the association's meeting at the 2016
conference in Reno, NV April 13-16. Paper/panel proposals for the American Indian Studies
Section can either be submitted on line by going to: http://www.wssaweb.com, or by sending
them (preferably by E-mail) to AIS section coordinators: Alisse Eli-Joseph: [email protected],
and Karen Jarratt-Snider: [email protected]. Deadline for proposals, including
abstracts, likely is December 1, 2015. Information, which will eventually include the preliminary
program, can be accessed on line at: http://www.wssaweb.com.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A list of Indigenous Language Conferences is kept at the Teaching Indigenous Languages
web site at Northern Arizona University: http://www2.nau.edu and also among a large
number of
linguistic conferences of all types at: http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browsecurrent.cfm?type=Conf, and for bilingual education in the U.S. (and some beyond) at Dual
Language Education of New Mexico: http://www.dlenm.org.
The D'Arcy McNickle Center for American Indian and Indigenous Studies at the
Newberry Library, in Chicago, has an on going Newberry Library Seminar in American
Indian Studies on Wednesdays from 5:30 - 7:30 pm at the Newberry, 60 West Walton Street,
Chicago, Illinois with a meal included. “We will pre-circulate papers to those planning to attend.
If you cannot attend and want to read a paper, please contact the author directly. To receive a
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copy of a paper, email [email protected] or call (312) 255-3552. Papers are available for
request two weeks prior to the seminar date. Please include your email address in all
correspondence.” There are other occasional events. E-mail: [email protected] or call
(312)255-3564 to receive a copy of the paper via E-mail. For more on this and other events at the
Newberry Library go to: http://www.newberry.org/mcnickle/AISSeminar.html.
Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the Americas Annual Meeting
(SSILA) 2016 is in Portland, OR, January 7-10, 2016. For more information go to:
http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browse-conf-action.cfm?ConfID=180889 or http://www.ssila.org.
22nd Annual Stabilizing Indigenous Languages Symposium may be at the University of
Hawaii at Hilo, in January 2016. Information will become available at www.uhh.hawaii.edu.
The 90th Annual Meeting of the Linguistic Society of America is January 7-10, 2016, in
Washington, DC, For details go to: http://www.linguisticsociety.org/event/lsa-2016-annualmeeting.
The Annual Meeting of the Society for the Study of the Indigenous Languages of the
Americas will be held at the Marriott Marquis in Washington, DC, January 7 – 10, 2016,
concurrent with the annual meeting of the Linguistic Society of America. For details visit:
http://www.ssila.org/meetings/ssila-2016/.
NCAI 2016 State of Indian Nations is January 14, 2016 at Newseum, 555 Pennsylvania Ave,
Ave,
Washington, DC 20001. For details visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferenceshttp://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/nationalevents/nationalevents.
The Twelfth International Conference on Environmental, Cultural, Economic, and Social
Sustainability being held at Portland State University, Portland, Oregon, 21-23 January 2016.
The On Sustainability knowledge community is brought together by a common concern for
sustainability in a holistic perspective, where environmental, cultural, economic, and social
concerns intersect. For details visit: http://onsustainability.com/the-conference/call-forpapers?utm_source=S16a%20dans%20promo&utm_medium=S16a%20dans%20promo&utm_ca
mpaign=S16a%20dans%20promo.
CERCLL 2016 Intercultural Competence Conference: Traditions and Transitions: Fifth
International Conference on the Development and Assessment of Intercultural
Competence is January 21-24, 2016 in Tucson, Arizona. For details visit:
http://cercll.arizona.edu/development/conferences/2016_icc.
SGAC/TSGAC Self Governance 1st Quarter Advisory Committee Meeting is January 26 28, 2016 in Washington, DC. For details visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferenceshttp://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/nationalevents/nationalevents.
The International Conference on Bilingual Studies may be in February 2016, For details go
to: http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browse-conf-action.cfm?ConfID=188196.
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IIPT World Symposium on Sustainable and Peaceful Communities and Nations may be in,
February 2016. For more information on the Symposium see the IIPT December newsletter:
http://www.iipt.org/newsletter/2014/december.html.
National Johnson O'Malley Association Conference is February 1-3 2016, at Crystal Gateway
Marriott, 1700 Jefferson Davis Highway, Arlington, VA 22202. For Details go to:
http://www.njoma.com/.
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) 2016 Winter Meeting is February
8-11, 2016, in Washington, DC. For details go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-weare/calendar.cfm.
NAAS & Affiliates 24th Annual Conference is February 8-13, 2016, in Baton Rouge, LA. For
details go to: http://www.naaas.org.
United South and Eastern Tribes (USET) Impact Week is at Crystal Gateway Marriott,
Arlington, VA, February 8-11, 2016. For details visit: http://www.usetinc.org/meetingsevents/uset-annual-expo/2016-2/.
CDC/ATSDR Tribal Advisory Committee Meeting & 14th Biannual Tribal Consultation
Session
Session is February 99-11, 2016 in Atlanta, Georgia. For details go to:
http://www.tuswecatiospaye.org/.
Native/Indigenous Studies Area of the 2016 Southwest Popular Culture/American Culture
Association (Formerly the Southwest/Texas Popular Culture/American Culture
Association) 36th annual meeting is February 10-13, 2016 in Albuquerque, NM. Further details
can be found at: http://www.southwestpca.org/.
UNITY 2016 Mid-Year Conference is February 12-15, 2016 at the Phoenix Marriott Mesa,
Mesa. AZ/ For details go to: http://www.unityinc.org.
The NCAI 2016 Executive Council Winter Session is February 22-24, 2016 , in Washington,
DC. For details go to: http://www.tuswecatiospaye.org/.
Far West PCA/ACA (Popular and American Culture associations), which likely has at least
one American Indian section, is February 26-28, 2016; Las Vegas, NV. For information go to:
http://www.fwpca.org/.
2016 Healthy Native Communities Fellowship Leadership Training is in Scottsdale, AZ,
February 28-March 4, 2016. For information go to: http://www.ncai.org/conferencesevents/national-events.
The 11th Annual Conference on Endangered Languages and Cultures of the Americas may be in March 2016. For details go to: http://www.cail.utah.edu, or contact Jennifer Mitchell:
[email protected].
7
Multilingualism in Education: Policies, Practices and Assessment (UME 2015) may be in
March 2016, For derails visit: http://fiplv.com.
3rd International Conference on Mesoamerican Linguistics/II Congreso Internacional de
Lingüística Mesoamericana may be in March 2016 in Los Angeles, CA. For information go to:
http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browse-conf-action.cfm?ConfID=188456.
The National Association for Ethnic Studies (NAES) 44th Annual Conference: Resistance:
Borders and Power, Social Justice and Community is March 17-19, 2016, at University of
Arizona, Tucson, AZ. For details contact National Association for Ethnic Studies
(NAES), Department of Ethnic Studies, Colorado State University, 1790 Campus Delivery, Fort
Collins, CO 80523-179, www.ethnicstudies.org.
Third International Conference on Heritage/Community Languages may be in March 2015
at UCLA, Los Angles, CA, For details visit: http://nhlrc.ucla.edu/.
National Association for Bilingual Education 45th Annual Conference - NABE 2016:
"Advancing Biliteracy through Global Leadership and Partnerships" is at
the Hilton Chicago, 720 S Michigan Ave is in Chicago, IL in, March 3-5, 2016. For information
go to: http://www.nabe.org
SWCOLT is at the Hilton Waikiki Beach Hotel in Honolulu, Hawaii, on March 4-5, 2016.
Preconference workshops will be March 3. For information go to: http://www.swcolt.org/.
National Conference on Health Disparities & National Environmental Justice Conference
and Training Program is in Washington, DC, March 9-12, 2016. For details go to:
http://www.aihec.org/who-we-are/calendar.cfm.
UMass Boston’s Institute for New England Native American Studies (INENAS) and Suffolk
University Law School’s Indigenous Peoples Rights Clinic, "Massachusetts Native Peoples
and the Social Contract: A Reassessment for Our Times," a roundtable discussion, is at the
North American Indian Center of Boston, 105 South Huntington Ave. Jamaica Plain, MA, March
11, 2016, noon to 2 p.m." For more information contact: Cedric Woods, 617-2875784, [email protected], Nicole Friederichs, 617-573-8100, [email protected].
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) 2016 Spring Board Meeting is
March 11-13, 2015, preceding the AIHEC 2016 Student Conference, March 14-16, in
Minneapolis, MN. For information go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-we-are/calendar.cfm.
AIHEC 2016 Student Conference is March 14-16 at the Minneapolis Convention Center. For
details go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-we-are/calendar.cfm.
The National Indian Gaming Association Conference and Trade Show is March 13-15, 2016
at the Phoenix Convention Center, 100 N. 3 St., and Phoenix, AZ. For more information go to:
http://www.indiangamingtradeshow.com/Content/778.htm.
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The 39th Annual California Conference on American Indian Education March 17-19, 2016,
at the Red Lion Hotel in Redding, CA. For more information contact: Achel McBride: (530)8954212 x 110, Irma Amaro: (707)464-3512, or Judy Delgado at 916-319-0506,
[email protected], or go to: http://www.ccaie.org/.
RES Las Vegas is March 21-24, 2016, in Las Vegas, NV. For information go to:
http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/national-events.
American Indian Cultures and Literatures area of the PCA/ACA (Popular Culture
Association/American Culture Association) National Conference 2016 is in Seattle, WA,
March 21-25, 2016. For details Visit: http://www.pcaaca.org/conference/national.php.
Tribal Interior Budget Council,
Council, March 2121-23, 2016 is March
March 2121-23, 2016 at Omni Shoreham
Hotel, 2500 Calvert
Calvert Street NW, Washington, DC.
DC. For information go to:
http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/national-events.
6th Tribal Land Staff National Conference is March 2222-24, 2016 at Worley, ID. For
information go to: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/national-events.
The Western Political Science Association (WPSA) 2016, March 24 – 26, 2016, is at the
Manchester Hyatt, San Diego, California, and will likely include one or more Race, Ethnicity an
Politics panels that could include Indigenous issues. For details go to:
http://wpsa.research.pdx.edu/
Religions, Languages et Cultures Africaines a l’ère du Numérique is March 25-27, 2016, in
VUEA, Cameroon. For information go to: http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browse-confaction.cfm?ConfID=198096.
SGAC/TSGAC Self Governance 2nd Quarter Advisory Committee Meeting is March 2929-31,
2016 at Washington, DC. For information go to: http://www.ncai.org/conferencesevents/national-events.
5th Annual Hispanic & Luso-Brazilian Linguistics Conference may be in April 2016. For
information visit: http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browse-conf-action.cfm?ConfID=194476.
Twelfth Annual Southeast Indian Studies Conference is to be held on campus at the
University of North Carolina, Pembroke, Pembroke, NC, April 7-8, 2016. The deadline for
papers and posters submission is January 22, 2016; see attached for submission requirements.
Conference details will be posted to the American Indian Studies http://www.uncp.edu/ais/ and
Southeast American Indian Studies http://www.uncp.edu/sais/ websites as they become
available.
Native American Finance Officers Association's 34th Annual Conference is April 17-19,
2016., at the Gila River Indian Community's Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort & Spa in Phoenix,
AZ For more information visit www.nafoa.org.
9
44th Annual Symposium on the American Indian may be at Northeastern State University,
University Center, Tahlequah, OK, is April 11-16, 2016. For details visit:
http://www.cts.nsuok.edu/NSUSymposium.aspx.
The 12th Giving the Gift of Language: A Teacher Training Workshop for Native Language
Instruction and Acquisition, SILC: Strengthening Indigenous Languages and Cultures: A
Teacher Training Workshop for Native Language Instruction and Acquisition is April 1416, 2016, at Missoula, MT. For information visit: http://www.nsilc.org/index.htm.
Workshop on Structure and Constituency in the Languages of the Americas (WSCLA
2016) us April 1-3, 2016, at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), Montréal,
Canada. For details go to: https://sites.google.com/site/wscla2016/.
National Indian Child Welfare Association's (NICWA) 34th Annual Conference ,
Protecting Our Children National American Indian Conference on Child Abuse and
Neglect
is
April
3-6,
2016
in
St.
Paul,
Minnesota
(http://www.ncai.org/events/2016/04/03/nicwa-annual-conference).
Alaska Native Studies Conference 2016 is April 14-16, 2016 at the University of Alaska
Fairbanks campus. For information go to: http://alaskanativestudies.org.
United South and Eastern Tribes (USET) 7th Annual Tribal Utility Summit, Hosted by
Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians Is at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino, Cherokee, NC. April 19-21,
2016. For details visit: http://www.usetinc.org/meetings-events/uset-annual-expo/2016-2/.
Globalex 2016 is 24 May, in Portorož, Slovenia: Lexicographic Resources for Human Language
Technology Mining. For more information go to: http://www.adelaide.edu.au/australex/.
TESOL 2016: International Convention and English Language Expo is April 5-8, 2016, in
Baltimore, MD. For details go to: http://www.tesol.org/.
National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) Training: Positive Indian Parenting ICWA Basics is April 6-9, 2016, at the St. Paul Training Institute. For details go to:
http://www.nicwa.org.
12th Annual Southeast Indian Studies Conference is April 7-8 2016, at University of North
Carolina at Pembroke, University Center Annex. For more information contact Alesia
Cummings at (910)521-6266, [email protected] or Dr. Mary Ann Jacobs, (910)5216266, [email protected], http://www.uncp.edu/sais/.
Multiculturalism in the Canadian Context is April 14-15, 2016, in Lodz, Poland. For details
go to: http://[email protected].
The Eighth International Conference on Climate: Impacts and Responses is at Vietnam
National University & VNU University of Science, Hanoi, Vietnam April, 21-22, 2016. The
Climate Change Conference is for any person with an interest in, and concern for, scientific,
policy and strategic perspectives in climate change. It will address a range of critically important
10
themes relating to the vexing question of climate change. Plenary speakers will include some of
the world’s leading thinkers in the fields of climatology and environmental science, as well as
numerous paper, workshop and colloquium presentations by researchers and practitioners. For
details go to: http://on-climate.com/the-conference.
8th International Conference on Climate: Impacts and Responses is at Vietnam National
University & VNU University of Science in Hanoi, Vietnam, April 21-22, 2016. The Climate
Change Conference is for any person with an interest in, and concern for, scientific, policy and
strategic perspectives in climate change. It will address a range of critically important themes
relating to the vexing question of climate change. Plenary speakers will include some of the
world’s leading thinkers in the fields of climatology and environmental science, as well as
numerous paper, workshop and colloquium presentations by researchers and practitioners. For
details go to: http://on-climate.com/the-conference.
Washington Association of Bilingual Education: Annual Conference is April 29 – 30, 2016,
in Vellevue, WA. For details go to: http://wabewa.org/.
The 8th Native American and Indigenous Studies Association Annual Conference may be in
May,
2016,
in
Tucson,
AZ.
For
more
information
go
to:
http://conferences.la.utexas.edu/naisa2014/or http://naisa.ais.arizona.edu/.
19th Annual Workshop on American Indigenous Languages (WAIL2016) is May 7-, 2016,
at UCSB Department of Linguistics. For information visit: http://www.linguistics.ucsb.edu or
http://osl.sa.ucsb.edu/org/nail/WAIL.
Workshop on Information Structure in Endangered Languages may be in May 2016. For
details visit: https://www.soas.ac.uk/isel/
a Worldwide Congress for Language Rights may be in May 2016. For details go to:
http://linguistlist.org/,
http://www.associazionelemitalia.org
or
http://www.globaleventslist.elsevier.com.
6th Annual Indigenous Peoples' Rights Course & Field Visit in Costa Rica is: E-Learning
Course Indigenous Peoples' Rights is likely in May - July 2016, Field Visit: Amubri, Talamanca,
Costa
Rica:
August
2016.
For
details
go
to:
http://www.hrea.org/index.php?base_id=1457&language_id=1.
AMERIND/NAIHC National Conference and Trade Fair is May 88-11, 2016 in Oahu,
Hawaii.
Hawaii. For details go to: http://www.ncai.org/conferenceshttp://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncaievents/ncai-events.
Tribal Interior Budget Council is May 1010-12, 2016 at Washington Plaza, 10 Thomas Circle
NW, Washington, DC,
DC, For details go to: http://www.ncai.org/conferenceshttp://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai
events/ncai--events.
events.
United South and Eastern Tribes (USET) Semi-Annual, Hosted by Poarch Band of Creek
Indians, is at Wind Creek Casino & Hotel, Atmore, AL, May 15-18, 2016. For details visit:
11
http://www.usetinc.org/meetings-events/uset-annual-expo/2016-2/.
8th Austronesian and Papuan Languages and Linguistics Conference is May 13-14, 2016, in
London, UK. For information go to: https://www.soas.ac.uk/linguistics/events/apll8-conference/.
3rd International Festival of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
(STEMfest), May 14-16, 2916, in Stamford, CT. For details go to:
http://www.stamfordpublicschools.org/district/math/webforms/stemfest-2016-presenterregistration.
6h Annual Indigenous Peoples' Rights Course & Field Visit in Costa Rica is: E-Learning
Course Indigenous Peoples' Rights: May be May - July 2016, Field Visit: Amubri, Talamanca,
Costa
Rica:
August
2016.
For
details
go
to:
http://www.hrea.org/index.php?base_id=1457&language_d=1.
20th Navajo Studies Conference is at Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, Arizona, May
28-30, 2015. For details go to: http://www.navajostudies.org.
Tenth Heritage Language Research Institute is June 15-18 2016 at The University of
Washington, Seattle, Seattle, WA. For details go to: http://nhlrc.ucla.edu/.
AsiaLex 2016 is 1-3 June, Manila, Philippines: Advancing Language Teaching with
Lexicography
and
Corpus-Building.
For
information
go
to:
http://www.adelaide.edu.au/australex/.
The Native American Student Advocacy Institute is June 6-7, 2016. For details visit:
http://nasai.collegeboard.org/.
Fostering Indigenous Business and Entrepreneurship in the Americas Conference: FIBEA
2016 may be in June 2016. For information and to make submissions contact
[email protected],
or
visit
http://conferences.mgt.unm.edu/fibea/
or
http://fibeamanaus.mgt.unm.edu/defaultENG.asp.
2nd Annual Stabilizing Indigenous Languages Conference and 6th Western Symposium on
Language
Issues
(WeSLI)
may
be
in
June
2016.
For
details
go
to:
http://jan.ucc.nau.edu/~jar/AIE/conf.html.
6th Annual Indigenous Peoples' Rights Course & Field Visit in Costa Rica by Human
Rights Education Associates (HREA) and University for Peace (UPEACE), Costa Rica: ELearning Course Indigenous Peoples' Rights: may be June - July, 2016; Field Visit: Amburi,
Talamanca,
Costa
Rica:
August,
2016.
For
details
go
to:
http://www.hrea.org/index.php?base_id=1457&language_id=1
The Society of American Indian Government Employees (SAIGE) is a national non-profit
organization that advocates for American Indian and Alaska Native federal employees. SAIGE
13rd Annual National Training Program is June 6, 2016, at Hard Rock Hotel, Catoosa, OK.
12
Information is available from the Society of American Indian Government Employees, P.O. Box
7715, Washington, D.C. 20044, www.saige.org.
Breath of Life / Workshop for California Indian Languages is in June 2016, For details visit:
http://www.aicls.org.
UCLA American Indian Studies Center Summer in Montana may be in June 2016. For
details see: www.aisc.ucla.edu/news/.../Summer%20in%20Montana%20flyer.pdf.
Dene Languages Conference is June 6-7, 2016 in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada.
For information go to: http://www.uaf.edu/alc/.
7th American Indian and Indigenous Education Conference is at Northern Arizona
University, Flagstaff, Az, June 16-18, 2016. To get updated information on this conference visit:
http://nau.edu/AIE
.
SYLAP 2016 (Shoshonian language summer program) is from June 18 until July 22 on the
campus
of
the
University
of
Utah.
For
details
go
to:
http://shoshoniproject.utah.edu/2015/12/sylap-2016-application/.
The Northwest Indian Language Institute Summer 2016 is June 20-23, 2016, at the
University of Oregon, Eugene, OR. For details go to: http://pages.uoregon.edu/nwili/.
The 2016 Institute on Collaborative Language Research (CoLang) is held at the University
of Alaska, Fairbanks from June 20 - July 22, 2016. For details go to: http://www.ssila.org.
6th International Conference on Bantu Languages is in Helsinki, Finland, June 20-22, 2016.
For details go to: http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browse-conf-action.cfm?ConfID=190196.
ATDLE: 24th Annual National TWBI (National Two-Way Conference) is in Sacramento,
CA, June 24-27, 2015. For details visit: http://atdle.org/.\
The NCAI 2016 Mid Year Conference and Marketplace is in Spokane, WA, June 27-30,
2016, For details visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
The 2016 Institute on Collaborative Language Research (CoLang) is being held at the
University of Alaska, Fairbanks from June 20 - July 22. For information about SSILA go to:
www.ssila.org.
8th International 3L Summer School: Endangered Languages: From Documentation to
Revitalization may be in July 2016. For details visit: http://www.ddl.ish-lyon.cnrs.fr/ .
NCAIS Graduate Student Conference at the Newberry Library in Chicago may be in July
2016. “The Consortium offers graduate students from NCAIS member institutions an
13
opportunity to present papers in any academic field relating to American Indian Studies at the
Graduate Student Conference. We encourage the submission of proposals for papers that
examine a wide variety of subjects relating to American Indian and Indigenous history and
culture broadly conceived. For details go to http://www.newberry.org/.
Australex 2016: Endangered Words, and Signs of Revival may be in Australia, in July 2016,
though the months in which has been held varies. For details go to: http://www.australex.org/.
NCAIS Summer Institute, May be in July and August, 2016, Recording the Native
Americas: Indigenous Speech, Representation, and the Politics of Writing. For more
information go to: www.newberry.org/mcnickle.
Issues in Intercultural Learning and Teaching Across L2 Contexts and Situations (12th
ELIA) may be in, July 2016. For details visit: http://www.eliaxii.es/.
Bi-SLI 2015: Bilingualism and Specific Language Impairment may be in July 2016. For
information visit: http://bisli2015.univ-tours.fr/.12th Biennial Conference of the Association of
Forensic Linguistics is in Guangzhou, China, July 6-9, 2015 . for details go to:
http://www.iafl.org.
7th International 3L Summer School: Endangered Languages: From Documentation to
Revitalization may be in July 2015. For details visit: http://www.ddl.ish-lyon.cnrs.fr/.
The 11th Annual Vine Deloria, Jr. Indigenous Studies Symposium may be in July 2016 and
will be held at the Coast Salish Institute Building on Lummi Campus. For details contact Native
American Studies, Northwest Indian College, 2533 Kwina Rd., Bellingham, WA 98226
(360)392-4307, www.nwic.edu.
11th Lancaster Postgraduate Conference in Linguistics and Language Teaching (LAELPG 2016)
may be in Lancaster, United Kingdom, in July 2016. For details go to:
http://www.lancaster.ac.uk/fass/events/laelpgconference/index.htm.
The National Indian Gamming Association Legislative Summit may be in July 2016, in
Washington, DC. For information go to: http://www.indiangaming.org/legis.
The 6th Cambridge Conference on Language Endangerment may be July 2016, at the
University
of
Cambridge,
Cambridge,
UK.
For
information
go
to:
http://www.mml.cam.ac.uk/news/fifth-cambridge-conference-language-endangerment.
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) 2016 Summer Board Meeting is
July 14-16, in Denver, CO. For information go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-weare/calendar.cfm.
Australia: 2016 Indigenous Justice Conference is July 18, 2016, in Sydney, Australia. For
14
information visit: http://www.indigenousconferences.com.
SGAC/TSGAC Self Governance 3rd Quarter Advisory Committee Meeting is July 1919-21,
2016 in Washington, DC.. For details visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
National UNITY (United National Indian Tribal Youth) Conference: Technology and
Tradition for Today and Tomorrow" is July 22-26, 2016 at the Renaissance Oklahoma City
Convention Center Hotel in Oklahoma City, OK 73102. UNITY also holds occasional training
sessions. For details visit: http://www.unityinc.org.
Tribal Interior Budget Council
Council is July 2626-28, 2016,
2016 at Best Western Ramkota Hotel &
Conference Center, Rapid City, SD/. For details visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferencesevents/ncai-events.
51st International Conference on Salish and Neighboring Languages may be in August
2016. More information is available at: http://icsnl.org or http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browseconf-action.cfm?ConfID=208896 .
51st International Conference on Salish and Neighboring Languages may be in August
2016. More information is available at: http://icsnl.org or http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browseconf-action.cfm?ConfID=208896 .
The 2016 annual meeting of the Linguistic Association of Canada and the United States, the
43rd LACUS Forum, is, August 2-5, at Saint Mary’s University, Halifax, Nova Scotia. For
details visit: http://lacus.weebly.com
NAAAS (including The National Association of Native American Studies) International
Research
Research Forum is August 14-22, 2016, co-sponsored by the University of Texas Rio Grande
Valley, at South Padre Island, Texas. For details visit: https://www.naaas.org/view-calendar/.
2016 NATIONAL STOLEN GENERATIONS
GENERATIONS CONFERENCE is at Grand Mercure Resort
in the Gold Coast, Australia on 24th – 26th August 2016/ For details go to:
http://www.indigenousconferences.com/#!2016http://www.indigenousconferences.com/#!2016-nationalnational-stolenstolen-g-conferenceconference-/r5smj.
2016 World Indigenous Business Forum is in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan ,Canada, at Teachers’
Credit Union Place, August 25- 26, 2016. It is co-hosted by the Indigenous Leadership
Development Institute (ILDI) and Saskatchewan First Nations Economic Development Network.
For details go to: http://wibf.ca/.
44th Annual Meeting of the Linguistic Association of the Southwest may be in September
2016. For details go to: http://clas.ucdenver.edu/lasso/index.html.
13th Language is Life Biennial Conference may be in September 2016. For details, visit:
http://www.aicls.org/.
Eighth Minnesota Indigenous Language Symposium maybe in September 2016. For details
15
go to:
http://www.grassrootsindigenousmultimedia.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&
id=69&Itemid=137, or http://conta.cc/12Rgb2u.
3 rd
INDIGENOUS
STOP DOMESTIC
AND
FAMILY
VIOLENCE
INDIGENOUS
WOR LD CONFERENCE is in Adelaide South Australia, Stamford Grand Adelaide Beach
Hotel Glenelg,
September
14-17,
2016.
For
details
go
to:
http://www.indigenousconferences.com/#!2016international
ionaldomesticviolence/c1zpe.
.
http://www.indigenousconferences.com/#!2016 internat
domestic violence /c1zpe
Colorado Association for Bilingual Education (CABE) may be in September 2016, in Denver,
CO. for details visit: http://www.cocabe.org.
Language and Language Teaching Conference (LLTC) 2015 may be in September 2016. For
details visit: https://sites.google.com/site/usdlltc/.
2016 Global Indigenous Men's Conference at Stamford Grand Adeliade Hotel, Adelaide,
Australia,
September
122015,
For
details
visit:
September
12-14,
http://www.indigenousconferences.com/#!2016http://www.indigenousconferences.com/#!2016-menmen-conferenceconference-/zw3yb .
The 2016 Global Indigenous Women's Conference is scheduled on September 12-14, 2016 at
Stamford Grand Hotel Glenelg Adelaide South Australia. For details go to:
http://www.indigenousconferences.com/#!2016-womens-conference-main-page/c1zfc.
12th Biannual Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival: Language Is Life
Gathering – Language Is Love is September 19-20, 2016, at Wonder Valley Ranch and
Conference Center, Sanger, CA. For details visit: http://www.aicls.org.
National Indian Health Board (NIHB) Annual Consumer Conference is in the Tucson, AZ
Area, September 19-23, 2016 (http://www.ncai.org/events/2016/09/19/nihb-annual-consumerconference).
The 2016 National Cultural and Linguistic Diverse Worker’s Conference: Drivers in
Diversity” will be held at the Hervey Bay, Australia Community Centre scheduled for the 26th –
28th September 2016. For details visit: http://www.indigenousconferences.com/#!2016cald/c1mhi.
The National Association for Multicultural Education (NAME) may be in October 2016,. For
details visit: http://www.nameorg.org/2015_name_conference_name2015.php.
The 24th EPA Region 9 Conference (Pacific Southwest Region of the EPA), covering 148
tribal nations) conference may be in October 2016. For information visit: http://region9tribalepaconference.com.
16
CILLA VIII may be in October 2016, Convocatoria Séptimo Congreso sobre los Idiomas
Indígenas de Latinoamérica. For details go to: http://ailla.utexas.org/site/events_sp.html.
Annual, Sunrise Gathering on Alcatraz Island may be in October or November 2016. For
details go to: http://www.iitc.org/conferences-events/community-events/.
NIEA 2016 Convention & Trade Show is October 4-8, 2016 in Reno, NV. For details visit:
http://www.niea.org.
National Indian Education Association 47 Annual Conference and Trade Show is October
5-8, 2016. For details visit: http://niea.site-ym.com/events/event_list.asp.
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) 2016 Fall Board Meeting is
October 6-8, 2016 is in New Orleans, LA. For information go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-weare/calendar.cfm.
9th Annual Tusweca Tiospaye 2016 Lakota Dakota Nakota Language Summit and
FirstNations Education Summit" is October 6-8, 2016, at the Rushmore Plaza Civic Center,
Rapid City, SD. For details visit: http://tuswecatiospaye.org/.
The Indigenous Studies Area of the Midwest Popular Culture Association at the annual
Midwest Popular Culture Association/American Culture Association conference is, October 6-9,
2016 at the Hilton Rosemont/Chicago O'hare. For more information about the conference please
visit the conference website at www.mpcaaca.org/conference.
NCAI 73rd Annual Convention and Marketplace is in Phoenix, AZ, October 9-14, 2016, for
details visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
The 2016 International Conference of Indigenous Archives, Libraries, and Museums
October 9-15, 2016 (Conference dates are October 11-12) at the Sheraton Wild Horse Pass
Resort & Spa, Gila River Indian Community, Phoenix, AZ. For information, visit:
http://www.atalm.org. Please direct questions to [email protected].
Sixth International Conference on Language Immersion Education is October 20-22, 2016 ,
in Minneapolis, MN. For details visit: http://www.carla.umn.edu/conferences/LTE2015/.
American Indigenous Research Association Meeting is October 21-22, 2016 in Joseph
McDonald Health and Fitness Center, Salish Kootenai College in Pablo, Montana. For details go
to: http://americanindigenousresearchassociation.org/meeting/.
SGAC/TSGAC Self Governance 4th Quarter Advisory Committee Meeting
Meeting is Oct 2525-27,
2016 at Washington, DC. For details visit: http://www.niea.org.
17
5th International Conference on Language, Education and Diversity (LED 2015) may be
in Auckland,
New
Zealand,
in
November
2016.
For
details
visit:
https://led.education.auckland.ac.nz.
First Nations Language Keepers Conference may be in November 2016 at the Saskatoon Inn
and Conference Centre in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada. Details area available at:
http://www.sicc.sk.ca/.
Tribal Interior
Interior Budget Council is November 77-9, 2016 at Washington Plaza, 10 Thomas Circle
NW, Washington, DC.
DC. For details visit: http://www.niea.org.
RES New Mexico is November 14-17, 2016, in Santa Fe, NM. For details visit:
http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
USHRN Bi-annual Human Rights Conference may be in December, 2016, at the Sheraton
Austin
at
the
Capitol,
701
East
11th
St.,
Austin, TX.
See
more
at:
http://www.ushrnetwork.org/events/advancing-human-rights-2015-sharpening-our-vision-reclaiming-ourdreams#sthash.U5xxHMf1.dpuf.
For
more
information
and
registration:
http://www.ushrnetwork.org/.
2016 International IndigenousAllied Health Conference is at Pullmans Hotel International.
Cairns, Queensland, Australia, December 1-3, 2015. For information visit
http://www.indigenousconferences.com/#!indigenous-allied-health-world-conferenc/cccl.
XVI International Conference on Minority Languages will be in 2017 at the University of
Jyväskylä in Finland.. For details go to: http://linguistlist.org/callconf/browse-confaction.cfm?ConfID=185476
or
https://www.facebook.com/pages/The-15th-InternationalConference-on-Minority-Languages-ICML-XV/1415639588738595.
Language Documentation and Linguistic Theory 5 is December 3-4, 2016, at Russell Square:
College Buildings, University of London, London, England. LDLT5 aims to bring together
researchers working on linguistic theory and language documentation and description, with a
particular focus on innovative work on under-described or endangered languages. For
information visit: https://www.soas.ac.uk/language-documentation-and-linguistic-theory-2016/.
WSF2015 The 6th World Sustainability Forum is in Cape Town, South Africa, on 27 and 28
January 2017. For details go to: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/6th-world-sustainability-forummatthias-burkhalter?articleId=6059646020671807488.
5th International Conference on Language Documentation and Conservation (ICLDC) - a
biennial
meeting:
may
be
in
February
2017.
For
details
visit:
http://events.hellotrade.com/conferences/international-conference-on-language-documentationand-conservation/.
USET Impact Week is February 6-9, 2017, at Crystal Gateway Marriott, Arlington, VA. For
details visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
18
RES Las Vegas is March 1313-16, 2017 in Las Vegas, NV. For derails visit:
http://www.ncai.org/events/2017/03/13/res-las-vegas.
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) 2017 Wintrt Board Meeting is
February 6-9, 2017 in Washington, DC. For information go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-weare/calendar.cfm.
NCAI 2017 Executive Council Winter Session is February 13-17, 2017, in Washington, DC.
For information visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) 2017 Spring Board Meeting is
March 16-18, 2017 is in Rapid City, SD. For information go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-weare/calendar.cfm.
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) 2017 Student Conference, March
19-21, 2017 at Best Western Ramkota Hotel and Conference Center Rapid City, SD. For
information go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-we-are/calendar.cfm.
NICWA Annual Conference is April
April 2-5, 2017 in San Diego, CA.
CA. For information visit:
NCAI 2017 Mid Year Conference is June
June 25, 2017 - June
June 28, 2017at
2017at Uncasville, CT.
CT. For
information visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) 2017 Summer Board Meeting is
July 13-15, 2017 in Denver, CO. For information go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-weare/calendar.cfm.
National Indian Health Board (NIHB) Annual Consumer Conference is in the Billings, MT
Area, September 25-29, 2017 (http://www.ncai.org/events/2017/09/25/nihb-annual-consumerconference).
The 13th biannual International Conference on the Mediterranean Coastal Environment
may be in October 2017. organized by MEDCOAST. For details contact:
[email protected], http://www.medcoast.net/.
NIEA Annual Conference is October 5-7, 2017 in Orlando, FL. For details visit:
http://www.aihec.org/who-we-are/calendar.cfm.
NCAI 74th Annual Convention and Marketplace is October 15-20, 2017, in Milwaukee, WI.
For details visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
National Indian Child Welfare Association (NICWA) 35th Annual Protecting Our Children
National American Indian Conference on Child Abuse and Neglect is April 2-5, 2017,
in San Diego, CA. For information go to: http://www.nicwa.org/.
19
Dene (Athabaskan) Language Conference 2017 will likely be held in June 2017 in the
Southwest, in Apache country. . For more information, please visit: http://www.uaf.edu/alc/.
NCAI 2017 Mid Year Conference is June
25-28,
2017.
For
details
visit:
NIHB Annual Consumer Conference is September 25-29, in the Billings, MT area. For details
visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
Puliima 2017 (6th Indigenous Language and Technology Conference) kay be in October,
2017. For information go to: http://www.puliima.com.
NCAI 2018 Executive Council Winter Session is February 12-15, 2018. For details visit:
American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC) 2018 Winter Board Meeting is
February 12-15, 2018 in Washington, DC. For information go to: http://www.aihec.org/who-weare/calendar.cfm.
RES Las Vegas is March 5-8, 2018, in Las
Vegas,
NV.
For
details
visit:
NICWA Annual Conference is April 1515-18, 2018 in Anchorage, AK.
AK For details visit:
NIEA National Convention is in Hartford, CT, October 10-14, 2018. For details visit:
NCAI 75th Annual Convention & Marketplace is October 21, 2018 - Oct 26, 2018 in Denver,
CO. For details visit: http://www.ncai.org/conferences-events/ncai-events.
.......___///////////|\\\\\\\\\\\___.......
ONGOING ACTIVITIES
Steve Sachs
Environmental Activities
The Indigenous Environmental Network, http://www.ienearth.org/, reported, October
9, 2015, that it was participating in, "Demand Climate Justice Now," "On October 14, 2015, in
cities and towns around the nation, people will be engaging in a National Day of Action.
Once Again we are calling attention to the urgent need for bold steps to be taken to address
the global climate crisis.
Initiated by the People’s Climate Movement (PCM) and the Indigenous Environmental
Network, these actions are being organized by local groups and organizations from the wide
range of diverse constituencies and communities.
20
The People’s Climate Movement hopes local organizers will develop creative,
inspirational events that call attention to the urgent need for immediate action on the climate
crisis while highlighting the range of communities and constituencies involved in this new
movement for climate justice.
Where possible, we encourage local events that highlight and challenge those
people/institutions/agencies that are either still denying climate change or are simply lying about
the seriousness of the problems. Where it makes sense to use these local events to strengthen
ongoing campaigns and projects, or to initiate new initiatives locally, we encourage that as well."
“Indigenous Press Conference Demanding True Climate Solutions at COP21,”
Indigenous Environmental Network, December 3, 2015, http://www.ienearth.org, reported,
“During the COP21 climate talks in Paris, Indigenous Peoples from the Arctic to the
Amazon and their allies will gather to demand real climate solutions, including bottom up
initiatives originating in Indigenous knowledge, culture, and spirituality. What: Sunday’s
press conference will include Indigenous leaders from the Americas offering solutions to stave
off the worst of climate change and protect Mother Earth. The launching of a declaration
calling on world leaders to keep fossil fuels in the ground, led by Indigenous peoples and
signed by over 150 organizations. The signing announcement from Indigenous women
leaders from North and South America of a treaty to protect Mother Earth. Presentation of
the Kawsak Sacha “Living Forest” proposal from the Amazon rainforest by the Kichwa
Indigenous people of Sarayaku. Indigenous flotilla on the Bassin de la Villette, including
Sarayaku’s “Canoe of Life” which has traveled 6000 miles to Paris with a message from the
Amazon. Indigenous spokespeople and supporting organizations including leading
environmental groups will be available to the media after the press conference. A reception and
cultural event will immediately follow the press event.” Contacts: Dallas Goldtooth, Indigenous
Environmental Network,, France: +33 75 1413 823, US: (708) 5156158, [email protected],
Andrew Miller, Amazon Watch, (202) 4234828, [email protected], Jonathon Berman,
Sierra Club, (202) 4953033, [email protected].
For the Indigenous Environmental Network’s Response to the COP21 climate
agreement, see dialoguing below.
40,000 people had intended to march in Paris for strong binding anti-climate change
measures on the ever of the Paris climate change conference, but after a major terrorist attack
days earlier France was under a state of emergency and all marches were banned. A few
hundred climate demonstrators did commence a march, but were attacked by police and
scatted, some arrested, while numerous environmental organization leaders in Paris for the
summit were held under house arrest. Never the less, numerous environmental groups have
been active with news conferences, press statements and social media activity in Paris (from
various reports preceding and during the conference from Democracy Now, PBS, CNN and
others).
Among other Indigenous Environmental Network activity: “Indigenous Leaders Respond
to President Obama Rejecting Keystone XL Pipeline,” “This is a tremendous victory for all the
pipeline fighters who have spent several years fighting the TransCanada “black snake”, Keystone
XL! The President’s decision is a clear affirmation of our struggle to defend the sacredness of
Mother Earth and to protect the future generations of all our relatives, human and non-human
alike. We celebrate this as a win and a powerful step to the greater goals of keeping fossil fuels
in the ground and shutting down the tar sands at the source!”. - Dallas Goldtooth, Indigenous
21
Environmental Network KXL Campaign Organizer.
“2015-2016 Grassroots Communities Mining Mini-Grant Program,” “The goal of the
Mining Mini-grants Program is to support and enhance the capacity building efforts of miningimpacted communities in the U.S. and Canada to assure that mining projects do not adversely
affect human, cultural, and the ecological health of communities.
In 2015 we gave $180,000 to 60 groups across the US and Canada who are dealing with
hard rock mining issues in their neighborhoods, Nations and communities. IEN and our partner
WMAN are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the on the ground, grassroots work done
by the recipients of the Mini-Grant Program. We would like to thank them for working to protect
Mother Earth for all of us! - Simone Senogles, IEN Food Sovereignty & Mining-Mini Grant
Campaign Organizer.”
350.org is continuing its world wide action to curb global warming, including in the U.S.
Its divest from investments in fossil fuels campaign reported on its web site in late August,
2015, "
Fossils belong in museums: Friends, Today, we’re announcing an exciting new
divestment campaign: In partnership with The Natural History Museum, a new mobile museum
that champions bold climate action, we’re launching a brand new push in the divestment
movement calling on museums to stand up as leaders in the face of climate catastrophe. The iron
is red hot. In (More...) Zoë Wong-Weissman August 21, 2015
6 lessons on how we won a £7 billion Norway divestment: Here in Norway, we
recently secured one of our biggest climate wins, if not one of the world’s biggest climate wins.
Early June, Parliament decided that the Norwegian Government Pension Fund (often called “the
oil fund”) is to divest from coal burning and coal producing companies. The decision means that
about £7.7 billion GBP ($8.4 (More...) Anja Bakken Riise August 12, 2015
-thumbnail wp-post-image" alt="the earth and the poor are crying out for divestment - climate
march Vatican" /></a>
Divestment campaign kicks off in Italy
Blog by Riccardo Rossella – Italian Climate Network The campaign for divestment has started in
Italy! As the first step for the campaign, in collaboration with 350.org, Coordinamento Power
Shift Italia, The Climate Reality Project, Viração and FIMA, we brought the message of Divest
the Vatican… to the Vatican! On 28 June, thousands of people marched (More...)
Melanie Mattauch August 4, 2015"
"Fossil Fuel Divestment: Building the Movement: On Saturday 11th July, over 250
divestment activists came together in London for ‘Fossil Fuel Divestment: Building the
Movement’, sharing their campaigning skills, inspiring stories from across the country, and the
occasional cup of tea. great images emerging from the big #divestuk meeting in London today!
You guys are leading the world! pic.twitter.com/6XcW7vHu0r — Bill (More...) ellengibson
July 15, 2015
Divest the Vatican: With the ear of 1.2 billion Catholics and the respect of Christians
and non-Christians alike, Pope Francis is uniquely positioned to add both his voice and the
unique moral power of his office to the divestment movement. (More...) Thelma Young June 26,
2015
Lutheran World Federation divests! The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) just
announced that it will exclude fossil fuel companies from its investments and calls on its member
churches with 72 million members to do likewise. It also asks its member churches “not to invest
22
in fossil fuels and to support energy efficiency and renewable energy companies, and to
encourage their institutions (More...) Melanie Mattauch June 23, 2015, Faith
Lund University divest direct holdings from fossil fuels, Text by Cherry Tsoi and Joep
Karskens, Fossil Free Lund University Our university made the decision on Friday (June 12,
2015) to divest parts of their investments in coal, oil and gas. This is a large victory for our
campaign and for climate justice, as the coal, oil and gas industry are for the first time pinpointed
(More...) Olivia Linander June 17, 2015
Around 100 members of the Berliner Ärzteversorgung (pension fund of physicians
in Berlin) are asking their pension fund to divest
Divestment of fossil fuels additionally discussed at the recent German Medical
Assembly in May At the beginning of April, 97 members of the Berliner Ärzteversorgung sent
a letter calling on their pension fund to divest all of their fossil fuel shares within the next five
years and to reinvest the freed capital in shares that (More...)"
debora June 11, 2015 (at: http://350.org)’s For details go to: http://act.350.org/.
350.org's work to stop the Keystone Pipeline and other tansportation of tar sands oil
was contiuing over the past 4 months, Thea includes, " In New England we’re part of the Tar
Sands Free New England campaign to keep Exxon from reversing a 50 year-old pipeline and
running corrosive, toxic tar sands crude through it for export from Maine. Next we’ll be ramping
up local campaigns in the Midwest and West Coast as we steadily shut down all paths to expand
the tar sands."
Global Power Shift: Phase 2 continues as a world wide campaign to shift away from
fossil fuels to safe renewable energy. Among the recent programs, "Continuous Low Carbon
Fight in China Campus: On July 19, 2014, with funding from the Yu Foundation of
Guangdong Province, the Sixth International Youth Summit on Energy and Climate Change
Session,
Yu — College Energy Saving Conference of China, was held in Zi Yue Hall in
Tsinghua Unisplendour International Center.
After GPS Phase 2 was held in China by GPS-China team, more actions were taken around the
country with countless volunteers support and groups efforts. Around 30 school team leaders
from provinces over the big country joined the co-hosted discussion session in Beijing last
summer; at the conference, those youth leaders brought with the experiences, questions, tools at
hands to learn from each other about “How to apply the result of carbon accounting report from
campuses into real actions for a renewable future?'
Few months after, they gathered again at their own campus, hometown and reported back
to the world on their achievements for a greener future. Starting with 32 universities, the GPS
Phase 2 – Low Carbon Campus Project has encouraged hundreds of students to involve
themselves in their school’s energy management as well as helping them develop leadership
skills; So far, there are 28 universities have completed their carbon accounting research and 24 of
them are combating for carbon reduction. Each university develops its own programs to reduce
their carbon footprint. For example, Beijing Forestry University launched 'Lights Off Project'
which involved 50 volunteers and managed to save 30,000 watts of electricity in one month.
(more…).
350.org held “a national day of protest,” November 14, 2015 against Exxon's decades
of funding climate change denial. See Bill McKibben's Op Ed, “Exxon's climate lie: 'No
corporation has ever done anything this big or bad',” The Guardian, November 14, 2015,
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/oct/14/exxons-climate-lie-change-globalwarming, “for details of their treachery and see the recent expose’s in the LA Times
23
(http://graphics.latimes.com/exxon-research/)
and
Inside
Climate
News
(http://insideclimatenews.org/content/Exxon-The-Road-Not-Taken)for the full detail. For details
go to: http://act.350.org/.
For more information visit: 350.org.
Oil Change International was involved in a Thundrclap, nation and world wide,
November 15, 2015, in “#StopFundingFossils Day of Action,” following the released a
“groundbreaking new report with our partners at the Overseas Development Institute exposing
the $450 BILLION our governments are still giving to the fossil fuel industry every. single.
year. Something needs to change, which is why we’re changing the game. The focus of the
Thunderclap was on “specific individuals who have the power to #StopFundingFossils.” For
more
information
go
to:
http://stopfundingfossils.org/#target?can_id=2304a48b2891e77b9b6c14d1ce535f4f&source=em
ail-stopfundingfossils-ramping-up-for-saturday&email_referrer=stopfundingfossils-ramping-upfor-saturday&email_subject=stopfundingfossils-ramping-up-for-saturday.
Mark Trahant, "Press Release: Tribes pitch Congress on coastal issues, riders," Trahant
Reports, November 4, 2015, http://trahantreports.com/, reported, "Note: Following are two news
releases regarding issues that jeopardize tribal culture, safety and rights: For immediate Release
Photos available on request, Testifying on H.R. 2719,
Quinault Nation President Asks Congress to Support Tribal Management of Coastal Zones
to Ensure Public Safety and Protect Cultural Resources.
Washington DC (11/4/15)—Destructive weather conditions including persistent
flooding, severe storms, intense storm surge and continued drought are placing coastal
heritage sites and tribal culture at risk, Fawn Sharp, President of the Quinault Indian
Nation, told members of U.S. House Natural Resources Indian, Insular, and Alaska Natives
Subcommittee here this morning.
Testifying in a hearing on H.R. 2719, the Tribal Coastal Resiliency Act, President
Sharp said, 'Tribes who have lived in coastal regions since time immemorial do not have the
necessary tools to protect their people and culture from the devastating impacts of severe
weather events and natural disasters on their communities.'
Sharp, who is also President of the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians and Area Vice
President of the National Congress of American Indians, said the United States has a trust
responsibility to ensure the safety of tribal communities and the protection of tribal culture.
'Upon its formation, the United States acknowledged the existing inherent sovereign authority of
Indian tribes over our lands. The federal government entered into hundreds of treaties with
Native nations to secure peace and trade agreements, to foster alliances, and to build a land base
for the newly formed United States. Through these treaties, tribes ceded hundreds of millions of
acres of our homelands. In return, the U.S. promised to provide for the education, health, public
safety, and general welfare of Indian people. Persistent flooding, tsunami threats, and erosion put
tribal members and cultural sites at risk. These threats cannot be adequately addressed by tribal
governments alone.'
The Tribal Coastal Resiliency Act, will expand the Coastal Zone Management Act
(CZMA) to recognize the severe challenges tribal governments face in implementing
coastal and shoreline measures that support public safety, public access, and cultural and
historic preservation. The bill will enable tribal governments to access resources currently
24
only offered to state governments, supporting tribal sovereignty and greater selfdetermination on tribal lands. The bill upholds the federal government’s treaty and trust
responsibilities, while strengthening the government-to-government relationship with
federally recognized tribes.
Protecting and preserving coastal areas are essential to the continued existence of tribal
culture. “Over the past several years the people of the Quinault Nation have had to endure one
natural disaster after another and our tribal government has had to respond with disaster
declarations instead of being able to mitigate the damage before it happens,” said President
Sharp.
The bill was introduced by Rep. Derek Kilmer (WA-06) along with 20 bi-partisan cosponsors. It is supported by Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, a tribal organization
representing 57 tribes in the Northwest as well as the Midwest Alliance of Sovereign Tribes,
which represents 35 tribes in the Midwest.
President Sharp detailed several emergencies Quinault Nation has faced, including a
March, 2014 breach of the sea wall protecting the Lower Village. That breach caused severe
flooding and property damage. “Our people, our salmon populations, our cultural resources—
everyone is suffering. We have been working very hard for a very long time to do all we can to
fight back, using every resource at our disposal,” said Sharp. “There is no question that we need
the help of Congress and the Federal Administration in these efforts.
She added, 'Our culture is intertwined with nature and our connection to the natural
resources of the Olympic Peninsula. Our respect for the Creator’s gifts and our ability to harvest,
hunt, and gather is at the core of our cultural identity as well as our economy. Intensified weather
conditions, natural disasters, and public safety concerns threaten the very existence of the
Quinault people.' For more information contact Steve Robinson (360) 951-2494
[email protected].
Native youth participated in the November 9, 2015, mass rally for justice on climate
change, race, and immigration in Washington, DC (Tara Houska, “Houska: Native Youth
Rally
for
Racial,
Climate
Justice
in
D.C.,”
November
17,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/17/houska-native-youth-rally-racialclimate-justice-dc-162448).
"Peru: Indigenous Federations Close Oil Wells for 12 days in Protest of Failed
Consultation,"
Cultural
Survival,
September
30,
2015,
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/peru-indigenous-federations-close-oil-wells-12-daysprotest-failed-consultation, reported, "On September 12, 2015, hundreds of people from
Quechua, Achuar and Kichwa communities of the Pastaza, Corrientes, and Tigre rivers
united to form a peaceful protest at the site of the Andoas airport in the Upper Pastaza
region of Loreto where Lot 192 has its headquarters. Using their bodies to block the
landing strip, mothers, children, elderly and others occupied the space for a total of 12
days.
The peaceful protest is a response to the abuse at the hands of the Peruvian state in
its inability to comply with the Right to Prior Consultation on Lot 192, the country’s
largest oil producing block which is has been issued to a new oil company after the existing
concession expired after 45 years of exploitation. Dialogues pursuing a process of
consultation with communities were declared ‘concluded’ in late August just as the
25
concession expired on August 29. A new deal was reached with Canadian company Pacific
Stratus to operate the concession for the next two years. The communities have declared
that they are not protesting against Pacific Stratus, nor oil extraction in general. They
understand the value of oil to the Peruvian economy, but insist that the industry be held to
standards that do not continue to affect their environment and poison their children.
'Every Peruvian knows that no one likes to be at strike, because it disturbs the peace and
also puts our lives and the lives our our children at risk, given the usual policies of repression
from the State of Peru. However, our communities are obligated to strike because the state, once
again, has gravely abused our rights. This is a flight for our dignity, this is a fight for our sons
and daughters!’ declares the first point of a statement by the Quehua, Achuar, and Kichwa
Peoples on September 16.
'We are the living ancestors of these territories and we know these lands like the back of
our hands. Since Saturday the 12th of September, we have felt obligated to station ourselves
peacefully in various points of the territory, including the airport, and various oil wells, stopping
one hundred percent of the oil production of Lot 192.'
In addition to the failed consultation, the statement highlights a breach of the March 10
contract made by the State to respond to the State of Emergency that was declared on their lands
in 2013 and 2014. At that time, an agreement had been established that the State would provide
land titles, environmental remediation, and health services to communities affected by toxic
environmental contaminants resulting from the oil industry.
The protest, hosted on Quechua lands, included communities of neighboring villages and
river systems who came to support the Quechua and protest alongside them. 'Almost everyday,
from the Corrientes River, the Achuar arrive to the protest. They come to visit the Quechuas, to
share food they have hunted and fished from their territories. The Achuars arrive to lament in
unity about the attitude of the state that refuses to recognize them as owners of their own
destinies. Someone in Lima believes that the government can decide for [Indigenous Peoples],
decide that behind Indigenous Peoples homes, in the forest they inherited from their ancestors,
petroleum be produced in exchange for money dripping in contamination and destruction,' wrote
Mario Zúñiga, Tami Okamoto y Peter Rodriguez for PUINAMUDT.
'Representatives of the State have the opportunity to not repeat the exclusion committed
during so many years against our communities, and to show those who want violence and
destruction that as Peruvians, we know how to live in harmony, in equity, and in
multiculturalism. We have the opportunity to close an era of exclusion, racism, lies and
inequality, and recuperate together the spirit of Buen Vivir. We want to dialogue for a healthy
land, for the lives of our children and children yet to come, for the well being of the Indigenous
Peoples of Peru, for the future, for mutual respect, and for our dignity as Indigenous Peoples and
as Peruvians.'
On September 24, the demonstration was called to an end by an agreement made during a
visit by the Minister of Housing, Construction, and Remediation, Milton von Hesse. Among the
agreements made, were a commitment to comply with the March 10th act, execution of new
development projects for the region, prioritizing land titling, and new investments in clean water
decontamination, and electricity. Time will tell if these agreements are respected. Meanwhile, as
Pacific Stratus takes control, reports of oil spills have already started to come in from Indigenous
environmental monitors who patrol the forests watching for signs of spills."
26
"'Stop destroying the Earth’s lungs., Amazon Indians plead in Europe," Survival
International, October 8, 2014, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10472, reported,
"Amazon Indian leaders Davi Yanomami and Mauricio Yekuana have completed a unique
trip to Europe, where they urged the global population to /stop destroying the Earth’s
lungs.
Davi, a Yanomami shaman who has been called the “Dalai Lama of the Rainforest”,
spoke of the illegal mining, ranching and deforestation which pose a serious threat to his tribe
and many others across Brazil.
He warned that the destruction of the Amazon is a danger for all humanity, and that
if it is not stopped urgently, 'the world will die and we will all die with it'.
Davi and Mauricio’s engagements included a meeting with the King of Norway, a soldout talk to hundreds of people in London, and a tour of the UK to engage hundreds more in their
campaign."
Mong Palatino, "Cambodia: Monks Protest Against Destruction of the Prey Lang Forest
October 14, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/cambodia-monks-protest-againstdestruction-prey-lang-forest, reported, "Cambodian monks have been mobilizing in the streets
since July 2015 to demand stronger government action against the rapid deforestation of
Prey Lang, the largest lowland dry evergreen forest in Cambodia and Indochina Peninsula.
Prey Lang has 3,600 square kilometers of forests, including giant luxury timber trees,
which is home to at least 20 endangered plant species and 27 endangered animal species. More
than 700,000 people live within 10 kilometers of the forest. The majority of the settlers belong to
Kuys, a small indigenous group which has protected the Prey Lang for centuries.
In recent years, the Cambodian government gave land concessions to local and
foreign companies in order to develop the country’s agriculture and mining potential.
However, many of the land agreements covered protected areas like Prey Lang. The lack of
transparency surrounding the land concessions also sparked various legal disputes and
violent conflicts across the country.
In 2011, Cambodian activists and indigenous tribes conducted an ‘Avatar’ protest to
denounce the destruction of Prey Lang. Dressed like the Na'vi tribe from the Hollywood film
Avatar, the protesters urged the government to stop the operations of logging and rubber
plantations in Prey Lang.
The campaign to preserve Prey Lang continues to this day since there has been no letup
in logging activities in the area. During the same period, Cambodia’s deforestation problem
also worsened when the government gave away more land concessions.
Last July, monks belonging to the Independent Monk Network for Social Justice hand
delivered five confiscated chainsaws to the Forestry Administration and National Assembly in
Phnom Penh, the country's capital, to highlight the continuing destruction of Prey Lang.
The group’s leader, Venerable Buntenh, explained why the monks have decided to hold a
protest:
Monks cannot remain silent on the issue given the alarming rate of deforestation.
Those Forestry Administration officers are the ‘dollar officers’, as they don’t care about the
forest or Prey Lang and let bad merchants continue to destroy the forest day by day.
During the last week of September, the monks gathered again in the streets of
Battambang to remind the public and government officials that agribusiness companies continue
to destroy the country’s forests."
27
"Campaign Update - Kuy villagers step up activism to save Prey Lang," Cultural
Survival, October 2, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/campaign-update-kuy-villagersstep-activism-save-prey-lang, reported, "The Indigenous Kuy people of the Prey Lang forest
of Cambodia are increasing their efforts in the campaign to promote conservation of their
lands and against deforestation by the government and corporations with a new
smartphone application to help them better report on what is going on.
The Prey Lang Community Network (PLCN), organized in the early 2000s to
protect the forest, first patrolled using the smartphone application in February 2015. With
this new technology these roving patrols can move throughout the area and record data,
including audio and pictures, remotely.
New reports have disclosed information collected on PLCN patrols from April - July
2015. The patrols, led by volunteer community members, took place in nearly 70 villages
across Prey Lang, all of which are facing threats from companies, logging and Economic
Land Concessions made by the government. The results documents by the patrollers
records the number of illegally felled trees,, depletion of natural resources, and any and all
interactions with illegal loggers or transports witnessed by community members.
From the evidence collected, destructive activity in Prey Lang forest is shown to be a
constant issue. The PLCN encountered a multitude of illegal loggers, over 40 transports of wood,
over 60 tree stumps and confiscated numerous chainsaws. While the PLCN is organized enough
to draw up agreements to sign with any loggers they come across to cease and desist their
activities, it is certainly not enough to combat the actions of companies and the Cambodian
government.
The PLCN has acknowledged that its members do not have enough time to continue these
patrols as often is necessary, and have sought contact with a number of government
organizations regarding conservation of Prey Lang -- none of which have brought about any real
change. The organization itself has faced backlash, such as the murder of activist Chut Wutty in
2012. Wutty was shot while escorting two journalists into an area of illegal logging, supposedly
by a man who had also shot a policeman, but this has been much disputed. The courts of
Cambodia have decided not to investigate Wutty’s death. Events such as this highlight the
dangers land rights defenders face and show the urgent need for support and protection by the
Cambodian government, and the implementation of the right to Free, Prior, Informed Consent for
Indigenous Peoples regarding development projects on their land, as is established under the UN
Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
In September 2015 the PLCN was declared as a winner of the Equator Prize. This
prestigious honor is bestowed on 21 Indigenous community-based initiatives battling climate
change. Being awarded the prize comes with $10,000 USD and an all expense paid trip to the
United Nations Conference on Climate Change that will take place in Paris, France this
December. This prize, as well as joining a unique network of nearly 200 past winning initiatives
can only mean promising things for the Prey Lang campaign in the future.
'I feel absolutely happy and thankful to our NGO partners that help Prey Lang. We will
use this award that is very useful for Prey Lang to take care of natural resources and biodiversity
in Prey Lang, to train more people and give them more skills, it is helpful for their livelihood and
helpful for Prey Lang,' reacted Mr. Chea Sokhouen, PLCN member from Steung Treng.
Prey Lang forest is an integral part of the culture of the Indigenous Peoples who live
within its borders. Within its borders exist more than 20 endangered plant species, 27 endangered
28
animal species, in addition to the near certainty of unknown species yet to be discovered. The
Cambodian government must recognize that the forest is vital to the sustainability of Cambodia’s
food and water security and that the forest management of these communities is hugely
dependent on the continuation of their traditional livelihoods and to the well-being of the forest.
Click here to read the full reports compiled by the Prey Lang Community Network.
Photo: Resin tappers from O Preah Village going back home after a day's work in the community
forest, Blue Forest. The red sign on the tree was made by Vietnamese Rubber Group which had
obtained a concession from the Cambodian government to do rubber plantation in the forest in
2000. It indicates an area off-limit to the villagers. Oxfam GB Asia."
Indigenous Environmental Network, “Take Action Now to Stop the PolyMet Sulfide
Mine,” December 1, 2015, http://www.ienearth.org/, called for, “Comment Today to
Protect Our Waters and Wild Rice: Perched on the edge of the Laurentian divide, between
the Boundary Waters and Lake Superior watersheds, lies the site of PolyMet's proposed
copper-sulfide mine. PolyMet's mine plan – which would be the first of its kind in
Minnesota - risks polluting the headwaters of both unique places with toxic metals and acid
mine drainage for hundreds of years.
This pollution would contaminate drinking water with lead and arsenic, increase mercury
contamination of fish, and decimate wild rice, damaging the health of communities as far
downstream as where the St. Louis River meets Lake Superior. This proposed sulfide mine
would adversely affect children’s health and environmental justice, disproportionately harming
local Native and low-income people who rely on fishing and gathering wild rice for subsistence.
The comment period for PolyMet’s final (and highly flawed) environmental review is
open now through Monday, December 14. Please take this opportunity to tell State and Federal
Agencies to reject PolyMet’s mine plan and prevent them from polluting Minnesota’s waters and
downstream communities. Submit your comments/objections here: http://bit.ly/1LPhiHI
Questions? Please contact Jacob Crawford, WaterLegacy Communications Coordinator,
[email protected].”
U.S. Activities
“National Native organizations come together to release new Native Children’s Policy
Agenda:
Putting
Kids
First.”
NCIA,
September
22,
2015,
http://www.ncai.org/news/articles/2015/09/22/national-native-organizations-come-together-torelease-new-native-children-s-policy-agenda-putting-first-kids-1st . reported, “Native
Native children
form the backbone of future tribal success and someday will lead the charge to create thriving,
vibrant communities which is why four national Native organizations
organizations – the National Congress
of American Indians, the National Indian Child Welfare Association, the National Indian
Education Association, and the National Indian Health Board – have come together to
update the joint policy agenda for Native youth. The goal of this policy agenda is to set
forth specific recommendations to improve the social, emotional, mental, physical, and
economic health of children and youth, allowing them to achieve their learning and
developmental potential. In short, this initiative
initiative calls on key stakeholders to put First Kids
1st.
1st.
This agenda is intended as a tool to assist tribal leaders and other policymakers in their
work to create and implement a vision for a vibrant, healthy community. It is also intended to
29
guide stakeholders
stakeholders as they prioritize legislation and policy issues that may affect Native children
and youth. The partners have identified four overarching themes as guiding principles for
improving children’s lives and outcomes. Within each theme, the agenda sets forth
forth tribal
strategies and policy objectives to implement these principles.
Native Children’s Policy Agenda: Putting First Kids 1st is the updated work of the 2008
National Children’s Agenda, created by the same four organizations and generously supported
by W.K. Kellogg Foundation. This joint work for Native youth is part of the “First Kids 1st”
initiative, which was announced last year and focuses on changing federal, state, and tribal
policy to create conditions in which American Indian and Alaska
Alaska Native children
children canthrive.”
The
agenda
is
set
out
at:
http://www.ncai.org/resources/ncaihttp://www.ncai.org/resources/ncaipublications/Aug_2015_Native_Childrens_Policy_Agendapdf.
publications/Aug_2015_Native_Childrens_Policy_Agendapdf The Executive Summary states,
“For time immemorial, bound by love and responsibility, tribes have worked to ensure the
health, well-being, and success of Native children. Tribal governments are responsible for
protecting youth, teaching and guiding these next generations, providing services to families, and
creating supportive environments where children can live and flourish. Native children, in turn,
form the backbone of future tribal success and will someday lead the charge to create thriving,
vibrant communities. In 2008, the National Congress of American Indians, the National Indian
Health Board, the National Indian Education Association, the National Indian Child Welfare
Association, and the National Council of Urban Indian Health created a joint policy agenda for
American Indian and Alaska Native children. The goal of this initiative is to set forth specific
recommendations to improve the social, emotional, mental, physical, and economic health of
children and youth, allowing them to achieve their learning and developmental potential. In
short, this initiative calls on key stakeholders to put First Kids 1st.
This agenda, updated in 2015, is intended as a tool to assist tribal leaders and other
policymakers in their work to create and implement a vision for vibrant, healthy communities. It
is also intended to guide stakeholders as they prioritize legislation and policy issues that may
affect Native children and youth. We identify four overarching themes that we believe must be
guiding principles for improving children’s lives and outcomes. Within each theme, the agenda
sets forth tribal strategies and policy objectives to implement these principles. The themes are:
Healthy Lifestyles. Native children must have the resources and support they need to
develop strong self-esteem, positive self-identity, healthy bodies, and the life skills to usher them
successfully into adulthood. One of these resources is good health. Children who are physically,
mentally, emotionally, and spiritually healthy are more able to play, learn, and work. And since
health is a component of the mind as well as the body, they are also more apt to influence their
peers to promote an encouraging social norm around health and healthy behaviors.
Supportive Environments. Children who have their basic needs met, including love,
shelter, food, clothing, and play, are children who are more likely to go on to thrive, explore,
learn, and dream. Our children must be supported by our communities and protected from harm.
Successful Students. Children who have a positive, safe, and culturally relevant learning
environment will achieve to the best of their abilities. Qualified and skilled teachers, culturebased curriculum, and family involvement are effective and promising practices critical to
ensuring children are able to develop to their full potential.
Vibrant Communities. In order to invest in children and the community structures that
support them, tribal governments must have options for economic development, flexibility to
channel tribal and federal funds into programs that best support their members, and resources to
help move families out of poverty. The objective is to foster economically strong and resilient
30
communities which can support community programs that provide basic support for children and
families.”
"Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery," Cultural Survival, October 2, 2015,
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/dismantling-doctrine-discovery, reported, "On September
24, 2015, the Continental Confederacy delegation in Lenape Territory (Philadelphia) took
place focusing on the process of Dismantling the Doctrine of Discovery coinciding with the
US visit of Pope Francis. It featured leaders from Indigenous Nations from across Turtle
Island - Abya Yala. Indigenous leaders from around the Western Hemisphere, joined by leaders
of the Society of Friends (Quakers), gathered in downtown Philadelphia to urge Pope Francis to
renounce and rescind the Doctrine of Discovery, a series if 15th century papal bulls that provided
evangelical and legal justification for European explorers’ subjugation of native peoples in the
so-called New World and still forms the basis of Indian land law in the United States and
beyond. The gathering and press conference took place in downtown Philadelphia at Welcome
Park, also known as the Wampum Lot, which was set aside for Haudenosaunee (Iroquois)
Confederacy visits to the then-national capital.
Rescind The Doctrine Of Discovery from Rugged Entertainment on Vimeo.
Below is a statement that came out of the gathering.
Continental Commission Abya Yala, "REAFFIRMING OUR ANCESTRAL
RESPONSIBILITIES TO MOTHER EARTH AND TO ONE ANOTHER: DISMANTLING the
DOCTRINE of DISCOVERY," Read at the Wampum Lot in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania:
"We have been called to the lands of the Lenape to unite and reaffirm our ancestral
responsibilities as caretakers of Mother Earth in a time of severe climate change.
We stand together today to reaffirm our ancestral responsibilities to Mother Earth and to
one another as original Nations. This coalition, and the agreements we have made among our
collective Nations will further unite us in our efforts as we stand together to fight colonialism
and its lasting effects.
We as Indigenous Peoples and Nations are the original caretakers of the land and have
lived here since time immemorial. We, like our Ancestors have agreed to continue to fulfill this
responsibility in peace and friendship with all other nations.
As caretakers of Mother Earth we acknowledge and recognize the ongoing impacts of
climate change which affects us all, and that the most severe impacts will befall future
generations. The denial of this reality by political leaders at the highest level in the world today
amounts to the criminal violations of the human rights of future generations which we will not
allow to continue.
As a coalition of nations of indigenous peoples that have agreed to work together, we are
calling again to our younger brothers of the immigrant settler republics of the Americas to
recognize the collective trauma of colonization, and the ongoing destruction to the natural world
which has brought the human species to the threat of extinction.
This coalition and any agreements made between our respective nations will further unite
us in our efforts to stand together in addressing the ongoing colonization in our territories and its
lasting effects.
As children of Mother Earth may we all find the courage and vision to address these
challenging issues in peace, friendship, and justice."
31
Anne Minard, “Tribes Ask President Obama to Designate Bears Ears as National
Monument,”
ICTMN,
October
15,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/15/tribes-ask-president-obama-designatebears-ears-national-monument-162096
, reported, “Five tribes formally unveiled their proposal on October 15 for a 1.9 million-acre
Bears Ears National Monument, which would protect lands in southeastern Utah that are both
culturally significant and ecologically imperiled.
The Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition, made of representatives from the Navajo,
Hopi, Zuni, Ute Mountain Ute, and Uintah & Ouray Ute tribes, hosted a press conference at
the National Press Club in Washington and published their full proposal online” at:
http://www.bearsearscoalition.org.
The proposed monument site contains well over 1000,000, and possibly 250,000
ancient pueblo sites. The Pueblos of New Mexico have ancient connections there andare
also involved in protecting these culturally valuable, and in some instances sacred, sites
(Stephen Sachs, report from a meeting on Bears Ears at the Pueblo Indian Cultural Center in
Albuquerque, NM, November, 2015).
The Battle Mountain Band of of the Te Moak Tribe of Western Shoshones,
supported by seveal other Indian nations, has been fighting the resuming of gold mining by
the Western Global Mining Co. in their sacred site of Toaswihi Quaries in Elko County
Nevada, a traditional source of flint (Stephanie Woodward, “Profits Before Natives,” In These
Times, December 2015).
The canonization of Junípero Serra at the Carmel Mission in Carmel-by-the-Sea,
CA, Spaniard who helped the Spanish colonization of California in the 18th century,
brought protests from Indians, and on September 28, 2015, unidentified people overturned
his six-foot statue, doused it with paint, and wrote “saint of genocide” on a nearby triangle
of stone (Laura M. Holson, "Sainthood of Junípero Serra Reopens Wounds of Colonialism in
California,"
The
New
York
Times,
September
29,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/30/us/attack-on-statue-of-new-saint-junipero-serra-digs-up-oldconflicts.html?ref=todayspaper).
Harlan McKosato, “Urban Brawl: Pueblo Fights Plan to Build New City Near ABQ,”
ICYMN, August 26, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/08/26/urbanbrawl-pueblo-fights-plan-build-new-city-near-abq-161530, reported, “Urban sprawl is posing
many threats to Indian country when it comes to tribal land and water rights. There is
currently a plan in place to build what amounts to an entire new city west of Albuquerque.
The project is called the Santolina Master Plan and it proposes to develop a reported 22
square miles, and 38,000 homes, atop what is known as the West Mesa. But opponents of the
project argue the long-term effects could have very negative consequences to the water
supply in the middle Rio Grande River watershed.
Many tribes across the U.S. who inhabit land close to urban areas that are subject to
urban sprawl are already dealing with this concern, or will inevitably be dealing with it as the
U.S. population continues to expand. The Pueblo of Isleta, which lies just a few miles south of
Albuquerque along the Rio Grande, is ready to take up the fight to keep this development
from emerging.”
32
Rick Kearns, “Fighting Racism at Yale: Native Students Push for Dialogue,” ICTMN,
November 13, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/13/fighting-racismyale-native-students-push-dialogue-162425, reported, “Native students at Yale joined more
than 1,000 people to make their voices heard in an event this week called the March of
Resilience, where students of color and their allies showed unity and strength in the face of
ongoing racial problems on campus.
On Monday, November 9, close to 1,200 students of color, faculty, administrators and
allies marched from Yale’s various cultural centers toward the Sterling Memorial Library.
Student leaders gave speeches and groups such as the Blue Feather Drum Group performed
songs, including a version of Northern Cree’s ‘Young & Free.’”
Harlan McKosato, “Anti-Columbus Natives Rally for ABQ’s Indigenous Peoples’ Day,”
ICTMN, October 15, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/15/anticolumbus-natives-rally-abqs-indigenous-peoples-day-162083, reported, “Albuquerque was one
of many cities in the U.S. to proclaim the second Monday in October Indigenous Peoples’
Day, basically shunning the traditional Columbus Day celebration. A rally, organized by a
local group called The Red Nation, was held in downtown Albuquerque this past Monday and
over 600 supporters took to the streets to draw recognition to the proclamation that was signed
by Council President Rey Garduno just five days before.”
International Activities
Barbara Fraser, “New Interactive Map Helps Tribes Defend Land Right,” ICTMN,
November 19, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/19/new-interactivemap-helps-tribes-defend-land-rights-162459, reported, “A new online interactive map of
indigenous and community lands could help communities defend their land rights and head
off land grabs by outsiders, its creators say.
The map, shows boundaries of indigenous and community lands, whether or not
they are formally recognized, as well as levels of legal security of land rights. It also
provides information about national land-tenure regulations and the sources of the data.
‘We think that shining a light on these lands is an important part of the process of
protecting (them),’ Peter Veit, director of the Land and Resource Rights Initiative at the
Washington-based World Resources Institute, told Indian Country Today in a telephone
interview.
The World Resources Institute is part of a group of non-profit organizations that
developed the map.
As much as two-thirds of the world’s land area is in indigenous and community
lands, although many are not formally recognized, Liz Alden Wily, an independent landtenure expert involved in the project, said at an event unveiling the map in Washington, D.C., on
November 10.
Making indigenous territories more visible is especially important as the decisive
climate summit scheduled for December in Paris approaches, said Andy White, coordinator
of the Washington-based Rights and Resources Initiative, which was also involved in developing
the map.
Studies have found that rates of deforestation—a key source of greenhouse gas emissions
that cause global warming—are often even lower on indigenous lands than in government-
33
designated protected areas. That makes those lands important for storing carbon.”
"Indigenous organizations reject calls to forcibly contact uncontacted tribes," Survival
International, September 21, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10909, reported,
"Indigenous organizations across South America have condemned as 'dangerous and
illegal' calls by U.S. anthropologists Kim Hill and Robert S. Walker to forcibly contact
highly vulnerable uncontacted tribes.
In an open letter, Indian organizations from Brazil, Peru and Paraguay dispute the
anthropologists’ claim, made in a Science editorial, that uncontacted tribes are 'unviable', and
warn that 'this dangerous myth plays into the hands of those who wish to invade and exploit
tribal peoples’ ancestral homelands.'
Instead, the Indian organizations stress that the real threats to uncontacted tribes’ futures
are genocidal violence, the invasion of their lands and theft of natural resources, and prevailing
racist attitudes.
Among the signatories is the Aché organization FENAP in Paraguay. In the editorial,
Kim Hill and Robert Walker refer to a 'success story' of contact with several dozen Northern
Aché, but don’t mention the fact that 38% of the total population had already died as a result of
first contact. The Aché are now suing Paraguay over this historic genocide.
With the letter, the indigenous organizations join Survival International, the global
movement for tribal peoples’ rights, in its rejection of Hill and Walker’s proposal – as well as
numerous other Amazon Indians who have spoken out against forced contact.
In July 2015, Amazon Indian organizations AIDESEP and FENAMAD released a
statement saying, 'We reject any call or act that seeks to impose a way of life that is rejected by
our brothers in isolation and initial contact.'
Davi Kopenawa, Yanomami shaman and President of the Hutukara Yanomami
Association, said, 'The place where the uncontacted Indians live, fish, hunt and plant must be
protected. The whole world must know that they are there in their forest and that the authorities
must respect their right to live there.' The Yanomami are calling on the government to evict the
illegal gold miners who are putting the uncontacted Yanomami’s lives at risk in their forest
home.
Uncontacted tribes are the most vulnerable societies on the planet. All face catastrophe
unless their land is protected. In the letter, the organizations call on Robert Walker and Kim Hill
to 'support tribal peoples’ rights to remain on their lands without the intrusion of outsiders.” The
full letter is available at: http://www.survivalinternational.org/articles/3390-open-letter-to-u-santhropologists-kim-hill-and-robert-s-walker.
"Actor Mark Rylance fronts battle to save the last of the Kawahiva Indians," Survival
International, 7 October 7, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10930, reported,
"Ahead of Columbus Day on October 12, actor Mark Rylance and Survival International, the
global movement for tribal peoples’ rights, have launched a new campaign to save the
Kawahiva – a small uncontacted hunter-gatherer tribe in Brazil’s Amazon rainforest.
The Kawahiva are one of the most vulnerable peoples on the planet. Their forest is
being invaded by armed loggers, miners and powerful ranchers – in a region of Brazil’s
Mato Grosso state known for its violence, rampant illegal logging and land grabs.
The uncontacted Indians are forced to live constantly on the run from invaders.
Many of their relatives have been killed in genocidal attacks. The Kawahiva have
34
demonstrated their wish to remain uncontacted. Their right to choose not to make contact must
be respected.
In a moving video containing unique footage of the Kawahiva – filmed by government
agents during a rare chance encounter with the tribe – Mark Rylance says, 'If the Kawahiva’s
land is not protected, they will disappear forever. But if Brazil’s government acts fast, they can
survive.'
Rylance added today, 'We must not let another part of humanity’s rich diversity fade into
history. If the world acts now, we can secure a future for the Kawahiva.'
Like all uncontacted tribes, the Kawahiva face catastrophe unless their land is protected.
They could be wiped out by violence from outsiders who are stealing their land and resources,
and by diseases like flu and measles to which they have no resistance.
A Brazilian government official said, 'The loggers will wipe out the Indians.'
According to Brazil’s constitution, the Kawahiva’s land should have been mapped and
protected as an indigenous territory by 1993. The decree authorizing this has been on the
Minister of Justice’s desk since 2013, but he has not signed it.
Survival’s campaign, involving hundreds of thousands of supporters worldwide, calls on
the Minister to sign the papers as a matter of urgency, to give the Kawahiva a future.
Survival’s Director Stephen Corry said, 'If the public cannot persuade the Justice Minister
to act, and fast, the Kawahiva will be annihilated, and he will bear witness to the needless
extinction of yet another tribe. This cannot be allowed to happen. The continued survival of the
Kawahiva enriches all of us. Not only because they represent a unique interpretation of what it
means to be human, but because defending their land rights also protects the future of the
Amazon. If we can protect their forest for them, they will protect nature, for us all.'”
Direct evidence that it is counterproductive to protecting the environment, including
preserving wildlife, to remove Indigenous people from an area or preserve: “Revealed:
Tiger numbers INCREASE when tribes stay in tiger reserves,” Survival International,
December 9, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/11004, reported,” Startling new
data reveals tiger numbers have increased rapidly in the first reserve in India where local
tribes have won the right to stay. The information, which the Indian National Tiger
Conservation Authority originally tried to suppress, discredits government policy to
remove the many tribes whose lands have been turned into tiger reserves.
Between 2010 and 2014 the tiger population in the BRT Tiger Reserve in Karnataka
state almost doubled, from 35 to 68. Unlike elsewhere in India, local Soliga tribespeople
have been allowed to continue living alongside tigers, even in the core of the reserve. This
increase is far higher than the national rate at which the tiger population is growing.
The Soliga have a highly developed relationship with their natural environment, and
venerate the tiger. Madegowda, a Soliga man, said, “We worship tigers as gods. There hasn’t
been a single incident of conflict with tigers and Soligas or hunting here.
Across India, tribal communities are being broken up and evicted from their
ancestral lands in the name of tiger conservation. In 2014, hundreds of Baiga tribespeople
were evicted from Kanha Tiger Reserve – home of Rudyard Kipling’s “Jungle Book” – while
over a hundred thousand tourists are welcomed into the reserve every year.
Survival International, the global movement for tribal people’s rights, is calling for a new
conservation model that respects tribal peoples’ rights and uses their expertise to protect and
enhance ecological diversity. Tribal peoples are better at looking after their environment than
35
anyone else: they are the best conservationists and guardians of the natural world.
Survival’s Director Stephen Corry said, ‘These figures expose government policy to
remove tribespeople from tiger reserves as not only immoral but also counterproductive.
Tigers tend to do well when tribal communities remain – they have, after all, lived together
for generations. But unlike tribal people, the thousands of tourists who drive in every day
bring in a huge amount of money to the conservation industry. They also, of course, get the
tigers used to close human presence – something poachers find useful. The best way to save
the tiger is to leave the tribes that have protected their forests alone. Survival will continue
to fight and expose the forced evictions that the conservation industry has tried hard to keep
hidden.”
Further evidence that Indigenous people are the best protectors of the environment
where they live comes from Guatemala, where for 15 years, as of 2015, in sections of the
Maya Biosphere Reserve, local Indigenous communities have been policing the forest.
In their areas, unlike many other locations, deforestation has been virtually nonexistent
(Elisabeth Malkin, “Guatemalans Living Off Forests Get the Task of Saving Them,” The New
York Times, November 26, 2015).
"Opening Windows In International Courts For The Defense of Indigenous Rights,"
Cultural Survival, October 2, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/opening-windowsinternational-courts-defense-indigenous-rights, "On September 28th and 29th, 2015 FundaMaya
and Rights and Resources Initiative hosted the first International Workshop in Guatemala
City addressing the opportunities available to Indigenous communities in their
constitutional courts and the International Court of Human Rights. The workshop was a
debate and reflection from various experiences in Latin America that analyzed and provided
lessons learned on the social, political, and strategic use of constitutional courts and the
International Court of Human Rights. Indigenous lawyers, activists, leaders, and communities
from Central and South America gathered for two days to discuss their achievements, hardships,
and goals in fighting for their rights.
'Constitutional Courts and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights have been spaces
that have allowed Indigenous Peoples and Afro-descendent communities to make use of
international and national legal tools to defend and re-affirm their collective rights,' said Gustavo
Zambrano, International Consultant. The workshop held three panels with leaders and experts
from all over Latin America to talk about three important topics. Panels included: 'Where is the
success in making use of our courts: impacts and benefits?' 'What strategic allies and what
empowerment have communities reached?' and on the final day 'Strategic use of preceding court
wins: achievements and limitations' took place. The panels gave participants the opportunity to
ask questions about issues currently affecting their communities and how to go about defending
their rights.
The two-day workshop was productive and inspiring. Indigenous leaders from all over
Latin America spoke about their courageous work to defend their communities, lands, and
resources. They spoke about recent successes regarding territories, use of resources, and the
fulfillment of rights by their governments. A signed agreement with ancestral and community
Indigenous leaders in Guatemala to establish a support network in local struggles for territory
and rights was a major and important outcome of this workshop."
36
"Groundbreaking communications technology gives remote tribes a voice," Survival
International, August 10, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10861, reported,
"Survival International, the global movement for tribal peoples’ rights, has launched a
unique project to bring the latest communications technology to some of the world’s most
remote tribal communities.
The "Tribal Voice" project is the first of its kind and allows tribal communities
without internet access to send video messages about their lives and their struggle to
survive to a global audience in real time.
So far, the project has been adopted by the Guarani and the Yanomami Indians in
Brazil.
Mariazinha, from the Yanomami community of Rokoari, said in the first-ever Tribal
Voice video, 'Today the communications equipment arrived and I am very happy … If we see
illegal gold miners on our land, or if outsiders try to kill us, I will be able to let everybody know
… We’ll be able to communicate with people who live far away.'
isabled in your browser.
The Yanomami are the largest relatively isolated tribe in South America. Their lands and
lives are being threatened by illegal gold miners who pollute their streams and bring diseases to
which the tribe has developed little immunity.
The International Treaty Council reported, December 4. 2015, that “We made many
important advances in 2015 that will be the basis for our work in the year to come.
A few of these include:
As a member of the Global Steering Committee for the International Indigenous Peoples
Forum on Climate Change, IITC is building strong and effective participation by
Indigenous Peoples in the 21st Conference of the Parties (COP 21) of the UN
Framework Convention on Climate Change. We are working to ensure that our rights
are upheld and real solutions are adopted at COP 21 which begins in Paris on
November 30th. Since July, IITC has organized 7 Indigenous Peoples’ Climate
Change Consultations, bringing together over 300 Indigenous traditional knowledge
holders, elders, youth, food producers, Chiefs, Tribal leaders and community members
to prepare for COP 21, discuss impacts of Climate Change on our lands, cultures and
food sovereignty, and share community-based responses using traditional seeds,
knowledge and practices.
•
IITC continued advocacy to halt environmental violence and contamination
impacting reproductive health and to build Indigenous Peoples’ capacity to
change policies and hold governments and corporations accountable. In a
groundbreaking outcome upholding the human right to child and maternal health, the
United Nations (UN) Committee on the Rights of the Child recognized for the first
time that “environmental health” is a human right and called on Mexico to halt the
import of banned pesticides manufactured in the United States.
IITC worked successfully with partners for the addition of 3 new toxic chemicals to
those banned internationally under the Stockholm Convention on Persistent
Organic Pollutants, overcoming US and Canadian opposition through building
advocacy efforts by Tribal and First Nations in both countries.
IITC provided training, capacity building, legal and technical assistance to
Indigenous Peoples, Tribes and communities to use international human rights
37
standards and bodies to hold governments accountable for human rights violations. To
date in 2015, IITC has carried out over 30 trainings in Indigenous communities and at
various conferences and gatherings. IITC also includes Indigenous youth in our
delegations whenever possible to build the next generation of human rights leaders and
advocates.”
IITC, at the Paris Climate talks, COP21, where it was an accredited observer,
participated with other Indigenous people concerning an ARTICLE 2 ISSUE, In a silent protest
on Friday morning, December 4, the indigenous peoples at COP21 held placards inside the
conference venue, demanding that their rights should remain under the preamble and article 2 of
the climate agreement./Previously IITC had engaged in numerous regional consultations with
Indigenous peoples on climate change.
IITC took part in the Annual Thanksgiving Sunrise Gathering at Alcatraz Island, San
Francisco, CA- November 26, 2015,
IITC submitted on August 19th, 2015 to the UN Committee on the Elimination of
Racial Discrimination (CERD) Early Warning and Urgent Action Procedures by the
International Indian Treaty Council and the Shiprock Chapter of the Navajo Nation. It addresses
urgent human rights violations impacting the Shiprock Dine Community and a number of
other Indigenous Peoples and Nations caused by a release of over 3 million gallons,
according to current U.S government estimates, of toxic mining waste released into the Animas
River by the negligent activities of the United States government Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) on August 5, 2015.
IITC spoke to the United Nations Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous
Peoples at its Eighth session, July 20 – 24, 2015, on Agenda Item 7: Study and Advice on the
Promotion and Protection of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples with respect to their Cultural
Heritage; on Agenda Item 4: Panel Discussion on Indigenous Peoples Human Rights in relation to
business enterprises; on Agenda Item 5: Post 2015 development agenda and Indigenous Peoples’
rights; and on Agenda Item 3 (a): Follow up to Outcome of the high-level plenary meeting of
the General Assembly known as the World Conference on Indigenous Peoples.
For more information go to: www.treatycouncil.org.
One Guarani leader told Survival, 'We’ve been saying for years that we need to be able to
communicate with people in Brazil and around the world. This project is just what we’ve been
waiting for.'
The Guarani in south-western Brazil have lost most of their lands to cattle ranches and
sugar cane plantations. Their leaders are targeted and assassinated and their communities
attacked by gunmen hired by ranchers. Only recently, a Guarani community was set ablaze by
attackers after the tribe reoccupied parts of their ancestral land.
The Tribal Voice project aims to give tribal peoples a voice in the face of governments
and multinationals who are trying to silence them, and will allow tribes to share their views on
their environments, ways of life and visions for their futures.
Survival’s Director Stephen Corry said today, 'Tribal peoples are just like us. They, too,
are concerned about their quality of life and their children’s futures. Their understanding of the
world is as astute as anyone’s and they have perceptive things to say about almost every aspect
of life today. That’s why we’re giving tribes communications technology so they can speak to
the world in real time.'
Visit tribal-voice.org for more videos and information about the project."
38
"Celebrities call for a new conservation that respects tribal peoples’ rights," Survival
International, September 9, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10900, reported, "In
a letter published today in the UK’s 'i' newspaper (part of The Independent), world-renowned
celebrities have called for a new approach to conservation, one that respects tribal peoples’
rights.
Fashion designer Vivienne Westwood; actors Gillian Anderson, Dominic West, Mark
Rylance, and Sinead Cusack; comedian, actor, writer & TV presenter Michael Palin; illustrator
Sir Quentin Blake; musician Julian Lennon; human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell;
photographer Sebastião Salgado; broadcaster John Simpson; artist Kurt Jackson; and Survival’s
President Robin Hanbury-Tenison are among those who have signed.
The full letter reads:
We, the undersigned, are calling for a new approach to conservation, one that respects
tribal peoples’ rights, for all of humanity.
Tribal peoples are generally the best conservationists; they have managed their lands
sustainably for many generations. Forcibly removing tribal peoples from their land usually
results in environmental damage. Such removals are a violation of human rights and should be
opposed by conservationists.
The cheapest and quickest way to conserve areas of high biodiversity is to respect tribal
peoples’ rights – studies show reduced deforestation and forest fire rates, and greater
biodiversity, on tribal land. The world can no longer afford a conservation model that destroys
tribal peoples: it damages human diversity as well as the environment.
The letter forms Aldersonthe principles behind a campaign by Survival International, the
global movement for tribal peoples’ rights, to change a conservation model that is harming tribal
peoples around the world.
Baka 'Pygmies' in southeast Cameroon face arrests, beatings and torture by wildlife
officers who are funded and supported by WWF. Bushmen in Botswana’s Central Kalahari
Game Reserve are being criminalized for hunting to feed their families. And tribal peoples in
India are being illegally evicted from their ancestral homelands in the name of tiger
conservation.
Survival’s campaign aims to change conservation so that it respects tribal peoples as
the best conservationists and guardians of the natural world."
“COP21:
COP21: Ogiek hunterhunter-gatherers urge Kenyan President to protect their forest,”
forest,” Survival
International December 4, 2015,
,
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/11041,
2015 http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/11041, reported, “In
“In
the wake of Pope Francis’s visit to Kenya, during which he called for greater
environmental protection, some of Africa’s last hunterhunter-gatherers have urged
urged their
president to save their ancestral forest from destruction.
The Mau Forest is part of the homelands of the Ogiek,
Ogiek, who have hunted and
gathered in the areasince
areasince time immemorial.
Despite
Despite having received the Ogiek’s reports of rampant deforestation, the authorities have
failed to act, leading one community to take up their case with President Uhuru Kenyatta.
For years the Kenyan government has failed to recognize the role the Ogiek have
played in protecting their lands.
lands. On several occasions it has even illegally them from the
Mau Forest in the name of conservation
conservation from their forest home
home..
Africa’s leading human rights watchdog declared in 2012 that these evictions were a
39
serious violation of the Ogiek’s human rights.
It referred their case to the African Court on Human and Peoples’ Rights, asking it to pay
particular
particular attention to the essential role that indigenous peoples play in conservation. The Ogiek
are still awaiting the Court’s decision.
The evictions have also failed to protect
protect the forest. In many cases they have freed it
up for logging and commercial plantations, some of which are owned by government
officials.
officials.
If the authorities will not stand up to the destruction of their lands, this Ogiek
community says it will take the protection of the forest into it own hands.
hands.
Survival International is urging world leaders at the COP21 climate summit to recognize
that tribal peoples like the Ogiek should be leading the environmental movement.”
movement.”
“Cameroon: International Civil Society Alarmed by Conviction of Environmental Human
Rights
Defender,”
Cultural
Survival,
November
11,
2015,
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/cameroon-international-civil-society-alarmed-convictionenvironmental-human-rights-defender, reported, “A coalition of international organizations
have denounced Cameroonian authorities’ repression of community leader and
environmental defender Nasako Besingi.
Nasako Besingi is the director of the organization SEFE (Struggle to Economize
Future Environment) which has been fighting alongside local communities to protect
ancient rainforests of southwestern Cameroon from plans for a massive palm oil plantation.
Since 2010, U.S. investors Herakles Farms have repeatedly violated communities’ rights to
give Free, Prior, Informed Consent as they moved forward with clear cutting rainforests
that communities have traditionally used for small scale agriculture and foraging.
Beginning in 2013, Nasako has been pursued many times with legal charges brought by
Herakles Farms, for alleged offenses of the publication of false news and holding an
undeclared public meeting, among others. Besingi was awarded the 2012 TAIGO prize for
non-state actors and was nominated in 2014 as one of the most notable human rights
defenders by the Jeune Afrique newspaper.
On November 5th, after a protracted and controversial legal process, Nasako was
convicted by local Cameroonian courts on two counts of propagation of false news against
the US agribusiness company Herakles Farms and two counts of defamation against two
employees of the company. After more than 3 years and multiple judicial delays, Nasako
has been ordered to pay 1 200 000 FCFA ($2400 US dollars) in fines or face up to 3 years in
prison. He was also sentenced to pay damages of 10 million CFA francs ( $17,000 US
dollars) to the two civil parties.
‘I am very surprised by the judgment, the charges against Nasako were trumped up
charges and meant to put him away.” says Cameroonian lawyer Adolf Malle.
International organizations, spearheaded by Greenpeace, have been able to pay a bail, and
Barrister lawyer Adolf Malle has appealed the case, which will be decided on November 12th.
To make a donation to Nasako Besingi’s legal defense fund, please contact [email protected].
Protests by residents and environmentalists have managed to stall the New York-based
Herakles Farms’ project to a large degree. The company has only been able to cut down a few
hectares of rainforest to date and had to downsize its plans considerably prior to that: Instead of
the requested 70,000 hectares, the government approved plantations totaling a reduced 20,000
hectares. In 2010, Herakles began illegally clearing the forest to establish oil palm nurseries, in
40
the absence of a presidential decree authorizing the concession, which is required by law in
Cameroon. Herakles farms also violated a court decision made in the town of Mundemba, where
SEFE is based, to suspend all activity of its plantation following a complaint filed by local
people. The company was found guilty of illegal logging by forestry officials in April 2012.
In April, 2013 during a meeting with investors, Herakles announced their intention to sell
their 73,000 ha concession in 2018. But a Presidential decree signed in November 2013, granted
the company 19,843 ha of land lease for just a 3 year probation period. The decree also
demanded the company fulfill certain conditions which have not been met, notably in the
development of social facilities, conducting an environmental and Social Impact Assessment
(ESIA) in the new concession, and payments of rent to the government of Cameroon for the land
being used.
It is now believed that Herakles has pulled investment from the plantation, leaving local
Cameroonian subsidiary SGSOC to seek new investors.
Joining in support of Nasako Besingi and SEFE are Cultural Survival and the following
international organizations: Greenpeace Africa, Environmental Investigation Agency, GRAIN,
Fern, Oakland Institute, SAVE Wildlife, Earth Action, Rainforest Foundation UK, Forest
Peoples Program”
"Conservation’s links to eugenics exposed on Park Service anniversary," Survival
"On the 99th anniversary of the U.S. National Park Service today, August 25, Survival exposes
the dark legacy of the U.S. conservation movement that led to the eviction of thousands of
Native Americans from national parks – and which continues to be exported around the
world today.
In an article published in U.S. journal Truthout, Survival’s Director Stephen Corry
reveals how today’s conservation model was based on theories of eugenics and mistaken claims
that tribal peoples’ lands are “wildernesses,” even though tribal peoples have been dependent on,
and managed them, for millennia.
Oglala Lakota chief Luther Standing Bear said, “Only to the white man was nature a
wilderness … to us it was tame. Earth was bountiful.”
Tribal peoples are the best conservationists and guardians of the natural world. Many U.S. parks
involved the eviction of Native Americans, and the subsequent loss of their sophisticated land
management techniques. The environment has almost always suffered as a result.
Today, Baka “Pygmies” in southeast Cameroon, Bushmen in Botswana and tribes in
India’s tiger reserves face a similar fate. Their lives and lands are being destroyed by the
conservation industry, tourism and big business.
Corry writes that many founders of the U.S. conservation movement, such as John Muir,
Teddy Roosevelt and Madison Grant, had links to the eugenics movement and held strong
prejudices towards the native population.
Corry said, "Conservationists no longer pretend to be saving their “race,” but they
certainly claim to be saving the world’s heritage, and too many of the big conservation
organizations retain a supercilious attitude towards those they are destroying. Such attitudes must
change."
Survival’s "Stop the Con" campaign demands a new conservation model – one that works
with the original guardians of the land, rather than against them – and is asking supporters to
send in their photos and videos of support."
41
"Survival Director condemns rise of ‘green militarism’ in conservation," Survival
"Survival’s Director Stephen Corry has exposed the hypocrisy in today’s conservation
movement which is increasingly militarizing and targeting local populations for subsistence
hunting.
In a damning article in U.S. journal Truthout, Corry wrote: 'Local people, including local
tribespeople, have long been thought of by some conservationists as ‘in the way’ of the
environment. They’re termed ‘poachers’ and abused accordingly. Baka people in Cameroon, the
Bushmen in Botswana and Adivasi tribes in India are beaten up or worse by those claiming to
protect nature.'
But while tribal people are the best conservationists, they are accused of “poaching”
for hunting to feed their families and targeted for 'subsistence poaching' by conservation
organizations."
"First National Indigenous Youth Political Discussion Held in Guatemala City, Cultural
Survival, July 28, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/first-national-indigenous-youthpolitical-discussion-held-guatemala-city, reported, "As part of an ongoing initiative to include
Indigenous youth voices in petitions put forward by Indigenous organizations and groups,
the first national Indigenous youth political discussion was held in Guatemala City on July
17, 2015. Youth representatives of all three linguistic groups in Guatemala: Mayan, Xinca and
Garifuna, were present during the meeting. Previous regional meetings were held earlier during
the year throughout Guatemala where a political agenda was developed from the various workgroups. The goal of the national discussion was to polish the youth agenda before it is presented
to Congress during this election year.
Due to recent political instability of the country, various Indigenous organizations
and groups are mobilizing to introduce amendments to Congress that are beneficial to
indigenous communities. One important proposal is the respect and protection of sacred
land sites and Indigenous territories against mining and hydroelectric companies. 'It doesn’t
matter if these companies promise 100% economic return for exploiting our land, our answer
will always be no, we will not damage our mother for money' one leader expressed, and
murmurs of approval were heard throughout the room.
There are currently several petitions before Congress from various Indigenous and
non-Indigenous NGO’s, organizations and groups demanding to suspend elections until
realistic and necessary changes are made to the electoral system. Among these changes that
specifically effect indigenous communities is the fair representation of indigenous people in
Congress. It is estimated that over 50% of the population of Guatemala identifies as
Indigenous yet they make up only 3% of Congress. At this particular Indigenous Youth
Discussion, the participants talked about the necessity to respect, emphasize and demand
bilingual education in all school systems so that they function according to the needs of each
specific indigenous community.
The energy at the discussion was ambitious and hopeful as young indigenous leaders
discussed the current political state of the country and their plans to confront it and redefine it.
The event began and ended with a traditional mayan ceremony in honor of all the indigenous
brothers and sisters who have given their life for a better Guatemala."
42
"Venezuelan tribes protest against violent mining gangs," Survival International, June
18, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10819, reported, "Venezuelan Indians
blocked the landing strip of Canaima National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, in
protest at illegal miners destroying their lives and lands.
Over the last decade, illegal mining for gold, diamonds and other minerals – some
run by armed gangs claiming to be members of Colombia’s guerrilla army FARC – has
spread like wildfire through the Venezuelan Amazon, affecting tribes such as the
Yanomami, Hoti, Eñepa, Yekuana and Arekuna.
An Arekuna spokesperson told Survival International, the global movement for tribal
peoples’ rights, 'Mining is a huge problem in our indigenous territories. The miners are
extracting the riches of our land and the earth is crying out for help. Our rivers are drying up
because of the mining. We must look after nature; if we don’t, the whole planet will suffer.'
Rivers are being contaminated with poisonous mercury used in gold mining, which
is entering the Indians’ food and water supply and devastating their health. In some
indigenous communities, the infiltration of gangs has led to prostitution and alcoholism.
A study found that the majority of indigenous women living along the Caura river
in the Amazon had levels of mercury above internationally accepted standards. It also
found that one in three women showed a high risk that their newborn children would
suffer neurological disorders.
The Indians have denounced the Venezuelan military for failing to tackle the illegal
mining and for “creating a climate of terror and fear.” Some officers are known to be
involved in the illegal gold trade.
While Venezuela’s constitution recognizes indigenous peoples’ rights to their
ancestral lands, few have received official title to their territories and the government has
announced it will open up large parts of the Amazon rainforest – including Indian land – to
legal mining.
Tribal peoples are the best conservationists and guardians of the natural world, yet their
lands, resources and labor are stolen by industrialized societies in the name of "progress" and
'civilization.'”
"Spanish construction giant targeted over uncontacted Indians’ land grab," Survival
International, June 24, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10823, reported,
"Protestors demanded “Save the Ayoreo” at the annual shareholder meeting of Spanish
construction giant Grupo San José in Madrid today. The company has been implicated in
the destruction of the uncontacted tribe’s last forest refuge.
Grupo San José’s subsidiary Carlos Casado SA, a South American agricultural
firm, was caught illegally bulldozing and constructing roads and reservoirs on the ancestral
land of uncontacted Ayoreo Indians in the Chaco forest in Paraguay. The company has also
allegedly attempted to forge Ayoreo signatures for the construction of an access road
through the tribe’s territory.
Most Ayoreo have been forced out of the Chaco – which has the world’s highest
deforestation rate – but some of their relatives remain hiding in an ever-shrinking island of
forest. They are one of the most vulnerable societies on the planet, who could be wiped out by
violence from outsiders and by diseases like flu and measles to which they have no resistance.
Ayoreo man Porai Picanerai said, 'I ask Grupo San José to give us back our land, because
if they chop down our forest, our brothers who remain there will be scared.'
43
Another Ayoreo said, 'I am very worried about this destruction because we don’t know
where exactly the people still in the forest are living. This is why we don’t want the outsiders to
destroy more of the forest with their bulldozers.'
The Ayoreo have been claiming legal title to a fraction of their ancestral land for over 20
years, but much of it is owned by powerful ranching companies. Like many recently contacted
Indians, the contacted Ayoreo are succumbing to respiratory diseases contracted from outsiders
that often go undetected in medical tests.
Survival International is calling on Grupo San José’s shareholders, such as
Santander, to withdraw from the company over its involvement in the destruction of the
Ayoreo’s last forest refuge.
Survival’s Director Stephen Corry said, 'Forced contact has brought disease, death and
destruction to tribes across the Americas, and the Ayoreo are a textbook example of the danger
involved. Today, contacted Ayoreo are dying from diseases to which they have no immunity,
and while their forest keeps being felled their uncontacted relatives face the same sorry fate. If
Grupo San José cared one bit about the lives of Indians it would return the land to its rightful
owners.'”
"Experts meet to ‘prevent humanitarian catastrophe’ in Ethiopia and Kenya," Survival
"Survival International, the global movement for tribal peoples’ rights, is hosting two
events in Milan, Italy, on October 1 and 2, in an attempt to prevent a humanitarian and
environmental “catastrophe” in Ethiopia and Kenya.
Representatives of tribal peoples from Kenya and Ethiopia, as well as international
experts, are meeting to expose the threats to hundreds of thousands of people and point
towards solutions.
Speakers include: Anuak refugee Nyikaw Ochalla, Director of Anywaa Survival; Ikal
Angelei, Turkana spokeswoman and co-founder of Friends of Lake Turkana; British human
rights lawyer Gordon Bennett; Berkeley Professor Claudia J. Carr; and Will Hurd, Director of
Cool Ground.
In one of the most audacious land grabs that Africa has yet seen, the tribes of
Ethopia’s Lower Omo Valley are being evicted from their ancestral homes, and their
grazing and farming lands are being transformed into industrial sugar cane, cotton and
biofuel plantations.
The massive Gibe III hydro-electric dam, which is being constructed by the Italianbased Salini Costruttori, will end the natural flood on which many tribes depend for
cultivating crops, and dramatically lower the level of Kenya’s Lake Turkana, the world’s
largest desert lake, on which many tribal people depend for a livelihood. Up to 500,000
tribal people in Ethiopia and Kenya face catastrophe.
Survival recently revealed that the U.K. government attempted to cover up gross
human rights violations following a visit to the Lower Omo Valley by Ethiopia’s key
donors, such as the U.K.’s DFID, USAID, and the European Union.
Francesca Casella, Director of Survival Italy, said, 'The situation has never been more
critical for the indigenous peoples of Ethiopia and Kenya. Aid donors can no longer turn a blind
eye to the serious human rights abuses in the region. At this meeting we hope to launch an
unprecedented effort to promote a model of development in the Horn of Africa that neither
destroys tribal peoples nor denies them their rights.'”
44
}~~~---->>>>>>>-=+=-<<<<<<<----~~~{
INDIAN AND INDIGENOUS DEVELOPMENTS
Steve Sachs
Environmental Developments
“’Historic climate change agreement reached at COP 21 conference,’ Paris agreement
reaffirms commitment to 2 degree Celsius cap on average global temperature increase,”
Presbyterian Church, December 16, 2015, https://www.pcusa.org/news/2015/12/16/historicclimate-change-agreement-reached-cop-21-c/, reported on the COP 21 Paris Climate
Conference agreement, “After two weeks of intense negotiations and meetings, an agreement
was reached. The main goal of the conference was to develop a response to man-made
greenhouse gas emissions, which according to participants is responsible for increasing the
Earth’s temperature, or global warming. Each of the participating countries submitted a
proposal for reducing their emissions. The proposals, called “intended nationally
determined contributions” (INDCs), are a prospective roadmap for each country to follow.
The United States’ INDC, for example, is to cut economy-wide emissions of greenhouse
gasses by 26 to 28 percent below its 2005 level by 2025.
The target maximum global temperature rise is set at 2 degrees Celsius, or below.
The final text agreement, however, also establishes for the first time a target temperature
of 1.5 degrees Celsius in order to protect island nations who are threatened by a rise in sea
levels. Additional key elements of the historic agreement include:
All countries must review their climate contributions every five years beginning in 2020.
They will not be able to lower their targets during this time
Greenhouse gas emissions should peak as soon as possible, and each country will seek to
achieve carbon neutrality after 2050
$100 billion (in loans or donations) will be available yearly, beginning in 2020, to finance
projects that enable developing countries to adapt to the impacts of climate change.
The amount is subject to increase
Industrialized countries are obligated to fund climate finance for poor countries, and
developing countries are invited to contribute
A stronger system for monitoring climate commitments has been established to better
track each country’s progress
The agreement will be open for signing by each participating country on Earth Day
next April 22 in New York. Once 55 countries, approximately 30 percent, ratify the text the
agreement will enter into force.”
A number of commentators have said that while the agreement is well short of what is
necessary to prevent extremely catastrophic world wide damage, even if all nations act on it as
promised, it is an important step, as still increasing public pressure brought about the maximum
politically possible agreement at the moment, increasing the time for further action which may
well occur as increasing climate change disasters are likely to further drive public opinion world
wide, while making more obvious to a growing number of government, business, NGO, and
other private decision makers and leaders that significant further action is needed.
Already, with about a 1 degree Celsius increase of temperature having occurred since the
beginning of the industrial revolution, a great deal of serious damage has occurred world wide.
45
There is concern, based on strong scientific evidence, that the 2 degree Celsius target for limiting
global warming is too high, and that many island nations, as well as costal areas with large
populations will be submerged in rising oceans with that much increase. Thus a target of 1.5
degrees was declared in the agreement to try to avoid that occurring.
There is serious speculation in some quarters that the situation is actually worse than
mainstream science has so far calculated. The concern is that the primary focus has been on
studying and reducing the amounts of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. There has been growing
scientific concern about methane (natural gas), which over time is about 30 times more warming
than CO2 (in the short run about 100 more warming). Studies of methane entering the
atmosphere to date do not yet fully measure how much is entering the atmosphere. There is
concern by some that positive feedbacks have been created, and are increasing, as permafrost and
glaciers melt and waters warm, that may be greatly increasing the amount of methane entering
the atmosphere. In addition, there are very large amounts of methane leaking from natural gas
drilling, storage, and distribution (pipelines). There are efforts underway to greatly reduce these
leaks, but so far there is no known way to greatly reduce the methane entering the air from land
and water as a result of global warming. It remains to be seen just how much methane is actually
entering the atmosphere, and what the increase is likely to be.
For more on the COP 21 agreement see: “United Nations Conference on Climate
Change: COP 21/CMP 11,” http://www.cop21.gouv.fr/en/more-details-about-the-agreement/,
which has a link to the text of the agreement; European Commission “Climate Action,”
December 23, “We have a Paris Climate agreement. Now What? CNN, December 14, 2015,”
http://www.cnn.com/2015/12/14/opinions/sutter-cop21-climate-5-things/index.html;
“COP21:
Any agreement is better than no agreement?,” Al Jazeera, December 2015,
http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2015/12/cop21-agreement-agreement-paris-climate151215101705854.html; and “The Paris Agreement, and What the Future Holds,” 350.org,
http://350.org/the-paris-agreement-and-what-the-future-holds/).
A report by the International Energy Agency, in early November 2015, confirmed
that the world has been reducing carbon emissions at too slow a pace to prevent major
climate
disaster
(Stanley
Reed,
“Global
Shift to Lower-Carbon Energy Is Too Slow, Report Warms,” The New York Times, November
10, 2015).
Justin Gillis, “A Path for Climate Change, Beyond Paris,” The New York Times,
December 1, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/01/science/beyond-paris-climate-changetalks.html, writing as the Paris climate talks opened reflected on the problem that the pledges
made by the nations attending the talks fell well short of what was needed to avert disastrous
levels of global warming and the climate change it produces. He noted, however, that doing more
is still possible. “But many political leaders gathering there — including governors, mayors,
and provincial cabinet secretaries — are pushing for more aggressive cuts. By the dozen,
they are signing a voluntary agreement committing their jurisdictions to faster and deeper
reductions in emissions of greenhouse gases than their national governments have
promised.”
The question, then, is what is necessary to do to limit global warming to no more than 1.5
degrees Celsius – the current consensus of the maximum warming that can be permitted (and it
appears that the Earth has already warmed 1 degree since the beginning of the Industrial
46
Revolution). “Recent analyses make clear just how difficult a worldwide transition to a clean
energy system is likely to be. ‘The arithmetic is really brutal,’ said Jeffrey D. Sachs, a
prominent Columbia University economist. ‘We’re in such a dreadful situation that every
country has to make this transformation, or else this isn’t going to work.’
The Deep Decarbonization Pathways Project Has worked to draw up a detailed
road map for the energy transition to a sufficiently low emission producing world. “The
analysts used conservative assumptions about current technologies and their costs. They also
presumed that developed countries would not be willing to make big changes in their way of life
— that people would continue to insist on transportation, refrigerators, electric lights and so forth
— and that poor countries would keep striving to reach higher standards of living, requiring
more energy.” They also assumed that the change would have to be made without not yet
developed technologies, such as nuclear fusion.
Following these assumptions, the experts calculated that emissions barely can be cut
enough from now to 2050 to meet an international target designed to head off the worst
effects of climate change. But a key finding was that “the technologies available today, while
good enough to get a running start on the transition, are probably not good enough to
finish it, so that a more intensive research program on clean energy is required, so that,
among other things, technologies, such as electric cars and offshore wind turbines, can
become cheaper and better.
To begin achieving this, Microsoft founder and philanthropist, Bill Gates announced in
Paris that he had put together a group of billionaires to male major investments in
developing new technologies. Twenty countries, including the United States, also pledged to
double their own investment in basic energy research. Gates commented that poor countries
would be reluctant to switch to clean energy technology unless it becomes better and cheaper,
“and the only answer to that is innovation.”
Meanwhile, speeding up application of existing clean-energy technologies is seen as
spurring innovation, while with increased production, economies of scale drive down costs.
Costs of solar panels, for example, dropped 80 percent in the last decade, a direct result of
subsidies and other policies meant to create a larger market, while the panels themselves became
much more efficient in producing energy from the sun.
Wind turbines have also improved as they have spread rapidly. They already supply
almost 5 percent of the electricity in the United States, and in a handful of American states and
some smaller countries they produce more than 10% of the electricity.
Plans have now been developed under which wind and solar power is claimed to
have the possibility of carrying the entire energy transition. For example, Stanford
University engineer Mark Z. Jacobson has calculated that the entire world could operate
on 100 percent renewable power by 2050. But to achiever this and similar scenarios put
forth by others, an extraordinary effort would be required. “Dr. Jacobson’s plans would
require, among many other actions, that 156,000 wind turbines be built off American coasts in
the next 35 years, and twice as many on land. In 20 years of effort, European countries have
managed to build about 3,000 offshore turbines.” This can be accomplished if the world
realizes the necessity of undertaking the same kind of mobilization nations put forth in
going to war.
“Dr. Jacobson cited a scientific paper that calculated the oil and gas industry has been
building 50,000 new wells a year in North America since 2000. Each of those, he said, is as
complicated as erecting a wind turbine, and building tens of thousands of turbines a year would
47
be well within the nation’s industrial capability. He stated, ‘We think it’s technically and
economically feasible. It ultimately does come down to political will. If people don’t want to do
it, it’s not going to happen by itself.’”
Some experts assert that the transition would be easier, and more feasible, if additional
non-greenhouse gas emitting technologies could be utilized, including, quite controversial
nuclear power, at the very least keeping existing nuclear power plants in making the transition,
Some “research suggests that to meet strict targets, some countries might need to keep
burning coal or natural gas to generate power while capturing the carbon dioxide emerging from
smokestacks, compressing it and injecting it deep underground.” To date only some limited
experiments have been made
In long term carbon capture and storage. “Environmental groups have been wary of the
technology, and Germany, among the most determined countries in battling global warming, has
largely decided not to pursue it. Most fossil-fuel companies do not appear to be putting much
effort into the approach, either, even though it may be the only way for some of them to stay in
business over the long haul.”
“Perhaps the most compelling finding of the Deep Decarbonization Pathways
Project is that governments could easily flub the energy transition by failing to plan far
enough ahead. Most countries are setting 10- and 15-year targets that can be met with
incremental changes. Yet that almost guarantees that the toughest problems, like
perfecting the carbon-capturing technology, will be tackled too late to meet the long-term
goal of zero emissions.” “Instead, governments have to figure out where they want to be in
2050, and then work backward to plot the necessary technological path, while remaining
open to new inventions.”
Planning ahead is critical. The Deep Decarbonization project’s plans, f0r example, “do
not envision broad adoption of electric cars until the 2030s. But that is only 14 years away,
suggesting an urgent need to make the cars better and cheaper, and to roll out charging stations
by the millions.” The same development and infrastructure needs are involved in all the needed
technologies applications,
“To achieve the emissions goals, shifts to renewable technologies have to be
undertaken according to the conditions in each location, while “the entire economy,
including transportation, needs to be electrified as much as possible. That might mean
cars’ running on batteries, but it could also mean cars’ running on hydrogen, created by
using nighttime electricity from nuclear reactors or wind turbines to split water molecules.
Either way, the implication is that the internal-combustion engine that has powered
cars since the 19th century is a technological dead end in the 21st. So countries like the
United States that are spending a lot of effort trying to make gasoline cars more efficient
may be going down a blind alley.”
“Another potential dead end, the research suggests, would be an overreliance on
natural gas.” While gas is a lower-carbon fuel than coal, its production, storage and distribution
currently involve huge leaks of very global warming methane (natural gas), which cancel out its
advantage as a fuel, while the fracking used to produce it causes extremely serious
environmental damage. Even if these problems can be overcome, “the deep-decarbonization
research suggests that gas has to go away within a few decades, which means that heavy
investment in natural gas pipelines and power plants now could wind up undermining the longterm goals.”
Governments have a major role in the transition. Mayors and city councilors and
48
governors were shown to be the most determined to move forward in the pledges many of them
they signed before and during the Paris conference. “In some countries, including the United
States, state and local governments control the building codes, many of which still do not include
tough requirements for reducing energy demand in new buildings. Cities like Austin, Tex., have
shown how to set strict codes and enforce them.
In addition, governments buy millions of cars, generally for their employees to take short
hops around town. Switching those fleets to electric cars would help expand the market and
reduce costs through economies of scale.”
Larger governments, like states and provinces, could do more. California, for instance,
has set a goal of pushing 1.5 million electric cars onto its roads over the next eight years,
probably by offering subsidies. A bill that the California Legislature considered earlier this year
would have ordered a 50 percent reduction in gasoline use in that state over the next 15 years, by
means unspecified in the bill; the oil companies were able to stop it, this time, however.
A positive note, at COP21 in Paris, is that a group of the world’s business leaders
attending the meeting endorsed the goal of eliminating greenhouse gas emissions world
wide by 2050 (Sewell Chan, “Business Leaders Back ‘Net Zero’ Target,” The New York Times,
December 7, 2015).
Previously:
China, the United States and Brazil, by the end of June, 2015, had announced their
plans to reduce greenhouse emissions, but it was clear that the reductions would not be
enough to prevent the Earth’s atmospheric temperature from rising above the destructive
3.6 degrees Fahrenheit (2 degrees Celsius), which would trigger cataclysmic harm (Coral
Davenport, "Global Climate Pact Gains Momentum as China, U.S. and Brazil Detail Plans,” The
New York Times, July 1, 2015).
By late September, several more nations had pledged to reduce green house gas
emissions, but the small gains were far from sufficient as an analysis by researchers at
Climate Interactive, found that if all the current pledges were fully fulfilled the Earth’s
temperature would still rise 6.3 degrees Fahrenheit by 2100., and while this is better then
the previous projected 8.1 degrees, it would still greatly exceed the 3.6 degrees maximum
increase above the preindustrial level that must not be surpassed if catastrophic damage to
life omn the planet is to be avoided (Justin Gillis and Somini Sengupta, "Limited Progress Seen
Even as More Nations Step Up on Climate," The New York Times, September 28, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/28/world/limited-progress-seen-even-as-more-nations-step-upon-climate.html?ref=todayspaper).
Ellen Barry and Coral Davenport, "India Announces Plan to Lower Rate of Greenhouse
Gas
Emissions,"
The
New
York
Times,
October
1,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/02/world/asia/india-announces-plan-to-lower-rate-ofgreenhouse-gas-emissions.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Under growing pressure to join in an
international accord to battle climate change, India on Thursday announced its long-term
plan to reduce its rate of planet-warming greenhouse gas pollution and to aggressively
ramp up its production of solar power, hydropower and wind energy. India, the world’s
third-largest carbon polluter, was the last major country to issue its plan before a major summit
meeting in Paris in December aimed at forging a sweeping new accord that would for the first
49
time commit every country on earth to enacting new policies to cut fossil fuel emissions."
Ian Assten, “Canada’s New Leadership Reverses Course on Climate Change, The New
York Times, November 26, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/27/world/americas/canadasnew-leadership-reverses-course-on-climate-change.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, “With the
defeat of the Conservatives in the October general election, out went nearly a decade of Canada
making itself something of a global outcast on the issue. The record of the former prime
minister, Stephen Harper, on climate change was marked by retreat, foot-dragging, and
hand-wringing over the economic consequences of moving too quickly.
The new prime minister, Justin Trudeau, and his Liberals are now trying to make
up for lost time. And along with the left-leaning New Democrats, who wrested power from
the Conservatives in the oil-rich province of Alberta last spring, they have now moved
climate-change policy to the top of the country’s political agenda.”
Speaking at the Paris Climate Change Conference, November 30, 2015, prime
minister, Justin Trudeau said in a speech, “Indigenous peoples have known for thousands
of years how to care for our planet. The rest of us have a lot to learn. And no time to waste”
(“Indigenous Peoples Know How to Care for Our Planet: Justin Trudeau at COP21,” ICTMN,
December 3, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/03/indigenous-peoplesknow-how-care-our-planet-justin-trudeau-cop21-162643).
However, as the European Commission moved ahead, in late November, to move
from testing cars emissions only in the lab, to including road testing, critics were concerned
that the plans for new tests in the wake of revelations of Volkswagen cheating on the level
of emissions its deasil vehicles produced, had been weakened (Danny Hakim, “Critics
Condemn Weakening of Europe’s Emissions Plan, The New York Times, October 29, 2015).
“Bill Gates Expected to Create Billion-Dollar Fund for Clean Energy,” The New York
Times, November 27, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/topic/person/bill-gates?inline=nyt-per,
reported, “Bill Gates will announce the creation of a multibillion-dollar clean energy fund
on Monday at the opening of a Paris summit meeting intended to forge a global accord to
cut planet-warming emissions, according to people with knowledge of the plans. The fund, which one of the people described as the largest such effort in history, is
meant to pay for research and development of new clean-energy technologies. It will
include contributions from other billionaires and philanthropies, as well as a commitment
by the United States and other participating nations to double their budget for clean energy
research and development, according to the people with knowledge of the plans, who asked not
to be identified because they were not authorized to discuss the fund.
The announcement of the fund, which has the joint backing of the governments of the
United States, China, India and other countries, the people said, is intended to give
momentum to the two-week Paris climate talks.”
One aspect of President Obama's CO2 reduction plan is that it makes complying by
electric power generating firms a cost savings. However, numerous Republican Governors,
receiving large campaign donations from oil interests, have been planning to fight the plan
(Jody Freeman and Kate Konschnik, "A Climate Plan Business Can Like," The New York Times,
50
August 4, 2015; and Coral Davenport, "Governors Signal Intent to Thwart Climate Rules," The
New York Times, July 3, 2015).
President Obama rejected the proposed Keystone Pipeline that would carry tar sands
oil from Alberta to U.S. refineries on the Gulf of Mexico, for export abroad, in early December,
primarily on the grounds that the increased oil production and use would contribute to global
warming (Coral Davenport, “President Rejects Keystone Pipeline to Transport Oil, The New
York Times, November 7, 2015).
Polls continue to show increasing public support in the U.S. for action on global
warming induced climate change, including a New York Times-CBS poll, in late November
2015, showing that 63% would support a strong binding global warming treaty emerging from
Paris (Giovanni Russonelo, “Poll Finds That Two-Thirds of Americans Would Support a
Binding Global Treaty.” The New York Times, December 1, 2015).
However, Republicans in the U.S. Congress continue to deny climate change and
propose numerous laws contrary to good science (A.A. Rosenberg, et al, Congres’s attacks on
science-based rules,” Science, May 29, 2015).
Michelle Innis, "Australia Sets Emissions Goal, but Climate Experts Say It Falls Short,"
The
New
York
Times,
August
11,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/12/world/asia/australia-sets-emissions-goal-but-climatescientists-say-it-falls-short.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Prime Minister Tony Abbott on
Tuesday announced a greenhouse gas reduction goal for Australia that he said struck ‘the
right balance’ between economic concerns and the need to address climate change, but
scientists and environmental groups said the plan fell short of what was needed.
The goal — reducing carbon emissions at least 26 percent, and possibly 28 percent,
from 2005 levels by 2030 — also earned Mr. Abbott a stinging rebuke from the Marshall
Islands, the tiny archipelago northeast of Australia that is threatened by rising sea levels.
‘If the rest of the world followed Australia’s lead, the Great Barrier Reef would
disappear,’ Tony de Brum, the Marshall Islands’ foreign minister, said in a statement. ‘So would
my country, and the other vulnerable atoll nations on Australia’s doorstep.’”
Bruce Watson, "Cutting greenhouse gas emissions won't slow global economic growth —
report: New report from green think tank Heinrich Boll shows OECD countries grew their
economies 16% in last decade – and cut greenhouse gas emissions 6.4%," The Guardian,
September 26, 2015 (received from Ted Cloak, [email protected]), reported, "As the world works
out how to avoid catastrophic climate change, one of the biggest questions remaining is whether
we can continue to grow economically without also increasing greenhouse gas emissions.
New research released this week at Climate Week NYC offers more hope that the
answer might be yes. Prepared for green thinktank Heinrich Böll by DIW Econ, a German
institute for economic research, the study found that, as a whole, countries that belong to the
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) have already
decoupled their economic growth from emissions.
From 2004 to 2014, OECD countries grew their economies by 16% all together, while
cutting fossil fuel consumption by 6% and reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 6.4%,
according to the report. The findings echo the results of an International Energy Association
study earlier this year, which found that global emissions remained flat in 2014 while global
GDP rose, marking a historical milestone.
51
Four major factors have contributed to this decoupling, according to the Heinrich
Böll study: increased use of low-carbon energy sources instead of fossil energy sources;
increased efficiency in energy generation; increased energy efficiency on the consumer
side; and a move away from energy-intensive manufacturing towards less energy-intensive
service sector work.
The biggest driver has been the reduced cost of renewable energy, particularly solar
power, says Bastian Hermisson, executive director of the Heinrich Böll Foundation’s North
America office.
'Renewables are the only source of energy that is continually getting cheaper,'
Hermisson says. 'In many parts of the world, solar and wind power have become cost
competitive with coal. Renewables are, increasingly, offering the best return for your
money, in terms of new investments.'"
Justin Gillis and Chris Buckley, “Period of Soaring Emissions May Be Ending, New Data
Suggest,”
the
New
York
Times,
December
7,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/08/science/carbon-emissions-decline-peak-climatechange.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0, reportedm “Industrial emissions of greenhouse gases
rose only slightly in 2014 and appear to be on track to decline in 2015, according to new
data that raise the possibility that a period of rapid global emissions growth may be coming
to an end.
The decline of 0.6 percent projected for this year, should it come to pass, would be
highly unusual at a time when the global economy is growing. The projection contrasts
sharply with emissions growth that averaged 2.4 percent a year over the last decade, and
sometimes topped 3 percent.
The new figures were released at the climate conference here by the Global Carbon
Project, a collaboration that studies emissions, and published simultaneously in the journal
Nature Climate Change.
Past emissions declines have usually been linked to economic distress, such as the global
financial panic of 2009 and the Russian economic meltdown of the late 1990s.
The new figures suggest that there is a chance that global emissions have already peaked
and may be starting a long-term decline, experts said Monday, which would be an important
inflection point for the international effort to limit the risks of global warming.o
But the experts with the Global Carbon Project said they did not consider that to be
likely.
Instead, emissions growth may resume as the Chinese economy recovers from a
period of slow growth and as India pursues a plan to double its burning of coal in power
plants, part of a program to bring 300 million poor villagers onto the power grid.”
The election of a center-right government, focused on reducing government
spending, in Denmark, in June 2015, brought with it cutting back on a fund that seeds green
technology projects, slowing Denmark’s leading renewable energy development (Melissa
Eddy, “Denmark, a Green Energy Leader, Slows the Pace of Its Spending,” The New York Times,
December 6, 2015).
Alister Doyle, "Islamic Experts Urge Muslim Action on Climate Change," Climate
Central, Researching and reporting the science and impacts of climate change, August 22, 2015,
52
http://www.climatecentral.org/news/islamic-experts-urge-climate-action-19359, reported, "A
group of Islamic experts urged the world's 1.6 billion Muslims to do more to fight global
warming, in a new example of religious efforts to galvanize action before a U.N. climate
summit in Paris in December." "Muslim experts from 20 nations agreed on an 8-page
declaration at talks in Istanbul where it was adopted by 60 participants including the
Grand Muftis of Uganda and Lebanon, a statement said. 'Excessive pollution from fossil
fuels threatens to destroy the gifts bestowed on us by God, whom we know as Allah – gifts
such as a functioning climate, healthy air to breathe, regular seasons, and living oceans,'
they wrote. They said inaction on reining in manmade greenhouse gas emissions, from
factories, power plants and cars, would mean "dire consequences to planet earth.'
The declaration called on rich governments - and oil-producing states that include
some OPEC nations where Islam is the state religion - to lead the way in 'phasing out their
greenhouse gas emissions as early as possible and no later than the middle of the century.'"
The declaration is republished in Dialoguing below, and in availavle at:
http://islamicclimatedeclaration.org/islamic-declaration-on-global-climate-change/.
Deirdre Fulton, "Experts Warn Climate Change is 'Changing the Contours' of World's
Oceans: 'Warmer waters—along with rising seas, coastal droughts and ocean acidification—are
already putting people, businesses, and communities at risk'," Common Dreams, August 27,
2015, http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/08/27/experts-warn-climate-change-changingcontours-worlds-oceans, reported, "As climate change continues to put ocean ecosystems and the
communities that rely upon them at risk, the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration (NOAA) this week outlined a new "Climate Science Strategy" meant to increase
fisheries' resilience against global warming.
"NOAA just announced that for the globe the month of July—and actually, the
entire year so far—was the warmest ever recorded, driven largely by record warm ocean
temperatures," said Eileen Sobeck, assistant NOAA administrator for fisheries. 'Those
warmer waters—along with rising seas, coastal droughts and ocean acidification—are
already putting people, businesses, and communities at risk.'
The strategy aims to increase 'the production, delivery, and use of climate-related
information' in order to mitigate global warming's impact on marine and coastal industries.
That impact is already being seen, noted Richard Merrick, NOAA Fisheries director of
scientific programs and chief science advisor. 'We are already seeing marine animals change
where they live to deal with changing climate,' he said. 'We're even seeing population
numbers of some species drop.'
As Lisa Suatoni, a senior scientist in the oceans program at the Natural Resources
Defense Council, noted in a blog post about the strategy on Thursday, 'climate change and
ocean acidification have already changed the contours of the fishing industry in our
country.'
She wrote: 'American lobster fisheries in Connecticut and New York have nearly
vanished due to warming waters and increased incidence of disease. Some scientists believe
that rising temperatures have thwarted the recovery of the long-overfished Atlantic cod in
the Northeast. Rising acidity along the coast of the Pacific Northwest has caused massive
die-offs of oyster larvae. As fish move northward and into deeper waters as a result of
rising water temperatures, historic fisheries will fade and new ones will arise in coastal
fishing communities around the United States.'
53
NOAA's move comes as the U.S. government makes public its desire for the United
Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) to devote more research to the
question of how climate change affects the world's oceans. According to the Guardian on
Thursday, the U.S. will raise the issue at United Nations climate talks in Paris later this year.
'In my judgment, more attention needs to be paid to the climate change effects upon the
ocean areas of the world,' David Balton, deputy assistant secretary for oceans and fisheries at the
State Department, told the Guardian. 'We need to keep pushing up until the Paris conference and
beyond. Ultimately, we need to change the way we live if we’re to keep the planet in the safe
zone.'
Harm to aquatic life from acidification of waters from higher atmospheric levels is
causing harm in fresh water as well as in salt water. In the 1980s, such harm was shown
from acid rain. Two recent studies show change in behavior of pink salmon in fresh waters
as a result of carbon dioxide acidification, and similar effects were previously observed in
ocean fish (http://FWscim.ag/fishacid) (“Acidification hurts fresh water fish,” Science, July 3,
2015).
Climate change is threatening crops, particularly some desired for their taste,
rather than calorie count. These include: coffee, cocoa, maple syrup and tobacco (“The
endangered pallets list,” Science, May 24, 2015).
Weather-related disasters have killed more than 600,000 people and caused
economic losses estimated at a minimum of $1.9 trillion (and likely was far greater), in the
past two decades, according to a late November 2015 report from the United Nations by the
Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters. The report warned that the
frequency and impact of such events was expected to increase.
The largest number of weather related disasters over the past two decades were in the
United States, while China and India have been the most severely affected, especially by floods
that impacted billions of people. Weather-related disasters during the period negatively
affected 4.1 billion people left wounded, displaced or in need of emergency assistance, as
well as killing .6 million. while inflicted huge economic costs.
The United Nations office recorded an average of 335 weather-related disasters every
year over the two decades, double the level in the previous 10 years. The report counted
events that had killed 10 or more people, affected more than 1,000 and generated appeals for
external assistance.
The report found strong evidence that the warming climate is creating more frequent
and intense heat waves, causing heavier rainstorms, worsening coastal flooding and
intensifying some droughts, but for many other types of weather occurrences, the linkage is less
clear. Floods accounted for close to half of all the weather-related disasters, affecting 2.3
billion people, mostly in Asia. Storms killed the most people, causing about 242,000
recorded deaths, including 138,000 killed by Cyclone Nargis, which struck Myanmar in
2008.
Droughts, which were most acute in Africa, affected more than a billion people,
causing hunger, malnutrition, disease and widespread agricultural failure that resulted in
long-lasting underdevelopment. Heat waves killed 148,000, primarily in Europe, while
wildfires greatly increased. About 38 major wildfires in the United States were estimated to
54
have affected more than 108,000 people and caused recorded losses of over $11 billion —
numbers the report said were sure to rise when fires that were raging after August 2015,
the cutoff point for data, were taken into account.
The figure of $1.9 trillion for the worldwide cost of the disasters was clearly a minimum,
as data was available for only a little more than a third of the recorded disasters (Nick
Cummings-Bruce. “Extreme Weather Tied to Over 600,000 Deaths Over 2 Decades,” The New
York Times, November 23, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/24/world/europe/extremeweather-disasters-united-nations-paris.html?ref=todayspaper).
Three economists at the University of California Palo Alto released a study, in
November, finding that if global warming continues at its current rate, income in
developing countries could fall by 20% by century’s end, while smaller declines would be
likely in developed nations (Pete Spotts, “Climate Change’s big economic toll,” The Christian
Science Monitor, November 9, 2015).
Diane Cardwell, "Renewable Energy Financing Hits a Snag," The New York Times,
October. 11, 2015, , reported, "Low oil and gas prices have roiled the energy markets, and
the specter of rising interest rates has rattled investors’ confidence in the industry’s
returns. Although energy and financial experts say that the basics of the business remain
sound, the lofty stock prices have tumbled, leading renewable energy companies to
scramble for new approaches to their businesses."
Recent research has shown strong signals that global warming is intensifying heat
waves around the world, but to date a smaller link has been found between droughts and
wild fires (John Schwartz, “Studies Look for Signs of Climate Change in 2014’s )Extreme
Weather,” The New York Times, November 6, 2015).
Chris Buckley, “China Burns Much More Coal Than Reported, Complicating Climate
Talks,”
The
New
York
Times,
November.
3,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/04/world/asia/china-burns-much-more-coal-than-reportedcomplicating-climate-talks.html, reported, “China, the world’s leading emitter of greenhouse
gases from coal, has been burning up to 17 percent more coal a year than the government
previously disclosed, according to newly released data. The finding could complicate the
already difficult efforts to limit global warming.”
Edward Wong and Mia Li, "Rapid Economic Growth in China Is Chipping Away at
Coastal
Wetlands,"
The
New
York
Times,
October
19,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/20/world/asia/china-economic-growth-is-reducing-coastalwetlands-report-finds.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Coastal wetlands in China have
vanished at an alarming rate because of the country’s economic development, and current
economic plans could diminish them to below the minimum needed for “ecological
security,” including fresh water, fishery products and flood control, according to a report
released Monday by Chinese scientists and an American research center."
55
John Schwartz, "Deadly Heat Is Forecast in Persian Gulf by 2100," The New York Times,
October 26, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/27/science/intolerable-heat-may-hit-themiddle-east-by-the-end-of-the-century.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0, reported, "By the end of
this century, areas of the Persian Gulf could be hit by waves of heat and humidity so severe
that simply being outside for several hours could threaten human life, according to a study
published Monday. Because of humanity’s contribution to climate change, the authors
wrote, some population centers in the Middle East “are likely to experience temperature
levels that are intolerable to humans.”
The dangerously muggy summer conditions predicted for places near the warm
waters of the gulf could overwhelm the ability of the human body to reduce its temperature
through sweating and ventilation. That threatens anyone without air-conditioning,
including the poor, but also those who work outdoors in professions like agriculture and
construction.
The paper, published in the journal Nature Climate Change, was written by Jeremy S. Pal
of the department of civil engineering and environmental science at Loyola Marymount
University in Los Angeles and Elfatih A. B. Eltahir of the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology. Previous studies had suggested that such conditions might be reached within 200
years. But the new research, which depends on climate models that focus on regional topography
and conditions, foresees a shorter timeline."
Edward Wong, “Chinese Glacier’s Retreat Signals Trouble for Asian Water Supply,” The
New York Times, December 8, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/09/world/asia/chineseglaciers-retreat-signals-trouble-for-asian-watersupply.html?rref=collection%2Fnewseventcollection%2FParis%20Climate%20Change%20Conf
erence%202015&action=click&contentCollection=Asia%20Pacific&module=Collection&region
=Marginalia&src=me&pgtype=article&_r=0, reported, ”The extreme effects predicted of
global climate change are already happening in western China. Glacier retreat here and
across the so-called Third Pole, the glaciers of the Himalayas and related mountain ranges,
threatens Asia’s water supply. Towns and villages along the arid Hexi Corridor, a passage
on the historic Silk Road where camels still roam, have suffered floods and landslides
caused by sudden summer rainstorms. Permafrost is disappearing from the Tibet-Qinghai
Plateau, jeopardizing the existence of plants and animals, the livelihoods of its people and
even the integrity of infrastructure like China’s high-altitude railway to Lhasa, Tibet.
The fact that Chinese scientists are raising alarms about these changes is a key
reason that the Chinese government has been engaging fully in climate change negotiations
in recent years. Another is the deadly urban air pollution, caused mostly by industrial coal
burning, that resulted in Beijing’s first red alert over air quality on Monday.”
“In November, China released a detailed scientific report on climate change that
predicted disastrous consequences for its 1.4 billion people. Those included rising sea levels
along the urbanized coast, floods from storms across China and the erosion of glaciers.
More than 80 percent of the permafrost on the Tibet-Qinghai Plateau could disappear by
the next century, the report said. Temperatures in China are expected to rise by 1.3 to 5
degrees Celsius, or 2.3 to 9 degrees Fahrenheit, by the end of the century, and temperatures
have risen faster in China in the last half-century than the global average.
People across China are already feeling the impact. The most obvious devastation comes
from flooding. The report said an increase in urban floods attributed to climate change has
56
destroyed homes and infrastructure. From 2008 to 2010, 62 percent of Chinese cities had
floods; 173 had three or more.”
A study by Australian researchers finds that the rising atmospheric, and hence
ocean, increase in acidifying carbon dioxide may so stress the world’s ocean ecosystems
that it will lead to a collapse in the food chain. While many, but not all, microscopic
organisms do well in warmer, more acidic waters, many fish harvested to feed people do
not. (“Food Chain Collapse, Albuquerque Journal, October 19, 2015).
Krill, however, the base of the Antarctic Ocean food chain are declining in the
warmer, more acidic oceans, and there is evidence that if the current rate of global
warming induced climate change continues, conditions may no longer be suitable for krill
reproduction (Michelle Innis, “Worry for the Antarctic Ecosystem,” The New York Times,
October 20, 2015).
Marufish, “Campaign Update: RSPO Failing its Mandate to Regulate Palm Oil Industry,”
Cultural Survival, December 4, 2015, https://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/campaign-updaterspo-failing-its-mandate-regulate-palm-oil-industry, reported, “A new report, entitled Who
Watches the Watchmen? [https://eia-international.org/wp-content/uploads/EIA-WhoWatches-the-Watchmen-FINAL.pdf] released by the Environmental Investigation Agency
(EIA) and Grassroots, demonstrates that the Roundtable for Sustainable Palm Oil, the
industry oversight body that charges itself with certifying palm oil as sustainable, is failing
to address the concerning and harmful practices of many palm oil companies it certifies as
socially and environmentally ethical.
The RSPO was established in 2004 to audit palm oil companies, establishing the
guidelines for sustainable palm oil production. Palm oil is used in a multitude of processed
foods, such as chocolate, cereal, soup, cookies, crackers, and also in many cosmetics. However,
as the industry has grown over the last two decades, it has been implicated in problematic
business practices that do irreversible damage to the environment and Indigenous Peoples.
Because palm oil trees grow best in rainforest climates, companies have razed huge tracts of
ancient rainforests to monocrop palm trees for mass production, virtually erasing all biodiversity
of flora and fauna naturally found in these forests, and evicting Indigenous Peoples who live
there, destroying their lifestyles and livelihoods.
Using nine case studies as evidence, the report makes claims that RSPO auditors have
failed to identify and address Indigenous land rights in areas where they have certified
palm oil plantations, as well as failing to identify situations where companies are using
trafficked labor, razed forests of High Conservation Value, and destroyed crucial animal
habitats. Another example of this oversight can be found in a Greenomics report regarding
Indonesian company Sawit Sumbermas Sarana (SSS), that was found to endangering an
orangutan habitat and clearing forested peatland.
The RSPO infrastructure includes a complaint mechanism, which provides, communities,
NGOs and other outside stakeholders recourse where RSPO members have violated their
standards. In 2012, Cultural Survival joined a coalition of environmental and human rights
organizations in submitting a complaint to the RSPO citing that a palm oil plantation in
Southwest Cameroon, run by US based Herakles Farms, would cause irreparable
deforestation and damage to wildlife, as well as depriving the local indigenous communities
of their livelihoods. Later, Herakles Farms withdrew their application for RSPO
57
certification. However, many complaints go unaddressed and has failed to provide
acceptable outcomes. There are concerns with conflicts of interest, with companies that have
been subject to complaints joining the Panel charged with reviewing complaints even while the
problems raised remain unresolved. Some complaints have dragged on for five or more years
without resolution.
In response to the report of the EIA, the RSPO has stated its intention to keep an “open
dialogue” with all stakeholders in an attempt to keep palm oil production as sustainable as
possible. It has acknowledged the claims made by the RSPO and stated that it does not take these
accusations lightly and that auditor practices will be reviewed. The RSPO also unveiled several
new policies to better monitor the actions of auditors in a registry that will be introduced in 2016.
The RSPO and its members, who include corporations such as McDonald's, Wendy’s and Estée
Lauder, met in Kuala Lumpur from November 16 - 19 to consider plans for moving forward.
Meanwhile, it is up to consumers to research the source and conditions of any products
containing palm oil. EIA Forest Campaigner Tomasz Johnson explains that this neglect made by
RSPO auditors will allow palm oil products to reach “supermarket shelves that are tainted with
human trafficking, rights abuses and the destruction of biodiversity.” For tips on choosing
sustainable palm oil products as a consumer, check out this guide published by the Guardian, 10
things you need to know about sustainable palm oil [at: http://www.theguardian.com/sustainablebusiness/2014/nov/26/10-things-you-need-to-know-about-sustainable-palm-oil].”
An effort is underway to build supposedly greener ships, world wide, powered by
liquid natural gas instead of diesel. At the point of burning, natural gas is the cleaner fuel.
However, with all the leaks in the process of extracting, storing and shifting natural gas,
which is methane – a far more global warming producing gas than carbon dioxide – it will
not be much if any improvement unless, and until, the methane leaks are plugged (Henry
Fountain, “Building Greener Ships, to Keep the Sea From Rising,” The New York Times,
December 8, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/08/science/carbon-emissions-shippingcontainerships.html?rref=collection%2Fnewseventcollection%2FParis%20Climate%20Change%20Confer
ence%202015).
While efforts are being made to increase the efficiency of gasoline and Deiseal
powered automobiles, doing so will not ultimately reduce fissile fuel emissions from them as
millions of more cars take the road, especially in emerging economies. The only solution is
to stop driving fossil fuel powered vehicles (David Jolly, “Despite Push for Cleaner Cars,
Sheer Numbers Could Work Against Climate Benefits,” The New York Times, December 7,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/08/business/energy-environment/despite-push-forcleaner-cars-sheer-numbers-could-work-against-climate-benefits.html?ref=todayspaper).
Revelations that Exon-Mobil’s directors and top officers knew decades ago that
burning fissile fuels they produce cause extremely damaging global warming have led to
calls for Congressional and other investigations. It is unlikely that the company or its leaders
will face criminal charges. Justin Gillis, “Climate Revelations Prompt Calls for Federal
Investigations of Exon Mobil,” The New York Times, October 31, 2015).
58
Climate change is not the only human-caused threat facing the world's oceans. The
Scotland Herald reported Wednesday on a study that found up to 80 tons of microplastic waste
entering the sea every year from use of these cosmetics in the UK alone.
Meanwhile, a fleet of about 30 vessels connected with the Netherlands-based Ocean
Cleanup returned on Sunday from a month-long expedition in which they sampled the
concentration of plastic in the Pacific in preparation for a large-scale cleanup of the Great
Pacific Garbage Patch, which is scheduled to begin by 2020. What they found was
troubling.
'I've studied plastic in all the world’s oceans, but never seen any area as polluted as
the Great Pacific Garbage Patch,” said Dr. Julia Reisser, lead oceanographer at The Ocean
Cleanup. "With every trawl we completed, thousands of miles from land, we just found lots
and lots of plastic.'"
Nadia Prupis, "Cutting Tropical Deforestation is Key to Curbing Climate Change, And
It's Cheap: New studies shows how easy it could be to curb one driving force of climate change,
and the devastating consequences if we don't," Common Dreams, August 24, 2015,
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/08/24/cutting-tropical-deforestation-key-curbingclimate-change-and-its-cheap, reported, "Tropical deforestation is a driving force behind
rising greenhouse gases and must be curbed in order to prevent irreversible global
temperature rise, new research finds.
Without drastic efforts to reduce deforestation, rising greenhouse gases, and
unsustainable global agriculture, the planet is on track to lose a massive quantity of its
tropical forests—a crucial element in the fight against irreversible climate change—in just
35 years.
Absent aggressive conservation policies, the world will lose 2.9 million square
kilometers of its tropical forests by 2050, according to a new working paper published Monday
by Center for Global Development (CGD) environmental expert Jonah Busch and research
assistant Jens Engelmann. That's a chunk the size of India, or one-third of U.S. land mass.
And if no changes are made to the world's 'business-as-usual' approach to
agriculture, logging, and other such forces, tropical deforestation will account for more
than one-sixth of the remaining carbon that can be emitted if the world is to limit global
warming to 2 degrees Celsius.
The carbon emissions that would occur during that process would add up to 169 billion
tons—the equivalent of running 44,000 typical coal plants per year, Busch explained in a blog
post accompanying the report, entitled The Future of Forests: Emissions from Tropical
Deforestation with and without a Carbon Price, 2016–2050 (pdf).
According to a separate study published earlier this year by NASA, tropical forests are
absorbing carbon dioxide at a far higher rate than previously thought, making them an
invaluable resource in curbing global warming.
That's the bad news. The good news, Busch writes, is that there are many solutions
available.
'Avoiding dangerous climate change while expanding economic prosperity is perhaps the
defining challenge of the 21st century,' Busch writes. 'Achieving both goals requires reducing
greenhouse gas emissions where doing so has the lowest unit cost.'
59
Carbon pricing is one example. Applying a global fee of $20 per ton of carbon
dioxide between 2016 and 2050 would keep 41 gigatons of emissions from being discharged,
the researchers found.
Another option is to follow Brazil's model of targeting greenhouse gases, which
involves 'satellite monitoring, law enforcement, new protected areas and indigenous
territories, restrictions on rural credit, and moratoriums on unsustainable soy and cattle
production,' Busch writes. 'As a result of these restrictive measures, Amazon deforestation
fell by nearly 80 percent since 2004 even while Brazil's soy and cattle production increased.'
CGD's study comes as another report from the University of Leeds, published Friday in
Science, warns of a devastating future for forests, which will exist only in a 'simplified' state by
2100 if climate change is not aggressively addressed.
'Earth has lost 100 million hectares of tropical forest over the last 30 years, mostly to
agricultural developments,' lead researcher Dr. Simon Lewis said last week. 'Few people think
about how intertwined with tropical forests we all are.'
Lewis, a forest expert and professor at the University of Leeds and University College
London, found that a new and more dangerous phase of human environmental impact threatens
to deteriorate much of the world's remaining tropical forests until they exist in a fragmented,
'living dead' state. That's a fate that can only be avoided through a shift to low-carbon energy or
embracing policies that promote 'development without destruction.'
'Unfortunately, most of the benefits from logging, mining and intensive agriculture flow
away from local people,' Lewis wrote in an article accompanying the report. 'Giving forestdwellers long-term collective legal rights over their land would mean benefits flow to them.'
As world leaders prepare for the upcoming climate conference in Paris and the growing
call to prevent full-scale destruction of natural resources continues to build, 2015 is becoming /;a
big year for climate,'Busch writes."
Ian Lovett, "California: Climate Change Law Signed," The New York Times, October 7,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/08/us/california-climate-change-lawsigned.html?ref=todayspaper, "Governor Jerry Brown on Wednesday signed a law to bolster
California’s use of renewable energy and make buildings more efficient, but it does not
include a reduction in gasoline use that he had promoted. The law will require the state to
generate half its energy from renewable sources by 2030, up from a current target of 33
percent by 2020." Following objections from the oil industry, a provision to require a statewide
50% reduction of petroleum use was dropped from the law.
An increasing number of businesses have been moving to use green energy (though
many who say they are green, are not, or very little). One example, is Procter and Gamble
moving to power its factories by windmill (Rachel Abrams, “Procter & Gamble Taps Wind to
Power Its Factories,” The New York Times, November 20, 2015).
United Parcel Service (UPS) announce a plan to replace, by 2017, 12% of the gas
and diesel fuel in its truck fleet with renewable diesel from palm oil, waste oils, animal fate
and other products. Except for the palm oil, the production of which has involved cutting
down forests, taking farms out of food production, and displacing people, this appears to be
a largely positive step for the environment] (Diane Cardwell, "Renewable Fuels Get Big Boost
from UPS," The New York Times, July 31, 2015).
60
Microsoft has moved to reduce energy use, and emissions, through charging an
internal fee for energy use (“A Carbon Tax Imposed buy the Head Office,” The New York
Times, September 22, 2015).
David Jolly, "Norway Is a Model for Encouraging Electric Car Sales," The New York
Times, October 16, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/17/business/international/norway-isglobal-model-for-encouraging-sales-of-electric-cars.html?ref=todayspaper,
reported,
"that
Norway has provided heavy incentives for its citizens to purchase electric cars. "At a time
when the Volkswagen emissions scandal has helped expose the drawbacks of Europe’s heavy
reliance on diesel cars, Norway has become a global model of how to get the public to
embrace electric vehicles, an experiment that is attracting researchers and policy makers
from around the world.
No other country can yet match Norway’s proportion of all-electric cars. Though
still only 2 percent, the figure is double that of the runner-up, the Netherlands, and is
growing faster than anywhere else in the world. More than one-fifth of new car sales in
Norway are of electric vehicles.
Some skeptics wonder whether the Norwegian program is cost-effective, or even an
efficient way to reduce air pollutants. And some elements of the program simply may not be
replicable in other countries. But for many, Norway is showing a path forward."
Taylor Hill, "Third Time’s a Disaster: Latest Coral Bleaching Hits Reefs Worldwide: A
'warm blob' in the Pacific Ocean coupled with a strong El Niño could put more than 4,000 square
miles of pristine coral reefs in harm’s way." TakePart.com, October 8, 2015,
http://www.takepart.com/article/2015/10/08/coral-bleaching-el-nino?cmpid=tpdaily-eml-201510-8, reported, "Scientists have confirmed that for only the third time ever recorded,
bleaching is hitting coral reefs on a global scale.
The devastating impacts could be longer and more severe than any previous event,
said researchers at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
"The problem is, the water temperatures and coral bleaching we’re seeing now are what
you would expect during an El Niño year, but we haven’t even gotten to the expected 2015–16
event yet,” said Mark Eakin, NOAA’s Coral Reef Watch coordinator.
What’s happened is that the giant, unusually warm water mass that has loitered in the
Pacific Ocean since 2014 is about to merge with 2015’s expected El Niño weather event. Couple
that with warmer ocean temperatures overall thanks to climate change, and as much as 4,633
square miles of vibrant coral reefs—approximately 38 percent of the world’s corals—could be
damaged by the end of this year. Five percent of the reefs could be lost for good.
Corals cover less than 1 percent of the ocean’s floor, but they’re vitally important to
more than 25 percent of all marine life, acting as a home for thousands of species and food
for others. For humans, coral reefs are a natural buffer against waves and storms, and
nearly half of the fish species people eat rely on coral reef habitats at some stage of their
lives. But with coral bleaching events seemingly on the rise, the entire ocean structure could
be in danger.
While some expensive to extract and refine tar sands oil is still being produced in
Alberta, the industry has greatly cut back production with the fall of oil prices, cutting
35,000 jobs (Ian Austen, "Oil Sands Boom Dries Up in Alberta, Taking Thousands of Jobs With
61
it,"
The
New
York
Times,
October
12,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/13/business/international/oil-sands-boom-dries-up-in-albertataking-thousands-of-jobs-with-it.html?ref=todayspaper).
A paper, Jens T. Stevens, Hugh D. Safford, Susan Harrison and Andrew M. Latimer,
"Forest disturbance accelerates thermophilization of understory plant communities," Journal of
Ecology, June 3, 2015, http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1365-2745.12426/abstract,
found that forest fires are speeding up climate change, and that plants that are primarily
found in an area well to the south, but exist in an area much further north, are becoming
common in the northern area. For example plants found in abundance in Mexico, but until
recently rare around San Francisco, are becoming common around San Francisco. They
project that farmers will soon need to begin shifting what they grow in a similar manner
(See also, Dan Nosowitz, "Wildfires Are Speeding Up Climate Change—and Shifting What
Grows Where: The range of native plants is moving northward after wildfires, and agriculture
may follow," TakePart, August 14, 2015, http://www.takepart.com/article/2015/08/14/wildfiresplants-agriculture-climate-change?cmpid=tpdaily-eml-2015-08-14).
The worst fire season on record in California, and the largest wildfire in the state,
the Rough Fire, having charred more than 160 square miles, is bringing major health
problems to California's central valley, where the mountains trap the smoke. Asthma and
other breathing related ailments are sharply increased. At least one elementary school was
keeping students inside at recess and some sports had been canceled. Briefly, Denver had major
air quality problems this summer, as the whole West to varying degrees has experienced
lower air quality as a result of the fires, and the situation was likely to worsen as fire seasons
continue to worsen (Jan Lovett and Jennifer Medina, "Fires in West Have Residents Gasping on
the
Soot
Left
Behind,"
The
New
York
Times,
September
9,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/10/us/fires-in-west-leave-residents-gasping-on-the-soot-leftbehind.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0).
With so much of California tinder dry, embers jump even very wide fire lines, and
many fires spread at record rates of speed no matter white fire fighters do. On September
13, the Valley Fire in Lake County exploded to 50,000 acres, burning over 1000 homes and
business buildings, as well as vehicles, as it incinerated the towns of Middletown and
Lakeside. Some residents barely escaped driving through the fire to do so (Ian Lovett and
Ashley Southall, "Moving Fast, Fire Scorches Community in California," The New York Times,
September
13,
2015.
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/14/us/northern-californiawildfires.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0).
Richard Walker, “Middletown Rancheria Pomo Provide Shelter, Aid to Valley Fire
Victims,”
ICTMN,
October
12,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/12/middletown-rancheria-pomo-provideshelter-aid-valley-fire-victims-162053
, reported – updating previous reports above, “Four residents died. Four firefighters were
injured. More than 76,000 acres were burned. Some 1,958 homes and businesses—
including entire blocks—were destroyed. Another 93 buildings were damaged.
There are several Pomo Rancherias, or reservations, in Lake County, one of the
hardest-hit by the recent Valley Fire: Big Valley, Elem, Middletown, Robinson, Scotts
62
Valley, and Habematoel (Upper Lake). The Lake County Tribal Health Consortium serves a
population of 3,341 (its clinics in Lakeport, Clearlake and Middletown emerged unscathed by the
fire). The Middletown Rancheria of Pomo Indians was closest to the fire.
While the Middletown Rancheria itself reportedly escaped damage, residents there have
relatives or friends who live in town. The Twin Pine Casino & Hotel—with three restaurants, a
bar and lounge, an event center and a gift shop—employs as many as 200 people, Native and
non-Native. Among those who lost their homes: Tommy Garrett, executive chef at Twin Pine
Casino & Hotel.
‘Many tribal members as well as employees of Twin Pine Casino & Hotel and Mount St.
Helena Brewing Co. were victims of the fire’s devastation,’ Middletown Pomo Chairman Jose
Simon wrote in a statement about the relief fund. ‘A united community now faces the long road
of recovery together.’
Even before the Valley Fire that swept through Lake, Napa and Sonoma counties was
declared fully contained on October 6 and residents were allowed back to whatever remained of
their homes and neighborhoods, the healing had begun.
The Middletown Rancheria converted the event center at Twin Pine Casino & Hotel
into a Red Cross disaster relief center for the community, and hotel rooms were made
available to those who had lost their homes. The tribe also established a relief fund. The
Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians donated $5,000.”
“Three Standing Rock Reservation Fires Quelled But Burn 7,500 Acres,” ICTMN,
October 13, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/13/three-standing-rockreservation-fires-quelled-burn-7500-acres-162071, reported “A total of 7,500 acres has been
scorched by fire on the Standing Rock Sioux Reservation, but two have been put out and one
is 75 percent contained, the incident reporting site Inciweb said on Tuesday.
“About 340 people had to be evacuated, and three structures were destroyed, Inciweb
said. They have since returned to their homes. No lives were lost. All three fires are still being
investigated and are of unknown cause, Inciweb said.”
CNN radio news, August 16, 2015, reported 80 wildfires in progress in California,
Washinhgton, Oregon and Idaho, with 6.5 million acres burned to date in the 2015 fire
season.
Insurance company of London, Aon Benfield, estimated that property damage alone
from two wildfires in Lake and in Calaveras and Amador counties in California, in
September, approached $2 billion with almost 2000 structures, 1300 of them homes
destroyed, and more than 3200 homes damaged, as over 200 square miles were consumed
by the fires ("California: September Wildfires Caused $2 Billion in Damage, Insurer Says," The
New York Times, October 15, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/16/us/californiaseptember-wildfires-caused-2-billion-in-damage-insurer-says.html?ref=todayspaper).
“Colville Tribes Call for Donations and Volunteers as 2 Massive Fires Scorch 600 Square
Miles,”
ICTMN,
September
15,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/09/15/colville-tribes-call-donations-andvolunteers-2-massive-fires-scorch-600-square-miles, reported, “Two fires totaling 382,815
acres, or nearly 600 square miles, continue to ravage the Colville Reservation in
63
Washington State, with one of them just 45 percent contained.
The North Star and Tunk Block fires have scorched a good 20 percent of the 1.4
million-acre reservation, according to The Spokesman-Review on September 8, which noted
they are the largest fires in tribal memory.
As of September 14, the North Star fire had grown to 214,975 acres and was 45 percent
contained, while the Tunk Block covered 167,840 and was 79 percent contained, according to
the incident reporting site InciWeb.
“The Tunk Block and North Star Fires are both very large,” said InciWeb. “The fires
combined are over 590 square miles. That is four times the size of the city of Seattle or about the
size of the city of Los Angeles. It is approximately 590 miles from Seattle to Helena, MT.”
While weather forecasts are uncertain, as of August 14, 2015 was enroute to becoming
the hottest year yet, with a strong likelihood that this coming fall and winter would
experience one of the strongest el Ninio's ever recorded in the Pacific, likely bringing
warmer that unusual weather to the U.S. South West, with more rain (but little snow) to
Northern California and places further east, with more hurricane activity in the Pacific,
and less in the Atlantic. A strong el Nino would likely also reduce rain in Australia and
India (John Schwartz, "El Niño May Bring Record Heat, and Rain for California," The New
York Times, August 13, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/14/science/signs-of-a-historicel-nino-but-forecasters-remain-wary.html?ref=todayspaper).
The drought in California over the past three years, in lowering lake levels, exposed
tribal archaeological sites to plundering (Patricia Lee Brown, “Receding Waters in California
Expose Artifacts to Plundering,” The New York Times, December 1, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/02/us/receding-waters-in-california-expose-artifacts-toplunder.html?WT.nav=bottom-well).
Exceptionally heavy rain caused flash flooding in southern California, October 15,
closing key state road 58, near Barstow, and two interstate highways, including 30 miles of
Interstate 5 near Tajon, as numerous drivers were stuck in mud washed over the highway
("Roads Flooded Near Los Angeles," The New York Times, October 15, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/16/us/roads-flooded-near-los-angeles.html?ref=todayspaper).
Unusually heavy rains in Utah, in September, caused flash flooding, killing 12
people (“Flash Floods Roar Through Utah, Sweeping Up Cars and Hikers.” The New York
Times, September 16, 2015).
With the arrival of winter, it used to be that in the U.S. Midwest and South, tornado
season was long over and far from renewing. But that has already changed with climate
change. On December 23, 2015 tornadoes developed across the South and Midwest,
including what used to be extremely rare, a tornado staying on the ground for many miles,
in this case for some 130 miles across Mississippi, killing at least 14 people. Two days later,
8 were killed as a group of tornadoes struck the Dallas, TX area, destroying homes and
throwing cars off freeways Meanwhile, the Northeastern U.S. saw record high
temperatures for a number of days up to and over Christmas 2015, as the world’s hottest
year on record approached an end (Lacy Russell, Alan Blinder and Cynthia Howell, “Tornado
Leaves Long Path of Destruction in South,” The New York Times, December 24, 2015,
64
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/25/us/storms-mississippi-tennesseearkansas.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0; Daniel E. Slotnik and David Montgomery, “Eight Dead
as Tornadoes Strike the Dallas Area,” The New York Times, December 26, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/27/us/tornadoes-and-deaths-are-reported-in-dallas-as-stormscontinue-in-south.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0, and Sarah Maskin Nir, “On a Tropical Christmas
in New York, Traditions Melt Away,” The New York Times, December 25, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/26/nyregion/warm-new-yorkchristmas.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0).
With the arrival of 2016, the new intense weather showed itself with well beyond the
past normal fierce storms, which, at least in Eastern New Mexico, brought record snow.
Lucinda Holt and Fernanda Santos, “Blizzard Buried Some Dairy Cows in the Snow; 35,000
Die,” The New York Times, January, 5, 2016, http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/06/us/in-westtexas-hundreds-of-dairy-cows-killed-by-blizzard.html?ref=todayspaper. Reported, “After a mild
and dry Christmas Day, a fierce blizzard whipped across the rolling plains of West Texas
and eastern New Mexico. The wind blew mercilessly for 48 hours, leaving snow drifts as
high as 14 feet.
Though winter storms are not strangers to this region, the unrelenting wind —
sometimes gusting to 80 miles per hour — and blinding snow of this blizzard surpassed
even the most dire of forecasts. Dairy farmers in the region, who produce 10 percent of the
milk in the United States, are now tallying their losses.
So far, more than 35,000 dairy cows have been found dead; many other animals
developed frostbite and could still die. In West Texas, about 10 percent of the adult herd
was lost. Farmers are trying to decide how to dispose of the carcasses that dot the landscape,
though others might not be found until the snow melts.”
Force 5 Hurricane Patricia, the strongest storm ever recorded in the Western
Hemisphere, with 200 mile an hour winds at sea, struck the southern Pacific coast of
Mexico at 165 mph, October 23, 2015, centering on the resort of Cuixmala. The storm removed
roofs and nocked down trees and lamp posts as it moved inland, loosing force (Elisabeth Malkin,
Azam Ahmed, and Francis Robles, "Hurricane in Mexico Downgraded to Tropical Storm
Patricia,"
The
New
York
Times,
October
23,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/24/world/americas/hurricane-patricia-landfallmexico.html?ref=todayspaper).
The Pacific Ocean has been hearting, bringing the likelihood of more extremely
strong storms, such as Hurricane Patricia (John Schwartz, “Pacific Ocean Becomes a
Caldron,” The New York Times, November 3, 2015).
Several years of drought in Mexico, seemingly related to climate change, are finding
farmers in Chihuaha State using up the aquifer, and Menonite farmers who created very
productive farms have been leaving before the water runs out in perhaps 20 years (Victoria
Burnett, “Mennonite Farmers Prepare to Leave Mexico, and Competition for Water,” The New
York
Times,
November
16,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/17/world/americas/mennonite-farmers-prepare-to-leavemexico-and-competition-for-water.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0).
65
Hisako Ueno and Makiko Inoue, "Japan Faces Severe Flooding After Heavy Rain in the
East,"
The
New
York
Times,
September
10,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/11/world/asia/japan-floods.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0,
reported, "Heavy rain from a tropical storm caused severe flooding in eastern Japan on
Thursday, and television footage showed rescuers airlifting people who were stranded after river
embankments collapsed." A rare weather warning was issued by the government to 5 million
people as many rivers swelled.
Joe Cochrane, "Rain in Indonesia Dampens Forest Fires That Spread Toxic Haze," The
New York Times, October 28, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/29/world/asia/indonesiaforest-fire-toxic-haze.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Thanks to heavy rainfall, Indonesia
may have turned the corner in battling mass forest fires that have blanketed much of
Southeast Asia in toxic haze, but more rain will be needed in the coming days to get the
blazes under control, a senior government minister said Wednesday.
Torrential rains overnight on Tuesday in the regions of Sumatra and Kalimantan —
where forest fires have been raging for weeks, sickening hundreds of thousands of people
— have significantly reduced the size and number of fires, said Luhut B. Pandjaitan, Indonesia’s
coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs."
"Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for the National Agency for Disaster Management
in Indonesia, said visibility and air quality had improved since Monday in affected areas."
"Some scientists had feared that the fires and haze could last through the end of the year.
The crisis began in late August when fires were set to clear land for palm oil plantations
and other agricultural uses. While this has been occurring for decades, an especially long
dry season this year coupled with the effects of El Niño threaten to make the fires and haze
the worst on record, according to scientists.
Mr. Luhut, who has been appointed by Indonesia’s president to oversee the crisis, said
more rain was forecast for the coming days, although not every day, in southern Sumatra and
most of Kalimantan, also known as Indonesian Borneo.
'It’s too early to tell, but if the rain comes again tomorrow and the next, then 75 percent of the
fires will be stopped,' he said."
"Seventeen Indonesian civilians have died from respiratory illnesses caused by the haze,
as well as one firefighter in an operational accident, Mr. Luhut said."
"Firefighting and commercial aircraft were able to land thanks to better visibility
on Wednesday morning in Palangkaraya, the capital of Central Kalimantan Province, and
Palembang, the capital of South Sumatra, where flights had been canceled for days, Mr.
Luhut said."
"In the early weeks of the crisis, Indonesia was criticized by its neighbors, including
Singapore and Malaysia, where haze has blanketed parts of those countries, as well as
southern Thailand and the southern Philippines.
Asked if the Indonesian government had mishandled the crisis in its earlier weeks, Mr.
Luhut said the country’s “one mistake” was in approving palm oil concessions on 14.8
million acres of peatlands during the past decade, which when drained and burned to clear
land for agriculture emit high levels of carbon dioxide into the air."
As of mid-October, Ethiopia had been suffering months of severe drought, causing
crops to fail, farmers to abandon their farms, causing major food shortages, and damaging
66
the economy (Jacey Fortin, "Ethiopia, a Nation of Farmers, Strains Under Severe Drought," The
New York Times, October 18, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/19/world/africa/ethiopiaa-nation-of-farmers-strains-under-severe-drought.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0).
Norimitsu Onishi, “Drought Deepens South Africa’s Malaise,” The New York Times,
December 26, 2015. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/27/world/africa/drought-deepens-southafricas-malaise.html?ref=todayspaper. reported, “The worst drought in more than a generation
has gripped South Africa and other African nations as El Niño, a weather phenomenon
believed to have been intensified by climate change, brings record high temperatures and
low rainfalls across much of the continent. The full impact of the drought and resulting
poor harvests will be felt only in the months ahead, but they have already left 29 million
people in southern Africa without reliable access to food, according to the United Nations.
In East Africa, particularly Ethiopia, 10 million people will need food assistance next year,
aid organizations warn.”
Michelle Innis, “Record Heat Puts Australia at Risk of Intense Fire Season,” The New
York Times, November, 20, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/21/world/australia/australiafires-record-temperatures.html?ref=world, reports on Australia, “A fire that raged this week
across hundreds of thousands of acres of grasslands and about-to-be harvested wheat
crops, killing a farmer and three workers, points to a dangerous summer ahead in
Australia, scientists and weather watchers say.
The fire, in the south of Western Australia, began last weekend after lightning
struck about 12 miles north of the township of Esperance. It was flaring six days later after
burning through 580 square miles of farmland, fanned by temperatures above 100 degrees
and bursts of wind gusting at more than 50 miles an hour.
The combination of record heat and very dry conditions — October was the hottest
month in Australia ever after its third-driest September — is prompting some officials to
predict an especially intense fire season, which started early this year.”
The fire, in the south of Western Australia, began last weekend after lightning
struck about 12 miles north of the township of Esperance. It was flaring six days later after
burning through 580 square miles of farmland, fanned by temperatures above 100 degrees
and bursts of wind gusting at more than 50 miles an hour.
The combination of record heat and very dry conditions — October was the hottest month
in Australia ever after its third-driest September — is prompting some officials to predict
an especially intense fire season, which started early this year.”
As the terrible Australian 2015 fire season continued in late December, Australia
Bushfires Strike Popular Tourist Area,” The New York Times, December 26, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/27/world/australia/australia-bushfires-strike-popular-touristarea.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, “Bushfires burned down more than 100 homes in a
popular tourist area on Friday, and on Saturday officials predicted more blazes to come.
While about 500 firefighters and 13 firefighting aircraft battled the flames along parts of
Victoria State’s Great Ocean Road, teams moved in to assess the damage.
A spokesman for the state’s emergency services said 98 homes had been destroyed in
the community of Wye River and 18 in nearby Separation Creek. The two townships are
about 75 miles southwest of Melbourne.”
67
In New Mexico, as in a number of other states, the main electric power company,
PNM, has been trying to discourage roof top solar, in PNM's case (and some others) by
trying to have a high charge on rooftop solar. PNM has also been seeking approval of a
plan to replace shutting down coal powered electric generating facilities with a mix of coal,
nuclear, natural gas, solar and wind, that environmental groups in the state say does not
sufficiently include renewables (which use little of the state’s scarce water), and should not
include coal or nuclear which use a great deal of scarce water, and have their own
environmental issues, and are more costly, than renewables, and will become more so. The
New Mexico Public Regulatory Commission (PRC) refused to approve either proposal, and
left it to PNM to submit new proposals. PNM did so in August. Camilla Feiblman of the Sierra
Club in Albuquerque, NM, [email protected], reported, August 28.
2015, "The state's investor-owned utility filed a 15.8 percent residential rate increase
request with the Public Regulation Commission in Santa Fe on Thursday. PNM has
decided not to request fees from homeowners who rely on rooftop solar panels for their
electricity. If the utility gets a fuel charge reduction and cuts other costs, residents could
eventually be hit with a 7.9 percent hike." The issue of what the mix of replacements will be
for the closed coal power generation is again a public issue before the PRC (For more on the
PNM rate request, go to: http://www.abqjournal.com/635258/abqnewsseeker/pnm-asking-for-158-percent-ratehike.html?utm_source=The+Santa+Fe+Reporter+List&utm_campaign=a2084b58f8Morning_Word_Aug+28%2C+2015&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_b77a98714ba2084b58f8-36801445.
PNM's
press
release
on
its
rate
filing
is
at:
http://otp.investis.com/clients/us/pnm_resources/usn/usnewsstory.aspx?newsid=30492&cid=970).
El Paso Electric, serving the El Paso area of Texas and southern New Mexico,
requested rate increases, with rates somewhat higher for rooftop solar, in May 2015 (Ken
and Christine Newtson, "El Paso Electric latest to try to punish solar users, Rio Grande Sierran,"
July/August/September, 2015).
Lauren McCauley, "Harper Government Spent Millions to Push Tar Sands on First
Nations: 'They seem to think that if they spend enough money, they can fool all of the people all
of the time,' said Greenpeace analyst," Common Dreams, August 12, 2015,
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/08/12/harper-government-spent-millions-push-tarsands-first-nations reported, "Solidifying the country's reputation as a 'true petrostate,' the
government of Canada reportedly spent millions of taxpayer dollars on previously
undisclosed tar sands lobbying activities, including a concerted push to 'educate' First
Nations communities opposed to the toxic drilling projects.
According to a series of 2014 government policy documents obtained by a Greenpeace
analyst via a Freedom of Information request, Prime Minister Stephen Harper's 2013 budget
included $30 million to be invested over two years on a public relations campaign as well as
domestic and international "outreach activities" to promote Alberta’s tar sands.
The Guardian's Martin Lukacs reports on Wednesday that 'the outreach activities, which
cost $4.5 million and were never publicly disclosed, included efforts to 'advance energy literacy
amongst [British Columbia] First Nations communities.'
Further, 'The documents indicate the government was funding dozens of projects between
2014 and 2015 to engage Indigenous communities and advance 'Canada’s reputation as a global
68
energy leader.' When asked for comment, Natural Resources Canada declined to elaborate on the
specific outreach projects.
Previous reporting by Lukacs found that the Alberta government had gone so far as to
promise some First Nations leaders an investor-stake in oil extraction projects in exchange for
their help convincing Indigenous groups to support various pipeline proposals.
First Nations, for the most part, have been fiercely opposed to the tar sands industry
and the proposed pipelines, such as Enbridge's Northern Gateway, which would transport
the heavy, toxic crude from Alberta across ancestral lands to coastal Kitimat, BC. The
grassroots mobilization, including a number of legal challenges, against these projects has
successfully hampered construction thus far.
Reacting to this latest disclosure, 350.org founder Bill McKibben tweeted: 'Secret
documents reveal Canadian govt spent tens of millions advocating for tarsands. A true
petrostate.'
The Guardian reporting also notes that the government documents also revealed
outreach activities including 'research to support Canadian lobbying against a European
environmental measure that would have hampered tar sands exports. Canada has
succeeded in delaying the measure—the EU Fuel Quality Directive—several times'
Greenpeace climate analyst Keith Stewart, who first obtained the policy documents,
said: 'The Harper government gutted environmental laws and destroyed public faith in the
regulatory system in order to fast-track pipelines, then wasted $30 million of public money
on a public relations campaign doomed to fail. They seem to think that if they spend
enough money, they can fool all of the people all of the time but that kind of arrogance is a
risky re-election strategy at a time of low oil prices and rising concern over climate
change.'"
Michael Wines, "New Concern Over Quakes in Oklahoma Near a Hub of U.S. Oil," The
New York Times, October 14, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/15/us/new-concern-overquakes-in-oklahoma-near-a-hub-of-us-oil.html?ref=todayspaper, reported,
"A sharp
earthquake in central Oklahoma last weekend has raised fresh concern about the security
of a vast crude oil storage complex, close to the quake’s center, that sits at the crossroads of
the nation’s oil pipeline network.
The magnitude 4.5 quake struck Saturday afternoon about three miles northwest of
Cushing, roughly midway between Oklahoma City and Tulsa. The town of about 8,000 people is
home to the so-called Cushing Hub, a sprawling tank farm that is among the largest oil storage
facilities in the world.
Scientists reported in a paper published online last month that a large earthquake near the
storage hub “could seriously damage storage tanks and pipelines.” Saturday’s quake continues a
worrisome pattern of moderate quakes, suggesting that a large earthquake is more than a passing
concern, the lead author of that study, Daniel McNamara, said in an interview.
The federal government has designated the hub, run by energy industry companies,
a critical national infrastructure. Major tank ruptures could cause serious environmental
damage, raise the risk of fire and other disasters and disrupt the flow of oil to refineries
nationwide, said Dr. McNamara, a research geophysicist at the National Earthquake Information
Center in Colorado."
"The Cushing quake is among the largest of thousands of temblors that have rocked
central and northern Oklahoma in the past five years, largely set off by the injection of oil
69
and gas industry wastes deep into the earth. The watery wastes effectively lubricate cracks,
allowing rocks under intense pressure to slip past one another, causing quakes."
The Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled, in July 2015, that home owners who have
suffered injury or property damage from oil and gas activity related earth quakes can sue
for damages (Richard A. Oppel, Jr., Oklahoma Justices Say Home Owners Can Sue Oil
Companies Over Quakes," The New York Times, July 11, 2015).
Oklahoma's Corporation Commission Oil and Gas Division, ordered oil and gas
companies to reduce the injecting of waste water from drilling into deep wells, in an effort to
reduce earthquakes, as previous measures to reduce them had not been successful (Michael
Wines, "Regulators Act to Ease Quake Peril on Oklahoma The New York Times, August 5,
2015).
Emily J. Gertz, "An Undersea Volcano Previews a Terrifying Future for the World’s
Oceans: Scientists discover an area in the South Pacific where high levels of carbon dioxide have
created dead zones where healthy coral reefs should be," August 12, 2015,
http://www.takepart.com/article/2015/08/11/algae-dominates-coral-reef-carbon-dioxide-oceanacidification, reported on the effects of carbon dioxide bubbling up from an under water
volcano in not overly warm water, "In a remote area of the South Pacific, nature has
opened a window on the most likely future for the world’s tropical coral reefs unless
nations radically cut fossil fuel emissions. It’s not a pretty picture. Rather than 'a very
healthy reef full of diverse coral communities' including hundreds of fish, said marine
biologist Ian Enochs, there’s just a thick carpet of green fuzz along with a few stunted
corals: “The submarine landscape is just coated with algae.'” Carbon dioxide increasing in
the atmosphere is absorbed by the oceans, making them acid, and this study shows the effects of
high levels of CO2 on coral, which is critical for ocean habitat. The high levels of CO2 also are
quite harmful to other ocean flora and fauna.
Britain has decided to end all generation of electricity by coal, which now produces
20% of the country’s electricity, by 2025 (Stanley Reed, “Britain Plans End of Coal Power by
20125,” The New York Times, November 19, 2015).
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has given approval for the first U.S.
nuclear electric generating plant in the U.S. in the Twenty-First Century, at Spring City,
TN (“Tennessee: First Nuclear Plant of the 21st Century is Licensed,” The New York Times,
November 23, 2015).
New York Governor Cuomo, attempting to prevent the planned closing of two
Nuclear power plants in the state, ordered that by 2030, half of all power generated in New
York State would be by non-carbon emitting sources (which can include atomic power)
(Patricia McGeehan, “Cuomo, Seeking to Save 2 Nuclear Plants, Will Order Increase in Clean
Energy,” The New York Times, November 23, 2015).
In Massachusetts, the Pilgrim nuclear power plant will close, too expensive to keep
running (“Massachusetts, With Expenses Rising, Pilgrim nuclear power plant will close,” The
70
New York Times, October 14, 2015).
Harvey Wasserman, “Nuclear Reactors Make ISIS an Apocalyptic Threat,” EcoWatch,
November 25, 2015, http://ecowatch.com/2015/11/25/nuclear-reactors-isis-apocalyptic-threat/,
reported, “As you read this, a terror attack has put atomic reactors in Ukraine at the brink
of another Chernobyl-scale apocalypse.
Transmission lines have been blown up. Power to at least two major nuclear power
stations has been “dangerously” cut. Without emergency backup, those nukes could lose
coolant to their radioactive cores and spent fuel pools. They could then melt or explode, as
at Fukushima.
Yet amidst endless “all-fear-all-the-time” reporting on ISIS, the corporate media has
remained shockingly silent on this potential catastrophe.”
Andrea Germanos, '"Significant Design Vulnerabilities' Plague Massive Nuclear Waste
Site, Leaked Internal Review Reveals: 'The fact that the Department of Energy has not released
this report, prepared last year, is alarming and indicative of a safety-last culture,'," Common
Dreams, August 26, 2015, http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/08/26/significant-designvulnerabilities-plague-massive-nuclear-waste-site-leaked-internal, reported, "A leaked internal
review of the nation's largest nuclear clean-up site found hundreds of "significant design
vulnerabilities" and begs questions about the Energy Department's transparency, a
watchdog group says.
The Hanford Nuclear Reservation near Richland, Washington houses radioactive
waste from the production of plutonium for nuclear weapons, and the decades-long cleanup effort has been costly and plagued by leaking underground nuclear waste storage tanks.
Seattle-based Hanford Challenge, which advocates for safe clean-up of the site, says it
received the Department of Energy document from a whistleblower who has worked at the site
for many years as an engineer.
'The fact that the Department of Energy has not released this report, prepared last
year, is alarming and indicative of a safety-last culture,' said Tom Carpenter, Executive
Director of the group.
The document is a 2014 draft review called 'Low-Activity Waste Facility Design and
Operability Review and Recommendations." That LAW facility, Hanford Challenge explains in
a statement, "is designed to treat waste from Hanford’s high-level nuclear waste tanks that will
be pre-treated to remove the highly-radioactive materials before being mixed with glass formers
in a facility designed to vitrify the low level waste.'
From the executive summary of the leaked report:
Carpenter said, "This document was leaked by someone who was frustrated, and also
fearful. This plant is so riddled with design, quality indeterminate, nuclear safety and worker
health threats that it is hard to see how this plant could ever open without very significant and
expensive rework. 'The good news is, DOE commissioned this report, the bad news is they sat on
it, all the while saying everything is okay with how they are proceeding,' he continued. 'It raises
concerns about whether management is trying to cover up or water down the findings.'
From the Washington Post:
71
An Energy Department spokesman said that the report was a “very early draft” that
contained a number of factual inaccuracies.
'The Department is committed to designing, building and safely operating' the waste
facility, spokeswoman Yvonne Levardi said. 'While the draft report has not been finalized, it
does not identify any unknown major technical issues with the Low Activity Waste Facility.'
The leaked review comes the same month as whistleblower Walter Tamosaitis, who
raised safety concerns regarding operations at the site, reached a $4.1 settlement with Hanford
subcontractor AECOM.
And last year, documents obtained by the Associated Press showed there were
'significant construction flaws' in some of the double-shell storage tanks at the facility. U.S. Sen.
Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) urged the Energy Department to provide an action plan of how it would
deal with the risks the flaws pose, writing in a letter (pdf) to Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz: 'It
is time for the Department to stop hiding the ball and pretending that the situation at Hanford is
being effectively managed.'
The Washington site has proven itself an 'intractable problem' that 'costs taxpayers a
billion dollars a year,' author and history professor Kate Brown wrote earlier this year. 'Corporate
contractors hired to clean up Hanford have made hundreds of millions of dollars in fees and
surcharges, and, since little has been accomplished, the tab promises to mount for decades.'"
Uranium mining waste continues to be a major health problem on the Navajo
Reservation. In July, at Nahat’a Dzil, eight of eleven wells tested were found to have unsafe
levels of uranium contamination (Alastair Lee Bitsoi, “Eight Wells in Nahat’a Dzil iuranium
contaminated,” Navajo Times,. July 30, 2015).
With the multiyear drought in the western United States drying many kinds of
plants to tinder, the 2015 fire began a month early and has been exceptionally ferocious,
with many fires behaving ln unprecedented ways, leaping what traditionally were more
than adequate fire breaks so that the usual fire fighting tactics have often been ineffective,
and fires have been spreading at record rates.
Kirk Johnson, "Washington Governor
Declares
Drought
Emergency,"
The
New
York
Times,
May
15,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/16/us/washington-governor-declares-droughtemergency.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Gov. Jay Inslee declared a statewide drought
emergency for Washington on Friday, with mountain snowpack at 16 percent of average
and water levels in rivers and streams drying to a trickle not seen since the 1950s. He said
that residents should also be prepared for an early and active fire season that could reach higher
elevations in the Cascade and Olympic mountain ranges, where many spots are already
completely clear of snow.
‘We’re seeing things happen at this time of year we just have never seen before,’ Mr.
Inslee said in a news conference.
But he said that unlike other drought-stricken parts of the West, especially
California, the problem here in the nation’s northwest corner falls primarily on agriculture
and wildlife. The large metropolitan water systems serving Seattle and other cities on the
state’s western edge, where most people live, are largely in good shape, with rainwater-based
reservoirs and no immediate plans for water-use restrictions."
At the beginning of August, Fernanda Santosa, noted, "Dry Days Bring Ferocious Start
to Fire Season: Officials are warning about the potential for more catastrophe in the months
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ahead, as drought, heat and climate change leave the landscape ever thirstier." The New York
Times, August 1, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/us/dry-days-in-west-bringferocious-start-to-fire-season.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0, reported, "Another summer of
record-breaking drought and heat has seized the West, setting off costly and destructive
wildfires from Southern California, where a single blaze burned more than 30,000 acres of
national forest east of Los Angeles, to Montana, where a fast-moving fire in Glacier
National Park recently forced tourists to flee hotels, campgrounds and vehicles.
No measurable rain has fallen here in Walla Walla since May. Temperatures have
broken decades-old records. And, though known for soaking skies and cool summers,
Washington State is well on track to surpass last year’s wildfire season, its busiest on
record."
The damage across the Pacific Coast states, Idaho and Montana has included the
loss of dozens of homes and the deaths of a number of fire fighters. Fire has even burned
through the usually soaking rainforests of Washington’s Olympic Peninsula.
"The conditions vary from one area to the next: an unforgiving drought in
California, where a fire captain died Thursday night while battling one of 23 wildfires
burning in the northern part of the state; snow that arrived late and melted early in Idaho;
extreme temperature swings in the Southwest; and grass that has turned to tinder across
the Pacific Northwest.
But the West’s stubborn drought seems to be especially devastating the farther
north it reaches. In Alaska, 399 fires burned in June. That was nearly double the number
seen in the same month in 2004 — considered to have been the state’s worst fire year on
record." Canada also has been scorched, with a record 5,548 fires and 9.1 million acres
burned as of July 23, registered record temperatures in May and June, Earth’s warmest such
month on record.
In the U.S. in 2014, 63,312 wildfires destroyed 3.6 million acres of land across the
country while fire fighting costing $1.52. 2015 will be much more expensive, with the early, and
likely low, estimates at $2.1 billion. By August 20, 2015 the number of acres in the U.S.
consumed by wildfires this year reached 7.2 million, more than the total burn in each of the
previous ten years, with two thirds of the burned land in Alaska, and the entire North West
Coast heavily hit, as the National Interagency Fire Center was operating at preparedness
level high, its highest level, meaning it was having difficulty finding enough fire fighters to
combat the wildfires. In Washington State, the U.S. Army committed 200 soldiers to help
with the fire fighting (Kirk Johnson and Fernanda Santos, “Western Wildfires Consume
Manpower
and
Acreage,”
The
New
York
Times,
August
20,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/21/us/3-firefighters-die-in-crash-on-way-to-washington-stateblaze.html?ref=todayspaper).
CNN radio news, August 16, 2015, reported 80 wildfires in progress in California,
Washington, Oregon and Idaho, with 6/5 million acres burned to date in the 2015 fire
season. CNN radio reports August 21 told of continuing fire growth, even as some were
contained, with one fire in the Northwest expanding by 100 square miles in a single day.
Nadia Prupis, "State of Emergency Declared as Wildfires Create 'Unprecedented
Cataclysm' in Washington: Four other states also fighting massive blazes, including droughtstricken
California,:
Common
Dreams,
August
21,
2015,
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/08/21/state-emergency-declared-wildfires-createunprecedented-cataclysm-washington, reported, "Three firefighters were killed this week and
73
President Barack Obama on Friday issued an emergency order over wildfires raging through
central Washington state.
Emergency workers from Australia and New Zealand have been flown in to help the
crews currently fighting blazes in five states, including Washington, California, Montana,
Idaho, and Oregon.
The damage has hit hundreds of thousands of acres of land, including Indigenous
territory. In Washington alone, 11 counties have been affected, as well as the Confederated
Tribes of the Colville Reservation, the Kalispel Tribe of Indians, the Spokane Tribe of
Indians, and the Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakima Nation.
According to a White House news release, the state of emergency authorizes the
Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to
coordinate all disaster relief efforts."
As the drought has continued, with some occasional small relief, In June 2015, the first
month of legally required reductions of urban water use, California archived an over all
reduction of 27%, exceeding the target of 25%, with one city dropping water consumption by
40%, while a city in the agricultural Central valley had a 4% increase in water use (Adam
Nagourney,"Water Use in v Down 27% in June, Beating Goal," The New York Times, July \30,
2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/31/us/water-use-in-california-down-27-in-june-beatinggoal.html?ref=todayspaper&module=ArrowsNav&contentCollection=U.S.&action=keypress&re
gion=FixedLeft&pgtype=article).
The great increasing rate of pumping ground water, mainly by farmers in the face
of the drought, in parts of California's Central Valley, has accelerated the rate of
subsidence of the ground to up to two inches a month. As the aquifer collapses its ability to
carry water diminishes ("California, Pumping od Water Speeds Sinking of Land," The New York
Times, August 20, 2015).
Higher oceans and a storm bringing record rains brought flooding, and threat of
more flooding as two new storms were arising on the U.S. East Coast in early October.
Richard Fauct and Alan Blinder, "As Hurricane Joaquin Swirls Away, 2nd Storm Follows," The
New York Times, October 2, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/03/us/hurricane-joaquinforecast-east-coast.html?_r=0 , reported, "Pounded by heavy rain and an unusually high tide,
this historic port city was paralyzed by flash floods on Saturday, its elegant streets
transformed into coursing river ways, its residents plucked from waterlogged cars and its
officials sealing off the low-lying peninsula in the heart of the city, declaring it
'substantially under water in various parts.'
By early evening, however, it seemed that the floodwaters had caused more
inconvenience than tragedy in this city of 130,000. About 60 streets in the city were closed
because of flooding; many businesses were closed, and numerous fairs and festivals were
canceled. But Mayor Joseph P. Riley Jr. said that only a handful of residents called to report
water in their homes."
“But Mr. Riley also said that the city was bracing for still more rain. Pete Mohlin, a
National Weather Service meteorologist, said that up to eight to 10 inches more could fall
in the area Saturday night and Sunday. A flash flood watch was in place for Charleston,
Berkeley and Dorchester Counties through 5 a.m. Monday, he said."
74
"The danger of overwhelming rains — the Weather Service suggested the South
Carolina coast could endure 'a record and historical rainfall event through Sunday' — and fastmoving floodwaters stemmed from a weather system that was distinct from Hurricane Joaquin
yet still connected to it."
From New Jersey south to Georgia many areas were impacted, and still threatened,
October 5.
"The record rainfall here was the result of a low-pressure system that lumbered
through the Carolinas and eastern Georgia, sucking in some moisture from Hurricane Joaquin,
the Category 4 storm with 150-mile-per-hour winds that spun east over the Atlantic on Saturday,
hundreds of miles southwest of Bermuda."
"In Charleston, residents were urged to stay at home and warned that parts of the lowlying city that normally do not flood might do so. Boats and rescue teams were standing by to
whisk away any residents who feared their houses might be inundated."
“Along the East Coast in the South and the Mid-Atlantic, officials reported power failures
in tens of thousands of homes. Five deaths were likely weather related, including three people
who died in South Carolina traffic accidents during bouts of inclement weather since Friday
morning, according to the South Carolina Department of Public Safety."
"'Beyond South Carolina, there were episodes of less severe flooding. As high tide
approached at the waterside in Norfolk, Va., on Saturday afternoon, the walkway to a ferry was
impeded by water that was ankle-deep."
"Emergency declarations were in effect in parts of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey,
North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. National Guard troops were on alert in some parts
of the country. The National Weather Service issued coastal flood warnings and said seashore
communities were at risk for major flooding, especially at high tide.
Weather officials said that some cities in South Carolina had received more than 10
inches of rain since Thursday and that forecasters did not expect the storm to relent until
Sunday, at the earliest.
Ron Morales, a meteorologist at the Weather Service’s office near Charleston said that
forecasters expected record-setting rains and that some gauges were already 'approaching”
their highest levels ever.'"
By Sunday, with the rain continuing into Monday, Richard Fauct and Alan Blinder,
"Flooding Cripples South Carolina Where Some Areas See Over a Foot of Rain," The New York
Times, October. 4, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/05/us/south-carolina-residents-toldto-stay-home-as-rain-continues-to-pound-region.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Flooding
from days of relentless, saturating rains paralyzed much of South Carolina on Sunday, as
vehicles were submerged, dams were pushed to their limits, electricity was cut off to
thousands and emergency officials staged hundreds of swift-water rescues. Officials
attributed at least five deaths in South Carolina to the flooding."
Puerto Rico has been suffering from long term extreme drought, bringing water
shortages. With 2.5 million already under water rationing, 400,000 receiving water only
every third day, the government moved in early July to place an additional 130,000 on
third day water delivery ("Puerto Rico: Rationing is Extended," The New York Times, August
6, 2015).
Two weeks of unusually heavy rains brought about Guatemala's worst mud slide,
October 11, 2015, with 131 known dead, 300 people missing, and 125 houses buried, as of
75
October 4. (Nic Wertz and Elizabeth Malkin, "Hundreds Missing in Guatemala as Landslide
Cleanup
Begins,"
The
New
York
Times,
October
4,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/05/world/americas/guatemala-landslide-cleanup-begins-ashundreds-are-missing.html?ref=todayspaper).
Unusually dense fog in Europe, in early November 2015, closed airports in London,
Amsterdam and Frankfurt (Sewell Chan, “Heavy Fog Hits Europe; Stiff Upper Lips,” The
New York Times, November 3, 2015).
“Relief? ISIS Takes Back Seat for Iraqis," The New York Times, August 1, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/world/middleeast/iraqis-protest-electricity-shortage-duringheat-wave.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "In the Iraqi summer, when the temperature rises
above 120 degrees Fahrenheit, electricity becomes even more of a political issue than usual.
This past week, at the top of Iraqis’ agenda, it has even eclipsed war with the Islamic
State."
Temperatures reached 111 degrees in Egypt, August 11, 2015. Bringing at least 42
deaths, at least 26 in Cairo, in part because increase demand for electricity in the face of
the extreme heat caused a power failure of several hours ("Egypt: Dozens Die as
Temperatures Reach 111 Degrees," The New York Times, August 11, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/12/world/middleeast/egypt-dozens-die-as-temperatures-reach111-degrees.html?ref=todayspaper).
Swati Gupta, "Flooding and a Landslide Kill Dozens Amid India Monsoons," The New
York Times, August 3, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/04/world/asia/monsoon-floodinglandslide-india.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "At least 73 people have died in India since
Friday amid flooding and a landslide linked to heavy rains in two states in the country’s east,
disaster management officials said.
Thousands of people have taken refuge in relief camps and medical camps in West
Bengal, the most severely affected state, said Arnab Chatterjee of the West Bengal Department
of Disaster Management."
Flooding again created problems in in Indian, in December, after extreme rains fell
in the South of the country (India: Floods Threaten Southern State,” The New York Times,
December 13, 2015).
Bhadra Sharma, "Landslides in Western Nepal Leave at Least 33 Dead," The New York
Times, July 30, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/31/world/asia/nepallandslides.html?ref=todayspaper, reported "Landslides set off by heavy rain struck several
villages in Kaski, a popular tourist area in western Nepal, killing at least 33 people, a senior
local official said on Thursday."
Wai Moe, "Flooding Spurs Disaster Zones in Myanmar," The New York Times, August 1,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/world/asia/flooding-spurs-disaster-zones-inmyanmar.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Myanmar’s president on Friday declared four
rural regions to be disaster zones, as floods and landslides continued to cause severe
damage and the government faced criticism for its slow response to the emergency.
76
President Thein Sein said the disaster zones covered the states of Chin and Rakhine, and
the Sagaing and Magway regions in western and central Myanmar."
Austin Ramzy, "Vietnam Floods Kill 17 and Threaten to Pollute Ha Long Bay," The
New York Times, July 30, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/31/world/asia/vietnamfloods.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Flooding in northern Vietnam has killed at least 17
people, with the continuing rain prompting concerns of landslides and of pollution from
inundated coal mines reaching one of the country’s most famous sites of natural beauty."
"Philippines: Typhoon Takes Deadly Toll," The New York Times, August 24, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/25/world/asia/philippines-typhoon-takes-deadlytoll.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Typhoon Goni killed 19 people in the Philippines and
left 16 missing before continuing north on Monday to lash southern Japan."
Contractors for the EPA, on August 5, 2015, attempting to make more secure a
slightly leaking pond of highly toxic water, containing heavy metals, in an abandoned mine
near Silverton Colorado, 50 miles north of Durango, accidentally breached the barrier
holding the toxic water, causing a massive and continuing fllow into the Animas River,
which runs into the San Juan River and on to Lake Powell. Numerous communities in
Colorado, New Mexico, Colorado and on the Navajo Nation were warned not to use the
water from the river or wells near the river for drinking, washing or irrigation. On the
Navajo Nation water was being trucked to the communities of Monezuma Creek and
Halchita, UT, as at least seven public water systems had stopped taking water from the
contaminates rivers. The EPA, as of August 11, while attempting to stop the flow, was trying
to treat the toxic water still flowing from the mine at 500 to 700 gallons a minute, and
hoped to clean up the river, but it is questionable how much treatment can be
accomplished, and cleaning up the rive is almost impossible, as the heavy metals settle to
the bottom as the plume of orange water moves down stream. The best hope is that
eventual dilution will lower the amount of toxins in the rivers to safe levels. However the
spill was not as serious as it might have been, as the spill contained large quantities of iron
hydroxide that combines with other heavy metals so that they drop out of the water and are at
least somewhat inert. By August 14 most of the toxic plume had been diluted and the river was
reopened, while irrigation ditches in Colorado that had received some of the spill were flushed
out. It remains to be seen what, if any damage there will be to the river's eco system over the
long term from the sediment.
Colorado Governor John W. Hickenlooper, commented, “I think our goal here is to really
focus on what we can do to make sure that those mines where we know we have a serious
problem — how can we accelerate the remediation and make sure that something like this never
happens again?”. There are over 500 abandoned mines in Colorado (Julie Turkewitz, "E.P.A.
Treating Toxic Water From Abandoned Colorado Mine After Accident," The New York Times,
August 11, 2015 http://www.nytimes.com/2zz015/08/12/us/epa-treating-toxic-water-fromabandoned-colorado-mine-after-accident.html?ref=todayspaper; and "Colorado: Animas River
Reopened After Spill of Toxic Waste," The New York Times, 14, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/15/us/colorado-animas-river-reopened-after-spill-of-toxicwaste.html?ref=todayspape, plus a report from a technicalexpert).
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Michael Wines, "Toxic Algae Outbreak Overwhelms a Polluted Ohio River," The New
York Times, September 30, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/01/us/toxic-algae-outbreakoverwhelms-a-polluted-ohio-river.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "The Ohio River,
transformed by mining and industrial waste and sewage overflows into the nation’s most
polluted major waterway, has a new and unexpected tormentor this fall: carpets of
poisonous algae.
Pads of toxic blue-green algae have speckled nearly two-thirds of the 981-mile river
in the last five weeks, experts say, in an outbreak that has curbed boating, put water utilities on
alert and driven the river’s few hardy swimmers back to shore.
The only other recorded toxic algae bloom, in 2008, covered perhaps 40 miles of the
river. In contrast, the latest bloom stretches 636 miles from Wheeling, W.Va., to Cannelton, Ind.,
and traces of algae have appeared as far west as Illinois."
Richard Walker, “Shell Refinery Fined $77,000 for Releasing Toxins Near Swinomish
Reservation,”
ICTMN,
December
1,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/01/shell-refinery-fined-77000-releasingtoxins-near-swinomish-reservation-162612, reported, “Shell’s Puget Sound Refinery near the
Swinomish Reservation has been fined $77,000 by the Washington State Department of
Labor & Industries for an uncontrolled release of toxins that sickened residents and sent at
least two people to the hospital.” The spill occurred in February 2015.
“Brazil: River Polluted After Dam Burst,” The New York Times, November
26, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/27/world/americas/brazil-river-polluted-after-damburst.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, “Illegal levels of arsenic and mercury polluted a river
in the days after a dam burst at an iron ore mine this month in Brazil’s worst
environmental disaster, according to tests by a state water agency, the Institute for Water
Management in Minas Gerais. The agency found arsenic levels more than 10 times above
the legal limit in one place along the river, the Rio Doce, after the dam burst on Nov. 5, killing
at least 13 people. Mercury slightly above the permitted level was also found in one area.”
Edwaard Wong, “Beijing Issues Red Alert Over Air Pollution for the First Time,” The
New York Times, December 7, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/08/world/asia/beijingpollution-red-alert.html “Officials in Beijing declared on Monday that the thick smog
blanketing the city was bad enough to require a red alert, the first time they had raised the
alarm to its highest level since an emergency air-pollution response system was announced
in 2013.
Across the city, residents braced for another “airpocalypse” — the term that some
English speakers here use for the most toxic bouts of air pollution.
If carried out properly, the temporary restrictions will affect many of Beijing’s more than
20 million residents. From 7 a.m. on Tuesday to noon on Thursday, schools will be required to
close; cars will be allowed to drive only on alternate days, depending on their license plate
numbers; and fireworks and outdoor barbecuing will be banned (grilled kebabs are a hugely
popular street food in the city). In addition, government agencies will have to keep 30 percent of
their automobiles off the streets.”
Indonesia, which often suffers and spreads abroad very serious air pollution from
78
illegal agricultural burn offs, has been suffering serious air pollution in its capital from
increased automobile use (Joe Cochrane, “As Indonesia Prospers, Air Pollution Takes Toll,”
The New York Times, September 27, 2015).
Amazon Watch, "Subject: Canadian Supreme Court Rules Against Chevron and in Favor
of Ecuadorians!" Sep 4, 2015, http://amazonwatch.org/news/2015/0904-canadian-supreme-courtrules-against-chevron-and-in-favor-ofecuadorians?utm_source=Amazon+Watch+Newsletter+and+Updates&utm_campaign=f79420a2
9a-2015-09-04-eoa-cvx&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_e6f929728b-f79420a29a296568573, reported, "The law has finally caught up with Chevron. Today's unanimous
decision from the Supreme Court of Canada opens the door for Ecuadorian indigenous and
farmer communities to enforce their $9.5 billion USD verdict against Chevron and is a
major victory for human rights and corporate accountability.
Chevron's deliberate dumping of 18 billion gallons of toxic waste water and 17 million
gallons of crude into the Ecuadorian Amazon created a massive health crisis and remains one of
the worst oil-related environmental crimes in history.
After being found guilty of its drill and dump tactics in Ecuador, Chevron has been on the
run, spending billions on retaliatory legal attacks seeking to delay justice rather than fulfilling its
legal obligations to carry out a full-scale environmental clean-up and provide potable water and
health care to the communities it poisoned.
The National Resources Development Council reported, October i7, 2015, "Great news:
The Obama Administration just announced that it will cancel all lease sales for oil and gas
drilling in the Arctic’s Chukchi and Beaufort Seas for the next two years. This grants Arctic
waters a temporary reprieve from disastrous oil and gas drilling by Shell and the other oil
industry giants circling the region like sharks. Today’s victory, combined with Shell’s recent
decision to call off its drilling plans for the foreseeable future [in the Alaskan Arctic], have
once more demonstrated that the Arctic is no place for drilling" (Natural Resources Defense
Council | 40 West 20th Street | New York, NY 10011 www.nrdc.org).
A study in Pennsylvania found that there are a larger number of early births in areas
where fracking for oil or natural gas is conducted. 25% of the mothers exposed to Fracking
were 40% more likely to give birth early (Richard Bakalar, “Fracking Linked to Early Births.”
The New York Times, October 20, 2015).
Andrea Germanos, "Oil Slurry Spill on Mississippi River Illustrates Need to Move
Beyond Fossil Fuel Economy: Coast Guard said up to 250,000 gallons of refining byproduct
may have spilled into waterway," Common Dreams, September 04, 2015
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/09/04/oil-slurry-spill-mississippi-river-illustratesneed-move-beyond-fossil-fuel-economy, reported, "The U.S. Coast Guard said Thursday that
up to 250,000 gallons of oil slurry could have been spilled into the Mississippi River
following a towboat collision near Columbus, Kentucky.
The Coast Guard says the spill occurred at roughly 8 PM Wednesday when a boat crash
caused a cargo tank on a barge to rupture and spill some of the refinery byproduct it was carrying
into the river.
79
A section of the river is now closed, and the Coast Guard stated that an aerial
assessment spotted 'a five-mile discoloration" starting at the site of the accident.
Tim Joice, Water Policy Director for the Louisville-based Kentucky Waterways Alliance,
told Common Dreams that the incident, as with any 'oil spill, fracking operation, coal slurry spill,
or failure from a coal ash pond,' is "illustrative of the reality we face—that we have a fossil fuel
economy and we need to move beyond that.'
While the industry can skew statistics about the safety of the various methods of
transporting fossil fuels, be it by barge, 'bomb train,' pipeline, or truck, Joice said that
'reality is that none of it is safe. We will have accidents."
'So what's the alternative? We don't use oil, gas or coal,' he said."
More than 600 military bases and listening posts were built across Alaska and the
Aleutian Islands during World War II and the Cold War, that are now abandoned, leaving
behind used or stockpiled cleaning solvents and pesticides, chemical warfare agents and
unexploded ordnance. One of these, an abandoned radar station on on St. Lawrence Island
contained many electrical components containing polychlorinated biphenyls, or PCBs, that
are linked to cancer. Small fish living downstream from the site ingest the PCBs, are eaten
by birds and larger fish, which are harvested for food by the Native islanders. Testing of
the residents have found PCB levels multiple times higher than in most other places in the
United States (Kirk Johnson, "Cleaning Up a Legacy of Pollution on an Alaskan Island, The
New York Times, August 3, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/04/us/native-alaskans-studyand-clean-up-a-legacy-of-pollution.html?ref=todayspaper).
The huge explosion, August 12, 2015, of toxic and volatilely flammable materials in
the City of Tianjin, China, that killed over 100 people, injured many more, and caused
destruction and damage up to two miles away, has illuminated the many places that large
quantities of highly dangerous material are stored in high density population areas in the
country. In addition to the direct destruction form the Tianjin blast, a toxic cloud formed,
and for some time remained, over the area, with the fall out causing a large fish kill in the
nearby river (Patrick Boehler, Josh Keller, K.K. Rebecca Lai, Vanessa Piao, and Crystal Tse,
"Dangerous Storage of Chemicals in," The New York Times, August 22, 2015; Dan Levin, "Blast
at a Chemical Site Jangles Frayed Nerves," The New York Times, August 22, 2015[ and Dan
Levin andJavier C. Hernadez, "Fish Die Off in Chinese River Near Blast Site," The New York
Times, August 21, 2015).
Kristine Wong, "Much More Toxic Mercury Is Blowing In From Asia Than Thought:
Scientists discover that twice as much of the metal is being emitted into the atmosphere from
coal-fired
power
plants,"
TakePart,
August
13,
2015,
http://www.takepart.com/article/2015/08/13/asia-producing-twice-toxic-mercury-thought-andits-blowing-around-world?cmpid=tpdaily-eml-2015-08-13, reported, "Forget fish for a moment,
and start worrying about the toxic mercury in the air around you. Researchers have found
that Asia is producing more than double the amount of the toxic metal—mainly from the
burning of coal that also is a prime culprit in global warming—than previously thought.
After mercury is released it can remain in the atmosphere for a year as winds blow
it around the world. Some of the mercury ends up deposited on land and in the ocean."
80
Genetically engineered salmon that are fatter than wild species were approved for
human consumption in the U.S. by the Food and Drug Administration, although some
environmentalists expressed concern that if any of these salmon escape fish farms they
might negatively impact wild salmon (Andrew Pollack, “Genetically Engineered Salmon
Declared Ready for U.S. Plates,” The New York Times, November 20, 2015).
Dan Levin, "Study Links Polluted Air in China to 1.6 Million Deaths a Year," The New
York Times, August 13, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/14/world/asia/study-linkspolluted-air-in-china-to-1-6-million-deaths-a-year.html?ref=todayspaper, reported on a study
finding much a much higher death rate than previously calculated from air pollution in
China, "Outdoor air pollution contributes to the deaths of an estimated 1.6 million people
in China every year, or about 4,400 people a day, according to a newly released scientific
paper.
The paper maps the geographic sources of China’s toxic air and concludes that
much of the smog that routinely shrouds Beijing comes from emissions in a distant
industrial zone, a finding that may complicate the government’s efforts to clean up the
capital city’s air in time for the 2022 Winter Olympics.
The authors are members of Berkeley Earth, a research organization based in Berkeley,
Calif., that uses statistical techniques to analyze environmental issues. The paper has been
accepted for publication in the peer-reviewed scientific journal PLOS One."
A study by Jiwen Fan, published in the July 2015, issue of Geophysical Research Letters,
found that the worst flooding in 50 years in China, that occurred in Sichuan Province in
July 2013, was greatly contributed to by the large amount of air pollution produced by the
province's large cities. The pollution reduced sun light, trapping more heat higher in the
atmosphere, altering atmospheric patterns and redistributing precipitation, so that instead
of rain clouds forming over the river basin during the day, the rain fell at higher intensity
during the night over adjacent mountains ("Catastrophic floods caused by pollution" Science,
July 10, 2015).
Nicholas St. Fler, “Deforestation May Threaten Majority of Amazon Tree Species,
Study
Finds,”
The
New
York
Times,
November
20,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/21/science/deforestation-may-threaten-majority-of-amazontree-species-study-finds.html?hp&action=click&pgtype=Homepage&clickSource=storyheading&module=first-column-region&region=top-news&WT.nav=top-news,
reported,
“Researchers, whose work was published Friday in the journal Science Advances, studied
the status of more than 15,000 Amazonian tree species, including the Brazil nut and the
plants that produce cacao and açaí palm.
By comparing maps of projected deforestation with data collected in the forest, the
researchers found that at least 36 percent and up to 57 percent of the Amazon’s tree species
should qualify as threatened on the International Union for Conservation of Nature’s Red
List, the most widely recognized authority on threats to species conservation.
Their findings suggest that the number of globally threatened plant species could
increase by about 22 percent, and globally threatened tree species by 36 percent.”
Warmer weather, drought in some places, increased forest fires, and destruction by
insects are destroying the boreal forests of Northern Canada, Alaska, Russia and
81
Scandinavia, that pull large amounts of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere (Tim
Appenzeller, “The New North: Stoked by climate change, fire and insects are remaking the
planet’s vast Boreal forests,” Science, August 21, 2015).
All forests are now being stressed by climate change and insects, which requires
significant scientific study to further understand S. Trumbore, et. al, “Forest Health and Global
Change,“ Science, August 21, 2015).
Climate Change, including droughts, fire, and insects are pushing some temperate
forest’s beyond sustainability (Constance N, Miller and Nathan L. Stephenson, “Temperal
forest health in an era of megadisturbance,” Science, August 21, 2015).
The U.S. Eastern Hemlock has ben suffering damage and death from a small insect
(Gabriel Popkin, “Battling a Giant Killer,” Science, August 21, 2015).
Science, August 21, 2015, contains several additional articles on forest decline, and what
might be done about it, if anything).
The governor of California declared an emergency, in early January 2016, to seek aid
from the U.S. government with the millions of trees that are dying in the state because of the
four year drought, which among other things, has made them vulnerable to bark beetles
[This in turn will increase climate change, as the decaying dead trees, and other plants as
well, give off carbon dioxide and other gasses, while there loss reduces the amount of
carbon dioxide taken out of the air by plants, and the resulting production of oxygen as
well] (“California Seeks U.,S. Aid As Beetles Destroy Trees,” The New York Times, November
11, 2015).
The rate of deforestation around the Earth has slowed, at a rate of .08% a year from
2010 to 2015, compared to .18% in the 1990s (”Deforestation Continues to Slow,” The
Christian Science Monitor, November 2, 2015).
Andrea Germanos, "Notorious Insecticides Found in Half of Sampled Streams in US:
'Neonics' have been linked to decline in bee populations," Common Dreams, August 19, 2015,
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/08/19/notorious-insecticides-found-half-sampledstreams-us, reported, "A class of insecticides linked to the decline of bees has more found in
more than half of the streams in the United States where samples were taken, new research
has found.
Researchers with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) say it is the first national-scale
study of the presence of neonicotinoids, or 'neonics,' in urban and agricultural land use settings
across the nation.
Neonics can be used as a seed coating or foliar spray, and they are widely used,
despite a body of evidence calling them a threat to global biodiversity and linking them to
lethal and sub-lethal harm to bees.
The USGS reserachers detected at least one of six neonics in 63 percent of the 48
streams they sampled.
'In the study, neonicotinoids occurred throughout the year in urban streams while
pulses of neonicotinoids were typical in agricultural streams during crop planting season,'
USGS research chemist Michelle Hladik, the report’s lead author, said in a press statement.
A USGS study published last year focusing on just Midwest waterways detected
neonics in all the 9 rivers and streams sampled, prompting Emily Marquez, PhD, staff
82
scientist at Pesticide Action Network, to say, 'The fact that neonics are pervasively
contaminating surface waters should be a wake-up call for state and federal regulators, that must
move more quickly to reduce and restrict use on farm fields.'
The White House's Pollinator Health Task Force unveiled its strategy for improving
pollinator health last year, and Mike Focazio, program coordinator for the USGS Toxic
Substances Hydrology Program, said the new USGS 'research will support the overall goals of
the Strategy, by helping to understand whether these water-borne pesticides, particularly at the
low levels shown in this study, pose a risk for pollinators.'
Environmental groups have denounced the Strategy's goals for not going far enough to
save bees as it fails to restrict the use of neonics."
"Big Win for Beekeepers as Court Voids Insecticide," The New York Times, September
10,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/11/business/energy-environment/big-win-forbeekeepers-as-court-voids-insecticide.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "A United States appeals
court ruled on Thursday that federal regulators erred in allowing an insecticide developed by
Dow AgroSciences onto the market, canceling its approval and giving environmentalists a
major victory.
The ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, in San Francisco,
is significant for commercial beekeepers and others who say a decline in bee colonies
needed to pollinate key food crops is tied to the widespread use of a class of insecticides
known as neonicotinoids."
Droughts in England are threatening several species of butterflies (Syndya N.
Bhando, “Drought Could Harm British Butterfly Species,” The New York Times, August 11,
2015).
Good News! Unprecedented Conservation Efforts Keep Greater Sage-Grouse Off
Endangered
Species
List,"
The
Audubon
Society,
October
2015,
http://www.audubonaction.org/site/News2?abbr=aa_&page=NewsArticle&id=6583&pgwrap=n
&autologin=true&utm_source=action&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=2015-10-08advisory#skip_interests, reported, "On September 22, Interior Secretary Sally Jewell
announced that listing the Greater Sage Grouse under the Endangered Species Act was not
warranted at this time. The decision was made possible through collaboration between the
conservation community, private landowners, industry, and state, local and federal
government that put in place a broad set of conservation plans to conserve habitat across
the sage-grouse states.
Audubon [along with other environmental groups] was instrumental in the ten-year effort
to create a science-based approach to conserving, protecting, and restoring millions of acres of
core habitat in 11 western states for the iconic species, and in the process improving habitat for
over 300 additional species of birds and wildlife that rely on the sage steppe western landscape.
The decision by the Department on the Greater Sage Grouse is a win-win for both the
beleaguered sage-grouse as well as one of our premier wildlife conservation laws, the
Endangered Species Act. Both would have come suffered unrelenting attacks from powerful
opponents in Congress and industry had the bird been listed.
It is also a great example of what can be achieved when literally hundreds of partners
convene and work together to protect and conserve important species and habitat. We look
83
forward to expanding our efforts to help secure the future for the sage-grouse and other other
wildlife that call the great American West home."
“Situation 'Dire': Low Coho Salmon Returns Close Quinault Fisheries,” ICTMN, October
29, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/29/situation-dire-low-cohosalmon-returns-close-quinault-fisheries-162266, reported, “Low returns of wild coho salmon
are prompting the Quinault Indian Nation to close all its fisheries in Grays Harbor and
Queets River and to declare an economic disaster because of the resulting hardship on
fishermen and their families.
The tribe attributed the low returns to the so-called Godzilla El Niño that is under way in
the Pacific, exacerbated by a “blob of warm water off the coast,” the Quinault said in a statement
describing what it called a dire situation.”
Ian Urbin, "U.S. Announces Plans to Combat Illegal Fishing and Other Steps to Protect
Oceans," The New York Times, October 5, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/06/world/usannounces-plans-to-combat-illegal-fishing-and-other-steps-to-protectoceans.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "The Obama administration announced plans on
Monday to step up the fight against illegal fishing, pollution and other crimes at sea,
including the creation of two new national marine sanctuaries, one in Maryland and the
other in Lake Michigan, the first in 15 years.
Administration officials also said they intended to expand the use of satellites that
track illegal activity by detecting night lights used by fishermen to attract fish, and
committed to better track all seafood that enters American ports."
The five nations bordering the Arctic Ocean signed a ban on unregulated
commercial fishing in the Arctic Ocean, in July 2015 (“Arctic Nations Sign Fishing Ban,”
Science, July 24, 2015).
Victoria Burnett, "Cuba and U.S. Agree to Work Together to Protect Marine Life," The
New York Times," October 5, 2015, reported, "The Cuban and American governments have
agreed to work hand in hand to protect marine life in the seas that join their countries, a
move that represents the first environmental dividend of a thaw between the two Cold War
foes.
Under an agreement announced Monday at an oceans conference in Valparaíso, Chile,
government agencies from Cuba and the United States are to map marine life in protected areas
in the Florida Straits and Gulf of Mexico and compile an inventory of shared species."
The National Parks Conservation Association reported, June 10, 2015
(https://secure.npca.org/site/Advocacy;jsessionid=73F4B4F13B8038501ACB403E4E6F8952.ap
p322b?pagename=homepage&page=UserAction&id=1457&autologin=true&AddInterest=1084),
that the National Park Service has announced plans to create a “no-fishing” marine reserve
zone in Biscayne National Park to protect the park’s ailing reefs and to help restore fish to
Florida. Deirdre Fulton, "Seismic Blasting in Pursuit of Oil Puts Whales at Risk, Report
Confirms: There are increasing indications that use of underwater airguns could cause 'serious
84
injury' to various species of whale," Common Dreams, August 24, 2015,
http://www.commondreams.org/news/2015/08/24/seismic-blasting-pursuit-oil-puts-whales-riskreport-confirms, reported, "Hearing loss is amongst the most extreme and immediate form of
physiological harm to marine mammals from exposure to seismic blasting.
A new report urges 'extreme caution' in using seismic airguns to explore for fossil
fuels underwater, saying it is 'indisputable' that the practice has adverse impacts on Arctic
marine life, especially whales.
Seismic testing involves a vessel towing an array of air guns that continuously blast loud,
low frequency sound waves down through the water column and into the seabed with intervals as
short as ten seconds. The operations can go on for weeks on end, depending on the size of area
designated for the survey.
'This new study shows how destructive seismic blasting can be for whales yet they
continue with their pursuit for oil with no regard for environmental impacts and Inuit rights.'—
Jerry Natanine, Clyde River mayor
'It is clear that noise from seismic activity has an impact on whales as it can damage their
hearing, ability to communicate and also displace animals, affecting diving behavior, feeding and
migration patterns,' said report author Oliver Boisseau, senior research scientist at Marine
Conservation Research, which conducted the study (pdf) for Greenpeace Nordic.
'There are increasing indications that this could cause serious injury,' he said, 'and may
also disrupt reproductive success and increase the risk of strandings and ice entrapments.'"
The growth of toxic algae in the Pacific Ocean off California, in fall 2015, was killing
sea mammals and poisoning sea food, leading to alerts not to eat toxic crabs (Jonah Bromwich,
“Spreading Toxin Tints U.S. Seafood and Kills Sea Mammals, Scientists Say,” The New York
Times, November 5, 2015).
A study reveals that rapid warming of the Gulf of Maine contributed to the collapse
of the cod population, and explains its failure to recover with fishing bans (Erica Goode,
“Cod’s Failure to Recover Is Linked to Warming Gulf of Maine,” The New York Times, October
30, 2015).
Richard Walker, “Tulalip, Swinomish Preserve Forest and Salmon Habitat With Two
Significant
Initiatives,”
ICTMN,
September
24,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/09/24/tulalip-swinomish-preserve-forest-andsalmon-habitat-two-significant-initiatives-161863, reported, “Two significant environmental
initiatives were implemented within the last three weeks—opening prime salmon habitat on
the Tulalip Reservation and, on Swinomish land, setting the stage for forest preservation.
On August 28 at Tulalip, bulldozers removed about 1,500 linear feet of levee in the
Snohomish River’s Qwuloolt Estuary, reopening 350 acres of wetlands to threatened salmon and
other species. It’s part of what is reportedly the largest restoration project so far in the
Snohomish River watershed. The estuary is habitat for one of the largest remaining
populations of wild Puget Sound chinook salmon.”
The U.S. White House announced a policy, in May 2015, for helping ailing bees and
declining butterflies, by expanding acreage of wild flowers and milk weed, omn
85
recommendation of the Pollinator Health Taskforce (Michael Wines, "U.S. Details New Efforts
to Support Bees," The New York Times, May 20, 2015).
Kristi Eaton, “Oklahoma Tribes Restore Monarch Habitat to Save Beleaguered
Butterfly,”
ICTMN,
October
22,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/22/oklahoma-tribes-restore-monarchhabitat-save-beleaguered-butterfly-162165, reported, “Monarch butterflies will soon arrive in
Mexico for the winter, but their annual journey south from the U.S. and Canada has gotten
increasingly more difficult as their habitat shrinks by two million acres per year.
In an effort to stem this loss, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation has awarded
a coalition of Native American tribes based in Oklahoma nearly $250,000 to help restore
monarch butterfly habitat on tribal lands in the eastern part of the state. The tribes are
working with Monarch Watch, a cooperative network at the University of Kansas
dedicated to monarch habitat restoration, and the Euchee Butterfly Farm in Bixby,
Oklahoma, to help restore the habitat whose loss has caused a drastic drop in the population
numbers of the beautiful butterfly.
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation created the Monarch Butterfly Conservation
Fund in early 2015 to protect, conserve and increase habitat needed by the insects and other
pollinators.”
“U.S. and Cuba Sign Environmental Pact,” The New York Times, November 18, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/19/world/americas/us-and-cuba-sign-environmentalpact.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, “The United States and Cuba on Wednesday signed an
agreement to join forces and protect the vast array of fish and corals they share as
countries separated by just 90 miles.” “The agreement directs scientists with the Florida Keys
and the Texas Flower Garden Banks national sanctuaries to collaborate with researchers at two
protected reserves: Guanahacabibes National Park and the Banco de San Antonio in western
Cuba.”
There have been moves by numerous nations, including Russia and China to
increase taking resources from the Antarctic that raise serious environmental questions
(Simon Romero, “Countries Rush for Upper Hand in Antarctica,” The New York Times,
December 29, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/12/29/world/countries-rush-forupper-hand-antarctica.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0).
U.S. Developments
Many of the reports in this issue of U.S. government legislation, agency action, and court
decisions are informed by electronic flyers from Hobbs, Straus, Dean and Walker, LLP, 2120 L
Street NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20037, http://www.hobbsstraus.com. Attachments
referred to in Hobbs-Straus reports are available via the web address of the report in
question. Reports from Indian Country Today Media Network, from the web, are listed as from
ICTMN. Reports from News From Indian Country are listed as from NFIC.
86
U.S. Government Developments
Presidential Actions
"White House Directive to Federal Agencies Regarding FY 2017 Native Youth Priorities,"
Hobbs-Straus General Memorandum, August 12, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-060Memorandum 15-060, reported, "The White House has issued a directive to
federal agencies regarding the formulation of the FY 2017 budget as it relates to its priorities for
Native youth. The directive (attached) is in the form of a Memorandum for the Heads of Executive
Departments and Agencies (Memorandum) and is from Office of Management Budget Director
Shaun Donovan and Domestic Policy Council Director Ceilia Munroz.
The Memorandum notes the importance of the visit by the President and First Lady to the
Standing Rock Sioux Reservation and their meeting with Native youth there. An outgrowth of that
visit was the Generation Indigenous or "Gen-I" initiative to develop a multi-agency, comprehensive
and culturally appropriate approach to help Native youth reach their potential.
The Memorandum lays out specific priorities. It also instructs agencies to coordinate during
the budget formulation process and to clearly identify in their budget submissions the portions that
reflect the stated Native youth priorities. Agencies are told to communicate repeatedly with their
respective Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Examiners to ensure this is happening and
also to allow OMB to assess coordination efforts and to look for "inappropriate duplication".
The multi-agency Native youth priorities are:
Improve Educational Outcomes and Life Outcomes for Native Youth. Priority is to be given
for "programs that advance the educational outcomes for Native youth, including through in-school
activities such as enrichment programs, expanded curriculum, and cultural education as well as
out-of-school activities that address barriers to educational success".
Increase Access to Quality Teacher Housing.
Improve Access to the Internet. The Memorandum references the need at Bureau of Indian
Education-funded schools for upgraded internet access, but the priority is broader than schools,
referencing opportunities for community members.
Support Implementation of the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA). The Memorandum states
that implementation of ICWA requires support for tribal and state courts, social workers, and foster care,
and services that keep families together including family services, home improvement programs,
alternatives to incarceration and employment support services.
Reduce Teen Suicide. While noting there are programs that support suicide prevention in tribal
communities, the Memorandum asks agencies to prioritize programs that meet students' physical,
emotional and social needs. It also notes the need for a "well-prepared behavioral health workforce and
access to behavioral health services in Native communities."
Increase Tribal Control of Criminal Justice. The Memorandum is supportive of more tribal
control over law enforcement in their communities and instructs agencies to "give priority to investments
that give tribes the tools they need to establish and maintain effective justice systems."
Development of the President's proposed FY 2017 budget is well underway. Generally agencies submit
their initial budget requests to OMB in September; during November-December OMB sends the budget
back to the agencies with its decisions (referred to as the "pass back") ; during December agencies may
appeal OMB decisions; and in early February of the following calendar year the President submits the
proposed budget to Congress."
President Obama Issues Memorandum Addressing Prescription Drug Abuse and Heroin
Use,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-077,
November
6
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-077, reported, "On October 21, 2015,
President Obama issued a Memorandum to Executive Departments and Agencies
87
(agencies), directing them to address the epidemic of prescription drug abuse and heroin
use via increased prescriber training for health professionals and improved access to
medication-assisted treatment. Issued along with the Memorandum was a fact sheet
detailing actions that various federal agencies, including the Indian Health Service and the
Bureau of Indian Affairs and federal contractors, are to undertake. In addition, it details
the actions that 40 state, local and private sector organizations will be undertaking in
concert with federal efforts. The Memorandum and the fact sheet are attached.
he Memorandum notes that the number of overdose deaths in the United States involving
prescription opioids quadrupled between 1999 and 2013, with more than 16,000 deaths in 2013
alone. Heroin overdose deaths are also on the rise, nearly doubling between 2011 and 2013. The
Centers for Disease Control has identified prescription drug addiction as a major factor in people
turning to heroin use.
Prescriber Training for Federal Health Professional Employees and Contractors. The
Memorandum directs agencies, to the extent permitted by law, to provide training on the
appropriate prescribing of opioid medicines to their employees who prescribe controlled
substances as part of their federal responsibilities. In addition, all contractors who are health care
professionals, spend 50 percent or more of their clinical time under contract with the federal
government, and prescribe controlled substances under the terms and conditions of their contract
with the federal government must obtain this training. There is a similar requirement for clinical
residents and clinical trainees. Training is to take place within 18 months of the issuance of the
memorandum followed by a refresher course every three years.
Improving Access to Medication-Assisted Treatment and Modernizing Benefit Design.
The Memorandum directs agencies, to extent available and permitted by law, that directly
provide, contract to provide, reimburse for, or otherwise facilitate access to health benefits to
identify barriers to accessing medication-assisted treatment for opioid abuse. Within 90 days of
the issuance of Memorandum (January 19, 2016) each affected agency is to submit an action
plan to the White House that addresses these barriers. The Secretary of Health and Human
Services (HHS) is to make available clinical and other experts to help agencies with their
reviews as necessary.
raining of BIA Police Officers. The fact sheet states that with regard to the Bureau of
Indian Affairs and the Indian Health Service that they "will provide BIA police officers and
investigators the overdose reversal drug naloxone and training on its use. In 2016, the BIA,
through the United States Indian Police Academy, will provide training to all BIA and tribal
police officer cadets in recognizing opioid use disorders and overdose symptoms."
Congress. The issue of increased prescription drug abuse and heroin addiction has
received considerable attention in Congress. The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs held a
hearing July 29, 2015, entitled The True Costs of Alcohol and Drug Abuse in Indian
Country. Witnesses addressed the issue of opioid abuse in Indian Country. There was a specific
focus on babies born addicted to opioids, their subsequent withdrawal and need for specialized
lengthy intensive care, usually in a facility outside of the tribe's area. Chief Executive Melanie
Benjamin of the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe Indians referred in her testimony to babies being
born addicted to opioids as "the single greatest threat" to the future of her tribe.
On October 22, 2015, the Senate approved by unanimous consent, S 799, the
Protecting our Infants Act of 2015. The bill would require HHS to review and develop a
strategy for addressing gaps in research and treatment related to prenatal opioid use, and
to develop recommendations for prevention and treatment. It would direct HHS to solicit
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input from tribes, among others. A very similar bill, HR 1462, passed the House by voice
vote, so prospects for enactment are reasonably good."
“President Obama Hosts 7th Annual White House Tribal Nations Conference, “NCAI,
November 5, 2015,
2015, http://www.ncai.org/news/articles/2015/11/05/presidenthttp://www.ncai.org/news/articles/2015/11/05/president-obama
obama--hostshosts-7th7thannualannual-whitewhite-househouse-tribaltribal-nationsnations-conference,
conference, reported, “President
“President Barack Obama, tribal
leaders from across the country, and key federal officials gathered today for the 7th
Annual White House Tribal Nations Conference (WHTNC) to discuss how they can
continue
continue to work together to strengthen the nationnation-toto-nation relationship between tribal
nations and the US government and cement a legacy that empowers Indian Country’s
future.”
future.”
Held at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, the WHTNC
kicked
kicked off with big news from athletic shoe and apparel maker Adidas, who announced an
initiative to help high schools nationwide drop their Native
Native AmericanAmerican-themed mascots,
nicknames, imagery or symbolism by providing logo and uniform redesign services and
financial support to ensure that the cost of changing mascots is not prohibitive.
Also unveiled was MTV’s powerful new video on Generation Indigenous,
Indigenous, which
featured First Lady Michelle Obama declaring to Native youth, ‘As you move forward,
remember you are never alone.
alone.’”
“Conference participants attended breakout sessions to engage in meaningful dialogues
dialogues
with federal officials on critical topics ranging from health care to housing to climate change.
From these sessions and throughout the day came announcements of several new key federal
developments and initiatives for Indian Country, such as:
The Department
Department of the Interior finalized and released new Right of Way
Regulations, which will give Native landowners greater control over the use and
development of tribal lands.
The Department of Justice announced the first 10 tribes to participate in the initial
initial
phase of the Tribal Access Program for National Crime Information (TAP).
The Department of the Interior’s launch of Native One Stop,
Stop, a website
website where tribal
citizens can locate important federal resources they may be eligible to receive.
receive.
The Department of Education released its agency consultation policy and also
highlighted the release of the School Environment Listening Sessions Final Report.
Report.
The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) announced changes to
the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative designed to make tribes more competitive for this
funding stream for neighborhood transformation, which will be integrated into
into a NOFA
that will be released in the next 30 days.
The appointment of Karen Diver (Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Chippewa)
to serve as Special Assistant to the President for Native American Affairs, White House
Domestic Policy Council.
Council.
President Obama
Obama wrapped up the landmark event with brief opening remarks. ‘When I
ran for office, I pledged to build a true nationnation-toto-nation relationship with you,”’
you,”’he said to the
tribal leaders in attendance. ‘What has started out as a campaign promise has now become a
tradition.’
tradition.’ He went on to share that ‘the
‘the success of our Native American communities is tied up
with the success of America as a whole.’
Obama then joined a roundtable discussion moderated by Jude Schimmel (Umatilla), a
standout basketball player at the University of Louisville. The roundtable covered a number of
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topics important to Native youth, including the need for quality, culturally appropriate education;
suicide prevention; food sovereignty; and the movement to eliminate racist sports mascots in
schools. “
For more information, visit the Fact Sheet for the 7th Annual White House Tribal Nations
Conference : https://www.whitehouse.gov/the
https://www.whitehouse.gov/the--presspress-office/2015/11/05/factoffice/2015/11/05/fact-sheetsheet-7th7th-annualannualwhitewhite-househouse-tribaltribal-nationsnations-conferenceand also NCAI’s Tribal Leader Briefing Book,
Book,
http://www.ncai.org/conferences
http://www.ncai.org/conferences--events/ncaievents/ncai-events/2015_WHTNC_Briefing_Book_Final.pdf.
events/2015_WHTNC_Briefing_Book_Final.pdf.
Kristi Eatonm “Obama Announces Broadband ‘Game-Changer’ While Visiting Choctaw
Nation,”
ICTMNm
July
16,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/07/16/obama-announces-broadband-gamechanger-while-visiting-choctaw-nation-161098, reported, “President Barack Obama on
Wednesday announced a new initiative to connect low-income homes with high-speed
Internet during a visit to the Choctaw Nation in Oklahoma, saying access to the Internet is
not a luxury but a necessity in today’s world.
Obama, who addressed tribal citizens from across Oklahoma at Durant High School, the
capital of the Choctaw Nation, said the initiative ConnectHome is another step to help close
the digital divide in America.
“Obama to Appoint Pascua Yaqui Member to Advisory Committee,” ICTMN, September
19, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/09/19/obama-appoint-pascua-yaquimember-advisory-committee-161795. Reported, “President Barack Obama announced the
appointment of eight individuals to his administration along with his intent to appoint
Octaviana Trujillo as the newest member of the Joint Public Advisory Committee of the
Commission for Environmental Cooperation on Tuesday, September 15.
Trujillo is a member of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe and is professor of Applied Indigenous
Studies at Northern Arizona University – a position she has held since 2002. In 2011, she served
as a Visiting Fellow at the Rachel Carson Center for Environment and Society at the LudwigMaximilian University in Munich, Germany. Prior to her fellowship, Dr. Trujillo served as chair
of the Department of Applied Indigenous Studies at NAU from 2002 – 2010. From 1997 – 2001
she was director of the Center for Indian Education at Arizona State University and from 1992 –
1996 she served as Tribal Council Member of the Pascua Yaqui Tribe.”
Congressional Developments
“Surface Transportation Reauthorization Enacted; Tribal Transportation Self-Governance
Program Established,” Hobbs-Straus General Memorandum 15-082, December 11, 2015,
http://hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-082, reported, On December 4, 2015,
President Obama signed the Fixing America's Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act, PL
114-94). After years of short-term funding for transportation infrastructure, the five-year
FAST Act authorization will provide $305 billion in highway and transit spending through
2020. The FAST Act made several important changes to the Tribal Transportation
Program. The most notable of those is the creation of the Department of Transportation
(DOT) Tribal Self-Governance Program that extends many of the self-governance
provisions of Title V of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act
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(ISDEAA) to DOT. The FAST Act also provides modest funding increases for the Tribal
Transportation Program (TTP) and the Tribal Transit program as well as a number of
technical changes to these programs.
Self-Governance. The extension of self-governance to the DOT marks a significant
step forward: it is the first expansion of self-governance to a federal agency beyond the
Department of Interior and the Indian Health Service. Moreover, through this extension of
self-governance to the DOT, tribes will be able to obtain all of their transportation funds
(including not only their TTP funds, but also transit, Federal-aid and other DOT funds)
under one self-governance agreement. This will greatly streamline the administrative
procedures and help tribes to place safe and reliable transportation infrastructure on the
ground and into operation faster and more cost effectively.
Significantly, the DOT Tribal Self-Governance Program requires the development of
regulations pursuant to a negotiated rulemaking process, thus providing tribes an
opportunity to shape the program's implementing regulations. The statute requires DOT to
begin a negotiated rulemaking process by March 4, 2016, to draft regulations to implement
the DOT Tribal Self-Governance Program. The committee will be made up of tribal and
federal representatives, but will be composed primarily of tribally-nominated
representatives. It is critical that tribes intending to use the DOT Tribal Self-Governance
Program be involved in drafting the rules for the program. The process must be completed
within 30 months; we recommend that tribes treat the negotiated rulemaking as an urgent
matter and a priority in order to ensure that the program regulations are beneficial to
tribal governments.
The version of the DOT Tribal Self-Governance Program included in the FAST Act
largely tracks the standalone DOT Tribal Transportation Self-Governance Act (HR 1068)
introduced by Representatives DeFazio (D-OR) and Young (R-AK). See our General
Memorandum 15-020 of February 27, 2015. House Transportation and Infrastructure Chairman
Shuster (R-PA), Ranking Member DeFazio, and Representative Young were all instrumental to
ensuring that the DOT Tribal Self-Governance Program was included in the FAST Act.
Funding Increases. Tribal Transportation Program funding is increased to $465
million for FY 2016 ($15 million above the current funding level of $450 million) with $10
million increases each year thereafter through FY 2020. The funding for the Tribal Transit
program is increased to $35 million for FY 2016 (the formula program of the Tribal
Transit program is increased from its current level of $25 million to $30 million, and the
discretionary program remains at $5 million) and will remain at this level through FY
2020.
Tribal High Priority Project (HPP) program. The HPP was established in the previous
surface transportation reauthorization (MAP-21) as a stand-alone program to provide funds for
tribes with insufficient formula funding to construct their priority transportation projects.
Unfortunately, this program was not reauthorized. Although the program, while authorized under
MAP-21, was not funded during the years covered by that statute, the expiration of the program
is a further setback to tribes that relied on that program.
New "Nationally Significant" program. A $100 million per year grant program is
established for "nationally significant" Federal Lands and tribal transportation projects.
To be eligible for this project, however, a project must have an estimated cost of no less than $25
million with extra priority given to projects with an estimated cost of $50 million or more.
Other Changes. The FAST Act contains a few program changes that tribes have been seeking for
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many years and also some new reporting provisions. Some of these changes, including the
funding increases for the TTP, were included in Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Chairman
Barrasso's (R-WY) standalone bill, the Tribal Infrastructure and Roads Enhancement and Safety
Act (TIRES Act, S 1776). Some key changes are:
• The Project Management and Oversight (PM&O) takedown for administrative expenses
of the Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Federal Highway Administration has been reduced from
6 percent to 5 percent;
• The funding set aside for the Tribal Transportation Facility Bridges program has been
increased from 2 percent to 3 percent;
• Tribes are now subject to new data collection reporting on expenditures of Tribal
Transportation Program funds; and
• There is no new funding for tribal safety programs, but the Secretary of DOT is
required to provide the following reports to Congress related to tribal safety:
o After consulting with the Secretary of Interior, the Secretary of Health and
Human Services, the Attorney General, and Indian tribes, the Secretary of DOT is to
provide a report describing the quality of transportation safety data collected by states,
counties, and tribes for transportation safety systems, in order to improve the collection
and sharing of data regarding crashes on Indian reservations.
o Similarly, the Secretary of DOT, after consultation with the Secretary of Interior, Tribes,
states and their respective attorneys general, is to provide a report that identifies options to
improve safety on public roads on Indian reservations.
The enactment of the FAST Act represents a significant step forward for tribal selfdetermination. We will be closely following the negotiated rulemaking process for the
Department of Tribal Self-Governance Program. Please let us know if you are interested in
participating in that rulemaking or if you would like to be included in our shared-cost
advocacy and reporting related to that rulemaking process.”
“House of Representatives Approves Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act,” Hobbs-Straus
General Memorandum 15-081, December 4, 2015, http://hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-081, reported, “On November 17, 2015, the House of Representatives
approved the Tribal Labor Sovereignty Act (HR 511) by a vote of 249-177. HR 511 is
sponsored by Representative Rokita (R-IN) and would amend the National Labor Relations
Act (NLRA, or "the Act") by expressly adding tribal governments to the definition of
governments that are exempt from the Act. Currently, federal, state, and local governments
are expressly exempt from the NLRA; however, the Act is silent with regard to its applicability
to tribal governments. For nearly 70 years after the NLRA's enactment in 1935, the Act was
interpreted as applying broadly to all governmental entities; hence, tribal governments were
exempt as well. This interpretation was challenged in 2004 when the National Labor Relations
Board (NLRB) took the position that tribal governments are not exempt. This legislation would
restore governmental parity for tribal governments by amending the NLRA to expressly provide
that any enterprise or institution owned and operated by an Indian tribe and located on its lands is
exempt from the Act.
Context. In 2004, in San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino and Hotel Employees &
Restaurant Employees International Union, AFL-CIO, 341 NLRB No. 138 (May 28, 2004), the
NLRB departed from its established rule and asserted jurisdiction over a tribal enterprise
operating on an Indian reservation, finding that tribal commercial enterprises are generally
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subject to the provisions of the NLRA and can be charged by the NLRB with "unfair labor
practices" under that authority. The Tribe appealed but, the NLRB's decision was upheld by the
U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia. San Manuel Indian Bingo and Casino v.
N.L.R.B., 475 F.3d 1306 (D.C. Cir. 2007). Other courts have followed suit. Earlier this year, the
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals agreed that the NLRB had jurisdiction over tribes as employers.
National Labor Relations Board v. Little River Band of Ottawa Indians Tribal Government, Case
No. 14-2239 (June 9, 2015 6th Cir.). As recently as this week, the NLRB ruled against the
Pauma Casino in California for violations of Section 8 of the NLRA. In this case, the Casino
sought to enforce its policy prohibiting the distribution of literature at the Casino's valet entrance,
which faced the visitor parking lot. Despite the Casino allowing distribution during break times
at employee entrances, the NLRB found the restriction to be a violation of the Act. Casino
Pauma and Unite Here International Union, 363 NLRB No. 60, slip op. (Dec. 3, 2015). We note,
however, that the NLRB in Oklahoma declined to assert jurisdiction over the Chickasaw Nation
based on the Tribe's treaty. Chickasaw Nation d/b/a Winstar World Casino and International
Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 866, Cases 17-CA-025031 & 17-CA-025121 (June 4, 2015).
In 2011, the Department of the Interior met with the NLRB to request that the NLRB stop
filing unfair labor practice charges against tribes and drop current charges that had already been
filed. The NLRB has not taken any action to show that it is giving serious consideration to that
request and, in fact, has initiated new proceedings against tribes and tribal enterprises in recent
years while continuing to assert the position it took in the San Manuel case in all judicial
challenges.
Since San Manuel, several bills and floor amendments have been introduced in the House
and Senate to amend the NLRA to make it clear that the NLRB lacks jurisdiction over tribes and
tribal enterprises operating on Indian lands, but they were not enacted. The Tribal Labor
Sovereignty Act is the newest effort to address this issue.
Support and Opposition. The legislation is broadly supported by tribal governments and
by intertribal organizations including the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) and the
National Indian Gaming Association (NIGA). Prior to the House vote, however, the Obama
Administration issued a Statement of Administration Policy (SAP) in opposition to the bill,
stating "The Administration cannot support HR 511. . .as currently drafted." The
Administration's position is that any bill exempting tribal governments from the NLRA must also
include provisions requiring tribes to adopt labor standards and procedures "reasonably
equivalent to those in the NLRA." We note that the Administration is not advocating for other
governmental entities to adopt these standards and procedures. We attach the joint NCAI-NIGA
letter urging support for HR 511; the SAP; the text of the House floor debate; and the House roll
call vote.
Next Steps. An identical Senate bill (S 248)—sponsored by Senator Moran (R-KS)—
was marked up by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs on September 9, 2015. We
understand that there is an effort to secure Senate floor time to hold a vote on the legislation or,
alternately, to try to add it to a larger, unrelated bill.
A temporary variant of this legislation is included in the House version of the Labor,
Health and Human Services and Education FY 2016 appropriations bill (HR 3020). HR
3020 contains a provision which would, for FY 2016, stipulate that "None of the funds
made available by this Act may be used to enforce the National Labor Relations Act (29
U.S.C. 152) against any Indian tribe, including any enterprise or institution owned and
operated by an Indian tribe and located on its Indian lands." However, the Senate
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appropriations bill (S 1695) does not contain this provision, and thus its fate will be decided
in negotiations on a final FY 2016 appropriations bill. Currently, federal agencies are being
funded under a Continuing Resolution (at FY 2015 levels and conditions) through December 11,
2015. The tribal NLRB issue is one of the policy riders in question regarding a final FY 2016
bill.”
“Bill to Make Bison the National Mammal Passes Unanimously in Senate,” ICTMN,
December 5, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/05/bill-make-bisonnational-mammal-passes-unanimously-senate-162669, reported, Bison, once nearly wiped out,
is now one step closer to becoming the U.S.’s national mammal, joining the bald eagle as a
symbol.
The U.S. Senate unanimously passed the National Bison Legacy Act last week, a bill
that would designate the iconic animal as the country’s national mammal.”
The Senate Committee on Indian Affairs passed six pieces of legislation that would
“improve Indian communities,” in late October, 2015. Fourof the proposed bills addressed
taking land into trust for tribes, while the remaining two addressed academics and Native
employment.
The bills are as follows:
— S. 1419, a bill to promote the academic achievement of American Indian, Alaska Native,
and Native Hawaiian children with the establishment of a Native American language grant
program (introduced by Senator Jon Tester [D-MT]), The Native Language Immersion Student
Achievement Act amends the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 to authorize the
Department of Education to award grants to Indian tribes, tribal colleges or universities, tribal
education agencies, specified schools, Regional Corporations, private or tribal nonprofit
organizations, and consortia of any such entities to develop and maintain, or improve and
expand, programs that support the use by schools, from prekindergarten through postsecondary
education, of Native American languages as their primary language of instruction.
Requires grant applicants to present the Department with specified assurances and
demonstrations that the schools they will support have an endorsement to provide education
primarily through a Native American language.
Requires grantees to:
support Native American language education and development;
develop or refine instructional curricula for the schools they support, including distinctive
teaching materials and activities;
fund training opportunities for school staff that strengthen the overall language and academic
goals of their schools;
develop a Native Language alignment plan to create or refine assessments of student
proficiency; and
engage in other activities that promote Native American language education and development
(https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senatebill/1419?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22%5C%22s1419%5C%22%22%5D%7D&resultI
ndex=1).
— S. 1436, a bill to require the Secretary of the Interior to take land into trust for certain Indian
tribes, and for other purposes (introduced by Senators Harry Reid [D-NV] and Dean Heller [RNV]). The Nevada Native Nations Land Act declares that the United States holds in trust the
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following lands for the benefit of:
the Fort McDermitt Paiute and Shoshone Tribe of the Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation,
approximately 19,094 acres of Bureau of Land Management (BLM) land;
the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation, approximately 82 acres of
Forest Service land;
the Summit Lake Paiute Tribe, approximately 941 acres of BLM land;
the Reno-Sparks Indian Colony, approximately 13,434 acres of BLM land;
the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe, approximately 6,357 acres of BLM land; and
the Duckwater Shoshone Tribe approximately 31,269 acres of BLM land.
The lands held for such Tribes shall be part of their respective reservations.
Lands held in trust under this Act shall not be eligible for Class II and class III gaming.
— S. 1443, a bill to amend the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services
Demonstration Act of 1992 to facilitate the ability of Indian tribes to integrate the
employment, training and related services from diverse federal sources, and for other
purposes (introduced by Senator Lisa Murkowski [R-AK]);The act would, Amends the Indian
Employment, Training and Related Services Demonstration Act of 1992 to make revisions to the
program that provides for the integration of employment, training, and related services programs
from federal funds.
Revises the types of programs that may be integrated pursuant to an approved integration
plan.
Sets forth requirements regarding the granting or denial of an Indian tribe's request to
waive any applicable statutory, regulatory, or administrative requirements or waive federal
agency policies or procedures necessary to efficiently implement the plan.
Prescribes for certain hearing and appeal rights for an Indian tribe if the Department of
the Interior denies its plan.
Revises the authority of tribes to use funds available for a plan to place participants in
training positions with employers.
Revises the responsibilities of the Director of the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) in
carrying out this Act to include:
the distribution of the funds to the respective Indian tribes by no later than 45 days after the
receipt of the funds from the appropriate federal department or agency,
the performance of the activities relating to agency waivers, and
the establishment of an interagency dispute resolution process.
Prohibits the BIA from developing a reporting format that requires a participating tribe to
report on the expenditure of funds transferred to the tribe under the Act.
Treats any funds transferred to an Indian tribe under the Act as non-federal funds for
purposes of meeting matching requirements under any other federal law
(https://www.congress.gov/bill/114th-congress/senate-bill/1443).
— S. 1761, a bill to take certain federal land located in Lassen County, California,
into trust for the benefit of the Susanville Indian Rancheria, and for other purposes
(introduced by Senators Barbara Boxer [D-CA] and Dianne Feinstein [D-CA]). This bill takes
into trust for the benefit of the Susanville Indian Rancheria approximately 301 acres of federal
land under the administrative jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management of the Department
of the Interior, including improvements and appurtenances, in Lassen County, California.
Certain gaming on these lands is prohibited (https://www.congress.gov/bill/114thcongress/senate-
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bill/1761?q=%7B%22search%22%3A%5B%22%5C%22s1761%5C%22%22%5D%7D&resultI
ndex=1).
— S. 1822, a bill to take certain federal land located in Tuolumne County,
California, into trust for the benefit of the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians, and for
other purposes (introduced by Senator Barbara Boxer [D-CA]). The bill Requires that all U.S.
interests in approximately 80 acres of specified U.S. Forest Service land located in Tuolumne
County, California, be held in trust for the benefit of the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians for
nongaming purposes.
— H.R. 387, a bill to provide for certain land to be taken into trust for the benefit of
the Morongo Band of Mission Indians, and for other purposes (introduced by Representative
Raul Ruiz [D-CA-36]). Economic Development Through Tribal Land Exchange Act (Sec. 3)
provides for the disposition of four parcels of land in California. The Department of the Interior
must transfer 41.15 acres designated as Morongo lands to Lloyd L. Fields in exchange for 41.15
acres owned by Fields to be held in trust for the Morongo Band of Mission Indians. The City of
Banning is granted a 1.76 acre easement for a public right-of-way in exchange for 1.21 acres of
land to be held in trust for the Tribe (“SCIA Passes Six Bills at Recent Committee Meeting,”
ICTMN, November 16, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/16/sciapasses-six-bills-recent-committee-meeting-162439; and indicated summaries of each bill from
congress.gov, where more details area available),
"House Natural Resources Committee Approves Native American Energy Act," HobbsStraus General Memorandum 15-068, September 16, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-068, reported, "On September 10, 2015, the House Committee on Natural
Resources held a markup session in which it approved HR 538, the Native American
Energy Act, a bill sponsored by Subcommittee on Indian, Insular, and Alaska Native Affairs
Chairman Young (R-AK) by a vote of 23-12. The approved version is unchanged from the
version of the bill that was introduced on January 26, 2015. HR 538 is quite similar to
Subcommittee Chairman Young's Native American Energy Act introduced in the previous
Congress as HR 1548. See our General Memorandum 13-045 of May 31, 2013. As of this
writing the Committee has not issued a report on HR 538, but, according to a memorandum by
the Committee's Majority staff, the bill would "promote energy development by Indian tribes and
Alaska Native Corporations." The emphasis is on streamlining transactions for the extraction
of fossil fuel resources, although there is one section that mentions wind and solar, and
there is a section that would authorize a tribal biomass demonstration project. The bill
does not mention energy efficiency.
Section 2 of the bill would add a new section to the Indian Tribal Energy
Development and Self-Determination Act of 2005 to reform the process for appraisals of
land or trust assets for transactions that require the approval of the Secretary of the
Interior (Secretary). This section would apply to any such transaction, and would not be
limited to transactions relating to energy resources. Section 3 of the bill would direct the
Secretary to ensure that all agencies within the Department of the Interior involved in
review, approval, and oversight of oil and gas activities on Indian lands use a uniform
system to track oil and gas wells.
Section 4 of the bill would make a major change in the National Environmental
Policy Act (NEPA), the federal statute that requires the preparation of an environmental
impact statement (EIS) for any federal action that would significantly affect the quality of
96
the human environment. NEPA applies to transactions relating to Indian trust or restricted land
if the transaction requires action by the Secretary or another federal agency. (An EIS is not
required if an environmental assessment supports a finding of no significant impact, and agencies
can establish categorical exclusions for broad categories of actions with little potential to result
in significant impacts.) The change in the NEPA process that the bill would bring about is that,
for any proposed federal action that requires an EIS, the distribution of the EIS for review and
comment would be limited to members of the tribe and "any other individual residing in the
affected area." The President's Council on Environmental Quality would be directed to revise its
regulations to implement this change, including providing for determining how to describe the
affected area. This change in NEPA would not be limited to proposed federal actions relating to
energy development but, rather, would apply to any proposed federal action on Indian lands that
would require an EIS.
The bill's proposed amendment to NEPA was also included in HR 1548 in the previous
Congress. In H. Rept. 113-263 of November 12, 2013, in dissenting views, minority members of
the Committee described the NEPA provisions as "misguided," said that the limits on review of
and comment of EISs would contribute to "uninformed decision making at the federal level," and
noted that such limits "would prevent even other Indian tribes with cultural ties in these so-called
affected areas from commenting on a proposed project."
Section 5 of the bill would establish sweeping limits on judicial review of any "energy
related action." (HR 1548 also included provisions to limit judicial review, but the
approach in this year's bill is different.) HR 538 would set a 60-day jurisdictional deadline
for filing a complaint, from the date of final agency action; require any such action to be
filed in federal district court for the District of Columbia and require that court to resolve
any such case in no more than 180 days; and allow appellate review only in the D.C.
Circuit, which would be required to resolve any appeal in no more than 180 days from the
date of the order being appealed. In addition, if a party challenging an "energy related
action" does not "ultimately prevail, the court shall award" fees and expenses to any
defendant-intervener (e.g., a tribe), unless the court finds, based on the administrative
record, that the plaintiff's position was "substantially justified or that special
circumstances make an award unjust." "Energy related action" is defined as a cause of
action seeking judicial review of federal agency action allowing: (i) any person or entity to
conduct activities on Indian Land, which activities involve the exploration, development,
production or transportation of oil, gas, coal, shale gas, oil shale, geothermal resources,
wind or solar resources, underground coal gasification, biomass, or the generation of
electricity; or (ii) any Indian Tribe, or any organization of two or more entities, at least
one of which is an Indian tribe, to conduct activities involving the exploration,
development, production or transportation of oil, gas, coal, shale gas, oil shale, geothermal
resources, wind or solar resources, underground coal gasification, biomass, or the
generation of electricity, regardless of where such activities are undertaken.
The remaining sections of HR 538 are virtually unchanged from HR 1548, including:
authorizing a Tribal Biomass Demonstration Project; amending the statute that authorizes longterm leases of Indian lands (25 U.S.C. § 415) to allow the Navajo Nation to enter into certain
categories of leases, including mineral extraction leases, without approval by the Secretary; and
prohibiting the Department of the Interior from regulating hydraulic fracturing on Indian trust or
restricted lands, except with consent of the Indian beneficiary."
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"Compromise Carcieri-Fix Bill: The Interior Improvement Act," Hobbs-Straus General
Memorandum 15-074, October 19, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15074, reported, "Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Chairman Barrasso (R-WY)
introduced S 1879, the Interior Improvement Act, on July 28, 2015. S 1879 is a compromise
bill that includes the two main objectives of Indian Country for a Carcieri-fix: (1) making
clear that the Secretary of the Interior has the authority under the Indian Reorganization
Act (IRA) to take land into trust for any federally recognized tribe; and (2) ratifying and
confirming prior land-into-trust decisions. S 1879 also includes certain provisions pushed
for by county and local governments. These provisions would apply to applications to take
off-reservation land into trust and focus on notice to and comment opportunity by local
governments, encouraging the use of cooperative agreements, and timing for decisions on
applications.
S 1879 would instill timelines for providing notice of applications to contiguous
jurisdictions and the public, and for comment on the applications from same. "Contiguous
jurisdiction" is defined by the bill as "any county, county equivalent, or Indian tribe with
authority and control over the land contiguous to the land under consideration in an application."
S 1879 would also require the Secretary to publish her decision on an application in the
FEDERAL REGISTER and post it on Interior's website not later than five days after such final
decision is made.
S 1879 would encourage, but not require, applicants to enter into cooperative
agreements with contiguous jurisdictions, which, per the bill, may include terms for
mitigation, changes in land use, dispute resolution, and other terms the parties deem
appropriate. Per S 1879, if the applicant submits a cooperative agreement, the Secretary shall
move forward with a decision on the application on an expedited basis. S 1879 states that the
Secretary is to issue a final decision on a complete application not later than (1) 60 days after the
completion of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) review process or (2) if such
process is not applicable, 30 days after the Secretary receives a complete application. If the
Secretary fails to issue a final decision by these timelines, S 1879 states that the application shall
be deemed approved and treated as a final decision.
Under the bill, if the applicant does not submit a cooperative agreement, the
Secretary shall issue a written determination of mitigation not later than 30 days after
receiving a complete application. Such determination shall describe whether any economic
impacts on the contiguous jurisdiction have been mitigated and, per S 1879, the Secretary
shall consider the determination of mitigation when making a final decision to approve or
deny an application.
S 1879 states that the lack of a cooperative agreement shall not prejudice an
application if the Secretary determines that there is no agreement due to the failure of a
contiguous jurisdiction to work in good faith to reach an agreement.
Under S 1879, an applicant or contiguous jurisdiction may seek review of a final
decision and may seek review in a United States district court only after exhausting all
available administrative remedies. The bill also sets forth a process for the Secretary to
consult with tribes to implement these new provisions of the IRA and would require the
Secretary to modify existing regulations, guidance, rules and policy through rule-making to
carry out the provisions.
Conference Call with SCIA and ASIA Washburn:
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The National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) facilitated a conference call on
October 1, 2015, for tribal leaders with Assistant Secretary for Indian Affairs (ASIA) Washburn
and Senate Committee on Indian Affairs Majority Staff Director Andrews to discuss S 1879, the
Interior Improvement Act. NCAI had circulated the attached FAQs document about S 1879 and
arranged the call as an opportunity for tribal leaders to ask additional questions about the
legislation.
Staff Director Andrews conveyed that the Committee has received lots of feedback on the
legislation from tribes, counties and directly from Senators, and that S 1879 is a top priority for
the Committee. He said a manager's amendment to the bill is being developed, which is expected
to be considered at an upcoming mark-up of the bill. Such mark-up has not yet been scheduled.
ASIA Washburn conveyed that the Department of Interior has no official position on the bill, but
it is working with the Committee to address certain technical issues.
A central issue raised by tribal leaders and representatives was the bill's encouragement
of cooperative agreements between tribes and counties and the expedited processing of trust
applications that have such accompanying agreements. ASIA Washburn noted that currently, as a
practical matter, applications from tribes with agreements with the counties move faster in the
land-into-trust process. He added that the Obama Administration will continue to try to move all
applications. Mr. Andrews underscored that S 1879 does not confer veto power to the counties.
Applications without cooperative agreements would still be processed but without the expedited
review provided by S 1879 for applications with cooperative agreements.
Letter from Senators Feinstein and Roberts to the SCIA:
Senator Feinstein (D-CA) and Senator Roberts (R-KS) sent a letter dated October 1,
2015, to Committee Chairman Barrasso and Vice-Chairman Tester (D-MT) (attached) stating
that while the Committee is considering legislative "fixes" to the Carcieri decision, it can and
should consider a comprehensive overhaul that not only remedies Carcieri, but also reforms how
Interior regulates off-reservation gaming.
The Senators assert that "reservation shopping" causes conflicts with and burdens local
communities. They call for amendments to the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA)
concerning off-reservation gaming to be included in S 1879 that: (1) requires a tribe to
demonstrate, and the Secretary to confirm, a substantial and direct aboriginal connection; (2)
requires a tribe to demonstrate that it maintains a modern connection with the proposed land to
be acquired; (3) limits changes in use of the land; (4) provides for meaningful notice and
comment beyond just bordering counties; and (5) requires the tribe to agree to enforceable
mitigation agreements.
NYSAC Resolution Opposing S 1879:
The New York State Association of Counties (NYSAC) passed a resolution opposing S
1879 (attached). It calls upon the New York Congressional delegation to strongly oppose the bill.
The resolution sets forth the NYSAC policy that any "Carcieri fix" must include a provision
requiring local municipal consent for land to be taken into trust from the State of New York."
"Native American Voting Rights Legislation Introduced," Hobs-Straus General
Memorandum 15-063, August 25, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15063, reported, "On July 30, 2015, Senator Tester (D-MT) introduced S 1912, the Native
American Voting Rights Act of 2015. The bill is intended to strengthen voter protections
and increase access to the polls for Native Americans. It was referred to the Judiciary
Committee. Original cosponsors are Senators Franken (D-MN), Heitkamp (D-ND), and Udall
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(D-NM). Native American voters living on Indian reservations have historically participated at
much lower rates in elections due in part to barriers based on registration procedures, distance,
language, and discrimination.
We reported on the Department of Justice's draft tribal voting rights bill in our General
Memorandum 15-040 of June 5, 2015. S 1912 includes some, but not all, of the provisions of the
Department of Justice draft bill.
The bill defines "Indian reservation" as in Section 203 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965
(52 U.S.C. §10503): "the term 'Indian reservation' means any area that is an American Indian or
Alaska Native area, as defined by the Census bureau for the purposes of the 1990 decennial
census." (The bill would amend the Voting Rights Act to substitute 2010 for the 1990 census.)
We summarize the major provisions of S 1912 below.
Section 3 would require state preclearance before any of the following actions could
be taken on an Indian reservation: • Eliminating the only polling place or voter
registration site; • Moving or consolidating a polling place or voter registration site one
mile or further away from its existing location; • Moving or consolidating a polling place
across a river, lake, mountain, or other natural boundary that makes travel difficult for a
voter, regardless of distance; • Eliminating in-person voting by designating a village or
reservation as a permanent absentee voting location; • Removing an early voting location
or otherwise diminishing early voting opportunities; • Reducing the dates or hours that an
in-person or early voting location is open.
Section 4 would provide tribes with the assurance of polling places within their
lands. It would require each state that has at least one Indian reservation to designate a
compliance officer for each reservation in that state and to notify each tribe who that
officer is. Upon request and a showing that certain requirements are met, the state would
be required to provide at least one polling place on each reservation. The state would be
required to provide additional polling places if the tribe can show that they are needed to
ensure that tribal members have the same opportunity to vote as other citizens. The exact
number of additional polling places would be determined by a formula that takes into account the
number of eligible voters, distance to the polls, time required to get to the polls, the modes of
transportation voters use to get to the polls, and the availability of public transportation. The tribe
would be required to first certify that all voters will have access to the additional polling places,
and that the polls will be staffed with trained workers.
Section 4 also provides that, upon request of a tribe, states which allow absentee or
mail-in voting shall provide all registered voters on the reservation absentee ballots. In this
case, the reservation is to be designated an absentee ballot location. Furthermore, states
that provide for early voting must provide at least one early voting location on each
reservation upon request. Tribes may use federal facilities such as Indian Health Service or
Bureau of Indian Affairs facilities as polling locations.
Section 4 would reject the attempts of certain states to restrict acceptable voter
identification. The bill would require that states accept tribal identification as a valid form
of identification. It would also give both the Justice Department and tribes the power to bring an
enforcement action against a state that violates the Act.
Section 5 of the bill would provide protections for Native American voters who have
difficulty understanding voting materials written in English. Section 203 of the Voting
Rights Act is intended to eliminate voting discrimination against voters who do not speak
or write in English. It applies in jurisdictions where there are high concentrations of non100
English speaking voters and in certain areas of Indian Country. Section 203 defines Indian
reservations broadly and in 2011, the Census Bureau published a list of covered Section 203
jurisdictions, over 100 of which include Indian reservations, Oklahoma Tribal Statistical Areas,
State-Designated American Indian Statistical Areas, and Alaska Native Village Statistical Areas.
(See our General Memorandum 11-118 of October 21, 2011.) Section 203 requires states and
subdivisions to provide translated materials to voters in covered jurisdictions but does not require
them to translate for languages which are "historically unwritten." S 1912 would clarify that if a
Native American language is presently written (even if it was historically unwritten) then a state
or subdivision in a Section 203 jurisdiction would be required to provide translated voting
materials.
Section 6 would require the Office of Personnel Management to assign federal
election observers when the U.S. Attorney General certifies that he or she has received a
written complaint from a tribe alleging that a state or subdivision is likely to restrict the
right of its members to vote.
Section 7 would require public disclosure of federal election observer reports no
later than six months following their finalization.
Section 8 would encourage the Justice Department to consult with tribes on a yearly
basis regarding Native American voting rights.
Section 9 would allow a court to award attorney fees to the prevailing party, except when
the prevailing party is the United States."
"Family Stability and Kinship Care Act Would Refocus Federal Foster Care Program,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-067,
September
16,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-067, reported, "On August 5, 2015,
Senator Wyden (D-OR) introduced S 1964, the Family Stability and Kinship Care Act,
which, if enacted, would represent a major shift in the Nation's foster care system. The bill
would amend Title IV-E of the Social Security Act to re-focus the current federal foster
care system from one which provides resources once a child is removed from the home to
one that would allow tribes and states to provide a wide array of services designed to keep
the family intact. It would also significantly increase the mandatory funding for the Social
Security Act's Title IV-B Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program, of which tribes
receive a three percent funding allocation. S 1964 was referred to the Finance Committee, of
which Senator Wyden is the Ranking Member.
Title IV-E Foster Care and Adoption Assistance. The Title IV-E program is an openended entitlement program which provides services once a child has been removed from the
home. Current federal funding is approximately $7 billion per year. Funding is provided for
things such as foster home maintenance payments, administrative costs, training, recruitment of
foster parents, adoption assistance, and data collection. In some instances, support can be
provided for kinship care. Some states and the Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe have Title IV-E
waivers that allow them some flexibility in the utilization of these funds. This bill would expand
on that experience.
Only since 2010 have tribes been eligible to directly administer this program. Thus far a
handful of tribes are operating the program, and there are others who are on course to do so.
There are currently 98 tribal-state IV-E agreements, with the state being the lead grantee. Title
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IV-E services have an income requirement (although it is being phased out for adoption
services).
Among the Title IV-E changes that S 1964 would make:
Title IV-E Time-Limited Family Preservation Services. The bill would allow states
and tribes to provide a wide array of time-limited (12 months) services designed to help
families whose children may be vulnerable to being placed in foster care and also to help
families whose children have been in foster care but have returned home. Such services
would also be available to adoptive families and to kinship care givers.
The income requirements for the current Title IV-E program would not apply to the
time-limited services. Funding would be at the state's or tribe's Federal Medical Assistance
Percentages (FMAP) rate and would cover half of the eligible expenses for administration and
training. With regard to tribes operating the IV-E program, the Health and Human Services
(HHS) Secretary would specify time-limited services in a manner consistent (to the extent
practicable) with states and that are "adapted to the culture and context of the tribal communities
served." Examples of the expanded Title IV-E services are:
• Parenting and family skills training and parent education; • Individual, group, and
family counseling, mentoring, and therapy including intensive family preservation or
reunification programs and trauma-informed care; • Services to address barriers to family
preservation and reunification, including mental health needs, domestic violence, substance
abuse, and inadequate housing; • Crisis assistance to stabilize families or facilitate kinship
placement, such as transportation, clothing, utility and housing payments, child care, respite care
and assistance connecting families with other community-based services.
Time-Limited Services Performance Measures. After three years states would be required
to spend a certain portion of their time-limited services funds on evidence-based programs. After
five years national performance measures for time-limited services would be put in place for
states. The bill provides that the Secretary of HHS would establish specific performance
measures for tribes who are providing the expanded time-limited services in a manner consistent
(to the extent practicable) with the national standards allowing for "consideration of factors
unique to the provision of such services by tribes, organizations, or consortia."
Title IV-B, Subpart 2, Promoting Safe and Stable Families Program. The Promoting
Safe and Stable Families Program is a much smaller program than Title IV-E. It is geared
toward preventive services to avoid the break-up of families but is quite prescriptive with
regard to state expenditure of funds, although tribes are able to use their modest IV-B
funds in a more flexible manner. The program is currently funded from two pots of money –
discretionary ($60 million) and capped mandatory ($340 million). Tribes receive a three percent
funding allocation which was $10.3 million (138 grantees) in FY 2014.
Under S 1964 the mandatory funding would be increased to $1 billion, a $655 million
increase. Thus, tribal funds would increase substantially. Included in the increase is $10 million
for research and technical assistance (a $4 million increase) and $33 million for court
improvement services to assist courts in handling child welfare cases (a $3 million increase).
Tribes receive $1 million annually in court improvement funds.
Compliance. Finally, the bill would give the Secretary of HHS discretion to allow
tribes, tribal organizations and tribal consortia administering Title IV-E and B programs
additional time to come into compliance with requirements of the bill before being
considered out of compliance.
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The National Indian Child Welfare Association worked with Senator Wyden on this
bill and they and the National Congress of American Indians have endorsed the
legislation."
"Legislation Introduced to Provide Direct Access to Tribes from the Crime Victims
Fund,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-050,
July
10,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-050, reported, "On July 7, 2015, Senators
Barrasso (R-WY) and Tester (D-MT), Chair and Ranking Member, respectively, of the Senate
Committee on Indian Affairs, introduced S 1704, legislation to establish a dedicated funding
stream for tribes from the Crime Victims Fund (CVF). Joining as original co-sponsors were
Senators Moran (R-KS); Murkowski (R-AK); Daines (R-MT); Schatz (D-HI); Heitkamp (DND); Hoeven (R-ND); and Udall (D-NM). This legislation provides a major opportunity for
tribes: the provision of direct tribal access to the CVF. Direct access has long been a priority for
tribes and Indian organizations and it was a recommendation of the 2012 Attorney General's
Task Force on Indian and Alaska Native Children Exposed to Violence.
The bill is entitled the Securing Urgent Resources Vital to Indian Victims
Empowerment Act (SURVIVE Act) and it was referred to the Senate Committee on Indian
Affairs. S 1704 can be found at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-114s1704is/pdf/BILLS114s1704is.pdf.
July 14 Webinar. The National Congress of American Indians and the National
Indigenous Women's Resource Center will host a webinar on the legislation on Tuesday, July 14,
12:30 p.m. Eastern time, with Mike Andrews, Majority Staff Director for the Senate Committee
on Indian Affairs, as a participant.
Current Structure. The CVF is not funded through federal appropriations, but rather
through the collection of fines and penalties via federal courts. Congress, in turn, decides how
much of the fund can be allocated each fiscal year, most of which is distributed via formula to
states for crime victim services and assistance. For FY 2015, there is $2.3 billion available from
the CVF. Currently, tribes may only access these funds by applying to states, and very little
funding ends up going to tribes—usually only 0.7 percent or less per fiscal year—despite federal
data indicating a disproportionate rate of need.
Changes Proposed by the Bill. The bill would instead allocate five percent of the
available CVF funds per fiscal year to the Bureau of Indian Affairs' Office of Justice Support to
be administered in the form of a competitive grant program for tribes. Up to four percent of these
funds could be utilized by the Office of Justice Support for administrative expenses, the
management and administration of grants and training and technical assistance. No tribal match
would be required.
The allowed uses of these tribal grant funds, which must be directly related to the harm
suffered by victimization, would be very broad including: medical expenses; loss of wages;
funeral expenses; counseling; housing; shelter; improved investigation and prosecution; repair of
facilities; communications related to safety and security; transportation; and increased tribal
capacity to provide services to victims.
Key Timeframes. The grant program authorized by S 1704 would be authorized for a tenyear period. Regulations would be required to be promulgated, in consultation with tribes, within
90 days of enactment. The Office of Justice Support would be required to award funding to
grantees within 180 days of funds becoming available. Grantees would have an additional five
fiscal years after the fiscal year in which funds were awarded to obligate the awarded funds.
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Unobligated funds at the end of this time period would be returned to the Office to be awarded to
other grantees the following fiscal year.
Growing Support. The issue of tribal direct access to the CVF is gaining attention in
Congress. For instance, the Senate Appropriations Committee in its FY 2016 Commerce-JusticeScience bill (HR 2578) would specifically allocate $52 million of the CVF for tribes, a first on
this issue. Also, the House Appropriations Committee report (H. Rept. 114-66) accompanying
the FY 2016 Commerce-Justice-Science bill notes a modest increase in the overall CVF
allocation and directs the Department of Justice to confer with tribes about their need for such
funds."
Senators Jon Tester (D-MT) and Al Franken (D-MN) introduced legislation in the
Senate “To establish a grant program to assist tribal governments in establishing tribal
healing to wellness courts, and for other purposes,” that would expand the use by tribes of
treatment programs as an alternative to incarceration. Details of the bill are available at:
http://www.scribd.com/doc/286476358/Tribal-Healing-to-Wellness-Courts-Act.
The Tribal Coastal Resiliency Act, H.R. 2719, introduced by Rep. Derek Kilmer (WA06), would expand the Coastal Zone Management Act (CZMA) to recognize the severe
challenges tribal governments face in implementing coastal and shoreline measures that
support public safety, public access, and cultural and historic preservation. The bill would
enable tribal governments to access resources currently only offered to state governments,
supporting tribal sovereignty and greater self-determination on tribal lands. The bill
upholds the federal government’s treaty and trust responsibilities, while strengthening the
government-to-government relationship with federally recognized tribes. A hearing on the bill
was held November 4, 2015 (Mark Trahant, "Press Release: Tribes pitch Congress on coastal
issues, riders," Trahant Reports, November 4, 2015, http://trahantreports.com/).
Frank Hopper, “What It Means to Be Landless: Alaska Native Bill in Congress.”
ICTMN, July 1, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/07/01/what-it-meansbe-landless-alaska-native-bill-congress-160883, reported, “The Alaska Native landless bill now
being heard in Congress, officially known as H.R. 2386, the "Unrecognized Southeast Alaska
Native Communities Recognition and Compensation Act," is an attempt by Tlingit in five
villages to use modern legislative tools to restore balance and to heal long-standing spiritual
wounds.”
"In 1971 the landmark Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act awarded 44 million acres of
land and nearly a billion dollars to 13 regional Native corporations and more than 200 village or
urban Native corporations. But for reasons that are unclear, the Natives in the Southeast Alaska
communities of Haines, Ketchikan, Petersburg, Tenakee and Wrangell were prevented from
participating. The Natives enrolled in those areas were allowed shares in the regional corporation
known as Sealaska, but were prevented from forming village corporations and could not receive
the 23,040 acres of land awarded to each of the other urban or village corporations in Southeast
Alaska.” The prosed act would remedy that omission.
The Navajo Technical Amendments Act of 2015, H.R. 3911, to encourage
development in the Bennett freeze area, introduced in December 2015 by Representative Ann
Kirkpatrick (D-AZ) would allow Navajo Nation to designate parcels of land of up to 150,000
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acres as “Navajo Sovereign Empowerment Zones,” in which restrictive federal regulations
would not apply and any federal agencies with enforcement responsibilities removed in
such zones would turn over their enforcement funding for that enforcement to Navajo
Nation (Cindy Yurth, “Land settlement revision in House committee,” Navajo Times, December
3, 2015).
Federal Agency Developments
“Revised Rules for Managing Federal Funds at 2 CFR Part 200 – Final Provision
Regarding Procurement Fast Approaching,” Hobbs-Straus General Memorandum 15-085,
December 11, 2015, http://hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-085, reported, “In
December 2013 the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published new, final
guidance that addresses administrative requirements, cost principles, procurement,
contracting, and audit requirements for recipients of federal financial assistance. (See our
General Memorandum 14-004 of January 13, 2014.) The revised regulations are codified at 2
CFR Part 200. The deadline for implementing one key piece of the new regulations – dealing
with procurement – was extended for one fiscal year and that deadline is now December 31,
2015.
In December 2014, OMB, together with various federal award-making agencies,
including the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), published a joint interim
final rule implementing the final guidance for 2 CFR Part 200 at 79 FEDERAL REGISTER
75871, "Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for
Federal Awards." The final rule begins on page 75880 of the FEDERAL REGISTER notice, and
is available at http://federalregister.gov/r/0605-AA34.
The purpose of the revised regulations is to streamline the federal government's guidance,
administrative requirements, and procurement regulations by consolidating the requirements
from eight OMB Circulars and other regulations into a single regulation at 2 CFR Part 200. The
new standards are government-wide, affecting procurement and contracting for many federal
agencies, including HUD. The revised regulations will affect tribal governments and tribal
entities such as Tribally Designated Housing Entities that receive federal awards. It is important
for recipients of federal awards to review and properly revise their procedures as needed to
comply with the new regulations.
The uniform guidance was applicable to federal agencies effective December 26, 2013.
Federal agencies adopted 2 CFR Part 200 as a requirement for federal financial assistance
programs by the interim final rule published December 19, 2014. The new regulations became
applicable to non-federal entities effective December 26, 2014, with one exception: 2 CFR Part
§200.110(a) was revised to allow a grace period for one full fiscal year for implementation of the
new procurement standards contained in the rule. The decision to use the grace period must be
documented within the non-federal entities' internal procurement policies. Important deadlines
for revising policies are:
• For non-federal entities on a fiscal calendar year that have not yet revised their policies,
the deadline for revision is December 31, 2015.
• For non-federal entities following the federal government's fiscal year, the deadline is
the end of September 2016.
• For non-federal entities that follow a different fiscal year, they would need to revise
their policies once a full fiscal year has passed following December 26, 2014.”
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"Department of the Interior Publishes Final Rule for Part 83 Federal Acknowledgment
Regulations,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-051,
July
20,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-051, reported, "On June 29, 2015,
Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin Washburn announced publication of the final
rule amending 25 C.F.R. Part 83, entitled "Federal Acknowledgment of American Indian
Tribes." The final rule was published in the FEDERAL REGISTER on July 1, 2015, and
becomes effective 30 days after its publication.
The final rule makes significantly fewer changes to the federal acknowledgment
regulations than the Department of Interior's (Department) May 2014 proposed rule and the June
2013 discussion draft would have. Rather than modifying the seven mandatory criteria a
petitioner must demonstrate in order to receive federal recognition pursuant to the
regulatory process, the final rule seeks to increase efficiency through more streamlined
procedural and processing methods.
Criteria
Although the final rule maintains all seven mandatory criteria found in the previous
iteration of the regulations, the Department has made changes to the criteria that are meant
to reduce the documentary burden on petitioners. Most significantly, petitioners are no
longer required to demonstrate that they meet criteria based on the commencement date of
1789 or first sustained contact. Instead, they need only demonstrate that they meet certain
criteria commencing in 1900. The Department has also sought to codify past Department
practice in interpreting and implementing the criteria, including clarifying types of
evidence that are admissible.
The major changes the final rule makes to the seven mandatory criteria are provided
below.
Criterion A – Indian Entity Identification
• A petitioner need not demonstrate that outside entities identified it as an Indian entity.
Rather, evidence of internal identification as such is sufficient. The proposed rule would have
modified this criterion to require only a brief narrative of existence during historical times and
supporting evidence.
Criteria B and C – Community and Political Influence/Authority
• Petitioners need only demonstrate they meet these criteria dating from 1900 rather than
from 1789 or first sustained contact. The proposed rule would have required petitioners to satisfy
these criteria from 1934 forward. • Evidence of a state reservation or of the federal government
holding land on behalf of a petitioner since 1934 do not by themselves demonstrate that the
petitioner meets these criteria, as they would have under the proposed rule. Instead, land set aside
by a state serves as evidence to support these criteria, and land held by the federal government
constitutes previous federal acknowledgment.
Criteria E – Descent
• Petitioners must demonstrate their members' lineal descent from members of a historical
tribe, and historical is defined as before 1900. The previous version of the regulations required
petitioners to demonstrate their members' descent from members of a tribe that existed in 1789 or
at the time of first sustained contact.
Standard of Review
• The regulations require demonstration of the community and political
influence/authority criteria found at B and C "without substantial interruption." The proposed
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rule would have clarified the meaning of this phrase as generally more than 20 years, but the
final rule leaves the phrase undefined. Instead, the final rule states that petitioners need not meet
these criteria at every point in time and that fluctuations in tribal activity are not cause for
denial. • The regulations state that the standard of proof is "reasonable likelihood." The
proposed rule would have clarified this standard using judicial precedent, but the final rule
removed this clarification. • In order to create a consistent baseline, methodology or evidence
that was sufficient to satisfy a particular criterion for any previous petitioner dating back to the
regulations’ creation in 1978 is sufficient to satisfy the particular criterion for a current
petitioner. Accordingly, in applying the phrase "without substantial interruption," gaps in
evidence previously permitted for a particular criterion are permissible. In applying the phrase
"reasonable likelihood," types or amounts of evidence previously deemed sufficient are sufficient
for current petitioners.
Process
The final rule provides for a phased review process designed to create efficiency. Under
the final rule, the Office of Federal Acknowledgment is responsible for producing the proposed
finding. This step involves a phased review that permits expedited negative decisions when a
petitioner does not satisfy one of the less time-consuming criteria to review. If the proposed
finding is positive and the Department does not receive substantive comments on it, the proposed
finding automatically becomes a positive final determination. The Assistant Secretary is
responsible for issuing the final determination.
The major changes the final rule makes to the process are provided below.
Expedited Decisions
• A phased review allows the Office of Federal Acknowledgment to issue a negative
proposed finding based on a petitioner's failure to meet the governing document criterion found
at D, the descent criterion found at E, the unique membership criterion found at F, or the
termination criterion found at G. Only after the Office of Federal Acknowledgment has
determined a petitioner meets these criteria does it conduct the more lengthy review of the Indian
entity existence criterion found at A, the community criterion found at B, and the political
influence/authority criterion found at C. • Positive proposed findings that are not followed by
substantive comments become positive final determinations.
Hearing Before Administrative Law Judge
• Petitioners who receive a negative proposed finding may request a hearing before an
administrative law judge, and third parties may intervene. The administrative law judge then
presents a recommended decision to the Assistant Secretary. • The limited reconsideration
before the Interior Board of Indian Appeals that was available under the previous iteration of the
regulations has been removed, and the Assistant Secretary's final determination is directly
appealable to federal court.
Transparency
• All publicly available documents related to a petition will be posted on the
Department’s website. • Notifications will be provided to those who sign up, and local
governments as well as interested recognized tribes and petitioners automatically receive notices.
Re-petitioning
• Petitioners denied federal recognition under previous versions of the regulations will
not be permitted to re-petition under the amended regulations. The proposed rule allowed for
such re-petitioning when third parties that participated in an administrative reconsideration or
appeal of the previous decision consented in writing.
107
Only Administrative Process
• The Department in separate policy guidance issued June 26, 2015, stated that the Part
83 regulatory process will be the only method utilized by the Department to recognize Indian
tribes in the contiguous 48 states as long as the amended regulations are in effect and being
implemented. Thus, the Department will no longer accept requests for administrative
reaffirmations or for organization under the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) for tribes in these
states. With respect to Alaska, the policy guidance notes that Congress specifically provided that
unrecognized groups of Alaska Natives meeting certain conditions may organize as tribes under
the Alaska Amendment to the IRA."
"A copy of the final rule is available here: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-0701/pdf/2015-16193.pdf."
The Pamunkey Tribe of Virginia received federal recognition from the BIA at the
beginning of July, 2015 (Vincent Schilling, “Federal Recognition for Virginia’s Pamunkey Tribe
‘a
Long
Time
Coming’,”
ICTMN,
July
7,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/07/07/federal-recognition-virginiaspamunkey-tribe-long-time-coming-160981). “Interior Declines Duwamish Tribal Organization
Federal
Recognition,”
,
2015ICTMN,
July
2m
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/07/02/interior-declines-duwamish-tribalorganization-federal-recognition-160938, reported, “Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs
Kevin K. Washburn just announced a final determination on remand that declined
acknowledgment for the Duwamish Tribal Organization (Petitioner #25).
In 2013 the U.S. District Court in Western Washington vacated a 2001 Interior
conclusion declining to acknowledge the DTO following an evaluation under its 1978
regulations.
The remand sent it back to Interior for review under 1994 revisions to the regulations or
“explain why it declines to do so.”
"Department of Interior Proposes a Procedure and Criteria to Reestablish a Governmentto-Government Relationship with the Native Hawaiian Community," Hobbs-Straus General
Memorandum 15-075, October 24, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15075, reported. "Department of Interior Proposes a Procedure and Criteria to Reestablish a
Government-to-Government Relationship with the Native Hawaiian Community," Hobbs-Straus
On October 1, 2015, the Department of Interior (DOI) published in the FEDERAL
REGISTER a proposed rule which would provide a procedure and criteria for
reestablishing a formal government-to-government relationship between the United States
and the Native Hawaiian community, if the Native Hawaiian community chooses to do so.
This proposed rule follows the Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking published in 2014 (see
our General Memorandum 14-052 of July 11, 2014). Comments are due by December 30, 2015.
In addition, DOI will hold a series meetings and tribal consultations, the first of which is Monday
October 26, 2015. Further details are provided at the end of this Memorandum.
The proposal would not on its own establish a Native Hawaiian governmental structure,
instead leaving that decision in the hands of the Native Hawaiian community and leadership:
Moreover, if a Native Hawaiian government reorganizes, it will be for that government to decide
whether to seek to reestablish a formal government-to-government relationship with the United
108
States. The process established by this rule would be optional, and Federal action would occur
only upon an express formal request from the newly reorganized Native Hawaiian government.
DOI states that its authority to promulgate this rule arises out of a combination of the Executive
Branch's power to recognize Indian tribes, Congress' plenary power over Indian tribes, and the
enactment of more than 150 statutes recognizing and implementing a special political and trust
relationship with the Native Hawaiian community.
DOI's proposal would require the Native Hawaiian community to conduct a referendum
to ratify a governing document for a single Native Hawaiian government and sets forth certain
provisions that this governing document would be required to contain. The proposed rule would
require that the governing document be approved in a ratification referendum not only by a
majority of Native Hawaiians who vote, but also by a majority of Hawaiian Homes Commission
Act (HHCA) eligible Native Hawaiians who vote. In addition, both majorities would be required
to include enough voters to demonstrate broad-based community support. The Native Hawaiian
government could then submit a request to the Secretary of Interior to reestablish a formal
government-to-government relationship with the United States.
DOI states that should Native Hawaiians choose to form a government and reestablish a
government-to-government relationship with the federal government, this government would
have the same government-to-government relationship under the United States Constitution and
federal law as the government-to-government relationship between the United States and a
federally recognized tribe in the continental United States, and the same inherent sovereign
governmental authorities. However, DOI explains that members of the Native Hawaiian
government would not be eligible for federal Indian programs, services, and benefits unless
Congress expressly authorizes such eligibility.
DOI anticipates that a Native Hawaiian government would not be eligible to conduct
gaming activities under the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) for two reasons: 1) DOI
anticipates that the Native Hawaiian government would not fall within the definition of "Indian
tribe" in the IGRA, and therefore IGRA would not apply; and 2) the State of Hawaii prohibits
gambling.
DOI will conduct a series of teleconferences to allow the public to comment:
October
26,
2015
(2:00pm
EST)
Call-in
number:
1-888-947-9025
Passcode: 1962786
October 27, 2015 (3:00pm EST) (Native Hawaiian Organizations only)
Call-in
number:
1-888-947-9025
Passcode: 1962786
November
4,
2015
(1:30pm
EST)
(Tribal
Consultation)
Call-in
number:
1-888-947-9025
Passcode: 1962786
November
7,
2015
(3:00pm
EST)
Call-in
number:
1-888-947-9025
Passcode: 1962786
DOI's press release is attached. The FEDERAL REGISTER notice is available here:
http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-10-01/pdf/2015-24712.pdf"
"DOI Publishes List of Non-BIA Programs Eligible for Inclusion in Self-Governance
Funding Agreements and Requests Comments," Hobbes-Straus General Memorandum 15-072,
109
October 9, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-072, reported, "On
October 5, 2015, in the FEDERAL REGISTER, the Department of the Interior (DOI)
published the attached notice which lists non-Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) programs,
services, functions, and activities (or portions thereof) eligible to be included in selfgovernance funding agreements and describes the programmatic targets for these non-BIA
bureaus. DOI annually publishes this notice in the FEDERAL REGISTER. Written comments on
the notice may be submitted by November 4, 2015.
Determining Eligible Programs, Services, Functions, and Activities (PSFAs). There are
two categories of PSFAs (or portions thereof) eligible to be included in self-governance funding
agreements:
1) Any non-BIA PSFA that is administered by DOI that is "otherwise available to Indian
tribes or Indians;" and 2) Any non-BIA PSFA that is of "special geographic, historical, or
cultural significance" to a tribe.
Funding agreements cannot include PSFAs that are "inherently federal" or where the
statute establishing the existing program does not authorize the type of participation sought by
the tribe. However, a tribe need not be identified in the authorizing statutes in order for a PSFA
or element of such PSFA to be included in a self-governance funding agreement. While general
legal and policy guidance regarding what constitutes an inherently federal function exists, the
non-BIA bureaus will determine whether a specific function is "inherently federal" on a case-bycase basis considering the totality of circumstances. In those instances where a tribe disagrees
with a bureau's determination, the tribe may request reconsideration from the Secretary of
Interior.
Non-BIA Bureaus. Tribes may include PSFAs from the following non-BIA bureaus in
self-governance funding agreements: Bureau of Land Management; Bureau of Reclamation;
Office of Natural Resources Revenue; National Park Service; Fish and Wildlife Service; U.S.
Geological Survey; and the Office of the Special Trustee for American Indians. The attached
notice lists the FY 2015 tribal self-governance agreements with non-BIA agencies at the
Department of the Interior."
“BIA Issues Final Rule Amending Secretarial Elections and Petitioning Procedures,”
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-078,
November
13,
2015,
http://hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-078, reported, “On October 19, 2015, the
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) published a final rule amending its regulations governing
Secretarial elections and the procedures for petitioning to request a Secretarial election
(copy attached). 80 Fed. Reg. 63094. The BIA states that the clarifications relating to
Secretarial elections encourage tribes reorganized under the Indian Reorganization Act
(IRA) to amend their governing documents so that future elections will be "purely tribal
elections, governed and run by the tribe rather than BIA." Appropriately, tribal policy – and
not federal management – will form the backbone of election-related requirements in Indian
Country. Notably, the final rule also clarifies that only members of federally recognized tribes
may petition for a Secretarial election to be held—a departure from prior federal policy. The
final rule will become effective November 18, 2015.
Context for the Final Rule. A Secretarial election is a federal election conducted by the
Secretary of the Interior (at the request of a tribe) that involves the adoption, modification, or
revocation of a tribe's governing document or the adoption or modification of a tribe's charter of
incorporation. Because a Secretarial election is a federal election, the election is held pursuant to
110
tribal law in addition to certain federal laws and regulations. The governing documents of most
tribes reorganized under either the Indian Reorganization Act (IRA) or the Oklahoma Indian
Welfare Act (OIWA) require a Secretarial election in order to be amended. Further, there are
some tribes who are not reorganized under the IRA or the OIWA but whose governing
documents require Secretarial approval. The final rule is significant because it clarifies how
tribes reorganized under the IRA may amend their governing documents to remove the
requirement for future Secretarial elections.
The final rule amends 25 C.F.R. parts 81 (Tribal Reorganization under a Federal Statute)
and 82 (Petitioning Procedures for Tribes Reorganized under Federal Statute and Other
Organized Tribes) by unifying them in a single Code of Federal Regulations at 25 C.F.R. Part 81
(Secretarial Elections). There are some key differences between the IRA and the OIWA, so 25
C.F.R. Part 81 contains some subparts which apply to all Secretarial elections: Subpart A
(Purpose and Scope), Subpart B (Definitions), Subpart C (Provisions Applicable to All
Secretarial Elections) and Subpart F (Formulating Petitions to Request Secretarial Election) as
well as other subparts which apply only to the Secretarial election process under the IRA
(Subpart D) or only to the Secretarial election process under the OIWA (Subpart E). The final
rule amends subparts which apply to all Secretarial elections as well as the Subpart which is
specific to the Secretarial election process under the IRA.
The final rule reflects amendments made to the IRA in 1988, 1990, and 1994. The BIA
reports that efforts to revise 25 C.F.R. Part 81 to reflect these amendments date back to 1992
when the first tribal consultation sessions were held. Additional consultation sessions occurred
more recently in 2009, 2010, and then in 2014 after the proposed rule was published in the
FEDERAL REGISTER on October 9, 2014.
Changes the Final Rule Makes to Existing Regulations. The final rule clarifies how a tribe
reorganized under the IRA may modify its governing documents to eliminate the need for
Secretarial approval of and involvement in future amendments or elections. To do so, a final
Secretarial election with Bureau involvement must be held on the issue, after which no future
Bureau involvement will be necessary. Instead, the individual tribe will govern election-related
policies such as voting procedures and substantive requirements without a federal overlay.
However, once a tribe removes the Secretarial election requirement, the tribe, rather than the
Department of Interior, must pay for all subsequent elections to amend its governing document.
Moreover, the tribe's governing document will no longer be considered to have been adopted
pursuant to federal statute. Such a change does not diminish the government-to-government
relationship or displace federal trust responsibilities.
The final rule also clarifies that the Secretary will only accept petitions for Secretarial
elections from members of federally recognized tribes. Prior to the promulgation of the final rule,
the regulations provided that individuals who were members of a federally recognized tribe or a
tribe eligible to be federally recognized could petition for a Secretarial election to organize under
federal statute.
Additional Changes the Final Rule Makes to Existing Regulations:
• Provides that the BIA will conduct an informal compliance review of tribal documents
before a Secretarial election is duly requested without triggering statutory deadlines;
• Establishes timeframes within which the Secretary must call and conduct Secretarial
elections after one has duly been requested;
• Provides that all Secretarial elections will be handled by mailout ballot unless polling
places are expressly required by a tribe's governing document;
111
• Clarifies that additional tribes may petition for charters of incorporation; and
• Removes the requirement for an election to ratify the approval of new charters issued
after May 24, 1990 (unless required by tribal law).”
““Final Rule Published for Disposition of Unclaimed Human Remains and Cultural Items
Under the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act,” Hobbs-Straus General
Memorandum 15-079, November 24, 2015, http://hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15079, reported, “On November 5, 2015, the Department of the Interior published a final rule
on the disposition of unclaimed Native American human remains and other cultural items
excavated or removed from federal lands after November 16, 1990, the date of enactment of
the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA). 80 Fed. Reg.
68465 (copy attached). The final rule implements section 3(b) of NAGPRA, 25 U.S.C. §
3002(b), which directs the Secretary of Interior to promulgate regulations for the disposition of
unclaimed cultural items, a term that, in addition to Native American human remains, also
includes funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony.
Applicability. The rule applies to items removed from federal lands and not to items
removed from tribal lands because, under NAGPRA, cultural items found on tribal lands
are subject to the control of the relevant tribe (except that, for human remains and
funerary objects, lineal descendants, if there are any, have a higher priority in stating a
claim).
Summary. The final rule gives federal agencies that have such unclaimed cultural
items discretion to transfer the items to an Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian organization
(NHO) that is not a potential claimant, i.e., a tribe or NHO that cannot make a claim based
on the priorities listed in section 3 of NAGPRA. 25 U.S.C. § 3002. If the tribe or NHO
agrees to accept the transfer, then they must treat the items in accordance with their laws
and customs, i.e., those of the receiving tribe or NHO. The final rule also gives federal
agencies that have unclaimed Native American human remains or funerary objects
discretion to reinter such items. For the most part, the new regulatory text will be codified
in a new section 10.7 of the NAGPRA regulations. 43 C.F.R. part 10. In addition, in section
10.2 there is a new definition of the term "Unclaimed cultural items" and a new clause in
the definition of "Disposition."
Prior to making a transfer or reinterment, the federal agency is required to submit a list of
the items to the Manager of the National NAGPRA Program, a list that describes the general
place of discovery or excavation and removal, the nature of the cultural items, and a summary of
consultation efforts under the NAGPRA regulations (43 C.F.R. § 10.5). The federal agency is
also required to publish notice of the proposed transfer or reinterment in a newspaper of general
circulation in the area from which the items were removed and, if the agency has identified any
potential claimant that no longer resides in the area where the items were removed, in a
newspaper of general circulation in the area where any such potential claimant now resides.
If, in response to the notice, a tribe or NHO makes a valid claim for the cultural items,
they would no longer be treated as unclaimed, and disposition would proceed under other
provisions of the NAGPRA regulations.
Key Differences Between the Proposed Rule and the Final Rule. The proposed rule
was published on October 29, 2013. (See our General Memorandum 13-097 of November 1,
2013.) The FEDERAL REGISTER notice includes a discussion of the changes that have been
made in response to comments on the proposed rule. One such change is in the definition of the
112
term "unclaimed cultural items" (to be codified at 43 C.F.R. § 10.2(h)). The definition still
begins with "Native American human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of
cultural patrimony excavated or removed from federal lands after November 16, 1990," which
have not been repatriated pursuant to NAGPRA, and sets out two circumstances which can
render such items "unclaimed," either: (i) no potential claimant (tribe, NHO, or lineal
descendant) has filed a written claim; or (ii) the federal agency could not reasonably identify a
potential claimant. In the final rule, the wording of each of these circumstances has been
expanded by adding deadlines.
For the first circumstance, the term "unclaimed" becomes applicable one year after publication of
the notice required by section 10.6(c) of the regulations, i.e., the notice that a federal agency is
required to publish after it has engaged in efforts to determine which tribe, NHO, or lineal
descendant has the right to take custody of the cultural items. This one-year deadline applies to
cultural items that already meet the definition of "unclaimed cultural items" as of the effective
date of the final rule.
For the second circumstance, the definition of "unclaimed cultural items" becomes
applicable two years after the federal agency knows or has reason to know that it could not
reasonably identify a potential claimant. This deadline generally applies to items that do not meet
the definition of "unclaimed cultural items" as of the effective date of the final rule, including
items that are discovered and removed after that date. This deadline gives the federal agency
time to engage in efforts to determine whether there is a tribe, NHO, or lineal descendant with
the right to take custody of the cultural items as required by section 10.6 of the regulations.
These deadlines are also incorporated into section 10.7(b) of the final rule, the section
that requires each federal agency that has unclaimed cultural items to provide a list to the
National NAGPRA Program. In the proposed rule, agencies would have had two years to provide
their lists. The final rule shortens this to one year. The National NAGPRA Program will post the
information on its web site.”
Mark Fogarty, “GAO Gives BIA ‘F’ for Hindering Sovereignty and Energy,” ICTMN,
June 23, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/06/23/gao-gives-bia-fhindering-sovereignty-and-energy-160823,
Reported, “Congress has taken a look at the Bureau of Indian Affairs’ stewardship of
American Indian energy developments — and has given the agency failing grades for both
bad management and hindering sovereignty.
Congress’ investigative arm, the General Accountability Office, named BIA’s
‘management shortcomings’ as a major factor that has “hindered Indian energy
development. ‘These shortcomings can increase costs and project development times,
resulting in missed development opportunities, lost revenue, and jeopardized viability of
projects,’ GAO charged.
One tribe lost $95 million in revenue due to agency inaction over eight years.
Another had to abandon a project due to BIA delays. A third saw data gathered for a
project become outdated after three years of review before approval, the report detailed.
Sovereignty has also been hindered, as the report to the Senate Committee on Indian
Affairs indicates, rapping BIA for not providing support for a program that allows tribes to enter
into energy leases without review and approval by the Department of the Interior. A 2005 law
gives Interior the authority to provide grants to tribes for these programs, called TERAs (Tribal
Energy Resource Agreements). “However, no tribe has entered into a TERA,” it pointed out.
113
GAO’s recommendations include ‘Interior (should) take steps to address data
limitations, track its review process, provide clarifying guidance, and evaluate the
effectiveness of grants.’
The investigators noted that Interior “generally agreed with most but not all of the
recommendations because it is taking other actions to address some data limitations.”
However, ‘GAO continues to believe that its recommendations are valid.’
Indian energy resources ‘hold significant potential for development, but remain
largely undeveloped,”’ GAO noted.
Data remains a significant problem. ‘BIA does not have the data it needs to verify
ownership of some Indian oil and gas resources, easily identify resources available for
lease, or identify where leases are in effect,’ GAO wrote. BIA also ‘faces staff limitations
and does not have a documented process or the data needed to track its review and
response times, and therefore it cannot ensure transparency in its review of energy-related
documents.’
Kevin K. Washburn, Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs, commented Interior “generally
concurs” with the recommendations on the TERA regulations and TEDC (Tribal Energy
Development Capacity) grants.
But as for data limitations, he said the department plans to go ahead on its own National
Indian Oil and Gas Evaluation Management System (NIOGEMS) which provides methods “to
overcome or minimize the TAAMS (Trust Asset Accounting and Management System) tract and
lease land description issues” and plans to continue with full deployment of these. And he said
the budget for FY 2016 calls for ‘special rates of pay for certain job types in the Department’s
onshore oil and gas related fields’ which should help address hiring and skill gap issues.”
“Collective Sigh of Relief as Interior Cancels Badger-Two Medicine Drilling Lease,”
ICTmn,
November
24,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/24/collective-sigh-relief-interior-cancelsbadger-two-medicine-drilling-lease-162541, reported. “Everyone from the Blackfeet Tribe to
Montana sportsmen is heaving a sigh of relief in the wake of the U.S. Department of the
Interior’s decision to cancel a controversial oil and gas drilling lease in the sacred BadgerTwo Medicine region.
Attorneys for Interior said in court filings on November 23 that the U.S. Forest Service
and Bureau of Land Management had “failed to fully consider the effects of oil and gas
development on cultural resources, including religious values and activities” when they okayed
the lease on 6,200 acres in 1982, according to the Associated Press. Part of the Lewis and
Clark National Forest, the 130,000-acre Badger-Two Medicine region borders Glacier
National Park, the Bob Marshall Wilderness Complex and the Blackfeet Indian
Reservation. It’s the site of the Blackfeet creation story and thus is a longstanding source of
spiritual energy.
Lawyers for Solenex LLC of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, which holds that lease,
immediately told AP that the company would challenge a cancelation.
The decision drew an immediate outpouring of gratitude from the numerous parties—
including 19 tribes on both sides of the U.S.–Canada border—that had urged Interior to nix the
lease. The Blackfeet Tribe, whose reservation abuts Badger-Two Medicine, specifically thanked
President Barack Obama, U.S. Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell and U.S. Department of
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack for their work to preserve the region. Senator John Tester
114
also garnered thanks.”
"BIA Implementation Procedures for the Purpose Code X Program; For Use in
Background Checks for Emergency Child Placements," Hobbs-Straus General Memorandum 15065,September 15, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-065, reported,
"The Bureau of Indian Affairs-Office of Justice Services (BIA-OJS) has announced the
procedures by which tribes may request to participate in the new BIA-OJS Purpose Code
X Program. Under the Purpose Code X Program BIA-OJS dispatch centers will be
available 24-7 to perform (at the request of tribal police departments and social service
agencies) immediate name-based criminal history checks of persons in a home where an
emergency child placement is contemplated. We reported on the development of the Purpose
Code X Program in our General Memorandum 15-062 of August 25, 2015, but at that time the
implementation procedures were not in place.
The BIA procedures include several requirements. For example, the tribe will be
responsible for ensuring that each resident in the home of the emergency placement (13 years of
age or older) consents to the preliminary name-based background check with the submission of
fingerprints, and that the required fingerprints are submitted to the FBI within 15 days of the
name-based check. There are several methods for submitting fingerprints: 1) via the state
criminal history record repository; 2) via an FBI-approved Channeler; 3) via hard copy
fingerprint card submission directly to the FBI; and 4) via Department of Justice Tribal Access
Program (TAP). Tribes who wish to participate in the Purpose Code X Program must request to
utilize the Fingerprint Submission Requirements Rule.
We attach the following:
• The Dear Tribal Leader Letter from BIA Director Michael Black; • The BIA Purpose
Code X Implementation Procedures; • The draft letter for tribes to use when requesting to utilize
the Fingerprint Submission Requirements Rule.
The letter from Director Black states that the BIA will be "reviewing the implementation
procedures and will continue adding additional tribes based on tribal needs and requests."
“BIA Finalizes Long-Awaited Rights-of-Way Rules,” Hobbs-Straus General
Memorandum 15-080, December 4, 2015, http://hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15080m reported, “On November 19, 2015, the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) published a final
rule for Rights-of-Way on Indian Land in the FEDERAL REGISTER at 80 FR 72491 (Nov.
19. 2015). The rule takes effect on December 21, 2015. Interior Secretary Jewell had previously
announced the rule on November 5, 2015 at the 2015 White House Tribal Nations Conference.
The new rule revises existing rights-of-way regulations, published in 25 C.F.R. Part 169. We
previously reported on the BIA's proposed rule to revise the rights-of-way regulations in our
General Memorandum 14-044 of June 19, 2014.
According to Secretary Jewell, the new regulations will "help expand opportunities
for individual landowners and tribal governments to generate investment, expand
economic opportunity and provide greater transparency and workability through the
Bureau of Indian Affairs' leasing and right-of-way processes."
In response to comments strongly opposed to a provision in the proposed rule that would
allow parties to consent to the applicability of state law on rights-of-way through tribal lands, the
Department eliminated the provision. In fact, the new rule eliminates any specific mention of
when state or local law may apply and instead provides that "generally" state and local
115
laws do not apply.
The new rule also makes clear the intent of the United States to preserve an Indian
tribe's jurisdiction in all new rights-of-way. The Department's commentary states that the U.S.
Supreme Court's ruling in State v. A-1 Contractors, 520 U.S. 438, 451-52 (1997) was limited to
the facts in that case and arose out of the failure of the U.S. and the tribe to expressly reserve
jurisdiction over the right-of-way granted in the case. The new rule addresses this issue by
requiring all new grants of rights-of-way to expressly reserve tribal jurisdiction.
In general, the new rule:
• Simplifies requirements by relying on general statutory authority to grant rights-of-way
and eliminating outdated requirements that apply to specific types of rights-of-way;
• Clarifies the processes for BIA review of right-of-way documents;
• Streamlines the process for obtaining a right-of-way on Indian land by:
o Eliminating the need to obtain BIA consent for surveying in preparation for applying for a
right-of-way;
o Establishing timelines for BIA review of rights-of-way requests;
• Adds certainty to applicants by allowing BIA disapproval only where there is a stated
compelling reason;
• Provides Indian landowners with notice of actions affecting their land;
• Establishes a policy that the BIA will defer, to the maximum extent possible, to the
Indian landowners' determination that the right-of-way is in his or her best interest;
• Promotes tribal self-determination and self-governance by providing greater deference
to tribes on decisions affecting tribal land;
• Clarifies tribal jurisdiction over lands subject to a right-of-way by including terms
intended to preempt state and local government taxation of improvements and activities subject
to a right-of-way and by expressly reaffirming tribal tax jurisdiction over those improvements,
activities, and right-of-way interests; and
• Incorporates tribal land policies in processing a request for a right-of-way.
Copies of the Interior Department and BIA press releases are attached. The final rule is available
here: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-11-19/pdf/2015-28548.pdf.”
"Departments of Justice and Interior Introduce Two Programs to Expand Tribal Access to
National Crime Information Databases," Hobbs Straus General Memorandum 15-062, August
25, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-062, reported, "On August 19,
2015, the Departments of Justice and Interior announced the launch of the initial phases of
two programs which will expand tribal access to national crime information databases for
civil and criminal purposes. The Tribal Access Program for National Crime Information
(TAP) will expand tribal and Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) law enforcement access to
national crime information databases. In addition, the BIA Office of Justice Services (BIAOJS) Purpose Code X Program will allow the BIA-OJS to perform name-based searches of
criminal history records (at the request of tribal social service agencies) in order to
facilitate the emergency placement of at-risk children in temporary safe homes. Copies of
the press releases are attached.
Background and Underlying Law. The lack of tribal access to federal criminal
information databases has been a longstanding problem for Indian tribes and their law
enforcement and social service agencies, and these programs represent a long awaited step
towards addressing this issue. The statutory authority for the Department of Justice's TAP dates
116
back to the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 (PL 111-211) (TLOA). See our General
Memorandum 10-100 of July 29, 2010. Section 233 of the TLOA amended 28 U.S.C. § 534: to
expressly require the U.S. Attorney General to permit tribal and BIA law enforcement agencies
to access, enter information into, and obtain information from federal criminal information
databases; and added Indian tribes to the list of government entities with whose "authorized
officials" the U.S. Attorney General shall exchange records and information. However, Section
233 requires that in order to access these databases, tribal law enforcement officials must meet
"applicable federal or state requirements". Section 233 narrowly defines a tribal "authorized law
enforcement official" as a "tribal justice official serving an Indian tribe with criminal jurisdiction
over Indian country."
Although the statutory authority for the BIA-OJS Purpose Code X Program is not cited in
the press releases, it may lie, at least partially, in Section 151 of the Adam Walsh Child
Protection and Safety Act of 2006 (PL 109-248) (Adam Walsh Act), which amended 42 U.S.C. §
16961 to require the Attorney General to ensure access to national crime information databases
by "governmental social service agencies with child protection responsibilities, to be used by
such agencies only in investigating or responding to reports of child abuse, neglect, or
exploitation." See our General Memorandum 06-134 of November 3, 2006. Although Section
151 does not expressly reference Indian tribes, tribes and the National Congress of American
Indians have advocated for access to national crime information databases under this authority.
See NCAI Resolution ATL-14-048.
The TAP and the BIA-OJS Purpose Code X Program are the products of a working group
formed in 2014 by the Departments of Justice and Interior to "identify sustainable solutions that
provide tribes access to national crime information that addresses criminal and civil needs of
tribes." As a related matter, in November of 2014, the FBI published a final rule in the
FEDERAL REGISTER allowing tribal criminal justice agencies access to the National Instant
Criminal Background Check System (NICS) for the purpose of conducting background checks
on prospective gun buyers. See our General Memorandum 14-092 of December 5, 2015.
Below is a brief summary of the two programs.
Tribal Access Program for National Crime Information (TAP). This initial phase of
the TAP will be limited to assisting up to 10 tribes who already have law enforcement
agencies. In the meantime, the Department of Justice (DOJ) will continue to work with
Congress for additional funding to more broadly deploy the system in order to address the
needs of the remaining tribes. These initial 10 tribes will receive support and training from
the DOJ. DOJ will analyze the needs of each participating tribe for national crime
information and "help provide appropriate solutions, including a state-of the art
biometric/biographic computer workstation with capabilities to process finger and palm
prints, take mugshots and submit records to national databases, as well as the ability to
access CJIS [the FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services Division] systems for
criminal and civil purposes..." CJIS systems include the:
• National Crime Information Center (NCIC) • National Instant Criminal Background
Check System (NCIS) • Next Generation Identification (NGI) • Law Enforcement Enterprise
Portal (LEEP) • National Data Exchange (N-DEx)
The FBI maintains the host CJIS systems and provides a telecommunications network to one
CJIS Systems Agency (CSA) in each of the 50 states, the District of Columbia, the territories,
Canada, and federal agencies (including DOJ). The DOJ will serve as the CSA for federally
recognized tribes; however, "DOJ recognizes that some tribes have access to certain CJIS stems
117
through state CSA networks. In that instance, DOJ encourages a three-way discussion with the
tribe and the state CSA about their information needs." Further information on the TAP,
including a short description of each database, is here: http://www.justice.gov/tribal/tribalaccess-program-tap
BIA-OJS Purpose Code X Program. The Office of the Assistant Secretary-Indian
Affairs explains, "Under the BIA-OJS Purpose Code X Program, BIA-OJS dispatch
centers will be available to provide 24-hour access to criminal history records, so namebased checks can be done immediately [allowing tribal social service agencies to
immediately determine in emergency situations whether or not a child can be placed in a
certain individual's home temporarily]. Protocols for operating under the new program are
being developed by BIA-OJS and will be tested by a select number of tribes prior to a
nationwide implementation of the program." The press release does not specify a process by
which interested tribes should contact BIA-OJS, nor does it specify a date by which a letter of
interest or application must be received."
“Domestic Violence Prevention Month: Feds Award $21 Million to Tribal Efforts,”
ICTMN, October 1, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/01/domesticviolence-prevention-month-feds-award-21-million-tribal-efforts-161941, reported, “The federal
government is awarding nearly $21 million to 136 tribes and tribal organizations—serving
274 tribes in all—to address domestic violence.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children
and Families (ACF) and Indian Health Service (IHS) announced the grant on October 1, the
beginning of National Domestic Violence Prevention Month. The funds will “support tribal
domestic violence victims and organizations in American Indian and Alaska Native communities
across the nation,” the government said in a statement. “These funds will help to strengthen tribal
responses to domestic violence and emphasize public awareness, advocacy, and policy, training,
and technical assistance.”
The ACF funding comes under the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act
(FVPSA).”
“Tribe Receives $1 Million from Department of Justice, ICTMN, Swptember 26, 2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/09/26/tribe-receives-1-million-departmentjustice-161889, reported, “The Department of Justice on September 18 announced that copy
million in grant funding was awarded to the Central Council of the Tlingit and Haida
Indian Tribes of Alaska.
The funding under the DOJ’s Coordinated Tribal Assistance Solicitation (CTAS) will go
towards two projects the Central Council has planned – Children’s Justice Act and Tribal
Youth Prevention.
Over $97.3 million dollars was awarded to American Indian and Alaska Native
tribes to boost law enforcement, improve tribal courts, combat violence against women,
address substance abuse, assist youth and provide services to victims of crime. In Alaska,
17 tribes were awarded funding including the Organized Village of Kake and Metlakatla
Indian Community.
The Council’s Children’s Justice Act received $450,000 to assist in developing and
implementing a multi-year program of training and system improvements within the Tribal
Family and Youth Services department. The three-year project will support the investigation,
118
prosecution, and treatment of cases of serious child abuse, neglect, and child sexual abuse within
the
service
area
of
Juneau,
Alaska.
"Environmental Protection Agency Publishes Proposed Interpretive Rule on Tribal
Eligibility for "Treatment as a State" under the Clean Water Act," Hobbs-Straus General
Memorandum 15-059, August 12, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15059, reported, "On August 15, 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
published a proposed interpretive rule in the FEDERAL REGISTER to streamline how tribes
can apply for "Treatment as a State" (TAS) for the water quality standards (WQS)
program and other Clean Water Act regulatory programs. 80 Fed. Reg. 47430 (copy
attached). This interpretative rule would eliminate the requirement that tribes show inherent
authority over nonmembers on fee lands under the so-called Montana test, a requirement
which has been a major impediment to tribes attaining TAS status and adopting WQS. The
interpretive rule explains EPA’s revised interpretation of the statutory requirements in the CWA
and does not propose any changes in the existing regulatory language relating to applications for
TAS. EPA invites comments on this proposal, even though, as an interpretive rule, it is not
subject to notice and comment rulemaking under the Administrative Procedure Act. The deadline
for filing comments is October 6, 2015."
The interpretive rule would reinterpret Section 518 of the Clean Water Act (CWA) as
a delegation of authority by Congress to eligible tribes to administer CWA regulatory
programs over their entire reservations. Tribes and tribal organization have been seeking this
proposed reinterpretation for many years. Under EPA’s current interpretation, only 40 of over
300 federally recognized tribes with reservations have been approved to be treated in the same
manner as a state for adopting tribal WQS.
This proposed interpretation is a very significant shift away from the approach EPA
adopted in 1991 when it promulgated final regulations for the WQS program, which require each
applicant tribe to include a statement describing the basis for its assertion of authority. EPA’s
interpretation of this regulatory requirement, as explained in the preamble of the rulemaking
document, requires that a tribe seeking TAS to administer the WQS on lands owned by
nonmembers of the tribe demonstrate inherent authority to regulate non-tribal members under
principles of federal Indian common law, especially Montana v. United States, 450 U.S. 544
(1981). In Montana, the Supreme Court announced a proposition that, absent a delegation of
federal authority, tribes generally lack inherent sovereignty over nonmembers on fee lands, but
the Court also formulated two exceptions in which tribes may retain inherent civil jurisdiction
over nonmembers. The second exception, which EPA considered relevant for tribal authority for
CWA regulatory programs, provides that tribes may retain inherent civil authority where
nonmember "conduct threatens or has some direct effect on the political integrity, the economic
security, or the health and welfare of the tribe."
EPA took a different approach in implementing the TAS provisions of the Clean Air Act
(CAA) as amended in 1990. In its 1998 CAA TAS final rule, EPA determined that Congress had
delegated authority to tribes to regulate all sources within reservation boundaries. That
interpretation rendered the Montana test inapplicable. The proposed reinterpretation of the CWA
would bring TAS under the CWA in line with EPA’s treatment of tribes under the CAA.
In explaining its proposed reinterpretation, EPA recalled that, in the 1991 rulemaking, it
had considered the question of whether CWA section 518 was a delegation of authority to tribes.
After noting that an opinion by four Supreme Court justices cited section 518 as an example of
119
delegation and that some legislative history supported a finding of such congressional intent,
EPA found that the support for delegation was not sufficiently definitive. EPA wrote that it
considered the question "not resolved" and that EPA would be willing to revisit the issue if
further congressional or judicial guidance indicates that section 518 is properly interpreted as an
express congressional delegation of authority.
EPA’s approvals of TAS for CWA regulatory programs have been challenged several
times, and in each case the reviewing court upheld EPA’s determination. In its proposed
reinterpretation, EPA notes that the first federal court to rule on a challenge to a CWA TAS
determination analyzed CWA section 518 and concluded that it does provide tribes with
delegated regulatory authority over their entire reservations, although that question was not an
issue to be decided in the case. EPA also cites the TAS provisions in section 301(d) of the CAA
as additional relevant insight into congressional intent, with language that was enacted in 1990,
only three years after Congress enacted section 518 of the CWA. When EPA finalized its TAS
regulations implementing section 301(d) of the CAA in 1998, it concluded that Congress had
intended to delegate regulatory authority to eligible tribes over all sources "within the exterior
boundaries of the reservation." In its proposed reinterpretation, EPA notes that similar to the
CAA, CWA section 518 provides eligibility for tribal programs covering water resources "within
the borders of an Indian reservation" and cites the definition of "federal Indian reservation" in
section 518(h) of the CWA as including all land within the limits of a reservation. In light of
these developments and the experience to date in which the TAS application process has become
much more burdensome than EPA anticipated in 1991, EPA now proposes to reinterpret CWA
section 518."
"National Park Service Reopens Comment Period on Proposed Rule on Gathering Plants
for Traditional Purposes in National Parks," Hobbs-Straus General Memorandum 15-061,
August 12, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-061, reported, "As we
previously reported, on April 20, 2015, the National Park Service (NPS) published a proposed
rule on “Gathering of Certain Plants or Plant Parts by Federally Recognized Indian Tribes
for Traditional Purposes.” See our General Memorandum 15-034 (April 30, 2015). The
proposed rule would authorize the NPS Superintendent of a park area to enter into an
agreement with a federally recognized Indian tribe to authorize gathering and removal of
plants or plant parts for traditional purposes. On August 12, NPS published a notice
reopening the comment period on this proposed rule (copy attached). The deadline for filing
comments is now September 28, 2015."
"National Park Service Seeks Nominations to NAGPRA Review Committee," HobbsStraus General Memorandum 15-053. July 20, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-053, reported, "The National Park Service (NPS) announced via the
attached FEDERAL REGISTER notice that it is seeking nominations from Indian tribes,
Native Hawaiian organizations, and traditional Native American religious leaders for one
member to serve on the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation (NAGPRA)
Review Committee. Nominations must be received by August 31, 2015.
The Review Committee consists of seven members appointed by the Secretary of the
Interior, three of whom are appointed from nominations submitted by Indian tribes, Native
Hawaiian organizations, and traditional Native American religious leaders. At least two of these
three members must be traditional Indian religious leaders. NPS states in the notice that the
120
member they are currently seeking nominations for need not be a traditional Indian religious
leader. Membership on the Review Committee is for a period of four years.
The NAGPRA Review Committee is responsible for: 1) Monitoring the NAGPRA
inventory and identification process; 2) Reviewing and making findings related to the identity or
cultural affiliation of cultural items or the return of such items; 3) Facilitating the resolution of
disputes; 4) Compiling an inventory of culturally unidentifiable human remains and developing
a process for disposition of such remains; 5) Consulting with Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian
organizations and museums on matters within the scope of the work of the Review Committee
affecting such tribes or organizations; 6) Consulting with the Secretary of the Interior in the
development of regulations to carry out NAGPRA; and 7) Making recommendations regarding
future care of repatriated cultural items."
"Forest Service Publishes Proposed Directives on American Indian and Alaska Native
Relations,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-056,
July
31,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-056, reported, "On July 24, 2015, the
U.S. Forest Service published a notice in the FEDERAL REGISTER seeking public comments
on proposed revised internal Forest Service directives on American Indian and Alaska
Native relations. 80 Fed. Reg. 44019 (copy attached). The revised directives are to be issued as
a chapter in the Forest Service Manual (FSM 1500, Chapter 1560) and a chapter in a Forest
Service Handbook (FSH 1509.13, Chapter 10). The notice provides a summary and section-bysection analysis of the proposed changes, but not the actual text of the proposed changes. Rather,
it provides a website address: www.fs.fed.us/spf/tribalrelations/bundledconsultation.shtml. The
proposed revised directives can be found at that website, along with the existing directives and
several other documents. As stated in the notice, the Forest Service engaged in consultation with
tribes on these proposed changes in June 2013 and considers this consultation to be ongoing
while the proposed directives are open for public comment. The deadline for submitting
comments is September 22, 2015.
The proposed directives are intended to ensure that the Forest Service complies with
several sources of law and policy, and to ensure that it is accountable for compliance. Among the
sources of authority cited in the notice are two statutes: the Tribal Forest Protection Act of 2004
(PL 108-278; codified at 25 U.S.C. § 3115a) and Title VIII Subtitle B of the Food, Conservation,
and Energy Act of 2008 (the "2008 Farm Bill"; PL 110-246; codified as "Cultural and Heritage
Cooperation Authority" at 25 U.S.C. §§ 3051-3057). The 2004 Act authorizes agreements for
tribes to carry out land management activities on National Forest lands. The 2008 Farm Bill
enacted statutory authority for: reburial of Native American human remains and cultural items on
National Forest lands; ensuring access to National Forest lands for traditional and cultural
purposes; providing trees and forest products to tribes at no charge for traditional and cultural
purposes; and withholding culturally sensitive information from disclosure.
Another source of authority cited for the proposed directives is U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) Regulation 1350-002, Tribal Consultation, Coordination, and Collaboration
(Jan. 18, 2013), available at www.ocio.usda.gov/document/departmental-regulation-1350-002.
That Departmental Regulation, which applies to all USDA agencies including the Forest Service,
was issued to implement President Obama's 2009 Memorandum to Heads of Executive
Departments and Agencies on Tribal Consultation. 121
The notice also says that the proposed directives are intended to implement the
recommendations in the 2012 Report to the Secretary, USDA Policy and Procedures Review and
Recommendations: Indian Sacred Sites. Finally, the notice cites the interagency Memorandum of
Understanding among the Departments of Defense, Interior, Agriculture, and Energy and the
Advisory Council on Historic Preservation regarding Interagency Coordination and
Collaboration for the Protection of Indian Sacred Sites. (Dec. 2012), available at:
www.achp.gov/sacredsiteprotection.html. (See our General Memorandum 12-133 of December
14, 2012.) The proposed directives would implement certain elements of the Action Plan
implementing the Sacred Sites MOU that relate to the Forest Service.
In explaining the background and need for the proposed directives, the notice states,
"Every part of the Forest Service involves Tribal relations; every Forest Service employee shares
in that responsibility." The proposal is intended to "help Forest Service employees improve their
understanding of the requirements, complexities, and opportunities of tribal relations," and to
bring about "changes in behavior that will lead to enhanced relationships with Indian tribes,
which in turn will enable the Forest Service to better accomplish its mission." As such, the Forest
Service believes that the proposed directives "will result in more effective and efficient
protection of tribal rights and interests, as well as better information for the Agency in its
planning, decision making, and program delivery."
As noted above, the revised directives are to be issued as a chapter in the Forest Service
Manual and a chapter in a Forest Service Handbook. The Manual is a system of reference
documents designed to provide Forest Service staff with legal authorities, objectives,
responsibilities, instructions, and guidance needed on an ongoing basis to plan and carry out
programs and activities. The Handbooks contain specialized guidance intended for staff
specialists and technicians.
The proposed Manual release (FSM 1500, Chapter 1560) is 77 pages in length, including
23 pages of references to legal authorities. It would supersede a version of Chapter 1560 that was
released on July 18, 2012. The Handbook release (FSH 1509.13, Chapter 10) is 28 pages in
length and would supersede an interim version of the Handbook that was released on April 1,
2014, and which expires on October 1, 2015. The Handbook includes instructions on how to
conduct consultation with tribes and also addresses training for Forest Service personnel."
"Forest Service Seeks Nominations for Tribal Representative to Forest Resource
Committee,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-052,
July
20,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-052, reported, "The U.S. Forest Service
announced via the attached FEDERAL REGISTER notice that it is renewing the charter of the
Forest Resource Coordinating Committee and seeking nominations for a member
representing Indian tribes to serve on the Committee. Nominations must be received by
August 14, 2015.
The Committee consists of up to 20 members who represent different categories of
stakeholders. Committee members are appointed by the Secretary of Agriculture from
nominations submitted by any individual or organization and serve for staggered terms of up to
three years. The Committee is responsible for: 1) Providing direction and coordination of
actions within the USDA, State Agencies, and the private sector to effectively address the
national priorities with a specific focus on non-industrial private forest land; 2) Clarifying the
responsibilities of each agency represented on the Committee regarding the national
priorities; 3) Providing advice on the allocation of funds, including funding for the Competitive
122
Allocation of Funds Innovation Projects; and 4) Assisting the Secretary in developing and
reviewing the report to Congress.
The national priorities include: 1) Conserving and managing working forest landscapes
for multiple values and use; 2) Protecting forests from threats and restoring forests in response
to threats; and 3) Enhancing public benefits from private forests."
"BLM Seeks Tribal Comments on Proposed Oil & Gas Royalty Regulations for Indian
Lands,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-054,
July
20,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-054, reported, "On July 13,2015, the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) published proposed regulations in the FEDERAL
REGISTER that would update how it measures, accounts, and calculates royalty payments
for oil and gas produced on Indian and federal lands. To provide some perspective on the
importance of these proposed regulations, we note that BLM reports that in FY 2014, "Leases on
tribal and Indian lands produced 56 million barrels of oil, 240 billion cubic feet of natural gas,
182 million gallons of natural gas liquids, with a market value of over $6 billion and generating
royalties of over $1 billion that were all distributed to the applicable tribes and individual allottee
owners." Comments are due by September 11, 2015.
Why Updated Regulations Are Needed. The BLM said that the updates are needed
because the current regulations were written in 1989 and do not reflect technological industry
advancements such as horizontal drilling. Also, a 2015 Government Accountability Office
(GAO) report concluded that management of federal oil and gas resources was a high-risk
area because the Interior Department did not have reasonable assurance that it was
collecting its share of revenue from oil and gas produced on federal lands and waters.
GAO-15-290. Two GAO reports in 2015 and 2014 concluded that the Interior Department
needed to take action to ensure a better return on federal oil and gas resources. GAO-15-39,
GAO-14-50. According to Assistant Secretary Janice M. Schneider, "These updates will help
ensure that oil and gas produced from leases overseen by the BLM is properly measured, that
American taxpayers receive fair value for public resources, and that Indian tribes and allottees,
states and local governments receive the full royalties they are due."
The Proposed Rule Would: • Establish uniform procedures for designating official
points for oil and gas measurement for royalty accounting purposes, known as facility
measurement points, that are applicable to new and existing leases; • Codify existing
guidance related to approving commingling, i.e., the combining of production from
multiple leases, unit Participating Areas (PA), Communitized Areas (CA), or fee or State
properties before the point of royalty measurement; • Establish conditions for the
approval of off-lease oil and gas measurement; • Update requirements related to the use of
valve and drain seals, prohibitions on the use of meter by-passes, and reporting
requirements; • Require operators of new and existing oil and gas facilities to provide new
site facility diagrams designed to help BLM meet its oversight responsibilities; and •
Require purchasers and transporters to comply with the same standards as operators with
respect to records.
Tribal Consultation. Prior to the publication of the proposed rule, the BLM consulted
with Indian tribes in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Farmington, New Mexico, and Billings, Montana in 2011
as well as a 2013 tribal workshop and webcast.
123
A copy of the proposed rule is here: http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2015-0713/pdf/2015-16737.pdf"
Kristi Eaton, “USDA’s Strikeforce Brings Aid to Rural Indian Country,” ICTMN,
October 8, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/08/usdas-strikeforcebrings-aid-rural-indian-country-161999, reported, “The U.S. Department of Agriculture
recently announced nearly $9 million in grants to help assist farmers and ranchers who are
socially disadvantaged, tribal members or veterans.
Many of the recipients are part of USDA’s StrikeForce for Rural Growth and
Opportunity, a program established in 2010 to address issues related to rural poverty. The
program is now in 880 counties in 21 states and Puerto Rico. Some of those counties involve
tribal reservations and pueblos.”
The program is particularly helpful to many reservation Indians who live in some of the
poorest place in the U.,S., in terms of high unemployment, low income, poor housing and lack of
infrastructure.
StrikeForce collaborates with other agencies and the private sector, including and
philanthropy, to bring resources to Indian country. USDA investment since 2010 has brought
more than $6.5 billion to StrikeForce designated areas, including Indian nations, helping create
or save more than 5,100 jobs, helped 126,000 homeowners have housing, and provided 69
million meals to children over the summer.
StrikeForce initiated a program in Oklahoma early in 2015, working closely with many of
the tribes, including the Cheyenne-Arapahoe Tribes and the Choctaw Nation. The Chickasaw
Nation recently received a grant from the USDA Food and Nutrition Service for its work on
childhood hunger and nutrition, while senior USDA officials met with several of the tribes in the
northeast corner of Oklahoma to discuss expanding the program.
At the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation in South Dakota, one StrikeForce focus has been on
infrastructure projects including water and sewer. Another aspect has been working with
Thunder Valley Community Development Corporation, as well as promoting smaller Rural
Business Enterprise grants to Lakota Funds, which promotes economic sustainability on Pine
Ridge, and Four Bands Community Fund for economic development. USDA Rural Development
staff also provided 502 housing loans.
Reservation housing development differs from that of other areas. On reservations, the
developer is either the tribal housing authority or a non-profit organization. The cost of
construction and infrastructure is higher because the reservations are quite remote. This
combined with high rates of poverty make it impossible to pass on the full cost of a house to the
residents. Thus housing projects have to be subsidized by grants, some of which StrikeForece
can provide, while others have to come from other sources, including HUD.
StrikeForce, has worked with many partners since initiating its program in South Dakota
in 2013, including Oglala Lakota College, Sinte Gleska University on the Rosebud Indian
Reservation and the South Dakota Native Homeownership Coalition. It participated in a grant
writing workshop, in 2014, to train rural residents how to find and identify and apply for grants.
The workshop assisted Sinte Gleska University in receiving a grant to purchase four 15passenger vans to transport students. Meanwhile, Oglala Lakota College in Kyle, was able to
receive funds to remodel several remote learning centers across the reservation.
124
"Administration for Children and Families Tribal Consultation on September 14," HobbsStraus General Memorandum 15-057, July 31, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-057, reported, "The Administration for Children and Families (ACF) has
announced in the attached July 28, 2015, FEDERAL REGISTER notice that it will hold a tribal
consultation session and preparatory teleconferences regarding ACF programs and tribal
priorities. The consultation session will be in Washington, DC, on September 14, 2015, and will
begin in the morning. Written testimony is requested by September 8, 2015, but the hearing
record will be held open for 30 days after the consultation session.1
There are many ACF programs and grants of direct importance to tribes including: •
Title IV-B, Subparts 1 and 2, Child Welfare and Promoting Safe and Stable Families • Title IVE Foster Care and Adoption Assistance • Child Support Enforcement • Child Care and
Development Block Grant • Temporary Assistance for Needy Families • Native American
Employment Works Program • Head Start • Family Violence and Prevention Services • Heath
Professions Opportunity Grants • Low Income Housing Energy Assistance Program •
Administration for Native Americans grant programs (including Environmental Regulatory
Enhancement; Native American Language Preservation and Maintenance; and Social and
Economic Development Strategies for Native Americans)
There is also the issue of ACF resistance to the tribal proposal for improving and
including additional programs in the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services
Demonstration Act (or the "477" program). Pending legislation introduced by Representative
Young (R-AK), HR 329, the Indian Employment, Training and Related Services Consolidation
Act of 2015, would expand the 477 program, and was the subject of a House Subcommittee on
Indian, Insular, and Alaska Native Affairs hearing on April 14, 2015. On May 21, 2015, Senators
Murkowski (R-AK) and Sullivan (R-AK) introduced very similar legislation, S 1443.
In preparation for the consultation, ACF has scheduled the following teleconferences: •
August 19 3-3:30 p.m. Eastern Time • August 26 3-3:30 p.m. Eastern Time • September 2 33:30 p.m. Eastern Time
The call-in number is: 866-769-9393. The passcode is: 4449449#."
"Treasury Publishes Final Tribal Consultation Policy," Hobbs-Straus General
Memorandum 15-073, October 16, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15073, reported, "The Department of the Treasury published in the September 23, 2105
FEDERAL REGISTER the attached final tribal consultation policy. The effective date of the
final policy is the date of publication. The final policy supersedes the interim policy which was
published on December 3, 2014, and had been in effect while comments were being considered.
(See our GM 14-094 of December 12, 2014.) There are a number of differences between the
interim policy and the final policy which we describe below. Throughout the Obama
Administration tribal leaders and tribal organizations have called upon Treasury to establish and
publish its tribal consultation policy.
Key Differences Between the Interim and Final Versions of the Policy. The Department
received 25 comments from tribes and intertribal organizations. These comments included
several points that persuaded Treasury to adjust its consultation policy to reflect tribal views,
including the following:
• The statement in the interim policy that "Treasury will endeavor to consult" with tribes
has been changed in the final policy to simply state that "Treasury will consult" with tribes. •
125
The interim policy stated that policy matters of general applicability that may impact tribal
governments would remain outside the scope of tribal consultation, but the final policy reverses
this position to confirm that policy matters of general applicability that may impact tribal
governments are matters for tribal consultation. • Despite extensive tribal comments, the terms
in the interim policy asserting that issues associated with enforcement actions are not subject to
consultation remain the same because Treasury is prohibited by law from engaging in
enforcement matters. The final consultation policy, however, clarifies that in situations where
policy issues affecting multiple tribes arise from an enforcement matter (such as the recent
experiences with the General Welfare Exclusion and Per Capita Trust issues) then the policy
elements will be explored through consultation with tribes. • The final policy now formally
requires the Treasury Point of Contact for Tribal Consultation to acknowledge requests for
consultation "within a reasonable period."
Proposed Changes Not Reflected. Many comments called for the Treasury Tribal
Advisory Committee (TTAC) to have a role in the consultation policy, but no change was made
to the consultation policy because, as was explained to us by Treasury officials, the TTAC is a
"supplemental consultation mechanism that is tax-specific." The Treasury consultation policy
covers not only tax matters but also other (non-tax) policy issues.
Future Changes to the Tribal Consultation Policy. Treasury states "the consultation policy will be
updated periodically and refined as needed to reflect ongoing engagement and collaboration with
Tribal partners."
"HUD Accepting Applications for FY 2015 Indian Community Development Block
Grant; HUD Deputy Assistant Secretary for the Office of Native American Programs to Retire,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-066,
September
15,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-066, reported, "The Department of
Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Office of Native American Programs (ONAP) is
seeking applications for $62.8 million in Indian Community Development Block Grant
(ICDBG) program FY 2015 funds. The purpose of the ICDBG program is the development
of viable Indian and Alaska Native communities, including the creation of decent housing,
suitable living environments, and economic opportunities to principally benefit low- and
moderate-income persons. Eligible applicants are Indian tribes or tribally authorized
organizations applying on behalf of tribes. A webinar for prospective applicants will be held
on September 17 from 2-5 PM EST. Applications are due October 22.
Funding Opportunity Description. There are two types of awards: Single Purpose Grants
($58.8 million available) and Imminent Threat Grants ($3.9 million available).
Single Purpose Grants can be used for a wide variety of activities from economic
development to housing construction. The FY 2015 application adds the following sentences to
clarify that grant funds may be used for projects which benefit tribal youth: "Applicants can use
these funds for a multitude of community development purposes including those that improve
the lives of tribal youth by creating and providing protective factors that build an individual's
resiliency. Accordingly, funds can be used to develop Head Start facilities, Boys and Girl Clubs,
recreational centers, and job training programs as well as to improve the living situations of
entire families." Funding is allocated among the Area ONAPs. Grant ceilings differ by Area
ONAP and by population. Awards will range from $500,000-$1 million. No matching funds are
required. Of the $58.8 million available, HUD expects to make roughly 75 awards.
126
Imminent Threat Grants are to alleviate or remove a threat to health or safety that
requires an immediate solution. An application for Imminent Threat funds may be submitted at
any time. Imminent Threat applications are funded on a first-come first-served basis until the
amount set aside for this purpose is exhausted.
Additional Information • Guidance is here. • Detailed information on the grant program
and how to apply is here. • The application is here. • Information on the September 17 webinar
will be posted here. Retirement at ONAP. On October 2, 2015, Rodger Boyd, the Deputy
Assistant Secretary for the Office of Native American Programs will retire. Lourdes Castro
Ramirez, the Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of the Office of Public and Indian Housing,
states that a temporary Deputy Assistant Secretary will be appointed soon. The Dear Tribal
Leader Letter is here."
Mark Fogarty, “Feds Expand Homeless Services for Native Veterans,” ICTMN,
November 11, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/11/feds-expandhomeless-services-native-veterans-162332, reported, “After consulting with tribes, two federal
departments are launching a novel joint outreach to assist American Indian veterans who
are homeless or likely to become so. The effect is to add a Native component to services
reservation Indian vets had been shut out of before.
The U.S. Departments of Housing and Urban Development and Veterans Affairs are
now ready to launch a demonstration program to offer a permanent home and supportive
services to Native vets.
The Tribal HUD-Veterans Affairs Supportive Housing (Tribal HUD-VASH)
program will combine $4 million in rental assistance from HUD with case management and
clinical services provided by VA to serve approximately 600 Native American veterans.”
“HUD is inviting 30 eligible tribes to seek Tribal HUD-VASH vouchers to help house
and serve an estimated 600 Native American veterans who are currently experiencing
homelessness or at extreme risk of becoming homeless. Four million dollars has been allocated
to the demonstration program.
HUD will be providing the rental assistance, while VA will deliver supportive case
management services.”
Mark Fogarty, “Loan Wars: Indian Mortgage Program Pushes Back Against Criticism,”
ICTMN, August 14, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/08/14/loan-warsindian-mortgage-program-pushes-back-against-criticism-161358.
Reported,
“A
federal
Inspector General’s office has rapped a popular American Indian mortgage program,
alleging lax underwriting. But the guarantor of the loans, the Department of Housing and
Urban Development’s Office of Native American Programs, has pushed back hard against
that assessment.
The HUD Inspector General has alleged ONAP’s Office of Loan Guarantee “did not
provide adequate oversight of the Section 184 program, resulting in an increased overall
risk to the program, including guaranteeing 3,845 loans totaling more than $705 million that
were not underwritten in accordance with program guidelines. On an annualized basis looking
forward, this is equivalent to $77 million in loans that have a higher risk of loss in the first year.”
Claiming that the OLG did not adequately supervise the mortgage program (which
has extended more than $4.5 billion in credit through more than 28,000 loans since 1995), OIG
said “a review of 95 statistically sampled loans guaranteed from January 1, 2010, to July 31,
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2014, determined that 32 of 95 loans had material underwriting deficiencies.
‘The OLG did not adequately monitor, track, and evaluate participating lenders to
ensure that loans were underwritten in accordance with the Section 184 processing
guidelines,’ according to the inspector general’s report. ‘This lack of oversight and high
incidence of poorly underwritten loans has the potential to negatively impact the financial
standing of Native American communities.’
In addition, the inspector general said HUD did not satisfactorily review enough of the
lenders and loans in the program, which guarantees 100 percent of a lender’s outlays. “For
fiscal year 2014, OLG conducted monitoring reviews of three lenders, but only eight loans were
reviewed of 3,447 loans originated by 128 lenders,” the report stated.
The Inspector General’s report recommends a slew of corrective actions, including a
standardized monthly delinquency report format and a policy for denying payments to
direct guarantee lenders for claims on loans that have material underwriting deficiencies.
Rodger Boyd, HUD assistant deputy secretary for Native programs, rebutted the
OLG report by saying its statistical sample was too small and didn’t correlate with actual
program losses.”
"U.S. Labor Department Issues Guidance on Employees versus Independent
Contractors,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-055,
July
31,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-055, reported, "On July 15, 2015, the
Director of the U.S. Department of Labor issued new guidance to clarify the confusing line
between a traditional employee and an independent contractor. The guidance is intended to
cut back on worker misclassification, which occurs when workers are classified as contractors
when they should be employees, and vice versa. The Department is responding to a significant
increase in the number of people classified as contractors, which is important because contractors
are not covered by workplace regulations such as overtime, occupational safety, and
unemployment insurance. A copy of the new interpretation can be found here:
http://www.dol.gov/whd/workers/Misclassification/AI-2015_1.htm.
The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) defines employees as "any individual employed by
an employer." 29 U.S.C. 203(e)(1). The FLSA also states that to "employ" is "to suffer or permit
to work." 29 U.S.C. 203(g).
The Department's new guidance states that an economic realities test should instead
govern the issue of worker classification. The Department states: Ultimately, the goal of the
economic realities test is to determine whether a worker is economically dependent on the
employer (and is therefore an employee) or is really in business for him or herself (and is
therefore an independent contractor).
The Department proposes that the economic dependence of a worker should be
determined by using a six-part test based on: 1) Whether the work performed is an integral part
of the employer's business; 2) How the worker's managerial skill affects his or her opportunity
for profit; 3) How much the worker (and the employer) invests in a business or project; 4)
Whether the work performed requires special skill or initiative; 5) Whether the worker's
relationship with the employer is permanent or indefinite; and 6) The nature and degree of the
employer's control.
The guidance states that no one factor is determinative and "each factor should be considered in
light of the ultimate determination of whether the worker is really in business for him or
128
herself…or is economically dependent on the employer." The Department takes the position that
the FLSA was originally intended to provide a broad scope of coverage for workers.
We note that the new guidance will have an impact on Indian tribes in certain
jurisdictions.
The FLSA is a statute of general applicability which does not specifically include Indian
tribes. Nevertheless, the question of whether Indian tribes are subject to the FLSA is disputed
although certain federal courts of appeal have issued rulings.
The Seventh Circuit has held that the FLSA does not apply to an intertribal law
enforcement agency. Reich v. Great Lakes Fish and Wildlife Commission, 4 F.3d 490 (1993). On
the other hand, the Ninth Circuit has held that the overtime compensation provisions in the FLSA
do apply to the employees of an Indian-owned retail store located on a reservation. Solis v.
Matheson, 56"
“Highly Fractionated Indian Land Loan Program Final Rule Issued,” Hobbs-Straus
General Memorandum 15-084, December 11, 2015, http://hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-084, reported, “On December 1, 2015, the Farm Service Agency (FSA) of
the Department of Agriculture issued a final rule for the Highly Fractionated Indian Land
Loan Program. Under that program, authorized in the 2014 Farm Bill, FSA provides
revolving loan funds to intermediary lenders who in turn loan funds to tribal members,
tribes and tribal entities to purchase highly fractionated Indian land. While the rule became
effective December 1, FSA will consider comments received by February 26, 2016, and could
change the regulations accordingly. We attach the final rule.
Under the rule FSA will work with the intermediary lenders, providing oversight of the
loan process and procedures, but will not provide oversight to the ultimate loan recipients. FSA
will also work with the Bureau of Indian Affairs on procedures for the loan recipients "to resolve
the undivided interests in the fractionated land." The intermediary lender must have "a record of
successful lending in Indian Country and knowledge and experience working with the BIA."
Eligible lenders are private and tribal nonprofit corporations, public agenices, tribes and tribal
corporations.
The fractionated land purchased through the Highly Fractionted Indian Land Loan
Program must be used for agricultural purposes during the period of the loan. It must be used to
acquire at least 50 percent of the parcel and interests in the land – interests include rights-of-way,
water rights, and easements. The loan may also be used to pay costs incidental to land acquisition
– i.e, title clearance, legal services, surveys, loan closing.
The rule includes a number of definitions, including "Indian Country land",
"Native American tribe", and "Tribal entity." It defines "highly fractionated" as being an
undivided interest held by four or more individuals – this differs with the definition in 25
U.S.C. 2201 which requires 50 or more undivided owners. FSA explains that comments were
received during tribal consultation that requiring 50 undivided owners would exclude too many
parcels of land.”
"Census Bureau Tribal Consultations on 2020 Census," Hobbs-Straus General
Memorandum 15-058, July 31, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15058, reported, "The Bureau of the Census (Bureau) is soliciting comments, via the attached
July 13, 2015, FEDERAL REGISTER notice, regarding its upcoming tribal consultations on
the 2020 decennial Census. The Bureau anticipates eight tribal consultation meetings and one
129
national webinar. The meetings are "open to members of federally recognized tribes by
invitation." The invitation to tribal leaders was sent via letter on July 13 (attached), and we were
told by the Census Bureau that tribal leaders may request the presence of a non-tribal person at a
consultation session. The Bureau is asking for recommendations by September 30, 2015, for
suggested topics and questions. In addition, the Bureau seeks comments regarding:
• Enumeration – the process by which data is collected for the decennial Census and ways
to increase the response; • Demographic Statistics – how the collection of data on age, sex, and
racial composition has changed through the processes of birth, death, and migration; •
Geography – ways to use the best available geographic methodologies to support context to the
Census design, data collection, tabulation and data dissemination; • 2020 Census Field
Partnerships and Recruitment – how to maximize public engagement and to encourage
response; • 2020 Census Communications and Planning – how to improve communications and
increase accuracy.
Tribes may want to address issues including the apparent undercount of the AI/AN onreservation population and ways to eliminate this problem; increased Bureau assistance to help
tribes prepare for and conduct Census activities; hiring and training of on-reservation tribal
members for Census work; tribal review and update of maps used by enumerators in the Census;
timely availability to tribes of 2020 Census results; and discussion of the implications if the
Bureau decides to add Hispanic to the list of races in the 2020 Census.
The Bureau has not confirmed meeting dates and times but has listed the locations/times
under consideration which can be found here: http://census.gov/aian/census_2020. Under
consideration are sessions at upcoming Indian organization conferences, i.e., Alaska Federation
of Natives, National Congress of American Indians, United South and Eastern Tribes. To register
for a session, go to: http://2020census.kauffmaninc.com/"
Federal Indian Budgets
"FY 2016 Continuing Resolution through December 11 Approved By Congress," HobbsStraus General Memorandum 15-071, September 30, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-071, reported, "The House and Senate, on the last day of the fiscal year,
approved a Continuing Resolution (CR), HR 719, which will provide FY 2016 funding for
federal agencies from the beginning of the fiscal year (October 1, 2015) through December
11, 2015, thus averting a partial government shutdown. The CR would, by and large, provide
funding on a pro rata basis at the FY 2015 levels under the authority and conditions of the
FY 2015 Appropriations Act. The President will sign the CR.
The contentious issue of funding for Planned Parenthood, which threatened to derail the
CR, was not included in the bill, although it will be an issue as Congress works toward an
agreement to fund federal agencies beyond December 11. The Senate approved the CR by a vote
of 78 to 20, while the House approved it on a 277 to 151 vote.
Funding Level/Limitations on the Distribution of Funds. As noted above, funding for
most programs during period of the CR will be at FY 2015 levels and conditions. There is a 0.21
percent (one fifth of one percent) across-the-board reduction. Because the bill brings forward
the FY 2015 funding levels and terms, that includes any increases that were included for advance
appropriations in the FY 2015 Appropriations Act (i.e., Veterans Administration medical
accounts) and also does not take into account FY 2015 rescissions, hence the small across-the-
130
board reduction in calculating FY 2016 CR amounts. The FY 2015 CR also had a small acrossthe-board reduction.
The CR funds will not be distributed for programs that may have high initial rates
of operation or for funds which are fully distributed at the beginning of the fiscal year. This
is because of the possibility that Congress might eliminate or reduce funding for those particular
programs in a final appropriations bill.
With regard to the distribution of funds during the covered period, the CR states: This
Act shall be implemented so that only the most limited funding action of that permitted in
the Act shall be taken in order to provide for continuation of projects and activities. However, agencies will be allowed to apportion funds in a manner that would avoid
furloughing employees. These provisions are common in CRs and were also included in the FY
2015 CR.
Mandatory Funding Programs. Funding for entitlement and mandatory payments
which was provided for in the FY 2015 Appropriations Act as well as activities under the
Food and Nutrition Act will be continued at a rate that maintains current program levels.
Funding will be available to offset food price increases in the Commodity Supplemental
Food Program.
Anomalies. Anomalies, provisions that differ from those in FY 2015, are relatively few
and none are tribal-specific. Of significance is the inclusion of a $700 million increase for the
Forest Service for wildland fire suppression. Also included is an extension of the Internet Tax
Freedom Act (which prevents states and local governments from taxing internet access) through
the period of the CR. Attached is a section-by-section summary of the CR which includes a
description of the anomalies.
What's Next. Congress will now need to reach an agreement on funding for the remainder
of FY 2016. With the resignation of House Speaker Boehner (R-OH) effective October 30, the
House will move forward with negotiations with a new and even more conservative leadership –
those leadership elections are scheduled for October 8. This week Senate Majority Leader
McConnell (R-KY) has voiced support for reaching a two-year (FYs 2016-2017) budget
agreement which would include increased spending caps – something which has been the
President's and congressional Democrats' position all year. While House and Senate
Appropriations Chairs have said they want an omnibus appropriations bill which reflects their
Committees work on FY 2016 funding levels, it remains to be seen whether that will happen or
whether Congress will enact another CR with flat funding levels.
Among the many things at stake are hoped-for increases in the IHS and Indian Affairs
budgets which have been recommended by the Administration and/or the House and Senate
Interior Appropriations Subcommittees (for example: full and mandatory funding for Contract
Support Costs; as well as increases for IHS Purchased/Referred Care; BIE tribal schools Tribal
Grant Support Costs; BIE school construction; and in the House Labor-HHS-Education bill, a
number of tribal-specific increases). A year-long FY 2016 CR would thwart any of these
proposals.
Because the CR funds programs on a pro rata basis at FY 2015 levels, we list for your
convenience our General Memoranda (GM) on selected federal agencies' final FY 2015
appropriations: Indian Health Service GM 14-099 of December 17, 2014 Indian Affairs
(BIA/BIE) GM 15-003 of January 9, 2015 Labor-HHS-Education and Related Agencies GM 15008 of January 13, 2015 Agriculture Department GM 15-009 of January 23, 2015 Justice
Department GM 15-013 of January 30, 2015
131
We expect the Office of Management and Budget to issue guidance to federal
agencies in carrying out the Continuing Resolution."
“FY 2016 Continuing Resolution through December 16 Approved By Congress,” HobbsStraus General Memorandum 15-083, December 11,2015, http://hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-083, reported, “Congress has approved, and the President will sign, a
Continuing Resolution (CR), HR 2250, which will provide FY 2016 funding for federal
agencies from December 12 through December 16, 2015. The previous CR extended
through December 11. The Senate approved the stopgap measure on December 10 and the
House on December 11. Thus, the threat of a partial government shutdown – the second close
call this fiscal year – was averted. The CR would, by and large, provide funding on a pro rata
basis at the FY 2015 levels under the authority and conditions of the FY 2015 Appropriations
Act. See our General Memorandum 15-071 (September 30, 2015) regarding the prior CR.
This five-day CR is intended to give the House and Senate still more time to work out
their disagreements on many proposed policy riders, most of which are being promoted by
Republican members. Democrats contend that they have compromised on the overall funding
level and will not accept "poison pill" riders. Among the proposed policy riders are ones that
would: defund Planned Parenthood; place further restrictions on immigrants coming to the U.S.
from Syria and Iraq; end the oil export embargo; undo some of the Dodd-Frank financial
regulations; undo some EPA regulations regarding clean water and the scope of which waters are
under EPA/Corps of Engineers jurisdiction; restrict the National Labor Relations Board; and
loosen the campaign contributions restrictions on political parties. Another issue in the mix is the
House Interior Appropriations report language which would prohibit federal funding to be spent
to implement the Bureau of Indian Affairs' new federal recognition regulations.”
“Congress Considering FY 2016 Consolidated Appropriations Bill; IHS and BIA
Contract Support Costs Funded on a Mandatory Basis,” Hobbs Straus General Memorandum 15086, December 17, 2015, http://hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-086, reported, “On
December 16, 2015, congressional leaders reached a compromise agreement on a proposal
that would fund all twelve federal agencies for the rest of the fiscal year (through
September 30, 2016). Titled the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2016, the bill runs 2000
plus pages and it is to be linked with legislation that would extend many expiring tax provisions.
The House of Representatives and the Senate are scheduled to vote on the bill December 18.
There is some conservative Republican opposition to the bill and many Democrats are not at this
point making commitments for or against it. The President, however, has indicated that he would
sign it. Federal agencies are currently being funded under a third FY 2016 Continuing
Resolution (CR), this one funding agencies at their FY 2015 levels through December 22,
2015. Despite differing views, the parties are generally united in not wanting another
government shutdown nor a year-long CR.
The bill totals $1.15 trillion, with more than half of the funding for defense. Division G
of the bill is the funding for the Interior, Environment and Related Agencies, which includes the
Indian Health Service (IHS) and Indian Affairs (Bureau of Indian Affairs and Bureau of Indian
Education). Accompanying the bill is an Explanatory Statement for each Division. In addition to
what is in the Explanatory Statement for Division G, the House and Senate appropriations report
language ((H. Rept. 114-170) and (S. Rept. 114-70) from consideration of Interior appropriations
bills earlier in the process) is to be complied with unless specifically contradicted by the bill
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language or the Explanatory Statement.
We will be writing detailed memoranda on the IHS and Indian Affairs budgets, but attach
here the funding charts for those agencies. Most notable in the bill is the treatment of IHS and
BIA Contract Support Costs (CSC), both of which would be funded under their own account.
The attached budget chart specifies $277 million for BIA CSC and $717.9 million for IHS CSC,
however, the bill language states that funding for CSC for both agencies would be at "such sums
as may be necessary." Should the need for CSC exceed the amount listed in the budget chart
additional CSC funds will be made available and the agencies' program funding will not be
reduced.
In a related and long overdue development, the bill includes in the BIE budget $73.2
million to fully fund the estimated need for tribally operated schools' Tribal Grant Support
Costs – the schools' equivalent of Contract Support Costs. Funding for Indian Affairs
overall would see a 7.5 % or $194.6 million increase over FY 2015 enacted.
The IHS appropriation would be $4.8 billion, a 3.5% increase over FY 2015 enacted.
The bill would provide $19 million for pay increases but does not appear to have funding
for medical inflation, for which the President requested $71 million.”
"FY 2016 Indian Affairs Funding: Administration's Request vs Congressional
Proposals,"
Hobbs-Straus
General
Memorandum
15-048,
July
7,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-048, reported, "In this Memorandum we
compare the Administration's FY 2016 request for Indian Affairs (which includes the
Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and Bureau of Indian Education (BIE)) appropriations
with the FY 2016 amounts approved by the House and Senate Appropriations Committees.
The House bill is currently being considered on the House floor. The President has issued a veto
threat against that bill based on the policy riders it contains and the funding levels it would
provide. Both House and Senate bills would provide important increases for Indian Affairs
priorities above the FY 2015 enacted levels but do not break the overall spending caps set forth
in the Budget Control Act. The President's position on FY 2016 appropriations is that Members
of Congress must come together to craft a budget deal similar to the deal reached for FYs 2014
and 2015 which provided increased discretionary spending in exchange for reductions elsewhere
in the federal budget. The spending levels in the Administration's FY 2016 request are based on
an assumption that a budget deal will be reached for FY 2016 and the overall spending caps will
be raised. Because Congress and the President are at odds, it is likely that FY 2016
appropriations will not be resolved until late into 2015. Attached in chart form is the
Administration's request. We describe in narrative only those subactivities and line items which
differ significantly from FY 2015 enacted amounts and terms.
INDIAN AFFAIRS (IA) OVERVIEW
For FY 2016, the Administration requests $2.9 billion for Indian Affairs, $323.5
million above FY 2015 enacted levels. The House Appropriations Committee proposes $2.7
billion while the Senate Appropriations Committee proposes $2.6 billion.
Fixed Costs. The Administration's request for the Indian Affairs budget includes $18.3
million to fully fund increases attributed to fixed costs. The House does not include increases for
fixed costs in its proposal. Within the Indian Affairs budget, the Senate specifies the following
regarding fixed costs for OPERATION OF INDIAN PROGRAMS: Fixed costs have been
included throughout the core programs based upon actual expenditures for the enacted fiscal year
and internal transfers have been accepted. (S. Rept. 114-70, p. 37)
133
And fixed costs for CONSTRUCTION: …fixed costs based upon actual expenditures
have been included and internal transfers have been accepted. (S. Rept. 114-70, p. 40)
Indirect Costs. The House Report states:
The Committee is concerned that a recent Administration policy change with regard to
indirect cost reimbursement may not fairly apply to Indian Tribes and tribal organizations. The
Secretary is directed to report to the Committee justifying this policy change and in particular its
application to tribal enrollment activities. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 40)
Contract Support Costs (CSC). A major development is the Administration's proposal to
enact legislation to make BIA and IHS contract support costs (CSC) fully funded on a mandatory
basis effective beginning in FY 2017. This proposal would require authorizing legislation. For
FY 2016, the Administration requests and the House and Senate concur with a (discretionary)
level of funding estimated to fully fund CSC for FY 2016 but differ in how to achieve this. The
House proposes to keep Contract Support and the Indian Self-Determination Fund within the
Operation of Indian Programs account. The Senate, however, proposes to create a new Contract
Support Costs account, separate from the Operation of Indian Programs account, which would
include both Contract Support and the Indian Self-Determination Fund. The Senate's seemingly
lower proposed amount for Operation of Indian Programs reflects this proposed transfer.
Tribal Grant Support Costs. The Administration proposes an increase above FY 2015 in
order to fully fund Tribal Grant Support Costs for tribes operating BIE-funded schools. The
House concurs, explaining that funding these costs is consistent with the policy of fully funding
contract support costs.
Tiwahe (Family)Initiative. In FY 2015 the Administration, in response to the high rates
of poverty, substance abuse, suicide, and violent crime in Indian Country (which put children at
risk) proposed a comprehensive and integrated approach to address these often interrelated
problems. The Administration requested $11.5 million for the Tiwahe Initiative which would
broaden the focus to the family unit by: increasing the number of social workers dedicated to
child protection; expanding job training opportunities; creating a pilot program to provide
alternatives to incarceration and increased treatment opportunities; and expanding the
qualification for housing services to alleviate overcrowding. For FY 2016 the Administration
requests targeted increases to the Human Services activity and Public Safety and Justice activity
to build on gains made in FY 2015. Congress largely agrees to the targeted increases for the
Tiwahe initiative but differs in the amounts proposed.
Indian Reorganization Act – Carcieri Fix. The Administration continues to request
language which would reverse the U.S. Supreme Court's 2009 decision that the Secretary of the
Interior does not have authority to take land into trust for tribes recognized after 1934. The
language that the Administration requests is the same as that which was requested, but not
enacted, in FYs 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015. (FY 2016 Appendix, Budget of the U.S.
Government, p. 716) Neither House Committee nor Senate Committee included this requested
language.
Federal Recognition. The House bill contains language which would restrict the Secretary
of Interior from moving forward with the proposed rule on Federal Acknowledgment. We note
that since the bill's drafting, the final rule was published in the FEDERAL REGISTER on July 1,
2015. (80 Fed. Reg. 37861 et seq.). The House bill states: Provided further, That none of the
funds made available by this or any other Act may be used by the Secretary to finalize,
implement, administer, or enforce the proposed rule entitled "Federal Acknowledgement of
134
American Indian Tribes" published by the Department of the Interior in the Federal Register on
May 29, 2014 (79 Fed. Reg. 30766 et seq.). (H.R. 2822, p. 35)
OPERATION OF INDIAN PROGRAMS
FY 2015 Enacted $2,429,236,000 FY 2016 Admin. Request $2,660,591,000 FY 2016
House Committee $2,505,670,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $2,232,419,000
Operation of Indian Programs (OIP) budget includes the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) and the
Bureau of Indian Education (BIE).
BUREAU OF INDIAN AFFAIRS
Activities within the Bureau of Indian Affairs are: Tribal Government; Human Services; TrustNatural Resources Management; Trust-Real Estate Services; Public Safety and Justice;
Community and Economic Development; and Executive Direction and Administrative Services.
TRIBAL GOVERNMENT
FY 2015 Enacted $547,679,000 FY 2016 Admin. Request $583,767,000 FY 2016 House
Committee $573,911,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $301,517,000* *This lower amount
reflects the proposed transfer of Contract Support and the Indian Self-Determination Fund to a
separate account.
The Tribal Government subactivities are: Aid to Tribal Government; Consolidated Tribal
Government Program; Self-Governance Compacts; Contract Support; Indian Self-Determination
Fund; New Tribes; Small and Needy Tribes; Road Maintenance; and Tribal Government
Program Oversight. (See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-1)
Full Funding for Contract Support Costs: Administration, House, and Senate differ in
how to achieve this. + $26 million above FY 2015 is requested, estimated to be enough to fully
fund Contract Support. The House and Senate Committees concur with the Administration's
$272 million request for Contract Support but differ in how this would be achieved. For further
information on Contract Support Costs, please see p. 19-22 of this Memorandum.
New Tribes. The Administration and Congress propose flat funding. The Senate Report
states:
[The Committee] notes the challenge of reconciling the timing of the tribal recognition
process with the annual budget formulation process. If additional tribes are recognized during
fiscal year 2016 beyond those contemplated in the budget request, the Bureau is urged to support
their capacity building efforts to the extent feasible. (S. Rept. 114-70, p. 37)
Small and Needy Tribes. + $1.2 million above FY 2015 is requested. The Administration
notes "there are currently tribes and villages that receive less than the recommended TPA base
funding. An analysis will be conducted to reexamine this group of tribes who have fallen below
the established thresholds…" (Admin. Request, p. IA-TG-2). Congress proposes flat funding.
Tribal Government Program Oversight. + $4 million above FY 2015 is requested ($2
million for Central Oversight, $2 million for Regional Oversight) to develop a national One-Stop
Tribal Support Center "to make it easier to for tribes to find and access information about the
programs, services, and funding opportunities available to tribes across the federal
government…The One-Stop center will advance an 'all of government' approach to meeting
tribal needs, delivering on federal responsibilities, advancing government-to-government
relationships, and supporting tribal nation building." (Admin. Request, p. IA-TG-2). Congress
proposes flat funding.
135
Road Maintenance. The Administration and the Senate propose flat funding. The House
proposes a nominal increase. The House Report states: The Committee recognizes that too many
roads on Indian reservations are in poor condition and are a significant safety concern. (H. Rept.
114-170, p. 37)
HUMAN SERVICES
FY 2015 Enacted $142,634,000 FY 2016 Admin. Request $149,004,000 FY 2016
House Committee $143,634,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $146,004,000
The Human Services subactivities are: Social Services; Welfare Assistance; Indian Child
Welfare Act (ICWA); Housing Improvement Program (HIP); Human Services Tribal Design;
and Human Services Program Oversight. (See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-1)
Social Services-Tiwahe Initiative. + $6 million above FY 2015 is requested to continue
the work of the Tiwahe initiative. "The Tiwahe initiative supports the White House's crossagency Generation Indigenous initiative, which takes a comprehensive, culturally appropriate
approach to help improve the lives and opportunities for Native Youth. Tiwahe, specifically, is a
plan to strengthen Indian families and promote family stability in order to fortify tribal
communities." (Admin. Request, p. IA-HS-1). The House instead proposes a $1 million increase
above FY 2015 for the Tiwahe initiative while the Senate proposes a $3 million increase above
FY 2015.
TRUST–NATURAL RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
The Trust–Natural Resources Management subactivities are: Natural Resources;
Irrigation Operation and Maintenance; Rights Protection Implementation; Tribal
Management/Development
Programs;
Endangered
Species;
Tribal
Climate
Resilience/Cooperative Landscape Conservation; Integrated Resource Information; Agriculture
and Range; Forestry; Water Resources; Fish/Wildlife & Parks; and Resource Management
Oversight. (See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-1)
The Administration requests a total of $46.9 million in increases above FY 2015 for
Trust-Natural Resources Management while the House proposes flat funding and the Senate
counters with some nominal increases.
The House Report states:
The Committee is concerned about tribal communities that face severe challenges to their
long-term resilience because of risks associated with climate, geography, and extreme weather
conditions. The Bureau is encouraged to work with at-risk Tribes to identify and expedite the
necessary resources to support mitigation and, where necessary, relocation. (H. Rept. 114-170, p.
37)
The Senate Report states:
The recommendation includes $189,846,000 for trust and natural resources programs, an
increase of $4,994,000 above the enacted level. Within that amount, program increases include
funding to support a level of $37,638,000 for rights protection implementation programs and an
additional $2,000,000 for forest thinning activities." (S. Rept. 114-70, p. 37)
The Administration requests the following increases:
Natural Resources. + $3 million above FY 2015 is requested to support the expansion of
a Natural Resources Youth Program that will "focus on the protection, enhancement, and
conservation of natural resources through science, education, and cultural learning." (Admin.
Request, p. IA-TNR-2) Congress proposes flat funding.
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Irrigation Operations and Maintenance. + $1.5 million above FY 2015 is requested to
"incorporate climate resilience planning through modernization studies for BIA irrigation
projects…[and] to provide additional water measurement training to BIA and tribal staff, and to
provide for water measurement and associated delivery system improvements." (Admin.
Rights Protection Implementation. + $4.5 million above FY 2015 is requested to "provide
additional support to the existing programs to allow them to assess and address various existing
and potential climate change impacts to all of the natural resources within their communities."
The Rights Protection Implementation program provides base funding for affected tribes to meet
Federal court litigated and mitigated responsibilities in the conservation and management of fish
and wildlife resources. (Admin. Request, p. IA-TNR-3) The House proposes flat funding while
the Senate proposes a $2 million increase above FY 2015.
Tribal Management/Development. + $5 million above FY 2015 is requested to "enable
tribes to further climate resilience on tribal landscapes through new and supplemented applicable
scientific technologies: climate training; technical capacity, analysis and monitoring." (Admin.
Endangered Species. + $1 million above FY 2015 is requested to "support scientific
monitoring and analysis to integrate consideration of changing climate conditions into this work
on endangered species to inform tribal leaders and partners in decision making and resource
management." (Admin. Request, p. IA-TNR-3) Congress proposes flat funding.
Tribal Climate Resilience. + $20.4 million above FY 2015 is requested to "provide
competitive awards to support critically vulnerable coastal artic communities and to help sustain
tribal ecosystems supporting fish, wildlife, timber and other natural resources, and critical
subsistence and cultural resources. This assistance will allow for the development of science,
tools, and climate resilience assessment and planning, as well as adaptation activities to respond
to current and projected impacts of climate change. The increase will also support two additional
FTE to further developments on Integrated Resource Management Planning and to coordinate
bureauwide efforts on climate preparedness and resilience within all of the BIA natural resource
programs." (Admin. Request, p. IA-TNR-3-4) Congress proposes flat funding.
Integrated Resource Info Program. + $1 million above FY 2015 is requested to "provide
for two additional FTE to coordinate climate related activity, allowing Office of Trust Services
Geospatial Support to improve its commitment to providing Geographic Information Systems
framework to accelerate the ability of tribal governments to access content, do analyses and
share results related to climate resilience." (Admin. Request, p. IA-TNR-4) Congress proposes
flat funding.
Forestry Projects. + $4 million above FY 2015 is requested (Admin. Request, p. IA-TNR4-5). The House proposes flat funding while the Senate instead proposes a $2 million increase
above FY 2015. The Administration specifies that the requested $4 million increase be allocated
as follows: • + $2 million for Forest Development for thinning of overstocked forests to create
stand and forest resiliency to wildfire, insect epidemics, and disease infestations which are being
intensified as a result of climate change. (The Senate concurs with this requested increase.) • +
$1 million for Resource Management Planning projects that include Integrated Resource
Management Plans, Forest Management Plans, and Stand Level Inventories. • + $1 million for
environmental assessment and compliance projects associated with NEPA requirements.
Water Mgmt., Planning & Pre-Development. + $4.5 million above FY 2015 is requested
to "fund additional activities necessary to manage and develop tribal water resources, support
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additional BIA water management staff, and to provide an amount not to exceed $2.5 million for
use by the Secretary's Indian Water Rights Office in analyzing individual water settlement
proposals, training settlement negotiation and implementation teams, and otherwise
implementing national policy objectives concerning Indian water settlements." (Admin. Request,
p. IA-TNR-5) Congress proposes flat funding.
Fish, Wildlife & Parks Projects. + $2 million above FY 2015 is requested to "afford tribes
the opportunity to modify and engage efforts measured to emerging micro and macro climate
issues, and ensure resilience in planning, development and operations with climate management
considerations." (Admin. Request, p. IA-TNR-5-6) Congress proposes flat funding.
TRUST–REAL ESTATE SERVICES
The Trust–Real Estate Services subactivities are: Trust Services; Navajo-Hopi Settlement
Program; Probate; Land Title and Records Offices; Real Estate Services; Land Records
Improvement; Environmental Quality; Alaskan Native Programs; Rights Protection; and TrustReal Estate Services Oversight. (See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-1)
The Administration requests a total of $16.2 million in increases above FY 2015 for Trust-Real
Estate Services while the House proposes a $1.1 million cut below FY 2015. The House also
pushes back against the Administration's goal to place 500,000 acres of land into trust, and citing
ongoing litigation, calls into question the land placed into trust for the Cowlitz tribe. The Senate
counters with a nominal proposed increase above FY 2015 (taking into account fixed costs) and
urges speedy action on rights-of-way approvals.
The recommendation includes $125,817,000 for trust-real estate services, $1,185,000
below the fiscal year 2015 enacted level. The Committee is concerned about the Department's
goal of placing more than 500,000 acres of land into trust by the end of fiscal year 2016. Such a
goal incentivizes haste and leads to situations such as in Clark County, Washington. On March 9,
2015, the Department took into trust approximately 152 acres in Clark County on behalf of the
Cowlitz Indian tribe, notwithstanding ongoing litigation in the matter. The Committee directs the
Department to: (1) report to the Committee within 30 days of enactment of this Act on (a) the
process it has established for taking the land out of trust should the court order the Department to
do so; and (b) the cost to the Department of taking the land out of trust; and (2) focus not on an
acre goal but on reducing the current backlog of fee-to-trust applications. It is entirely
appropriate for the government's goal to be to process those applications as efficiently and fairly
as possible. The Committee recommends cuts to central and regional oversight in light of the
program's current goal." (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 37-38)
The bill provides $127,486,000, an increase of $484,000 above the enacted level for
trust-real estate services programs. The Committee recognizes natural gas flaring has been an
ongoing issue in places of energy development, including on tribal lands. The Committee also
recognizes the challenge of attracting investment and building infrastructure and understands that
rights-of-way approvals are an important component to reduce natural gas flaring. The
Committee is aware there are significant delays in getting rights-of-way approvals and
encourages the Department to move forward with reservation-wide fair market appraisals that
provide fair market values to all parties affected for future rights-of-way applications on energyaffected tribal lands with natural gas flaring. (S. Rept. 114-70, p. 37-38)
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Probate. + $1 million above FY 2015 is requested to "allow the program to hire an additional 10
Probate FTE, which will allow for 280 additional probates to be processed annually." (Admin.
Request, p. IA-RES-2)
Land Title and Record Office (LTRO). + $2 million above FY 2015 is requested to
"support 18 additional FTE to be placed at the LTROs, to better address the increased and new
type of workload created by the Fee To Trust and energy initiatives in addition to the regular
records cleanup and geospatial support provided. (Admin. Request, p. IA-RES-2)
Land Records Improvement (Central). + $1.8 million above FY 2015 is requested to "allow BIA
to avoid possible future litigation by fully funding the basic operation and maintenance of the
Trust Asset and Accounting Management System while maintaining support for the one position
at central office that maintains Land, Title and Records activities and geospatial oversight.
(Admin. Request, p. IA-RES-2-3)
Water Rights Negotiations/Litigation. + $8.3 million above FY 2015 is requested to
"fund four additional FTE to administer the program in the BIA regional offices, provide greater
support to tribes involved in active litigation and negotiation cases, and support an initiative to
strengthen the Federal program to settle Indian water rights claims. (Admin. Request, p. IA-RES3)
Litigation Support/Attorney Fees. + $1 million above FY 2015 is requested to "expand
the BIA's capacity to provide assistance to tribal participants in adjudications to quantify their
rights and/or negotiations to settle water rights claims litigation or negotiations associated with
natural resource damage actions filed against responsible parties for injury to tribal natural and
cultural resources, tribal trust land trespass actions and other rights protection issues." (Admin.
Request, p. IA-RES-3)
Regional Oversight. + $2 million above FY 2015 is requested to "support an additional
20 realty FTE nationwide to ensure the program achieves the Administration's goal of taking
more than 500,000 acres of land into trust by the end of 2016." (Admin. Request, p. IA-RES-3)
PUBLIC SAFETY AND JUSTICE
The Public Safety and Justice subactivities are: Law Enforcement; Tribal Courts; and Fire
Protection. (See attached Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-2)
The Administration and Congress propose targeted increases (of varying amounts) above
FY 2015 to provide expanded support for the Tiwahe initiative. The House proposes increases
for technical assistance to help implement key provisions of the Violence Against Women Act of
2013 (VAWA 2013) while the Senate proposes the most significant increases--specifically to
address tribal court needs in PL 280 states.
Criminal Investigations and Police Services. + $3 million above FY 2015 is proposed by
the Senate. The Administration requests flat funding.
Law Enforcement Special Initiatives. + $4 million above FY 2015 is requested to "enable
expansion of BIA's efforts to reduce recidivism from the current three Tiwahe initiative sites to
five sites in FY 2016…the Office of Justice Services will work with tribes to implement
comprehensive 'alternatives to incarceration' strategies that seek to address underlying causes of
repeat offenses, including substance abuse and social service needs by utilizing alternative
courts, increased treatment opportunities, probation programs, and interagency and
intergovernmental partnerships." (Admin. Request, p. IA-PSJ-1). The Senate concurs with the
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requested increase. (S. Rept. 114-70, p. 39) The House instead proposes a $1 million increase
above FY 2015. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 38)
Tribal Justice Support. + $10 million above FY 2015 is proposed by the Senate to address
tribal court needs in PL 280 states. The Administration requests flat funding while the House
proposes a $1 million increase above FY 2015 to "increase technical assistance and training in
Indian Country to carry out the new provisions of the Violence Against Women Reauthorization
Act of 2013." (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 38).
Consistent with the recommendations of the Indian Law and Order Commission report 'A
Roadmap For Making Native America Safer' as required by the Tribal Law and Order Act of
2010 and to address the added tribal responsibilities outlined in the Violence Against Women
Reauthorization Act of 2013. Within the increases provided for tribal justice support, the
Committee includes $10,000,000 for the Office of Tribal Justice Support to work with Indian
tribes and tribal organizations to assess needs, consider options, and design, develop, and pilot
tribal court systems for tribal communities including those communities subject to full or partial
State jurisdiction under Public Law 83–280. (S. Rept. 114-70, p. 39)
Tribal Courts. + $5 million above FY 2015 is requested to "ensur[e] that the judicial branch of
targeted tribal public safety systems can function effectively to meet family and community
needs under the Tiwahe initiative. Specifically, the increase will provide targeted base funding to
tribal courts at each Tiwahe site." (Admin. Request, p. IA-PSJ-1). The Senate concurs with the
requested increase. (S. Rept. 114-70, p. 39) The House instead proposes a $1.5 million increase
above FY 2015. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 38)
Educational and Health-Related Services for Youth in Tribal Detention Centers
Considered Allowable Costs. The House Report states:
For the purpose of addressing the needs of American Indian youth in custody at tribal
detention centers operated or administered by the BIA, the Committee considers educational and
health-related services to juveniles in custody to be allowable costs for detention/corrections
program funding." (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 38)
COMMUNITY AND ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Committee $40,505,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $36,119,000
The Community and Economic Development subactivities are: Job Placement and Training;
Economic Development; Minerals and Mining; and Community Development Oversight. (See
attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-2)
Minerals & Mining Central Oversight. $4.5 million in new funding is requested to
"establish an Indian Energy Service Center staffed by BIA, the Office of Natural Resources
Revenue, the Bureau of Land Management and the Office of the Special Trustee for American
Indians to facilitate energy development in Indian Country… The Center will expedite leasing,
permitting, and reporting for conventional and renewable energy on Indian lands – and
importantly – provide resources to ensure development occurs safely, protects the environment,
and manages risks appropriately by providing funding and technical assistance to support
assessment of the social and environmental impacts of energy development." (Admin. Request,
p. IA-CED-1-2) The House concurs with the request. The Senate proposes flat funding.
The recommendation includes the requested amount to establish the Indian Energy
Service Center. The Bureau is directed to consult with affected tribes regarding staffing and
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related functions of the new office. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 38) EXECUTIVE DIRECTION AND
ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES
The Executive Direction and Administrative Services subactivities are: Assistant
Secretary Support; Executive Direction; Administrative Services; Safety and Risk Management;
Information Resources Technology; Human Capital Management; Facilities Management, IntraGovernmental Payments; and Rentals. (See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-2)
Assistant Secretary Support. + $12 million above FY 2015 is requested to "help address
long-standing concerns tribes have expressed with the quality of data in Indian Country"
(Admin. Request, p. IA-ADM-2), to be allocated as follows: • + $2 million for Internal capacity
building: The Department will create a capability within DOI's Office of Policy Analysis to
study Indian Affairs policy, evaluate Indian programs, and assist in developing tribal datasets to
support decision making by tribes, Indian Affairs, BIA and BIE program offices, and other
Departmental offices. • + $9 million for Census data: The Department will enter into an
agreement(s) with the Census Bureau to improve the quality and quantity of tribal data. • + $1
million for Data quality, openness and availability: The Department will embark on outreach and
consultation with tribes regarding data collection.
The House proposes a cut below FY 2015 while the Senate proposes flat funding (the
nominal increase being attributed to fixed costs).
BUREAU OF INDIAN EDUCATION
The Bureau of Indian Education (BIE) category displays funds for the BIE-funded elementary
and secondary school systems as well as other education programs including higher education
and scholarships. The Bureau of Indian Education subactivities are: Elementary and Secondary
Programs (Forward Funded); Elementary and Secondary Programs (Non-Forward Funded); Post
Secondary Programs (Forward Funded); Post Secondary Programs (Non-Forward Funded); and
Education Management. BIE Oversight and Reform.
Indian education remains among the Committee's top priorities because it is a
fundamental trust responsibility and because elementary and secondary students in particular
have fallen far behind their peers for reasons now well documented by the Government
Accountability Office, the Department of Education, and others." (H. Rept. 114-170, p.
38) And: The Committee remains concerned that control of BIE's budget, procurement, hiring,
and facilities maintenance and construction reside not within BIE but within the Bureau of Indian
Affairs and the Deputy Assistant Secretary—Management (see Government Accountability
Office report GAO–13–774). The Secretary is urged to reorganize Indian Affairs so as to
improve leadership stability and accountability within the BIE. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 39-40)
The administration is commended for its continued focus on tribal education programs,
including efforts to improve collaboration between the Departments of the Interior and Education
and to implement Executive Order 13592 to improve educational outcomes for American Indian
and Alaska Native students. It is noted that the administration is proposing significant reforms to
the Bureau of Indian Education [BIE] to improve the quality of education offered and address the
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persistent performance gap of students educated at BIE-funded schools. These proposed changes
will require a restructuring of the Bureau that is not currently reflected in the fiscal year 2016
budget request and will necessitate continued consultation with tribes, as well as the Committees
on Appropriations and the authorizing committees of jurisdiction.
The Committee is concerned the Office of the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs, which
includes the Bureau of Indian Education [BIE], has not addressed the findings or implemented
the recommendations in recent Government Accountability Office [GAO] reports and
testimonies (GAO–13–774, GAO–14–121, GAO– 15–389T, and GAO–15–539T). These reports
outline systemic problems with management of BIE schools, such as lack of oversight over
school spending and facilities, including construction, operation, maintenance, and basic repair
and upgrades needed to improve the condition of schools that serve Indian Country. The
Committee stands ready to work with the administration on the appropriate steps forward and
directs the Office of the Assistant Secretary-Indian Affairs to report back within 60 days after
enactment of this act on how this Office is implementing the GAO recommendations. As part of
this report, the Committee expects a detailed description of the administrative functions of each
entity that has or will have a decisionmaking role in supporting and overseeing school facilities,
including construction, maintenance, operation, and relevant activities for BIE schools. (S. Rept.
114-70, p. 38)
Juvenile Detention Education Grants. The House specifies that the following grant
program would be funded from the within the amount proposed for BIE: The recommendation
includes $1,000,000 to restore juvenile detention education program grants." (H. Rept. 114-170,
p. 39)
Elementary and Secondary Programs (Forward Funded) FY 2015 Enacted
$536,897,000 FY 2016 Admin. Request $565,517,000 FY 2016 House Committee
$550,034,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $542,577,000
The Elementary and Secondary forward funded programs include all components for
operating an elementary and secondary school system. For schools operated by tribes through
grants, the program also includes funding to cover the tribe's administrative costs. The forwardfunded programs are: the ISEP Formula Funding, ISEP Program Adjustments, Education
Program Enhancements, Student Transportation, Early Childhood Development, and Tribal
Grant Support Costs (formerly titled Administrative Cost Grants.) Funds appropriated for FY
2016 for these programs will become available for obligation on July 1, 2016, for SY 2016-2017.
(See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-2)
Education Enhancements. + $10 million above FY 2015 is requested to "improve student
achievement through the adoption of school improvement measures. The enhancement funding is
to assist in the development and improvement of education departments that are administered by
tribes, while seeking to expand the curriculum for areas like Native language immersion. School
improvement efforts that could be adopted include establishing a tribally managed school reform
plan." (Admin. Request, p. IA-BIE-2) Congress proposes flat funding.
Tribal Grant Support Costs. + $ 12.9 million above FY 2015 in order to fully fund Tribal
Grant Support Costs. The Administration explains that full funding would "provide an incentive
for tribes to assume control over their remaining federally operated schools." (Admin. Request,
p. IA-BIE-2). The House concurs with the Administration's request for full funding. The Senate
however, proposes only a $2 million increase above FY 2015.
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The recommendation includes $75,335,000 to fully fund tribal grant support costs, as
requested, $12,940,000 above the fiscal year 2015 enacted level. Fully funding these costs is
consistent with the policy of fully funding contract support costs, and is instrumental for tribal
control of schools. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 38-39)
Tribal Education Department Grants. The House concurs with the Administration's
request to continue funding for Tribal Education Department Grants. The House Report
states: The recommendation includes $2,000,000 as requested for the development and
operation of tribal departments or divisions of education as authorized in 25 U.S.C. 2020. (H.
Rept. 114-170, p. 39)
Early Child and Family Development.
The Committee recommends $15,520,000 for early child and family development, equal
to the fiscal year 2015 enacted level. The Committee strongly supports early childhood
development models that address the achievement gap of Indian children primarily located on
rural reservations by teaching preschool Indian children the skills they need to begin school and
offering developmental opportunities for parents. The BIE is directed to publish its report on the
2013–14 school year internal review of early childhood education programs in order to improve
program direction and transparency. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 38)
The administration's emphasis on education must be complemented by efforts to improve
interagency coordination for the multiplicity of programs that affect the wellbeing of Native
children. In addition to education, these include healthcare, social service, child welfare and
juvenile justice programs. The Committee would like to note the recent Senate passage of S24,
the Alyce Spotted Bear and Walter Soboleff Commission on Native Children. The Committee
encourages the Bureau to work with other relevant Federal, State, local, and tribal organizations
to begin the process of identifying ways to make programs more effective in serving Native
Children. Within the funding provided for the Early Child and Family Development Program,
the Bureau shall not reduce funding for currently operating Family and Child Education
programs. (S. Rept. 114-70, p. 39)
Early Childhood Caries.
The Bureau is encouraged to coordinate with the Indian Health Service to establish a pilot
program integrating preventive dental care at schools within the Bureau system. (H. Rept. 114170, p. 39)
The Senate Report concurs:
The Bureau, working with the Indian Health Service as appropriate, is also urged to
consider integrating school-based preventative health services such as dental care into
elementary schools in order to improve health outcomes of tribal students. (S. Rept. 114-70, p.
39)
Language Immersion. The House Report states: The Committee is supportive of
standards and curricula that emphasize tribal history, language and culture. As alternative
proposals are considered, language immersion should be carefully considered as a serious option
for improved language development and student outcomes. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 39)
Restriction on Funding for Satellite Locations. The Administration and Congress
continue language restricting funding for satellite locations while providing the Secretary the
ability to waive this restriction in certain instances. The House Report provides the following
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clarification regarding the intent of the provision: The recommendation continues bill language
providing the Secretary with the authority to approve satellite locations of existing BIE schools if
a Tribe can demonstrate that the establishment of such locations would provide comparable
levels of education as are being offered at such existing BIE schools, and would not significantly
increase costs to the Federal Government. The intent is for this authority to be exercised only in
extraordinary circumstances to provide Tribes with additional flexibility regarding where
students are educated without compromising how they are educated, and to significantly reduce
the hardship and expense of transporting students over long distances, all without unduly
increasing costs that would otherwise unfairly come at the expense of other schools in the BIE
system. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 39)
Restriction on Funding for Elementary or Secondary Schools in Alaska. The
Administration and Congress continue language restricting funding for the establishment of
elementary or secondary schools in Alaska.
Restriction on Funding for Expanded Grades. The Administration and Congress continue
language restricting funding for the expansion of grades and schools within the BIE system.
Restriction on Funding for Charter Schools. The Administration and Congress continue language
restricting funding for the establishment of charter schools. The House Report provides the
following clarification regarding the intent of the provision: The Committee continues language
limiting the expansion of grades and schools in the BIE system, including charter schools. The
intent of the language is to prevent already limited funds from being spread further to additional
schools and grades. The intent is not to limit tribal flexibility at existing schools. Nothing in the
bill is intended to prohibit a Tribe from converting a tribally-controlled school already in the BIE
system to a charter school in accordance with State and Federal law. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 39)
Elementary and Secondary Programs (Non-Forward Funded) FY 2015 Enacted
$119,195,000 FY 2016 Admin. Request $142,361,000 FY 2016 House Committee
$139,195,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $122,361,000
The non-forward funded programs are: Facilities Operations, Facilities Maintenance and
Johnson-O'Malley Assistance Grants. Funds for Facilities Operations and Facilities Maintenance
are distributed by formula to schools in the BIE school system. (See attached: Admin. Request,
p. IA-ST-2)
Facilities Operations. + $10 million above FY 2015 is requested to "allow BIE to fund
schools at 61 percent of calculated need to augment escalating utility and operations costs for an
aging school system, based on the FY 2014-2015 calculated need of $107,736,000." (Admin.
Request, p. IA-BIE-2) The House concurs with the request while the Senate proposes flat
funding.
Facilities Maintenance. + $10 million above FY 2015 is requested to "allow schools to
complete additional cyclic preventive maintenance repairs under the $2,500 maintenance fund
limit before the required repairs deteriorate further, requiring additional funds from the minor or
major improvement and repair account when repair costs exceed $2,500." (Admin. Request, p.
IA-BIE-3) The House concurs with the request while the Senate proposes flat funding.
Johnson-O'Malley. + $2.6 million above FY 2015 is requested to "support the student
count. A new JOM student count is scheduled to be issued in early 2015." (Admin. Request, p.
IA-BIE-3) The House proposes flat funding while the Senate concurs with the Administration's
proposed increase. The House Report states: The recommendation includes $14,739,000 for the
Johnson-O'Malley program. The Bureau is directed to consult with Tribes and Congress before
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proposing any changes in the distribution of future funds or in the frequency or method of future
counts. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 39)
Post Secondary Programs (Forward Funded) FY 2015 Enacted $69,793,000 FY 2016
Admin. Request $69,793,000 FY 2016 House Committee $69,793,000 FY 2016 Senate
Committee $74,793,000
This subactivity funds forward funded Tribal Colleges and Universities (See attached:
Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-2)
Forward funding for remaining non-forward funded tribal colleges. $5 million in new
funding is proposed by the Senate as a one-time appropriation to facilitate the transition of the
two non-forward funded tribal technical colleges (United Tribes Technical College (UTTC) and
Navajo Technical University (NTU)) to forward funding. This proposal was not in the
Administration's request. The House acknowledges that not all tribal colleges are forward funded
and requests that the Administration submit a proposal to transition these tribal colleges to
forward funding in the FY 2017 request.
The Committee acknowledges the inconsistency that not all tribal colleges and
universities are forward-funded so as to align with academic calendars instead of fiscal
calendars. The Administration is encouraged to submit a proposal beginning with the fiscal year
2017 budget submission to transition to forward-funding over a period of three to five years the
remaining tribal colleges and universities, including the Institute of American Indian and Alaska
Native Culture and Arts Development. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 39)
For Post-Secondary programs, the Committee includes an additional $5,000,000 to
forward fund tribal technical colleges. This one-time increase provides a transition to forward
funding, consistent with funding practices for most other tribal colleges, by covering both the
2015–2016 and 2016– 2017 school years. This funding addresses the long-standing concerns of
tribal college leaders by providing greater financial security to plan for the academic year
through forward funding. The Committee believes there should be parity on the way all tribal
colleges that receive assistance throughout the bill are funded and encourages the administration
to look for ways for all the tribal colleges to be put on the same funding schedule. (S. Rept. 11470, p. 38)
Post Secondary Programs (Non-Forward Funded) FY 2015 Enacted $64,182,000 FY
2016 Admin. Request $69,412,000 FY 2016 House Committee $64,182,000 FY 2016 Senate
Committee $64,602,000
The two post-secondary schools in the BIE's education system are Haskell Indian Nations
University (Haskell), and the Southwestern Indian Polytechnic Institute (SIPI). BIE also provides
grants to two tribal technical colleges: United Tribes Technical College (UTTC) and Navajo
Technical University (NTU) and makes available a variety of higher education scholarships,
fellowships, and loans to eligible Indian students. The non-forward funded programs are: Haskell
and SIPI; Tribal Colleges and Universities Supplements; Tribal Technical Colleges; Scholarships
and Adult Education; Special Higher Education Scholarships; Science Post Graduate Scholarship
Fund. (See attached Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-2)
Scholarships and Adult Education. + $4.5 million above FY 2015 is requested to
"prioritize a third objective of the scholarship fund which is to increase students' engagement
with Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) related initiatives." (Admin.
Request, p. IA-BIE-3). Congress proposes flat funding.
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Education Management FY 2015 Enacted $20,464,000 FY 2016 Admin. Request
$57,381,000 FY 2016 House Committee $30,956,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $20,601,000
The Education Management subactivity consists of Education Program Management and
Information Technology. (See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-2)
The Administration proposes a $36.7 million increase above FY 2015 for education
management, specifying the increases below. The House proposes a $10.4 million increase
above FY 2015, while the Senate proposes flat funding.
Education Program Management. + $2.5 million above FY 2015 is requested to "support
the goals identified in the Blueprint." (Admin. Request, p. IA-BIE-3-4)
Education IT. + $34.2 million above FY 2015 is requested: "(1) to procure computers and
software necessary to administer online assessments; (2) in concert with funding from other
sources (such as the E-Rate program) to increase bandwidth in schools to ensure digital delivery
of these assessments; (3) to provide the resources and training that staff need to administer these
online assessments effectively and efficiently." (Admin. Request, p. IA-BIE-4)
CONTRACT SUPPORT COSTS
Contract Support
Indian Self-Determination Fund
A major development regarding FY 2016 appropriations was the Administration's
proposal to enact legislation to make BIA and IHS contract support costs (CSC) fully funded on
a mandatory basis effective beginning in FY 2017 and the House and Senate Appropriations
Committees subsequent recommendations regarding CSC funding.
Administration's CSC Proposal. Under the Administration's proposal, FY 2016 funding
would continue to be discretionary but the agencies would consult with tribes and work with
Congress on the details of the proposal to make the funding mandatory beginning in FY 2017.
There would be three years—FYs 2017, 2018, and 2019—of capped mandatory funding, after
which the funding would need to be reauthorized. The funding requested for FY 2016 is
$272,000,000 for the BIA and $717,970,000 for IHS with both amounts expected to fully fund
the need. Any funds not used in one year would carry over to the following year.
Appropriations Committee Recommendations. The House and Senate Appropriations
Committees, each assuming $272 million for BIA Contract Support, take different approaches
for the placement of CSC in the Indian Affairs budget.
The House Committee bill would maintain Contract Support ($272 million) and the
Indian Self-Determination Fund ($5 million) as part of the Operation of Indian Programs
account, whereas the Senate Committee envisions a new, separate Contract Support Costs
account which would include both Contract Support and the Indian Self-Determination Fund.
Hence, Section 406 of the House bill provides that the only amounts available for BIA CSC
would be the sums appropriated under the Operation of Indian Programs account. Reflecting its
recommendation to make CSC a separate budget account, the Senate bill (also section 406)
provides that the only amounts available for BIA CSC would be the sums appropriated under the
new, separate Contract Support Costs account.
The House Committee bill would identify a specific amount of CSC to be made available
thus reintroducing the CSC spending "caps" albeit at levels likely to enable full FY 2016
146
payment. Unspent funds could not be diverted and would carry forward until expended, but only
for obligations in FY 2016 or before. The Office of Management and Budget criticized the
House provision as a "limitation on funding for CSC that could perpetuate the funding issues
described in the Supreme Court's Salazar v. Ramah Navajo Chapter decision".
The Senate Committee bill, on the other hand, would provide "such sums as may be
necessary" with a restriction that CSC funds may not be transferred to another budget account.
Guaranteed full funding would protect against other funding being transferred to CSC as would
having CSC in its own budget account. The Senate bill would provide a better path to achieving
the tribal ultimate goal of permanent, indefinite, mandatory appropriations for CSC.
Below is the House and Senate Committee bill and report language regarding BIA CSC:
The House Bill states:
Provided further, That $272,000,000 shall be for payments to Indian tribes and tribal
organizations for contract support costs associated with contracts, grants, self-governance
compacts, or annual funding agreements between the Bureau and an Indian tribe or tribal
organization pursuant to the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (25 U.S.C.
450 et seq.) prior to or during fiscal year 2016, and shall remain available until expended. (HR
2822, p. 28)
Contract Support Costs.—The recommendation includes $272,000,000 as requested for full
funding of estimated contract support costs. Bill language has been added making these funds
available until expended and protecting against the use of other appropriations to meet
unanticipated shortfalls. The Bureau is directed to work with Tribes and tribal organizations to
ensure that budget estimates continue to be as accurate as possible. (H. Rept. 114-170, p.
37) The Senate Bill states: For payments to tribes and tribal organizations for contract support
costs associated with Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act agreements with
the Bureau of Indian Affairs for fiscal year 2016, such sums as may be necessary, which shall be
available for obligation through September 30, 2017: Provided, That amounts obligated but not
expended by a tribe or tribal organization for contract support costs for such agreements for the
current fiscal year shall be applied to contract support costs otherwise due for such agreements
for subsequent fiscal years: Provided further, That, notwithstanding any other provision of law,
no amounts made available under this heading shall be available for transfer to another budget
account. (S 1645, p. 29)
Contract Support Costs.—The Committee has included new language establishing an
indefinite appropriation for contract support costs estimated to be $277,000,000, which is an
increase of $26,000,000 above the fiscal year 2015 level. The budget request proposed to fund
these costs within the "Operation of Indian Programs" account through Contract Support and the
Indian Self Determination Fund budget lines. Under the Committee's new budget structure, the
full amount tribes are entitled to will be paid and other programs will not be reduced in cases
where the agency may have underestimated these payments when submitting its budget.
Additional funds may be provided by the agency if its budget estimate proves to be lower than
necessary to meet the legal obligation to pay the full amount due to tribes, but this account is
solely for the purposes of paying contract support costs and no transfers from this account are
permitted for other purposes. Similar to the President's request for calculating contract support
costs, this provision also applies to new and expanded Indian Self-Determination and Education
147
Assistance Act agreements funded through the Indian Self-Determination Fund activity. (S. Rept.
114-70, p. 39-40)
CSC Continuing Provisions. The House and Senate bills provide that Sections 405 and
406 of Division F of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations, 2015 (PL 113235) remain in effect. The bills do not re-quote the FY 2015 language.
Section 405 from PL 113-235, consistent with the Interior appropriations acts for FYs 19992014, attempts to limit the ability of the IHS and BIA to fund past-year shortfalls in CSC funding
from remaining unobligated balances for those fiscal years. This provision has been included in
the appropriations acts for many years and has not precluded recovery on past-year CSC claims.
Section 406 from PL 113-235 provides that no FY 2014 funds may be used by the IHS or the
BIA to pay prior year CSC or to repay the Judgment Fund for payment of judgments or
settlements related to past-year CSC claims.
CONSTRUCTION
The Construction budget includes: Education Construction; Public Safety and Justice
Construction; Resources Management Construction; and Other Program Construction/ General
Administration.
Maintenance Shortfalls. The House Report states: The Bureau is encouraged to request
full funding for facilities maintenance needs in future budget requests." (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 40)
EDUCATION CONSTRUCTION
The Education Construction subactivities are: Replacement School Construction;
Employee Housing Repair; and Facilities Improvement and Repair. The Administration proposes
to bring back the Replacement Facility Construction line item. (See attached: Admin. Request, p.
IA-ST-3)
The Administration requests substantial increases above FY 2015 for all Education
Construction subactivities, to which the House concurs. The Senate instead proposes some
nominal increases above FY 2015. The House Report states: Serious health and safety hazards
exist at BIE facilities across the country, including the Bug-O-Nay-Ge-Shig School of the Leech
Lake Band of Ojibwe. The Secretary is directed to develop a comprehensive plan to work with
Tribes to repair and replace all substandard educational facilities. The Secretary is urged to
consider alternative funding mechanisms to supplement appropriations for replacing schools and
facilities, including the use of bonds." (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 40)
The Committee understands the significant infrastructure needs and strongly urges the
administration to work with tribal leaders in a transparent manner on developing the new school
construction list. Further, the Committee stands ready to work with the administration and tribes
to develop a strategy that provides safe, functional, and accessible facilities for schools. (S. Rept.
114-70, p. 40)
Replacement School Construction. + $25.3 million above FY 2015 is requested to
"replace both Little Singer Community School and Cove Day School on the Navajo Reservation
in Arizona and for planning and design for future schools. This funding will allow BIA to bring
to good condition all of the 14 schools on the Education Facilities Replacement Construction
Priorities List as published in the Federal Register on March 24, 2004. (Admin. Request, p. IA148
CON-ED-1). The House concurs. The Senate instead proposes a $3 million increase above FY
2015, enough to replace one of the remaining schools.
Employee Housing Repair. + $3.7 million above FY 2015 is requested to "correct priority
deficiencies at education employee housing, beginning with critical safety work items.
Correction of these items is critical for IA's compliance with American with Disabilities Act
(ADA) requirements; Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) requirements; National Fire
Protection Agency (NFPA); and other Life Safety code requirements …This increase is
complemented by a $10.0 million request in the Department of Housing and Urban Development
budget for a set aside to address teacher housing needs near schools in the BIE school system."
(Admin. Request, p. IA-CON-ED-3). The House concurs. The Senate proposes flat funding.
Replacement Facility Construction. $11.9 million in new funding is requested to
"reconstitute the Facilities Component Replacement Program (FCRP) after several years. This
program is an important part of BIA's plan to bring schools into good condition. The FCRP funds
replacement of individual buildings when it is more cost effective to replace rather than repair a
building on school campuses but other buildings can be brought to or maintained in good
condition with improvement and repair projects. Projects for use of the FCRP are in the process
of being identified." (Admin. Request, p. IA-CON-ED-3). The House concurs. The Senate
instead proposes $2 million.
Facilities Improvement and Repair. +$17.7 million above FY 2015 is requested to be
directed to "schools that rank highest in a ranking of schools with critical health and safety
deficiencies. The BIE school system buildings currently have a $377 million deferred
maintenance backlog." (Admin. Request, p. IA-CON-ED-3) The House concurs. The Senate
proposes flat funding.
PUBLIC SAFETY & JUSTICE (PS&J) CONSTRUCTION
The Public Safety & Justice Construction subactivities are: Facilities Replacement/New
Construction; Employee Housing; Facilities Improvement and Repair; Fire Safety Coordination;
Fire Protection. (See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-3; H. Rept. 114-170)
Regional Detention Centers. The House Report states: The Bureau is encouraged to consider
establishing regional detention centers at new or existing facilities, such as the ShoshoneBannock Tribes' Justice Center, as it works to combat the crime problem in Indian Country. (H.
Rept. 114-170, p. 40)
RESOURCES MANAGEMENT CONSTRUCTION
The Resources Management Construction subactivities are: Irrigation Project Construction;
Engineering and Supervision; Survey and Design; Federal Power and Compliance; and Dam
Projects. (See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-3)
OTHER PROGRAM CONSTRUCTION/ GENERAL ADMINISTRATION
The Other Program Construction subactivities are: Telecommunications Improvement and
Repair; Facilities/Quarters Improvement and Repair; and Construction Program Management.
(See attached: Admin. Request, p. IA-ST-3)
149
Construction Program Management. + $1.2 million above FY 2015 is requested for "the
completed portions of the Fort Peck Reservation Rural Water System construction project
requiring Operations and Maintenance (O&M), as authorized by the Congress. As construction
by the Bureau of Reclamation progresses, completed portions will require O&M on an annual
basis." (Admin. Request, p. IA-CON-OTH-1) The Senate concurs. The House proposes flat
funding.
INDIAN GUARANTEED LOAN PROGRAM
FY 2016 funding will support approximately $113.8 million in new loans in Indian Country,
issued under the Loan Guarantee, Insurance and Interest Subsidy program, part of the Indian
Financing Act of 1974 (P.L. 93-262), as amended. This program addresses the historic reluctance
of private lenders to make business financing available to Indian borrowers on commercially
reasonable terms, due to real or perceived concerns with inadequate collateral, poor or minimal
credit history, and unclear jurisdiction. (Admin. Request, p. IA-LOAN-4)."
FY 2016 IHS Appropriations Recommendations of House and Senate Committees,"
Hobbs
Straus
General
Memorandum
15-049,
Juluy
7,
2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-049, reported, "In this Memorandum we
report on the recommendations of the House and Senate Appropriations Committees for FY
2016 appropriations for the Indian Health Service (IHS) (HR 2822, H. Rept. 114-170; and S
1645, S. Rept. 114-70). The IHS budget, which is included in the Interior, Environment and
Related Agencies appropriations bill, was approved by the House Committee on June 16 and by
the Senate Committee on June 18. The House Interior Appropriations bill is being considered on
the House floor this week.
The spending levels in the Administration's FY 2016 request are based on the assumption
that a budget deal will be reached for FY 2016 and the overall spending caps set by the Budget
Control Act will be raised. The Appropriations Committees are reporting out bills, the Interior
bill included, that adhere to the budget caps set in the Budget Control Act. The Administration
and Congressional Democrats oppose the Interior and other appropriations bills and are
advocating for Congress to reach a new budget agreement which would increase the spending
caps. As of this writing, little if any progress has been made toward reaching a new budget
agreement.
FUNDING OVERVIEW
The Administration requested $147 million for built-in costs increases. For program
increases the request was $313 million which includes staffing for new facilities. The House
bill would provide $145 million over the FY 2015 enacted amount but $315 million below
the Administration's request, while the Senate recommendation is $137 million over FY
2015 but $324 million below the Administration's request. The House Committee agreed to
some of the requested built-in costs increases while the Senate did not. The Senate
Committee, on the other than hand, recommended more funding in the Facilities account
than did the House Committee. More information is provided below.
proposal to enact legislation to make IHS and BIA contract support costs (CSC) fully
funded on a mandatory basis effective beginning in FY 2017. The proposal would require
authorizing legislation. We report on CSC in a separate section of this Memorandum.
150
Other Administration proposals which would require enacting legislation are extension of
the Special Diabetes Program for Indians for 3 years at $150 million per year and making taxexempt the IHS Health Professions Scholarship Program and the Loan Repayment Program.
Built–in Costs. The Administration's request is for built-in costs for the Services account
is $139 million, while the built-in costs request in the Facilities account is $7.9 million. Lack of
funding for built-in costs takes a toll on tribal and IHS health programs. For FY 2015 the
Administration requested $63 million but no funding was provided for it. Below is a breakdown
of built-in costs request:
Medical Inflation (3.8%) Administration Request $71.2 million House Committee $53.0
million Senate Committee -0Pay Increase (1.3%) Administration Request $19.3 million House Committee $19.3
million Senate Committee -0Population Growth Administration Request $56.7 million House Committee -0- Senate
Committee -0The lack of Senate built-in costs largely explains its lower number in the Services
account.
Staffing of New Facilities. The Administration requested and the House and Senate
Committees concurred in a request for $17.8 million for staffing of new facilities.
Funds (in the Services and Facilities accounts combined) are for: Southern California
Youth Treatment Center ($3.2 million); Choctaw (MS) Alternative Rural Health Care Center
($10.9 million); and Ft. Yuma Health Center ($3.6 million). Both House and Senate Reports note
that the staffing funds are provided "solely to support facilities on the Health Care Facilities
Construction Priority System and Joint Venture construction projects that have opened in fiscal
year 2015 or will open in fiscal year 2016. None of these funds may be allocated to a facility
until such facility has achieved beneficial occupancy status." (S. Rept. 114-70, p.70)
Program Increases: over FY 2015 requested by the Administration are: Contract Support
Costs ($55 million); Purchased/Referred Care ($25 million); improving third party collections
($10 million); Resource Patient Management and Electronic Health Record requirements ($10
million); tribal youth behavioral health initiative ($25 million); Maintenance and Improvement
($35 million); and sanitation facilities construction ($35 million). The request for health facility
construction is $100 million over the FY 2015 enacted level. Much of these requests were not
included in the House and Senate Committee bills, due in significant part to the current statutory
spending caps.
CONTINUING BILL LANGUAGE The House and Senate Committees, consistent with
the Administration's request, continue bill language from previous years including the
following: IDEA Data Collection Language. Authorization for the BIA to collect data from the
IHS and tribes regarding disabled children in order to assist with the implementation of the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)
Prohibition on Implementing IHS Eligibility Regulations which were published
September 16, 1987.
Services for Non-Indians. Allowing the IHS and tribal facilities to extend health care
services to non-Indians, subject to charges. Assessments by DHHS. Prohibition on the use of
IHS funds for any assessments or charges by the Department of Health and Human Services
"unless identified in the budget justification and provided in this Act, or approved by the House
and Senate Committees on Appropriations through the reprogramming process."
151
Limitation on the Use of No-Bid Contracts. The provision specifically exempts Indian SelfDetermination agreements from the limitation on no-bid contracts.
CONTRACT SUPPORT COSTS
proposal to enact legislation to make IHS and BIA contract support costs (CSC) fully funded on
a mandatory basis effective beginning in FY 2017 and the House and Senate Appropriations
Committees subsequent recommendations regarding CSC funding.
Administration's CSC Proposal: Under the proposal, FY 2016 funding would continue to be
discretionary but the agencies would consult with tribes and work with Congress on the details of
the proposal to make the funding mandatory beginning in FY 2017. There would be three
years—FYs 2017, 2018, and 2019—of capped mandatory funding, after which the funding
would need to be reauthorized. The funding proposed for FY 2016 is $717,970,000 for IHS and
$272,000,000 for the BIA, with both amounts expected to fully fund the need. Any funds not
used in one year would carry over to the following year. The proposal also includes a provision
that would allow IHS to utilize up to 2 percent of the funding to increase its capacity to fulfill the
requirements regarding administering the mandatory CSC funding. (See our General
Memorandum 15-015 of February 6, 2015). Tribes and tribal organizations were very supportive
of the Administration's position on making CSC mandatory and fully-funded but advocated that
the mandatory funding begin with FY 2016, that it be a permanent authorization, and that the
IHS not be allowed to utilize up to 2 percent of funds for administrative costs.
Appropriations Committees' Recommendations. The House and Senate Appropriations
Committees, each assuming $717,970,000 for IHS CSC, take different approaches for the
placement of CSC in the budget.
• The House Committee bill would maintain CSC as part of the IHS Services account,
whereas the Senate Committee places CSC as a new separate account. Hence, Section 406 of the
House bill provides that the only amounts available for IHS CSC are the sums appropriated
under the Services account. Reflecting its recommendation to make CSC a separate budget
account, the Senate Committee bill (also section 406) would provide that the only amounts
available for IHS CSC are the sums appropriated under the new separate Contract Support Costs
account.
• The House Committee bill would identify a specific amount of CSC to be made
available thus reintroducing the CSC spending "caps" albeit at levels likely to enable full FY
2016 payment. Unspent funds could not be diverted and would carry forward until expended, but
only for obligations in FY 2016 or before. The Office of Management and Budget criticized the
House provision as a "limitation on funding for CSC that could perpetuate the funding issues
described in the Supreme Court's Salazar v. Ramah Navajo Chapter decision."
• The Senate Committee bill, on the other hand, would provide "such sums as may be
necessary" for FY 2016 with a restriction that CSC funds may not be transferred to the Services
or Facilities accounts. Guaranteed full funding would protect against other funding being
transferred to CSC as would having CSC in its own budget account. The Senate bill would
provide a better path to achieving the tribal ultimate goal of permanent, indefinite, mandatory
appropriations for contract support costs.
Below is the House and Senate Committee bill and report language regarding Indian
Health Service CSC:
152
House Bill:
Provided further, That $717,970,000 shall be for payments to Indian tribes and tribal
organizations for contract support costs associated with contracts, grants, self-governance
compacts, or annual funding agreements between the Indian Health Service and an Indian tribe
or tribal organization pursuant to the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act
(25 U.S.C. 450 et seq.) prior to or during fiscal year 2016, and shall remain available until
expended." (HR 2822, p. 92) House Committee Report: Contract Support Costs - The
recommendation includes $717,970,000 as requested for full funding of estimated contract
support costs. Bill language has been added making these funds available until expanded and
protecting against the use of other appropriations to meet unanticipated shortfalls. The Service is
directed to work with Tribes and tribal organizations to ensure that budget estimates continue to
be as accurate as possible. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 76)
Senate Bill:
For payments to tribes and tribal organizations for contract support costs associated with Indian
Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act agreements with the Indian Health Service for
fiscal year 2016, such sums as may be necessary: Provided, that amounts obligated but not
expended by a tribe or tribal organization for contract support cost for such agreements for the
current fiscal year shall be applied to contract support costs otherwise due for such agreements
for subsequent fiscal years: Provided further, that, notwithstanding any other provision of law, no
amounts made available under this heading shall be available for transfer to another budget
account. (S 1645, p. 104)
Senate Committee Report:
The Committee has included new language establishing an indefinite appropriation for contract
support costs estimated to be $717,970,000, which is an increase of $55,000,000 above the fiscal
year 2015 level. The budget request proposed to fund this program within the "Indian Health
Services" account. Under this heading the Committee has provided the full amount of the request
for contract support costs. By virtue of the indefinite appropriation, additional funds may be
provided by the agency if its budget estimate proves to be lower than necessary to meet the legal
obligation to pay the full amount due to tribes. This account is solely for the purposes of paying
contract support costs and no transfer from this account are permitted for other purposes. (S.
Rept. 114-70, p. 70)
CSC Continuing Provisions. The House and Senate bills provide that Sections 405 and
406 of Division F of the Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations, 2015 (PL 113235) remain in effect. The bills do not re-quote the FY 2015 language. • Section 405 from PL
113-235, consistent with the Interior appropriations acts for FYs 1999-2014, attempts to limit the
ability of the IHS and BIA to fund past-year shortfalls in CSC funding from remaining
unobligated balances for those fiscal years. This provision has been included in the
appropriations acts for many years and has not precluded recovery on past-year CSC claims.
• Section 406 from PL 113-235 provides that no FY 2014 funds may be used by the IHS
or the BIA to pay prior year CSC or to repay the Judgment Fund for payment of judgments or
settlements related to past-year CSC claims.
FUNDING FOR INDIAN HEALTH SERVICES
House Committee $4,321,529,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $3,539,523,000*
153
*The reason the Senate Committee figure appears so low is that it reflects Contract
Support Costs ($717.9 million) being moved to a separate account. The Senate Committee
amount for IHS Services is actually $64 million below the House Committee level.
Definition of Indian. The House Committee repeats language from FY 2015 which notes
the problems caused by various definitions of "Indian" referenced in various federal health
programs and urges the Department of Health and Human Services, the IHS, and the Treasury
Department to work together to establish a consistent definition of Indian with regard to health
care.
The Committee recognizes the Federal government's trust responsibility for providing
healthcare for American Indians and Alaska Natives. The Committee is aware that the definition
of who is an "Indian" is inconsistent across various Federal health programs, which has led to
confusion, increased paperwork and even differing determinations of health benefits within
Indian families themselves. The Committee therefore directs the Department of Health and
Human Services, the Indian Health Service, and the Department of the Treasury to work together
to establish a consistent definition of an "Indian" for purposes of providing health benefits. (H.
Rept. 114-170, p. 76)
HOSPITALS AND CLINICS
Administration Request. The Administration requested $70 million for built-in costs for
Hospitals and Clinics, some of which the House bill would fund, but not the Senate bill. Also
included in the Administration's request is $10 million for improvement of third party collections
and $10 million for Health Information Technology, which do not appear to be in either
Committee's recommendation.
Initiatives Funding Distribution. The Administration proposed and the Senate Committee
included bill language which provides that the funds for methamphetamine and suicide
prevention and treatment, the domestic violence prevention initiative, and efforts to improve
collections from public and private insurance at IHS and tribally-operated facilities are to be
allocated at the discretion of the Director. The House did not include this language. (The
Administration has announced that it will not allocate contract support costs for the meth/suicide
and domestic violence prevention initiatives).
Health Clinics. The Senate, but not the House, provides in bill language $2 million "for
operational shortfalls at health clinics previously authorized under the 'Administrative
Provisions, Indian Health Service'."
Health Care Provider Shortage. The House Report repeats language from FY 2015,
encouraging IHS "to work with Tribes and health care organizations to find creative ways to
address the Service's health care provider shortage, including improvements to the credentialing
process." (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 77)
DENTAL SERVICES
The House Report encourages the IHS to work with the BIE to establish a pilot program
integrating preventive dental care at schools within the Bureau system. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 76)
MENTAL HEALTH
154
ALCOHOL AND SUBSTANCE ABUSE
The Administration's requested increase of $37 million besides providing for built-in
costs would expand the methamphetamine/youth suicide prevention initiative by $25 million.
The Senate Committee recommended a $2 million increase to focus on tribal youth.
PURCHASED/REFERRED CARE
Consistent with the Administration's request, the House and Senate bills include within the total
$51.5 million for the Catastrophic Health Emergency Fund. Medicare-Like Rates Legislation
Encouraged. As noted above, the Administration included in its budget recommendation a
proposal supporting enactment of legislation to provide for Medicare-like rates for non-hospital
services, thus stretching the funding for Purchased/Referred Care. The House Committee agrees,
stating:
The Committee urges the Service to work expeditiously with the relevant Congressional
authorizing committees to enact authorization for the Service to cap payment rates for nonhospital services, as recommended by the Government Accountability Office (GAO 13-272).
Failure to do so costs the program an estimated $30 million annually that could be used to
purchase more services. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 76)
The House Committee also referenced a GAO report (GAO 12-446) critical of the
program: The Committee urges the Service, Tribes, and the congressional authorizing
committees to make reasonable and expeditious progress to address the concerns and
recommendations made by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), most notably with
regard to unfair allocations, third-party overbilling and under-enrollment in other qualifying
Federal programs. (H. Rept. 114-170, p. 76)
The Senate Committee, on the other hand, addressed a Purchased/Referred Care issue specific to
Indian people in Oregon:
The Committee is aware that certain Indian people in Oregon have not been counted for
purposes of purchased and referred care under current Service policies and that the Service is
currently considering options to address the situation, including the potential expansion of
service delivery areas. The Committee believes that it is important that this issue be resolved
without impacting existing purchased and referred care allocations to California and Oregon.
Within 60 days of enactment of this act, the Service is directed to provide a report to the
Committee detailing its proposed management actions to address the situation. (S. Rept. 114-70,
p. 70)
PUBLIC HEALTH NURSING
HEALTH EDUCATION
COMMUNITY HEALTH REPRESENTATIVES
155
HEPATITIS B and HAEMOPHILUS IMMUNIZATION (Hib) PROGRAMS IN
ALASKA
URBAN INDIAN HEALTH
The House, but not the Senate, includes new bill language instructing IHS to "develop a
strategic plan for the Urban Indian Health program in consultation with urban Indians and the
National Academy of Public Administration…"
The House Report, which recommends an $806,000 increase, states:
The agency is directed to include current services estimated for Urban Indian Health in
future budget requests. The Committee notes the agency's failure to report the results of the
needs assessment directed by House Report 111-180. Therefore the recommendation includes a
reduction to the Service leadership budget, along with bill language requiring a program strategic
plan developed in consultation with urban Indians and the National Academy of Public
Administration. (H. Rept. 114-170, pp. 76-77)
INDIAN HEALTH PROFESSIONS
Programs funded under Indian Health Professions are: Health Professions Preparatory and PreGraduate Scholarships; Health Professions Scholarships; Extern Program; Loan Repayment
Program; Quentin N. Burdick American Indians Into Nursing Program; Indians Into Medicine
Program; and American Indians into Psychology. Consistent with the Administration's request,
bill language provides $36 million for the loan repayment program.
Proposal to Exempt Scholarship and Loan Repayment Programs from Federal Taxes. The
Administration proposed, as in past years, to make the IHS Health Professions Scholarship
Program and Loan Repayment Program tax-exempt, thus freeing up funding now used to pay
taxes on these benefits.
Use of Defaulted Funds. The Committee bills continue the provision that allows funds
collected on defaults from the Loan Repayment and Health Professions Scholarship programs to
be used to recruit health professionals for Indian communities:
Provided further, That the amounts collected by the Federal Government as authorized by
sections 104 and 108 of the Indian Health Care Improvement Act (25 U.S.C. 1613a and 1616a)
during the preceding fiscal year for breach of contracts shall be deposited to the Fund authorized
by section 108A of the Act (25 U.S.C. 1616a-1) and shall remain available until expended and,
notwithstanding section 108A(c) of the Act (25 U.S.C. 1616a-1(c)), funds shall be available to
make new awards under the loan repayment and scholarship programs under sections 104 and
108 of the Act (25 U.S.C. 1613a and 1616a).
TRIBAL MANAGEMENT
Funding is for new and continuation grants for the purpose of evaluating the feasibility of
contracting the IHS programs, developing tribal management capabilities, and evaluating health
services. Funding priorities are, in order, 1) tribes that have received federal recognition or
156
restoration within the past five years; 2) tribes/tribal organizations that are addressing audit
material weaknesses; and 3) all other tribes/tribal organizations.
DIRECT OPERATIONS
The IHS states in its budget submission that 58.7 percent of the Direct Operations budget
would go to Headquarters and 41.3 percent to the 12 Area Offices. Tribal Shares funding for
Title I contracts and Title V compacts are also included. SELF-GOVERNANCE
The Self-Governance budget supports implementation of the IHS Tribal Self-Governance
Program including funding required for Tribal Shares; oversight of the IHS Director's Agency
Lead negotiators; technical assistance on tribal consultation activities; analysis of Indian Health
Care Improvement Act new authorities; and funding to support the activities of the IHS
Director's Tribal Self-Governance Advisory Committee.
The IHS estimated in its budget justification that in FY 2015, $1.8 billion will be
transferred to tribes to support 89 ISDEAA Title V compacts and 114 funding agreements.
SPECIAL DIABETES PROGRAM FOR INDIANS
While the entitlement funding for the Special Diabetes Program for Indians (SDPI) is not
part of the IHS appropriations process, those funds are administered through the IHS. SDPI is
currently funded through FY 2017 at $150 million (see our General Memorandum 15-032 of
April 17, 2015).
FUNDING FOR INDIAN HEALTH FACILITIES
MAINTENANCE AND IMPROVEMENT
Maintenance and Improvement (M&I) funds are provided to Area Offices for distribution
to projects in their regions. Funding is for the following purposes: 1) routine maintenance; 2)
M&I Projects to reduce the backlog of maintenance; 3) environmental compliance; and 4)
demolition of vacant or obsolete health care facilities. Of the funding requested, $50.1 million
would be allocated to sustain the condition of federal and tribal healthcare facilities
buildings; $3 million for environmental compliance projects; and $500,000 for demolition
projects. FACILITIES AND ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT
MEDICAL EQUIPMENT
The Administration's request was to distribute the FY 2016 funds as follows: $18 million
for new and routine replacement medical equipment at over 1,500 federally- and triballyoperated health care facilities; $5 million for new medical equipment in tribally-constructed
health care facilities; and $500,000 each for the TRANSAM and ambulance programs.
157
CONSTRUCTION
Construction of Sanitation Facilities
FY 2015 Enacted $ 79,423,000 FY 2016 Admin. Request $115,138,000 FY 2016 House
Committee $ 79,423,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $ 99,423,000
Four types of sanitation facilities projects are funded by the IHS: 1) projects to serve new or likenew housing; 2) projects to serve existing homes; 3) special projects such as studies, training, or
other needs related to sanitation facilities construction; and 4) emergency projects. The IHS
sanitation facilities construction funds cannot be used to provide sanitation facilities in HUDbuilt homes.
Most of the Administration's requested increase was for $30 million to service new and
like-new homes, some of which could be used for sanitation facilities for individual homes of
disabled or ill persons with a physician referral, with priority for BIA Housing Improvement
Projects. Funding would be established by Headquarters after reviewing Area proposals. The
Senate Committee recommended a $20 million increase while the House Committee proposed
flat funding.
The remaining funding in the Administration's request would be distributed as follows:
up to $48 million to the Area Offices for prioritized projects to serve existing homes of which up
to $5 million would be for projects to clean up and replace open dumps on Indian lands; and $2
million would be reserved at IHS Headquarters ($1 million for special projects and emergency
needs; $500,000 to collect homeowner data and demographic information in three of the IHS
Areas; and $500,000 for improving data collection systems to help fund a Water Resource
Center to develop teaching materials and techniques for homeowners and communities to
support usage in a way that promotes health). The Water Resource Center is in partnership with
the Alaska Native Tribal Health Consortium whose funding stream began in FY 2012 with
$250,000 and is expected to be funded for five years through FY 2016.
Construction of Health Care Facilities
FY 2015 Enacted $ 85,048,000 FY 2016 Admin. Request $185,048,000 FY 2016 House
Committee $ 85,048,000 FY 2016 Senate Committee $105,048,000
The Administration's health facility construction proposal is $100 million over FY 2015 enacted
and would provide for: • Gila River Southeast Health Center, Chandler, AZ - $63.6 million to
complete construction. • Salt River Northeast Health Center, Scottsdale, AZ - $50 million to
design and begin construction. • Rapid City Health Center, Rapid City, SD - $50.8 million to
design and begin construction of a facility to replace the Sioux San Hospital. • New Dilkon
Alternative Rural Health Center, Dilkon, AZ - $20.5 million to design and to construct
infrastructure.
The Senate recommends a $20 million increase over FY 2015 and the Committee Report
notes that it is "in order to make progress on the next facility on the Service's Health Care
Facilities Construction Priority System."
OTHER
TRANSAM Equipment, Ambulances, Demolition Fund. The bills would continue
language to provide up to $500,000 to purchase TRANSAM equipment from the Department of
Defense, $500,000 to be deposited in a Demolition Fund to be used for the demolition of vacant
and obsolete federal buildings, and up to $2.7 million for the purchase of ambulances."
158
In the Courts
The U.S. Supreme Court
"U.S. Supreme Court Will Review the Dollar General Case Involving Tribal Court
Jurisdiction over Nonmembers," Hobbs-Straus General Memorandum 15-045," June 23, 2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-045, reported, "On June 15, 2015, the
U.S. Supreme Court agreed to review the case of Dollar General Corp. v. Mississippi Band
of Choctaw Indians, in which the Fifth Circuit upheld tribal court jurisdiction over tort
claims against a nonmember corporation doing business on the reservation. The case could
have significant and wide-ranging repercussions for tribal court jurisdiction over nonmembers in
civil cases and will be closely watched by Indian Country.
In this case, a 13-year-old tribal member of the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians and
his family brought suit in tribal court against Dolgencorp, operator of a Dollar General store
where the youth interned, which was located on tribal trust land on the reservation. The claim
was that a manager at the store sexually molested the youth during the course of his internship.
The youth was placed at the store under a tribal internship program in which the manager had
agreed to participate. The youth and his family brought suit against Dolgencorp seeking
damages.
The Choctaw Supreme Court ruled it had jurisdiction under the U.S. Supreme Court's
1981 decision in Montana v. United States. Dolgencorp then filed an action in the U.S. District
Court. The District Court likewise held that the tribal court had jurisdiction under the Montana
case. Dolgencorp then appealed the District Court's ruling to the U.S. Appeals Court for the Fifth
Circuit, which affirmed.1
The Fifth Circuit, like the Choctaw Supreme Court and the District Court, based its
opinion on an analysis of Montana, in which the U.S. Supreme Court held the Crow Tribe lacked
jurisdiction to regulate nonmembers' hunting and fishing on non-Indian fee land located within
the reservation. In discussing non-Indian fee land, the U.S. Supreme Court held that as a 'general
proposition . . . the inherent sovereign powers of an Indian tribe do not extend to the activities of
nonmembers of the tribe.' However, the Court wrote two exceptions into that general rule, the
first being that 'a] tribe may regulate, through taxation, licensing, or other means, the activities of
nonmembers who enter consensual relationships with the tribe or its members, through
commercial dealing, contracts, leases, or other arrangements.'
The Fifth Circuit held that the tribal court had jurisdiction pursuant to the first Montana
exception, finding that Dolgencorp entered into a consensual relationship with the Tribe by
participating in the internship program. Dolgencorp argued that the Supreme Court's opinion in
the 2008 Plains Commerce Bank case, another case also involving tribal jurisdiction over
nonmembers, required an additional showing that the specific consensual relationship interferes
with tribal governance and internal relations. The Fifth Circuit disagreed, holding that such a
showing was not required for the first Montana exception. It also held that application of tribal
civil law is a permissible means of regulating conduct for purposes of the first Montana
exception.
One of the three Fifth Circuit judges filed a forceful dissent, asserting that the Supreme
Court 'has never upheld Indian jurisdiction over a nonmember defendant.' He believed that a
consensual relationship must interfere with tribal governance and internal relations. He also
159
asserted that a sufficient connection between the consensual relationship and regulation of the
conduct was lacking.
Dolencorp asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review the Fifth Circuit's decision. It urged
the Supreme Court to consider broadly whether tribal courts may ever exercise civil jurisdiction
over nonmembers, regardless of the Montana exceptions. The Supreme Court granted review,
despite the fact that the U.S. Department of Justice filed a brief recommending that the Court not
review the case because the Department believed the Fifth Circuit was correct that the tribal
court had jurisdiction. The Department also asserted that the Tribe had jurisdiction on the
separate basis that the improper conduct occurred on tribal trust land, so that the Montana
exceptions do not come into play.
The Court will probably publish its decision late this year or early in 2016. It is of course
too soon to tell how far-reaching a Supreme Court opinion might be. Hopefully, it will affirm the
Fifth Circuit decision, holding that tribes have civil jurisdiction over nonmembers who enter into
consensual relationships with the tribe. However, given the broad scope of the question
presented as framed in Dolgencorp's petition for Supreme Court review, and the generally
conservative views of a majority of the Supreme Court, and the fact that at least some of the
justices seemingly had problems with the Fifth Circuit decision, the Court could make the
existing rules governing tribal court civil jurisdiction over nonmembers even tighter than they
are now."
Kristi Eaton, “DoJ Asks SCOTUS To Rule on Tribal Court Convictions and Domestic
Violence,”
ICTMN,
November
27,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/27/doj-asks-scotus-rule-tribal-courtconvictions-and-domestic-violence-162582,” reported, “The U.S. Department of Justice has
filed a petition with the U.S. Supreme Court, asking the high court to take up a case
dealing with tribal court convictions in domestic violence cases in Indian country.
Michael Bryant Jr., a member of the Northern Cheyenne Tribe, was convicted of
domestic violence as a habitual offender and sentenced in U.S. District Court for the District of
Montana to 46 months in prison and three years of supervised release. Federal law makes it a
felony to commit domestic violence on a spouse or intimate partner in Indian country if the
perpetrator has at least two prior domestic abuse convictions in a federal, state or tribal court
proceeding.
But the Ninth District Court of Appeals reversed the decision, saying the lower court
had relied on the tribal convictions in which Bryant had not been provided with an
attorney to meet the repeat offender determination, a violation of Bryant’s right under the
U.S. Constitution’s Sixth Amendment.
‘That holding is incorrect, in conflict with other circuits, and highly damaging to federal
prosecutorial efforts to combat the serious problem of domestic violence in Indian country,’ the
Department of Justice wrote in its brief to the U.S. Supreme Court asking for a review.
The ruling by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which covers a large area of Indian
country including Montana, California and Arizona, differs from a previous ruling by the
Eighth Circuit.
In United States v. Cavanaugh, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in North Dakota successfully
argued that Roman Cavanaugh’s prior tribal court convictions for domestic violence offense
could serve as predicate offenses for purposes of the federal law even though the defendant did
not have a court-appointed defense counsel in his tribal court domestic violence convictions.”
160
Justice Kennedy, issued a temporary order, in late November 2015, delaying the
counting of ballots, cast in Hawai’I, only by Native Hawaiians in the election to a
convention to prepare a document for self-government of Native Hawaiians, should they
receive federal recognition. The issuing of the temporary injunction was in response to an
emergency petition in a law suit claiming that the limitation of the voters to Native
Hawaiians violated the 15th Amendment prohibition on denying the right to vote on the
basis of race. [Past precedent would suggest that, when the case is heard on the merits, the
courts will hold that this is not a matter involving race but membership in a political community,
equivalent to restrictions in voting in a municipal election to citizens of the municipality in
question, though a recent decision may be an indication ot the contrary] Adam Liptak, Justice
Acts To Delauy Vote Result in Hawaii,” The New York Times. November 28, 2015).
Lower Federal Courts
"Ninth Circuit Rules Casino Employees not Entitled to Tribe's Sovereign Immunity,"
Hobbs-Straus General Memorandum 15-047, July 7, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-047, reported, "On June 30, 2015, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals issued
a significant decision in Pistor v. Garcia, Civ. No. 12-17095 (9th Cir. June 30, 2015) (hereafter
"Pistor v. Garcia"). In Pistor v. Garcia, the court found that tribal casino employees sued in
their individual capacity were not entitled to the defense of the Tonto Apache Tribe's
("Tribe") sovereign immunity for their actions.
A group of so-called "advantage gamblers", using specific techniques to determine
wagering advantages at certain video blackjack machines, allegedly won a substantial sum of
money from the Tribe's Mazatxal Casino, owned and operated by the Tribe on tribal land. These
gamblers alleged that the named defendants, including Carlos Garcia (Chief of the Tribe's Police
Department), and other Casino and Gaming Office employees, handcuffed the plaintiffs,
interrogated them, and confiscated substantial sums of money and personal property from them
on October 25, 2011. The plaintiffs alleged the defendants did so wrongfully, with the intent of
recovering the gamblers' winnings, and alleged that the cash and property taken were never
returned. The gamblers brought claims against State of Arizona defendants as well as the tribal
defendants, as the tribal defendants had met with State and County officials the day before the
alleged seizure to discuss the plaintiffs' winnings.
The tribal defendants had moved the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona to
dismiss the claims under Federal Rules of Procedure 12(b)(1), arguing that the Tribe's sovereign
immunity acted as a defense to the suit, given that the tribal individual defendants acted within
their official capacity. The Ninth Circuit panel found that the sovereign immunity defense is
"quasi-jurisdictional" in nature, so the District Court should have addressed and decided the
12(b)(1) subject matter jurisdictional question. The Ninth Circuit nonetheless concurred in the
District Court's result, deciding that the Tribe's sovereign immunity could not be used as a
defense in either a 12(b)(1) or 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss because the defendants were sued in
their individual capacities, and any financial recovery would run against them as individuals,
rather than the Tribe.
The Ninth Circuit, in Pistor v. Garcia, largely followed its analysis in a previous ruling.
In the Maxwell v. County of San Diego case, the Ninth Circuit allowed claims to proceed against
ambulance paramedics who were employees of the Viejas Tribe's Fire Department, because the
161
claims were made against the individuals, not the tribe, and the remedies would operate only
against the individuals. The Ninth Circuit followed this "remedy-focused analysis" for individual
capacity suits, rather than focus instead on whether the individuals were acting within their
official capacity or not. It is important to note that the Ninth Circuit distinguishes "individual
capacity suits" from "official capacity suits" based upon whether the plaintiff is seeking to
"[i]mpose personal liability upon a government official for [wrongful] actions he takes under the
color of…law." In Pistor v. Garcia, plaintiffs alleged tribal defendants took "wrongful" actions in
the detention of plaintiffs and seizure of their property. In Maxwell, plaintiffs alleged tribal
defendants acted wrongfully in their inappropriate actions in an emergency medical situation that
resulted in a patient's death.
It is unclear from the Pistor v. Garcia case whether this signals a substantial
limitation on tribes' capacity to raise the defense of sovereign immunity, or if it provides
potential plaintiffs an opportunity to focus claims and remedies solely upon tribal
employees in their individual capacities. Tribes, and tribal employers, will continue to want to
review job descriptions, personnel policies, manuals, and operating procedures to limit situations
where their employees could be argued to be acting "wrongfully" or otherwise outside the scope
of their official capacity.
"Federal Court Rules Tribes Not Subject to Suit under False Claims Act," Hobbs-Straus
General Memorandum 15-044, June 22, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-044, reported, "In an unpublished case from the Ninth Circuit Court of
Appeals, a three-judge panel affirmed the District Court of Nevada's dismissal of a case
alleging Medicare/Medicaid fraud against the Duck Valley Tribes. The case is United States
ex rel. Howard v. Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian Reservation, No. 13-16118
(9th Cir., June 15, 2015). The Appeals Court agreed with the lower court that the Tribes are a
sovereign, like a state, and thus do not fall under the definition of a "person" to which the
federal False Claims Act (FCA) applies. This finding upholds the Tribes' sovereign immunity,
which protects the Tribes from suit and divests courts of jurisdiction to hear the case.
The case was brought by two individuals on behalf of the United States government in an
action called "qui tam" which provides a way for private individuals to sue on behalf of the
government to prosecute instances of fraud or submittal of false claims for payment to the
government. The federal government has an opportunity to join qui tam suits, but in this case
chose not to do so. The individual plaintiffs were ex-employees of the Tribes' health care facility.
The trial court considered whether an Indian tribe would be considered a "person" under the
definitions of the FCA. While the FCA does not specifically define "person," the trial court held
that Indian tribes are sovereigns, and that "there is a longstanding interpretive presumption that
'person,' as defined in statute, does not include the sovereign." United States ex rel. Howard v.
Shoshone Paiute Tribes, No. 2:10-cv-01890-GMS-PAL, 2012 WL 2327676, *6 (D. Nev., June
19, 2012) (quoting Vermont Agency of Nat. Resources v. United States ex rel. Stevens, 529 U.S.
765 (2000)). Accordingly, the District Court and the Appeals Court both held that the plaintiffs
failed to make a claim.
While the qui tam rules allowed the plaintiffs to sue on behalf of the government, the trial
court rejected both of their arguments that: 1) the federal government as a "superior sovereign"
may enforce the FCA against tribes without regard to tribal sovereign immunity; and 2) that they,
as private plaintiffs on behalf of the United States, should be able to exercise that superior power.
The court, in dicta, suggested that the FCA would not apply to tribes even if the United States
162
itself had brought this case. The trial court adopted the ruling of an earlier case from Wisconsin
(United States v. Menominee Tribal Enters., 601 F.Supp.2d 1061 (E.D. Wis. 2009)) which held
the FCA does not apply to tribes, period, even if the United States itself is the plaintiff. Applying
the same reasoning, the District Court held that if the United States could not sue tribes under the
FCA, then private plaintiffs could not sue either.
While two federal trial courts have now held that the FCA does not apply to tribes, we
caution tribes and their entities from assuming the same. The Ninth Circuit's affirmation in this
case does not squarely address this reasoning, even when upholding the outcome. Further, the
Appeals Court decision is not published and, therefore, not binding precedent. It is very possible
that the United States will take the position in future cases that its ability to pursue FCA actions
is not hampered by sovereign immunity."
"Court Upholds Tribal Sovereign Immunity in Fair Credit Reporting Act Case," HobbsStraus General Memorandum 15-070, September 18, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/generalmemorandum-15-070, reported, "On September 4, 2015, a federal district court ruled that
tribal sovereign immunity barred a class action lawsuit against the Oneida Tribe of
Wisconsin under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (the "Act") and the Fair and Accurate
Credit Transactions Act (which is an amendment to the Act). In Meyers v. Oneida Tribe of
Indians of Wisconsin, 1:15-cv-00445 (E.D. Wis., 2015), the plaintiff said he had bought items at
the Tribe's retail stores and that the stores had printed receipts displaying more than the last five
digits of the plaintiff's credit card number and the expiration date, which would constitute a
violation of the Act.
The Act authorizes damages when a "person" violates the Act. Under the Act, a "person"
is defined as "any individual, partnership, corporation, trust, estate, cooperative, association,
government or governmental subdivision or agency, or other entity." The definition does not
include Indian tribes. The plaintiff contended that the Act's definition of person is broad enough
to include Indian tribes.
The court rejected that argument on three grounds.
First, the court found that the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals' decision in Bormes v.
United States, 759 F.3d 793 (7th Cir. 2014) is not applicable to Indian tribes. In Bormes, the
Seventh Circuit ruled that the Act's definition of "person" was broad enough to include the
United States, even though the United States is not specifically mentioned. The court concluded
that even though "any … government" includes the U.S., it does not include an Indian tribe
because of the canon of construction that requires that ambiguities in statutes are to be read in
favor of Indian tribes and also because Congress did not unequivocally state that it was waiving
tribal sovereign immunity.
Second, the court considered two cases construing the term "governmental unit" under
the U.S. Bankruptcy Code. The definition of governmental unit in the Code includes "other
foreign or domestic government." In Kryztal Energy Co. v. Navajo Nation, 357 F.3d 1055 (9th
Cir. 2004), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that when Congress used the phrase "other
foreign or domestic government" that it meant to include Indian tribes and thus waived their
sovereign immunity. That decision conflicts with the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals' decision
in In re Whittaker, 474 B.R. 687 (8th Cir. BAP 2003) in which the court held that Congress did
not unequivocally express Congress's intent to waive tribal sovereign immunity. The court
weighed the two cases and found that the Eighth Circuit's analysis of congressional intent was
more persuasive. Third, the court rejected the argument that the Act is a law of general
163
applicability and thus incudes Indian tribes. The court distinguished Smart v. State Farm Ins.
Co., 868 F.2d 929 (7th Cir. 1989) on the grounds that Smart dealt with the applicability of the
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), a law of general applicability to an Indian
tribe, but did not involve the question at hand which is whether a tribe may be sued under the
law."
A U.S. district Court in Northern California denied a local authority’s petition,
August 26, 2015, for a temporary restraining order and temporary injunction against the
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from releasing higher flows of water from Trinity
Reservoir to prevent fish kill, including of salmon, on the lower Klamath River. The Yurok
and Hupa Valley tribes strongly supported the BLM action (“USA: Judge Denies Request to Halt
Salmon Protection in Klamath River,” Cultural Survival Quarterly, December 2015).
"Federal Court Dismisses FMLA Case Against Morongo Band," Hobbs-Straus General
Memorandum 15-046, June 30, 2015, http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15046, reported, "On June 17, 2015, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of
California granted the Morongo Band of Mission Indians' motion to dismiss a case brought
against it by a slot machine attendant for wrongful termination and violation of the Family
Medical Leave Act (FMLA). The employee was fired for drug use while on medical leave. The
Court dismissed this case, finding that the Tribe has sovereign immunity from suit, and
that the Tribe's immunity was not abrogated by the language of the law. The case is Muller
v. Morongo Casino Resort & Spa.1
The case is an important one, as it is one of the few involving whether tribes may be sued
for violations of the FMLA. The FMLA itself is silent as to its applicability to tribes, but the
Department of Labor asserts that the FMLA applies to tribal governments. None of the few cases
on this topic squarely address the law's applicability, however. Instead they, like this case,
consider whether the tribe's sovereign immunity applies, precluding enforcement. The most
recent case on this issue, Pearson v. Chugach Government Services, Inc.2 allowed a case to
move forward against a for-profit tribal corporation operating as a business. The Ninth Circuit
had previously ruled that a FMLA case should be remanded so a plaintiff could exhaust tribal
remedies,3 but did not address the applicability of FMLA to tribes. The only federal appeals
court case to address this issue, Chayoon v. Chao4 came to the same result as the Morongo case:
the FMLA does not abrogate tribal sovereign immunity. While tribes would not have a sovereign
immunity defense to federal enforcement action by the Department of Labor, they could perhaps
make an argument that the law does not apply to them. Given some court precedent, like FPC v.
Tuscarora Indian Nation5 and Donavan v. Coeur d'Alene Tribal Farm,6 arguing that a statute of
general applicability does not include tribes may be difficult.
After finding that tribal sovereign immunity was not abrogated by the FMLA, the Court
also found that the Tribe's gaming compact with the State of California contained no waiver of
immunity for the employee's claims. The Court held that neither agreeing to enact tribal
standards at least as protective as the federal Fair Labor Standards Act nor waiving immunity for
the purposes of personal injuries or property damages acted as a waiver of immunity for
employment claims. Finally, the Court also found there was no waiver of immunity due to the
Tribe's enacting a policy similar to the FMLA, while stating a larger point that it would not infer
a waiver of immunity from the adoption of any policy that does not contain a clear, explicit
waiver of immunity.
164
The District Court recognized the Tribe's immunity as a sovereign, but also found that the
gaming facility, the Morongo Casino Resort & Spa, was an "arm of the tribe" to which the
Tribe's sovereign immunity extended. This is an important addition to the line of cases such as
Allen v. Gold Country Casino7 and White v. University of California8 recognizing that sovereign
immunity from suit extends to tribal entities. The Court also held that two casino officials were
immune from suit because they were "tribal officials acting in their official capacities within the
scope of their valid authority." While the facts are different, the thrust of the holding is different
from one recently issued by the California Court of Appeals, Cosentino v. Fuller,9 which found
that tribal immunity may not apply if a court decides a tribal official is acting for allegedly
personal reasons, even when in an official capacity."
"Parties in Ramah Contract Support Cost Class Action Seek Preliminary Approval of
Proposed Settlement," Hobbs-Straus General Memorandum 15-069, September 18, 2015,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com/general-memorandum-15-069, reported, "On September 16, 2015,
the parties in Ramah Navajo Chapter v. Jewell, the contract support cost (CSC) class action
litigation against the Department of the Interior, filed a joint motion for preliminary
approval of a proposed settlement agreement. Under the proposed settlement, which would
settle claims by tribal contractors for unpaid CSC under the Indian Self-Determination
and Education Assistance Act for fiscal years 1994 through 2013, the Department of the
Interior would pay a total settlement amount of $940 million plus post-judgment interest.
$4 million of that amount would be paid into a reserve account to pay costs associated with
administering the settlement, and class counsel will request 8.5 percent of the settlement
amount in attorneys' fees (subject to approval by the court), plus reasonable costs, which
are currently estimated at $1.5 million. The remaining amount would be divided among the
class members as settlement payments.
The parties propose that the settlement distribution will be divided among the class
members according to "Distribution Percentages" that have been assigned to each class member
(and which are listed in an attachment to the filed proposed settlement), with a minimum floor of
$8,000 per class member in each year for which the class member had a contract in place. The
Distribution Percentages were determined on the basis of a statistical analysis of randomly
selected contracts, which were analyzed to extrapolate an overall "CSC ratio" for each contract
year comparing the amount of CSC that allegedly should have been paid to the amount that was
actually paid. The CSC ratio for each year was then applied to the actual amounts paid to each
class member in each year to yield underpayment estimates for each class member, which were
then used to determine each class member's initial proportional share of the settlement amount.
The initial shares were adjusted to account for the $8,000 floor and for a 20 percent increase in
the named Class Representatives' shares, to yield the final Distribution Percentage listed in the
appendix to the proposed settlement agreement.
Since the final net settlement amount is contingent on court approval and award of
attorneys' fees and costs, and is thus not currently known, the tables in the proposed settlement
agreement do not list the specific dollar amounts that each tribal contractor would be entitled to
receive under the settlement. Those amounts would ultimately be determined by applying the
Distribution Percentage to the final net settlement amount when that amount is known. After the
net settlement amount is paid out, any unused amounts remaining in the reserve account would
also be paid to class members using the same distribution methodology.
165
The parties have asked the court not to permit class members to opt out of the settlement
unless they have not previously had the opportunity to do so. Most class members were
permitted to opt out at the time the class was certified and at the time new claims were added to
the case. However, the parties have identified 74 tribes and tribal organizations that have not yet
had any opportunity to opt out because they first entered into contracts with the Bureau of Indian
Affairs after the last notice allowing class members to request exclusion from the class. Those
tribes and tribal organizations are listed separately in the tables listing class member Distribution
Percentages filed with the proposed settlement agreement.
The motion filed on September 16 asks the court to direct that notice of the proposed
settlement be issued to class members, and to schedule a fairness hearing, after which the court
may consider whether to issue final approval of the proposed settlement. If the court
preliminarily approves the settlement and directs notice to class members, class members will be
provided an opportunity to file any objections to the proposed settlement and will be permitted to
appear at the fairness hearing to present those objections. A hearing on the motion for
preliminary approval has been set for September 23, 2015, in Albuquerque, NM."
“‘New Chapter in Trust’: Historic $1.86 Million Settlement Reaffirms Sovereignty,
Tribes
Say,”
ICTMN,
October
20,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/20/new-chapter-trust-historic-186-millionsettlement-reaffirms-sovereignty-tribes-say-162157, reported, “
Tribes
and
the
U.S.
Department of the Interior heralded the outcome of a $186 million settlement signed earlier
this month between the federal government, the Choctaw and the Chickasaw nations to
solve a longstanding land trust dispute as a new chapter in relations.”
The agreement resolved a lawsuit that took issue with the way the federal
government had managed the tribes’ trust resources, according to a statement from the
Chickasaw Nation. The Chickasaw Nation will receive $46.5 million of the copy86 million
settlement, with the balance going to the Choctaw. In their case the tribes alleged that the
U.S. mismanaged 1.3 million acres of timberlands belonging to the Chickasaw and
Choctaw Nations. The agreement ends all litigation and was inked at the Choctaw Event Center
in a ceremony that capped a two-day visit Jewell to both nations on October 5 and 6.”
Settling two law suits, Stephanie Woodard, “Historic Voting-Rights Win in Alaska,”
ICTMN, October 14, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/14/historicvoting-rights-win-alaska-162026, reported, “The Native American Rights Fund (NARF) and
Alaska have jointly announced an agreement that requires the state to provide translation
of election materials and ballots into Gwich’in and several Yup’ik dialects. U.S. District
Court Judge Sharon Gleason, who presided over the lawsuit that resulted in the settlement, also
ordered increased bilingual training for election workers, expanded collaboration with
Native language experts and tribal councils, meaningful outreach to voters, and additional
help for those with limited English-language proficiency.”
Lakota People’s Law Project, “Racism in the Heart of America: DOJ Must Expose
Discrimination
Against
Natives
in
SD,
ICTMN,
November
24,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/24/racism-heart-america-doj-must-exposediscrimination-against-natives-sd-162531, reported, “Following the Lakota People’s Law
166
Project’s comprehensive study demonstrating widespread corruption in South Dakota’s
state government, the Department of Justice filed a civil rights lawsuit against the state’s
Department of Social Services for racist hiring practices.
‘Our investigative report and the DOJ’s lawsuit mark the beginning of the public
revelation of the racism and financial corruption that characterize the state of South
Dakota’s treatment of Lakota people,’ said LPLP Attorney Chase Iron Eyes. ‘Several state
officials have worked in close association with members of the private sector to enrich
themselves while tearing apart Indian families in direct and willful violation of federal law.
We urge the Department of Justice to deepen and expand their legal action.’
LPLP's latest 30-page report, The New Boarding Schools, outlines the means by
which South Dakota’s government collected millions of federal dollars by circulating
Lakota children through state-run foster care systems.
State officials funneled a significant portion of that federal money to pharmaceutical
companies, which provided powerful psychiatric drugs to Indian children who were given
questionable diagnoses after being forcibly removed from their homes. These forcible
removals have amounted to more than 740 Indian children being taken annually from their
homes, families, culture, language and heritage in direct violation of the Indian Child
Welfare Act of 1978.”
LPLP's latest 30-page report, The New Boarding Schools is available at:
http://www.docs.lakotalaw.org/reports/NONAMES_NBS_Corruption.pdf.
Richard Walker, “Tulalip Tribes Sues State, County; Says Taxes on Trust Land
Unconstitutional,”
ICTMN,
July
2,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/07/02/tulalip-tribes-sues-state-county-saystaxes-trust-land-unconstitutional-160929, reported, “Washington State and Snohomish County
officials contend they have the authority to tax business transactions conducted by nonIndians on Indian land, including the Tulalip Tribes municipality of Quil Ceda Village.
The Tulalip Tribes contend that county and state taxes preclude Tulalip from
imposing its own taxes to support public services at Quil Ceda Village, because an additional
tax would drive businesses and consumers away. As a result, the Tulalip Tribes is subsidizing
public services out of other revenues.
Tulalip is suing the state and county in U.S. District Court, alleging “Unlawful State
and County Taxation of Commerce on Indian Trust Lands” violates the U.S. Constitution.
The Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado, preparing to pass tribal fracking regulations
more strict than the applicable federal regulations, sued in Federal District Court in
Denver, CO, in June 2015, challenging the weaker Bureau of Land Regulations (BLM) as
applied to the Southern Ute Reservation. The suit asserts that the BLM regulations violate
the Indian Minerals Leasing Act and the tribe’s authority over its own lands (“Tribe files
challenge to BLM’s Hydraulic Fracturing Rule,” Southern Ute Drum, June 26, 2015).
The Southern Ute Tribe passed its own, more strict hydraulic fracturing regulations
in July, and filed them with the Federal District Court in Denver as part of its case (“Tribe enacts
tribal hydraulic fracturing regulations,” July 10, 2015).
Federal Agency Adjudication
Anne Minard, “$168 Million Settlement Between Navajo Coal Plant and Environmental
167
Protection
Agency,”
ICTMN,
June
25,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/06/25/168-million-settlement-betweennavajo-coal-plant-and-environmental-protection-agency, reported, “The Environmental
Protection Agency has announced a $168 million settlement to help remedy pollution from
a coal-fired power plant on the Navajo Nation.
The settlement requires owners of the Four Corners Power Plant near Shiprock, New
Mexico, to pay an estimated $160 million in upgrades to the plant’s sulfur dioxide and
nitrogen oxide pollution controls. The settlement also sets aside $6.7 million for health and
environmental mitigation projects for tribal members and levies a $1.5 million civil
penalty. The Four Corners Power Plant settlement is subject to a 30-day public comment period
and final court approval.
The Navajo grassroots group Diné Citizens Against Ruining the Environment (Diné
CARE) has been pushing for resolution along with other citizen groups, and is a party to the
settlement. Lori Goodman, a Diné CARE board member, said health concerns have been a
primary driver for her group’s longstanding work on the issue.”
Peabody Coal reached a settlement with the Security and Exchange Commission on
charges the company had attempted to mislead investors, under which Peabody will
disclose financial risks related to climate change to its investors (Kevin McCoy, “Peabody
reaches climate-change deal,” USA Today, November 10, 2015).
Tribal Courts
Cleo Pablo, a member of the Ak-Chin Nation, brought suit against the tribe in tribal
court asserting that her long term marriage to another woman was legal within the tribe,
which did not recognize same sex marriage, and had a stature that prohibited unmarried couples
from
living
together
(Felicia
Fonseca,
“Gay
wife sues tribe over ban on same-sex marriage.” Albuquerque Journal, September 28, 2015).
A review of its court system by the Southern Ute Tribal Council found that the appeals
process from the Southern Ute Tribal Court to the Southwest Intertribal Court of Appeals
was too slow, and changed its appeals, beginning January 1, 2016, to the Northeast
Intertribal Court of Appeals, which the council found decided appellate cases in a timely
manner (“New Year brings new code and Court of Appeals,” Southern Ute Drum, December
24, 2015).
Tribal Government and State and Local Government Developments,
Trust between Maine’s federally recognized tribes, the Passamaquoddies, the
Penobscot Nation, the Aroostook Band of Micmacs and the Houlton Band of Maliseet
Indians and the state since Republican Governor Paul R. LePage, in April 2015, following
disagreements over tribal fishing rights, rescinded a 2011 order directing state agencies
and departments to create policies recognizing the sovereignty of the tribes, and do other
things collaboratively with the tribes. In May, the Penobscots and the Passamaquoddies left
their seats in the Legislature (they could propose legislation and speak on issues, but not
vote), followed by the Aroostook Band of Micmacs issuing a document announcing they
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would no longer recognize the authority of state officials to interfere with their “selfgoverning rights.” The Houlton Band of Maliseet Indians, thoigh unhappy and not hopeful of
favorable policies from Governor LePaige, kept their seat to maintain an Indian vorice in the
legislature. In June, bills seeking joint state-tribal management of fisheries and enhancing a
proposal for tribal casino in northern Maine Failed to pass the legislature, increasing the
divide.
Passamaquoddy Chief Fred Moore stated, “This marriage between the tribe and the state
is little more than a shotgun wedding between unwilling partners. There’s always value in
reconciling, but that requires both sides to want to come to the table.” Moore commented that he
wanted a productive relationship and would continue to work for one, but noted, “the
honeymoon is over” between the state and his tribe, and that the Passamaquoddies were done
going to the capital, Augusta, “asking for things” (“Maine Native American Tribes Say Trust Is
Deteriorating,”
The
New
York
Times,
November
15,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/16/us/maine-native-american-tribes-say-trust-isdeteriorating.html?ref=todayspaper).
“Yakama Nation Given a Step Towards Self-Governance,” ICTMN, October 28, 2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/28/yakama-nation-given-step-towardsself-governance-162234, reported, “For more than half a century the Confederated Tribes
and Bands of the Yakama Nation in the southwestern portion of Washington has seen its
civil and criminal authority held by the state under Public Law 280. That’s all about to
change.
Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn announced on October 19 that
the Department of the Interior has accepted from the state of Washington the partial civil
and criminal jurisdiction it held over the Yakama Nation, a federally recognized tribe.
Richard Walker, “State Considers Name Change For Squaw Bay,” ICTMN, September 25, 2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/09/25/state-considers-name-change-squawbay-161862, reported, “The Washington State Committee on Geographic Names was
petitioned on August 23 to change the name of Squaw Bay – on Shaw Island in the San
Juan Islands – to Sq’emenen Bay.
“Sq’emenen” is the Lummi name for Shaw Island, according to Lummi hereditary
chief Bill (Tsilixw) James. The committee will give the proposal initial consideration
October 23 in Olympia. The committee, which meets twice a year, will decide in May whether to
recommend the change to the state Board on Geographic Names.
The petition is signed by 30 people, among them citizens of several Coast Salish nations
with ties to the San Juan Islands.”
Harlan McKosato, “Repeat DWI Offenders Steered Straight With Traditional Healing, “
ICTMN, September 22, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/09/22/repeatdwi-offenders-steered-straight-traditional-healing-161836, reported, “Alcoholism in Indian
country is not a new issue, but for one of the biggest cities in the country a more traditional
approach in handling repeat offenders of DWI is working within the urban Native
American community.
Albuquerque, New Mexico operates the only state-funded drug court in the country
that specifically serves Native Americans. Originally beginning in 2004, the program made
169
its return in March of this year after being defunded in 2009. It is known as the Urban Native
American Drug Court but in these early stages of its resurgence it is only serving Natives who
have been convicted of their second or third DWI.
‘Natives are over-represented in the courts here in Albuquerque,’ said Karen
Watson, who serves as Probation Officer for the city’s Native drug court. ‘We had the program
in the past and people were so happy there was a Native court because it’s different than the
regular drug court. Now that we’ve started again we’ve had a really positive response.’
What makes this Native DWI program unique is that the court, led by Metro Court Judge
Maria Dominguez, encourages participants to reconnect with their tribal traditions and
ceremonies. The court favors a healing approach as well as spiritual and physical recovery rather
than punitive practices.
‘I know that the participants love it,’ added Dominguez.
Participants are in the DWI program for an average of about 15 months, which includes
community service, regular court appearances, talking circles, culturally sensitive therapy, AA
meetings, random drug and alcohol testing, and they have to be employed or enrolled in an
educational program. The program utilizes intensive treatment and close supervision rather than
jail time.
‘It’s designed for Native Americans who have been convicted of a second or third DWI.
The idea is to basically help them heal so they can be functional, actually more than functional,
but productive members of society,’ said Daniel Apodaca, the only Public Defender for the
Native American Drug Court team.
‘What we do is instead of sending them to jail we have them go through counseling and therapy.
It’s an intense outpatient program. It’s designed to find underlying issues our clients might have,’
Apodaca said. ‘Our goal is to have our clients actively think about sobriety. Alcoholism is an
issue they have to face on a daily basis. We want them to constantly think about being sober and
being in their right state of mind.’
‘You don’t have to be a registered member of a tribe, or have a specific amount bloodline
or Certificate of Indian Blood. But actually 100 percent of the people I have in the Native
American Drug Court are members of the Navajo Nation or members of a Pueblo,’ Dominguez
said. ‘We don’t want our clients to be in and out of jail and in and out of the judicial system. We
encourage them to try to reconnect with their local community and traditions. They can do their
community service where they live.’
Dominguez, who also serves on the state-tribal court consortium, explained that
drug courts have been in existence all across the nation for more than 25 years and are
proven more effective than any other form of probation or incarceration. The recidivism
rate for Albuquerque’s drug court graduates over the years is 5.5 percent.”
In Phoenix, AZ, a proposed Loop 202 expansion – a 22-mile, 8-lane highway, which
will run west from Chandler, Arizona, parallel to the south of Moahdak Do’ag territory,
through the community of Ahwatukee – will cut through the west end of the sacred site of
Moahdak Do’ag of the O’otham/O’odham, and run north to connect to Interstate 10 (Amanda
Blackhorse, “Blackhorse: Highway Expansion Threatens Moahdak Do’ag, a Sacred Place of
Healing
in
Arizona,”
ICTMN,
December
7,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/07/blackhorse-highway-expansionthreatens-moahdak-doag-sacred-place-healing-arizona-162684).
170
In Riverton Wyoming, two homeless men, members of the nearby Northern
Arapaho Nation, were shot in an alcohol rehab center by a white man who said he was was
sick of the homeless people who linger in this city’s parks, urinating in public and drinking
bottles of vodka and mouthwash. Tribal leaders saw it as a hate crime, part of a long history
of racism. But city leaders did not find a racial aspect of the crime. Tribal and city leaders
met afterwards to find “common ground,” but it is not clear that much was gained in the
meeting (Jack Healy, “In Wyoming, Shooting Highlights Divide Between a City and a
Reservation,”
The
New
York Times, July 29, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/30/us/in-wyoming-shootinghighlights-divide-between-a-city-and-a-reservation.html).
Tribal Developments
The serious inappropriate and often racial actions of some police and corrections
personnel have been impacting Indigenous Americans. For example, Shaun King, "American
Indian mother of two dies in police custody after her repeated pleas for help ignored," Daily Kos,
July 29, 2015, http://www.dailykos.com/story/2015/07/29/1406774/-Native-American-motherof-infants-dies-in-police-custody-after-her-repeated-pleas-for-help-ignored?detail=email,
reported,"The ugly American secret has been exposed. All across the country, women and men
are dying in police custody and have been by the thousands every year.
Four days before Sandra Bland was arrested in Waller County, Texas, a 24-year-old
American Indian woman of the Lakota tribe, Sarah Lee Circle Bear of Clairmont, South
Dakota, was arrested on a simple bond violation.
Witnesses stated that before being transferred to a holding cell, Circle Bear pleaded to
jailers that she was in excruciating pain. Jail staff responded by dismissing her cries for
help, telling her to “knock it off,” and “quit faking.” Inmates cried out for the jail staff to
help Circle Bear, to which they eventually responded by picking her up off of the floor,
dragging her out of the cell, and transferring her to a holding cell. Circle Bear was later
found unresponsive in the holding cell.
This is completely despicable. It's worse than that—the actions (or inaction) of the jail
directly caused Sarah's death."
“New Website: Sex Trafficking Resources for Tribal Coalitions,” NCAI, September 11,
2015, http://www.ncai.org/news/articles/2015/09/11/new-website-sex-trafficking-resources-fortribal-coalitions, reported, “A
A new website
website is now available with the express purpose of
providing sex trafficking information and resources for tribal domestic violence and sexual
assault coalitions. The link to the site is::
is:: http://www.tribalcoalitions.org.
http://www.tribalcoalitions.org..
The site includes federal, state, and tribal laws, articles, resources, and information about
victim services and will continue to include new information as it becomes available.
From the site:
This website was created to provide tribal coalitions with quick access to information
their advocates
advocates need–
need–legal resources, victim service directories, training calendars, technical
assistance, and more.
Additionally, we envision this site as a place for Native women to find help when dealing
with violence. Individuals can reach out to their local Tribal Coalition(s) for assistance or they
can easily use our Victim Services Directory themselves. We suggest, however, that individuals
171
contact their local tribal coalition for assistance first. A Tribal Coalition can help individuals
navigate options and services, and utilizing coalition connections can increase a client’s chances
of receiving services or referrals
referrals immediately. “
"UMass Boston and Suffolk Law Hold Statewide Discussions, Listening Sessions with
Native Peoples: Nipmuc Tribe Will Host First Roundtable at Worcester Public Library August
29," Cultural Survival, July 30, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/umass-boston-andsuffolk-law-hold-statewide-discussions-listening-sessions-native-peoples, reported, "UMass
Boston’s Institute for New England Native American Studies (INENAS) and Suffolk
University Law School’s Indigenous Peoples Rights Clinic are pleased to announce a yearlong, statewide project, Massachusetts Native Peoples and the Social Contract: A
Reassessment for Our Times. Supported by a grant from Mass Humanities, the two
organizations will host four roundtable discussions and listening sessions in areas of the
state with substantial Native American populations.
The goal is to bring Native peoples’ voices to the forefront, engaging Natives in
Massachusetts in looking at the past, the present, and the future through the lens of the social
contract between the state and Native peoples whose homelands are within the borders of the
state, and discussing issues affecting tribal members and the communities. In conjunction with
tribal leaders from tribal communities, INENAS Director Cedric Woods and Nicole Friederichs,
director of the Indigenous Peoples Rights Clinic, will lead the roundtable discussions and
moderate the listening sessions in Worcester, Boston, Mashpee, and Amherst.
The first session will be held in Worcester Public Library on August 29, hosted by the Nipmuc
Tribe. All are welcome to attend these important events; there will be an opportunity for those
present to share their thoughts.
The four roundtable discussions will he held: Worcester Public Library- August 29, 2-4
p.m.; Mashpee Wampanoag government building, Mashpee- October 3, 4-6 p.m.; UMass
Amherst, Commonwealth Honors College Events Hall, Rm. 160 (Next to Roots Café) November 5, 6-8 p.m.; North American Indian Center of Boston, 105 South Huntington Ave.
Jamaica Plain- March 11, 2016, noon to 2 p.m." For more information contact: Cedric Woods,
617-287-5784, [email protected],
Nicole
Friederichs,
617-5738100, [email protected].
U.S. Census Bureau data from its 2014 American Community Survey indicated, in
November 2015, that 53 percent of American Indians own their own homes, compard to the
national average of 63 percent, one in eight Native Americans live in mobile homes, while
more than half of Native renters are cost burdened, paying more than 30 percent of their
income on their rentals.
.
The data indicated that the average number of people per Indian owned household
was 3.11, while occupancy of rental units 2.95. More than 8.5 percent of households
averaged one person or more per room, indicative of overcrowding.
Other findings were that around 84 percent of Indians and Alaska Natives are living in
the same house they lived in a year ago. 64 percent live in single unit attached or detached
houses. Nine percent live in two to four unit structures, while 14 percent live in multifamily
housing (five or more units). The percentage living in mobile homes, boats, recreational vehicles
or vans was 12.5 percent.
Indians tend to live in older units, with 85 percent of them having been built in the
172
last century, the data shows. Just 2.4 percent lives in units made since 2010, and 12.4
percent in units built between 2009 and 2010. Ten percent of Indians live in structures built
before 1939. The largest cohorts lived in units built between 1980 and 1999 (31 percent)
while the next largest group, 30 percent, lived in houses built between 1960 and 1979.
There were 224,000 Native houses that had mortgages last year, or about 27 percent of
the total. Fully a third of those households spent more than 30 percent of household income on
mortgages. The median owner costs per month was $1,166 for houses with mortgages, and $317
for houses without mortgages.
The median value of Indian-owned homes was $110,000. 53 percent of Native rental
households pay more than 30 percent of their income on rent, with an average monthly rental of
$776.
Five percent of Indian homes do not have a telephone. About 74 percent have
computers in the home, but only 59 percent have broadband. About 14 percent of all
Indian homes have no vehicle available.
About one percent of Indian homes do not use fuel. The most frequent heating
method was gas, at 48 percent, followed by electricity at 36 percent.
The median Native household income was $37,227 in 2014. 23 percent had no health
insurance, and 24 percent of all Native families lived in poverty Mark Fogarty, “Indians Still
Lagging
on
Home
Ownership,”
ICTMN,
November
14,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/14/indians-still-lagging-home-ownership162424).
All four counties in South Dakota that are entirely within the boundaries of
American Indian reservations received very few mortgages in 2014. Federal data shows
that most of the mortgage lending in those counties went to the minority white population.
Only 29 mortgages were made in these four reservation counties in 2014, totaling $2.5 million in
finance. An additional $327,000 came from sales of these loans into the mortgage secondary
market. Meanwhile, less than a half million dollars of mortgage finance was extended on Oglala
Lakota County through 29 loans in 2014, bringing the total for the five reservation-only counties
about $3.3 million in loans and investments, or about an average of $600,000 for each county.
Todd County received the highest mortgage investment with $990,000, through $938,000
in loans and $52,000 in secondary sales. BankWest, formerly Pierre National Bank, was the
largest lender there, at $467,000, while Farmers & Merchants loaned $240,000 and Wells Fargo
$227,000. Dewey County followed, with $795,000 made through 11 mortgages, with BankWest
the leading lender there, with $535,000, followed by Dacotah Bank with $155,000 and Wells
Fargo at $105,000. Ziebach County received $556,000 in new mortgage finance, with another
$194,000 through the secondary market, of which $439,000 came from BankWest, $206,000
from Wells Fargo, and $105 from JP Morgan Chase.
In Corson County, the largest amount, $168,000 originated from conventional (nongovernment) lending with the remainder, $158,000, coming through government products
insured by the Federal Housing Administration and the Department of Veterans Affairs. In
Corson County, a third of lending went to whites, who are 37 percent of the population. In
Dewey County, 73.3 percent went to whites who are only 25 percent of the population. In Todd
County, American Indian borrowers who are 85 percent of the population received 25 percent of
the loans, white borrowers received 24 percent, with the rest ascribed to “unknown,” “multirace” and “not available.” (Which means it is possible, but far from indicated, that up to 75
173
percemnt of the loans could have gone to Indians). In Ziebach County, where around 75 percent
of the population is Indian, half the loans went to whites, and just over 25 percent to Indians (the
remaining about 25 percent not clearly indicated where it went by race). The reasons for the loan
distribution were not indicated in the available data (Mark Fogarty, “Little Mortgage Lending in
Any
of
SD
Reservation-Only
Counties,”
ICTMN,
November
28,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/28/little-mortgage-lending-any-sdreservation-only-counties-162591).
Alysa Landry, “Navajos Have Spoken: Voters Will Set Fluency Requirement for Top
Leaders,”
ICTMN,
August
7l,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/08/07/navajos-have-spoken-voters-will-setfluency-requirement-top-leaders-161311, reported, The Navajo people have spoken.
Voters on July 21 narrowly approved a controversial change to the election code,
which required the Nation’s top two elected leaders to be fluent in the Navajo language. Fiftytwo percent – or 13,017 people – voted in favor of amending the code, finally putting to rest the
long-simmering debate over the requirement that the president and vice president be able to
understand and speak Navajo fluently, and read and write English.
The amended code, which goes into effect for the 2018 presidential election, still
requires candidates to speak fluent Navajo, but it adds the provision that “this ability shall
be determined by the Navajo voter when he/she casts a ballot.” In the past, fluency was
determined by election officials or, in extreme cases, by the courts.”
The Navajo Nation Council voted, in November, to require the Chief Justice of the
Navajo Supreme Court to hold a Juris Doctor degree (Christopher Peneo, “Navajo Chief
Justice must hold a Juris Doctor degree ,” Navajo Times, November 12, 2015).
The U.S. Department of Justice found that Navajo Nation wasted $30 million in
federal stimulus money that could have gone to other uses by building two jails larger than
needed, though the Nation did need new jails (Felicia Fonseca, “Justice Department faults
Navajo Nation’s jail building,” Navajo Times, October 4, 2015).
Navajo Nation took control of three fire stations, by April1, 2015, previously
operated by San Juan, NM county (Alysa Landry, “Nation to take control of fire stations,”
Navajo Times, March 15, 2015).
The slow process of improvement of infrastructure on the Navajo Reservation took a
step, in late November 2015, with the completion of paved Navajo Route 16, extending 40
miles from Arizona highway 98 to the Naatsis Chapter and community schools (“Navajo Route
16 completion spurs celebration,” Navajo Times, December 3, 2015).
The Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado, as part of its efforts to bring back traditional
inclusive member participation in its affairs put on a special tribal council meeting with
elders to hear their needs and views, August 21, 2015, and sought comment from tribal
members in August on its proposed revised Appellate Code (See “Tribal Courts” above)
(Damon Toledo, “Issues addressed at Elders’ meeting with council,” Southern Ute Drum,
September 4, 2015; and “Tribe seeking comment to the revised Appellate Code,” Southern Ute
174
Drum, August 7. 2015).
“Santa Ana Pueblo Get EPA-Certified to Administer Clean Water Act on Tribal Land,”
ICTMN, July 22, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/07/22/santa-anapueblo-get-epa-certified-administer-clean-water-act-tribal-land-161159, reported, “The Pueblo of
Santa Ana’s water-quality programs are now federally certified, meaning the tribe can administer
them autonomously under the Clean Water Act, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) announced on July 22.”
Cass Madden, "Keweenaw Bay Indian Community Becomes Third Tribe in Michigan to
Legalize
Same-Sex
Marriage,"
Cultural
Survival,
July
28,
2015.
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/keweenaw-bay-indian-community-becomes-third-tribemichigan-legalize-same-sex-marriage, reported, "In June 2015, the Keweenaw Bay Indian
Community, a part of the Ojibwe Nation located in the conservative Upper Peninsula of
Michigan, became the third tribe in Michigan and the twelfth in the US to legalize and
codify same-sex marriage. Cultural Survival spoke with marriage equality advocate and
Keweenaw Bay community member Cecelia LaPointe last week about what the decision means
for her tribe and what other tribes in the nation can learn from the historic decision. The
legislation, even though it passed by a narrow 5-4 vote, is not as progressive as it might seem,
LaPointe explained, because the ideas have always existed in Ojibwe culture. It was
accomplished with minimal changes to the existing ordinance, which allows for the marriage of
any Native American - not just Keweenaw Bay Indian Community members - to whomever they
choose. The most significant amendments were changing references to marrying as "between a
man and a women" to gender-neutral references to consenting adults. Though it is specifically
framed in terms of marriage equality, the legislation is precipitated by the larger “two-spirit
identity” which the tribe defines as “a person whose body simultaneously houses a masculine
spirit and a feminine spirit” and which can reference sexual orientation, gender identity, and/or
gender variance. Two-spirit identity exists in much of Native North America, or at least it did
before colonization. According to LaPointe, marriage equality is really a part of the fight for
decolonization: before the conquest of America, two-spirit people were respected in their
communities and often considered sacred and it was only after the arrival of Western culture and
Christianity
that
the
identity
became
stigmatized
and
criminalized.
When asked what advice her tribe could impart to other Native American tribes
surrounding the issues of marriage equality and two-spirit identity, LaPointe said one of the most
important things is research: “Tribes need to do their research on what two-spirit identity was
before colonization. It’s a way of respecting tradition and culture, really.” If the rules
surrounding marriage equality come from Christianity and colonization, then it isn’t really “who
we are” she said, encouraging tribes to speak to experts within their communities (especially
elders, who are the closest to the past) as well as on the national level to discover what two-spirit
identity traditionally meant in their culture. She says that there need to be greater support
systems in place, because too many two-spirited people are being lost and for nations to become
stronger, they must look at the marginalized members within their own communities and begin
finding justice for them."
16,
“Cherokee Nation Citizens About to Receive Many More Services,” ICTMN, September
2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/09/16/cherokee-nation-citizens-
175
about-receive-many-more-services-161773. Reported, “The Cherokee Nation Tribal Council
approved the largest comprehensive budget in the tribe’s history at $767 million during its
meeting on September 14. As part of that, Cherokee Nation citizens are about to receive more
services.
The tribe’s fiscal year begins October 1 and the new budget is $35 million more than the
2015 fiscal year.
The increased funding will be dispersed as such:
Health services will receive a $30 million increase;
Commerce will see a $3.5 million increase;
Human Services will receive a $3 million increase;
Career Services receives a $2.5 million increase;
Higher Education College Scholarships will see a copy.5 million increase.
Principal Chief Bill John Baker proposed the budget that was unanimously approved
Monday night.
‘The unprecedented financial growth is directly due to the success of our businesses,
strategic investments, concentrated effort in third-party health care billing, increased number of
federal grants and overall excellent financial stewardship,’ Chief Baker said. With an increased
annual budget, Cherokee Nation citizens and employees will see our tribal programs and services
grow to meet the needs of our people. When we have more dollars to grow our capacity and
serve Cherokee people, that is a great thing.’
Essentially the increased funding will provide new homes and jobs as well as
assistance to elders and childcare services.”
Vincent Schilling, “Eastern Cherokee Band Recognized by EPA for Harnessing
Rainwater,”
ICTMN,
July
9,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/07/09/eastern-cherokee-band-recognized-epaharnessing-rainwater-161019, reported, “Creative use of storm water and runoff has earned
the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians kudos from the U.S. Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) in the form of a regional 2015 Rain Catcher Award in the Tribal Category
for their Native Plant Facility project in western North Carolina.”
“The project—running and maintaining a Native Plant Nursery Facility designed to
provide native plants for tribal projects associated with aquatic restoration, riverbank
vegetation and wildlife habitat enhancement—not only garnered the band an award but
also could serve as models for other tribes, EPA officials said.
‘The project employed two 6,000-gallon cisterns to capture and reuse approximately
1,750 gallons of rainwater per inch of rainfall,’ the EPA said in a statement announcing the
award on June 17. ‘The facility location received 52 inches of precipitation in the past year,
resulting in approximately 91,000 gallons of rainwater captured and ultimately applied to the
plants. With this rain harvesting capability, the Cherokee have reduced surface water
consumption from the on-site stream by more than 36 percent.’”
What has been called Mount McKinley, in Alaska, the tallest mountain in the U.S.,
has regained its traditional name, Denali (Julie Heshfield Davis, “North America’s Tallest
Peak Will Again Be Called Denali, “ The New York Times, August 31, 2015).
176
Mark Trahant, "Native Candidates for Congress #NativeVote16, Trahant Reorts, Edited
on
November
6,
2015,
https://www.google.com/fusiontables/DataSource?docid=1gTwi4uZFDyQC_HNfe79W9xDuQD
0EpW5dCDBMvyaL#rows:id=1 , reported,
Native American Candiadates for the U.S. Congress:
State
District Name
Tribe
Party
Link________________
AZ
1
Shawn Redd Navajo
R http://shawnredd.com
AZ
2
Victoria Steele Seneca
D www.victoriasteeleforcongress.com
OK
4
Tom Cole
Chicksaw
R http://tomcoleforcongress.com
OK
2
Markwayn
Mullin
Cherokee
R www.mullinforcongress.com
WA
5
Joe Patookas Coleville
D www.patookasforcongress.com
MT At Large
Denise Juneau Mandan-Hidatsa D http://denisejuneau.com
Msrk Trahant, “NativeVote `6 – Let’s Crowqsource This List of Names of Elected
Officoals
for
County,
City,
School
Boards,”
November
18,
2015,
http://trahantreports.com/2015/11/18/nativevote16-lets-crowdsource-this-list-of-names-ofelected-officials-for-county-city-school-boards/ and https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Pf0s-d8JRNPS4vbSMEuT7ia5rstYBlkVVkh1AhLz0A/pubhtml:
City & County Native American elected officials 2015 :
City
Office Held
Name
Tribal Affiliation
Bellingham, WA
City Council
Roxanne Murphy
Nooksack
Seattle, WA
City Council
Debora Juarez
Blackfeet
Spokane, WA
City Council
Randy Ramos
Colville
Bellingham, WA
Whatcom Country Treasurer
Steven Oliver
Lummi
Seattle, WA
School Board
Scott Pinkham
Nez Perce
Monticello, UT
County Commission
Rebecca Benally
Navajo
St. Johns, AZ
Board of Superviors (Chair)
Joe Shirley, Jr.
Navajo
St. Johns, AZ
Board of Superviors
Tom White, Jr.
Navajo
Gallup, NM
County Commission
Carol Bowman Muskett Navajo
Gallup, NM
County Commission
Genevieve Jackson
Navajo
Gallup,NM
Sheriff
Ronald Silversmith
Navajo
Gallup, NM
County Clerk
Harriett Becenti
Navajo
Gallup, NM
Assessor
Kathleen Arviso
Navajo
Gallup, NM
Treasurer
Ernest Becenti Jr.
Navajo
Farmington, NM
County Commission
Wallace Charley
Navajo
Murphy, NC
Town Council
Barbara Vicknair
Eastern Band of Cherokee
Bryson City, NC
Swain County Commission
Ben Bushyhead
Eastern Band of Cherokee
Hot Springs, SD
Oglala County Commission
Arthur Hopkins
Hot Springs, SD
Anna Takes The Shield
Hot Springs, SD
Arlin Whirlwindhorse
Hot Springs, SD
Wendell Yellow Bull
177
Hot Springs, SD
Lyla Hutchinson
Winner, SD
Tood County Commission
Bethel, AK
City Council
Nicki Hoffman
Bethel, AK
Vice Mayor
Byron Maczynski
Los Angeles, CA
City Council
Mitch O'Farrell
Wyandotte
Chiloquin, OR
Mayor
Joe Hobbs
Klamath
Chiloquin, OR
City Council
Jeff Mitchell
Klamath
Virginia, MN
City Council
Nevada Littlewolf
Minnesota Chippewa
_^_^_^_^_^_^_^_
Economic Developments
Mark Fogarty, “Native CDFI Taps New Financing Source,” ICTMN, October 22, 2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/22/native-cdfi-taps-new-financing-source16213, reported, “A Native community development financial institution has tapped the
bond market for copy6 million, becoming the first Native CDFI to take part in a bond
guarantee program run by the federal CDFI Fund.
The Citizens Potawatomi Community Development Corp., based in Shawnee,
Oklahoma, will use the bond proceeds for large-scale commercial real estate projects in its
service area.”
Kristi Eaton, “New Partnership Helps Native Youth Interested in Entrepreneurship,”
ICTMN, November 19, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/09/newpartnership-helps-native-youth-interested-entrepreneurship-162369, reported, “The National
Center for American Indian Enterprise Development (NCAIED) and United National
Indian Tribal Youth, Inc. (UNITY) recently announced a new partnership to create
education opportunities, training and workshops for youth interested in entrepreneurship.“
For information visit: http://res.ncaied.org/youth-entrepreneurship-summit-yes/.
“Coalition
Coalition to Launch NAT$VE in the BANK
BANK Initiative for Native Youth,”
Youth,” NCIA,
September 14, 2015,
2015, http://www.ncai.org/news/articles/2015/09/14/ncai
http://www.ncai.org/news/articles/2015/09/14/ncai--partnerspartners-withwith-nativenativefinancialfinancial-educationeducation-coalitioncoalition-toto-launchlaunch-natnat-veve-inin-thethe-bankbank-initiativeinitiative-forfor-nativenative-youth,
youth, reported,
“Building on its First Kids 1st initiative and its work advancing Generation Indigenous
(Gen(Gen-I), the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) has joined forces with the
Native Financial Education Coalition (NFEC) to launch NAT$VE in the BANK because
they understand that Native youth building relationships with financial institutions by
opening a bank account is
is a proven differencedifference-maker in them making smart financial
decisions over the course of their lives.
Designed for Native youth ages 12 to 25, NAT$VE in the BANK requires
participants to finish four easy steps: complete a short, fun online course on financial
financial
education; open an account with a bank or credit union; take a “selfie” picture with a
bank/credit union representative; and share through words or art their financial goals in
life.
life. Once they do, participating Native youth receive a NAT$VE in the BANK T-shirt and a
chance to win an iPad Air. If participants recruit at least three friends to also complete NAT$VE
178
in the BANK’s four easy steps, they are entered for a chance to win an iTunes gift card, an iPad
mini, or a trip to NCAI’s 2015 Annual Convention
Convention in San Diego.
‘This important new initiative, which seeks to strengthen the financial capability and selfselfsufficiency of our youth, builds on NCAI’s work on First Kids 1st and GenGen-I,’
I,’ said Jacqueline
Pata, NCAI Executive Director. ‘We encourage Native yo uth everywhere to participate, and we
invite tribal governments, Native organizations, and financial institutions to play key roles in
supporting Native youth to answer the NAT$VE in the BANK call.’
call.’
Tribes and organizations can support NAT$VE in the BANK b y recruiting Native youth
to participate, integrating the initiative into their youth programs, and reaching out to local banks
and credit unions to get them to participate. Banks and credit unions, meanwhile, can do their
part by: accepting tribal IDs and a minimum initial deposit of $25 to open accounts, waiving
monthly account fees, hosting a NAT$VE in the BANK fair at a bank branch or school in/around
a tribal community so youth can open accounts, and contributing matching funds to initial
deposits made to those accounts.
One of the first Native youth to answer the NAT$VE in the BANK call was Harmani
Wilson, a citizen of the Oglala Sioux Tribe and high school senior who lives in Henderson,
Nevada. She explains, ‘I said, ‘Why not give it a try?’ It was pretty easy to understand and do. I
am happy I did it because I learned a lot from it. It was amazing how much money I was saving
by putting it in the bank because I was not spending like I would if I had cash in my pocket. It
helped me budget better and I was able to save up for items I really wanted, and I learned that I
can take my time and don’t need to buy things immediately.’
immediately.’
In order to be eligible to win the trip to NCAI’s upcoming Annual Convention in San
Diego, Native youth must answer the NAT$VE in the BANK call and get at least three friends to
participate by Friday, September 25th. NAT$VE in the BANK will then unveil a new grand
prize for youth who answer the call by March 31, 2016. To learn more about NAT$VE in the
BANK, please visit the NFEC website:
website: http://nfec.us, or email Tyler Owens at
The Southern Ute Tribe of Colorado Tribal Council, in early November, approved
the construction by its growth fund via the
the Southern Ute Alternative Energy, LLC and La
Plata Electric Association of a solar panel farm to generate about the amount of electricity
used by 250 normal households. The tribe plans to build additional solar generating plants
when the price
price of doing so
so further declines (Damon Toledo, “Solar plant to be built on
reservation,” Southern Ute Drum,
Drum, November 13, 2015).
Tribal Gambling revenue at 459 tribal casinos in 28 states rose 1.5% from, 2013 to
2014, with 24 new tribal casinos opening in 2014. In the upper Midwest, with 10 new tribal
gaming facilities in 2014, tribal gaming revenues fell 2.5% from the previous year. The
slower increase, and in some cases reduction, of gambling revenue is decreasing the efforts of
many Indian nations to diversify their businesses (Steve Friess, “Indian Tribes Look Beyond
Casinos for Income,” The New York Times,” October 24, 2015).
Mark Fogarty, “California Indian Gaming Reaches $7 Billion Again,” ICTMN, October
31, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/31/california-indian-gamingreaches-7-billion-again-16224, reported, “American Indian gaming in California hit $7
billion again in 2013, according to Casino City Press, the gaming publisher based in Newton,
Massachusetts.
179
California Native volume for 2013 (the latest year available) hit $6.995 billion,
according to information given to the media so they could come up with combined Indian
and commercial gaming numbers. That’s the best result since 2008’s $7.3 billion. The
record year for Native gaming in the Golden State was 2007’s $7.8 billion.”
“Camp in Style: $5.6M RV Resort Coming to Pala Casino,” ICTMN, December 3, 2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/03/camp-style-56m-rv-resort-coming-palacasino-162644, reported, “In the heart of Temecula Valley Wine Country, a new, $5.6 million,
10-acre recreational vehicle (RV) facility is scheduled to open in late May 2016,” at Pala
Casino in California.
“Mashpee Receive 321 Acres for First Land-Into Trust Decision,” ICTMN, September
18, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/09/18/mashpee-receive-321-acresfirst-land-trust-decision-161809, Reported, “The Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe received news
today from Assistant Secretary – Indian Affairs Kevin K. Washburn that they would be
acquiring 170 acres of land into trust in the town of Mashpee, Massachusetts.
The land will be used for tribal government, cultural and conservation purposes.
Another 151 acres were also put into trust for the tribe in the city of Taunton,
Massachusetts for the construction and operation of a gaming facility and resort. The 300plus acres will become the tribe’s first lands held in trust according to the Department of the
Interior announcement.”
“Native-Made Olive Oil Gains Traction With Restaurants, Consumers,” ICTMN,
December 4, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/04/native-made-oliveoil-gains-traction-restaurants-consumers-162661, reported, “Since the Yocha Dehe Wintun
Nation planted its first olive trees in 2008 in the Capay Valley of California, and launched
its Séka Hills brand in 2011, the popularity of its extra-virgin olive oil and other estateproduced products has steadily grown.
Today the tribe's olive oil is used by more than 200 restaurants.”
Richard Walker, “Let It Be Pot: Two Washington State Tribes on Board, ICTMN,
December 2, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/02/let-it-be-pot-twowashington-state-tribes-board-162613For the Suquamish, reported from Washington state, “The
Suquamish Tribe and Squaxin Island Tribe have legalized marijuana and in September
signed 10-year compacts with the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board;
Squaxin’s retail marijuana store, “Elevation,” opened for business November 12 on the
Squaxin Reservation. It is believed to be the first marijuana retailer owned by a Native nation in
the U.S. “Agate Dreams,” to be operated by a Suquamish Tribe business entity, is expected
to open in early December on Highway 305, near Suquamish Clearwater Casino Resort.”
The Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribal Council), of Flandreau, SD, voted to
temporarily suspend their marijuana operation, burning their first crop, after state
officials raised issues about the legality under state law parts of the operation. They were
first tribal nation to legalize marijuana, after the Department of Justice issued a memorandum in
December 2014, which outlined that tribal nations may grow and sell marijuana as long as they
comply with the same regulations as states who opt to legalize. The tribe, in November, was
consulting with the U.S. Department of Justice, on how they needed to operate to have their
marijuana business completely legal, and was expecting to restart their operation soon
180
(Sarah Sunshine Manning, “Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe Burns Crop, Suspends Marijuana
Operation.”
ICTMN,
November
18,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/08/flandreau-santee-sioux-tribe-burnscrop-suspends-marijuana-operation-162363),
The Navajo Tech Innovation Center opened in Church Rock, NM as an incubator
for Navajo business, in December, 2015 (Christopher Pineo, “Navajo Tech Innovation Center to
support Navajo businesses,” Navajo Times, December 17, 2015).
Education and Culture
Tanya H. Lee, “Haskell: A Great School, And Needs More Money to Stay That Way,”
ICTMN, December 3, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/03/haskellgreat-school-and-needs-more-money-stay-way-162538, reported, “Students at Haskell Indian
Nations University have high aspirations, says President Venida Chenault, Prairie Band
Potawatomi Nation, and the university is looking for new resources to educate the tribal
leaders of the future. A first step is to convince Congress to pass legislation that would
allow Haskell to be able to accept donations without losing any part of the university’s
federal appropriation and that would provide federal matching funds for contributions.”
Sheena Louise Roetman, “South Dakota Slated to Cut Native American History,”
ICTMN, September 30, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/09/30/southdakota-slated-cut-native-american-history-161914, reported, “South Dakota high school
students will not be learning about Native Americans next year, thanks to some quietly
approved changes in content standards that no longer require students to study early
American history.
Beginning in the 2016-2017 academic year, high school students in South Dakota may
choose one of three courses to satisfy their single U.S. history requirement: Early U.S.
History, Modern U.S. History or Comprehensive U.S. History.
A group of 35 educators made up the South Dakota Social Studies Content Standards
Revision Committee, which recommended the adjustments that were approved on August 24,
after a year long approval process – the first changes to be made since 2006.”
Käri Knutson/UW-Madison, “Video: New Website Helps Educators Teach About
Wisconsin’s
Native
Nations,
December
7,
2015http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/07/video-new-website-helpseducators-teach-about-wisconsins-native-nations-162626at, reported, “Twelve American Indian
nations call Wisconsin home. Each has its own customs, its own identity, its own story.
A new website: http://education.wisc.edu/soe/about/resource-service-units/studentdiversity-programs/american-indian-curriculum-services/why-act31. is helping educators
throughout the state tell those stories to students from kindergarten through high school.
Wisconsin Act 31 is the term for the five state statutes that require schools to teach
American Indian Studies throughout a student’s career and maintain instructional
materials that appropriately reflect diverse cultures.
The site aims to help administrators and teachers have an online home for materials that
will start classroom conversations through questions such as: How long have humans lived here?
181
On whose ancestral lands do you live? Who are your contemporary tribal neighbors today?
A statewide survey launched in 2014 and answered by more than 1,700 teachers found
that two-thirds of the respondents indicated a need for support in identifying appropriate
resources for teaching and learning about the American Indian nations and tribal communities of
Wisconsin.“
Gallup, NM, as of early August 1015, was considering opening the k-12 Six
Directions Indigenous School, fall 2015, offering “a cultural responsive education model”
honoring Navajo and Zuni culture, including language, as part of bilingual education. The
curriculum includes a holistic wellness component and a restorative justice model (Alastair
Le Bitsoi, “Indigenous School up for approval,” Navajo Times, August 13, 2015).
The Bureau of Indian Affairs transferred full control of the Isleta Pueblo
elementary school to the pueblo, beginning fall 2015, in the first such transfer in President
Obama’s Blue Print for Reform program. The curriculum was to include Isleta culture and
language ( push culture and language,” Navajo Times, August 6, 2015).
--==+==-Alexis White-Mobley "Teaching Lakota: Rising Voices," Cultural Survival, October 22,
2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/teaching-lakota-rising-voices, reported, "In an
increasingly interconnected world, a global community seems ideal. The English language,
symbolic of so-called globalization, is used almost everywhere for commerce, trade, and
bridging common humanity between disparate cultures—but at what cost? The
documentary film Rising Voices/Hótȟaŋiŋpi, directed by Lawrence Hott and Diane Garey
in partnership with The Language Conservancy, examines a culture that has witnessed its
language being replaced by English over the last few centuries—the Lakota Nation of the
American Great Plains. This situation is not limited to North America—according to one
speaker in the film, “it’s a universal problem.” With globalization, cultures all over the world are
losing this integral aspect to their unique understanding of reality. Nevertheless, due to the
Lakota Nation’s iconic status in American popular culture, it proves useful to pinpoint the
problems and creative solutions faced by Lakota people in trying to keep their language alive.”
Rising Voices features segments of four films from Lakota filmmakers alongside the
voices of educators, a museum administrator, and families to illustrate the state of the
Lakota language and its speakers’ hopes for its future. The general consensus is that
language is essential to culture and individual identities; however, people recognize that due to
historical circumstance and current issues, not everyone has the opportunity to learn how to
speak it. A young woman featured in the short film 'Renelle White Buffalo Paints Lakota,”
doesn’t speak Lakota, but lets her cultural memory flow in the form of a brush on canvas. The
filmmaker Dana Claxton’s experimental piece “Tradition Transformation' depicts a high fashion
shoot featuring traditional Lakota regalia and artwork. These visual articulations point to the
understanding that language is not completely representative of a culture. In Milt Lee’s short
film “You Got It,” a series of Lakota youths are questioned about what it means to be Indian
today and where the language fits in—many of them don’t speak it but feel that has no effect on
their identity as Lakota people. Others, however, feel strongly that the language should not be
allowed to die.
182
Despite a painful history of U.S. invasion into Lakota homelands and forceful
assimilation along with an array of contemporary issues on the reservations, the fire of the
language is still being fanned. Rising Voices highlights numerous efforts across the Lakota
Nation to teach it to all age groups. The fourth short film featured, 'Verb Phrases in Lakota' by
Alayna Eagle Shield shows the filmmaker’s 3-year-old daughter being asked questions about
what she’s doing in Lakota, and her energetic responses. In another clip, a basketball coach
explains how he integrates the language into practice and games of the most popular sport on the
reservations.
The filmmakers show the different efforts to keep the language alive - they visit several
immersion programs, from the preschool to elementary school level, as well as adult classes;
they speak with a couple – a husband and wife who are learning the Lakota language
themselves and labeling objects in their homes to teach their children; and they listen in on a
project in progress to record all 22,000 words in the Lakota dictionary. Though some educators
feel that classroom teaching is ineffective, that it must be spoken outside of the classroom for
speakers to truly become fluent, Rising Voices indicates that hope remains for the Lakota
language’s revitalization. One educator mentions the importance of allowing the language to
spread wherever it may—“It’s ours but it’s ours to share with everybody. If someone wants to
learn it we’ll help them learn it.” The film thus provides a deeply humanistic look at a tragic
reality of the common era, and a people’s perseverance to keep teaching and learning their
language regardless.
See the broadcast dates and learn more here: http://risingvoicesfilm.com/broadcast-dates/
Photo: Delores Taken Alive and Sandra Black Bear. Courtesy of Rising Voices".
Cory Champer, "We Are All Related Here: A New Film About The Yup'ik People of
Newtok, Alaska," Cultural Survival, August 3, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/weare-all-related-here-new-film-about-yupik-people-newtok-alaska, reported, "We Are All Related
Here” by Brian McDermott documents the story of the Yup’ik people of Newtok, Alaska,
who are being called the first “climate refugees” of the United States since they must
relocate their village due to the erosion and flooding they are experiencing as a result of
global warming. The film explains that climate change has accelerated the rates of erosion and
flooding,
thus
making
the
ice
and
land
disappear.
Newtok has a population of 375 people and around 65 homes. The film exposes the
alarming fact that over 200 other Alaska Native villages are facing similar problems with 86% of
Alaska Native villages being affected by erosion and flooding. We Are All Related Here includes
interviews with residents of the village, a human rights attorney and research scientist of arctic
biology, the deputy regional director at the US Geological Survey in Alaska, and a planner with
the state of Alaska in charge of helping the village to relocate.
We learn about the history of Newtok, the Yup'ik people, and witness their traditional
ways of hunting, fishing and dancing in a village where the Yup'ik language is spoken fluently
by the elders and children alike. Carl Markon, the director of the Alaska Science Center,
provides the context for the environmental changes taking place in Newtok and we find out that
the permafrost foundation upon which Newtok is situated is eroding and the village is flooding
and sinking. We learn from government planner Sally Cox about the difficulties with securing
the necessary funding for the relocation of the village while Robin Bronen, the Executive
Director of the Alaska Institute for Justice and a Senior Research Scientist at the Institute of
Arctic Biology at the University of Alaska, addresses the limitations of the current disaster relief
183
legislation and the implications for those being threatened by climate change disasters.
In the film, we find out that the Yup’ik people of Newtok are hoping to relocate to
Mertarvik, where there are currently three homes and only a foundation for an evacuation center.
It turns out that the Alaska Native village has been having a hard time getting funding for
relocation. We learn that the Yup’ik people of Newtok have been planning to move since around
1994, and acquired land to move to in 2003—but that getting assistance and funding to build the
necessary infrastructure at the relocation site has been a long process. And time is running out.
According to the US Army Corps of Engineers, by 2017, the land beneath the central hub of the
village, the Newtok School, will erode as the waves of the Ninglick river encroach.
'We’ve been here 10,000 years, so we need to make sure the next generation knows how
to live in this place,' says Grant Kashatok, the principal of the Newtok School. Several villagers
reflect on how the land used to look, saying they would walk four or five miles, about two hours,
to get to the beach. There used to be lakes and ponds where wildlife would gather. But now, the
beach is gone and it only takes five minutes to get to the water. Andy Patrick, President of the
Newtok Traditional Council expresses his worst fear: the ice coming over the land.
The documentary gives viewers an inside look as to what the Yup’ik people are learning
to deal with, live with, and shows how climate change is affecting everyone.
'We as a society, we as government representatives, are completely unprepared for the
way climate change is going to affect the habitability of the places where we live, and work, and
millions of people, all over the world, are going to be forced to leave their homes and relocate
because of climate change impacts' says Robin Bronen, the Executive Director of Alaska
Institute for Justice.
We are All Related Here is an educational and eye-opening film that contributes to the
message of being environmentally aware and depicts what harm climate change has done and
will continue to do to our planet, our homes, and ultimately our lives.
For more information about the film, Like/Follow the We are still here Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/We-Are-All-Related-Here-1591100397826947/?ref=hl. "WE
ARE
ALL RELATED HERE" Trailer from EmpathyWorks Films on Video has an available trailer at:
https://vimeo.com/130203487."
Suzette Brewer, “ICTMN Exclusive: New Film Documents Maine’s Child Welfare Truth
and
Reconciliation
Commission,”
October
12,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/12/ictmn-exclusive-new-film-documentsmaines-child-welfare-truth-and-reconciliation , reported, “First Light, the new independent
documentary film that explores the historic Maine Wabanaki-State Child Welfare Truth &
Reconciliation Commission (TRC), is making its world debut today on Indian Country Today
Media Network. According to the film’s directors, Adam Mazo and Ben Pender-Cudlip, the short
documentary film examines the historic collaboration between the five Wabanaki tribes and the
state of Maine in response to the past abuses within the state’s child welfare system.
The first of its kind in U.S. History, the Maine TRC was established in 2012 in an
agreement between Governor Paul LePage and chiefs from the Houlton Band of Maliseet
Indians, the Aroostook Band of Micmac Indians, the Penobscot Indian Nation, and the
Passamaquoddy at Sipayik and Indian Township. According to the state-tribal Mandate, the
commission’s objective was threefold: To uncover and acknowledge the truth; create
opportunities to heal and learn; and to collaborate in creating best practices for Wabanaki
children within their respective communities.”
184
@@@@@@@
International Developments
"Pope apologizes for Catholic church’s crimes against indigenous peoples," Survival
International, July 15, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10845, reported, "Pope
Francis has asked forgiveness from the indigenous peoples of Latin America for the many
crimes committed by the Catholic church during the “so-called conquest.”
In an historic speech to the 'World Meeting of the Popular Movements' in Santa Cruz,
Bolivia, which was attended by many indigenous people, he said:
'I want to tell you, and I want to be very clear: I humbly ask your forgiveness, not
only for the offenses committed by the Church herself, but also for the crimes committed
against the native peoples during the so-called conquest of America.'
The conquest and the theft of their land led to the genocide of millions of indigenous
people who were killed by invaders or died of introduced diseases to which they had no
resistance.
He acknowledged the depth of suffering by indigenous peoples: 'I say this to you with
regret: Many grave sins were committed against the native people of America in the name of
God.'
He also spoke of his “deep affection and appreciation” for the Latin American
indigenous movement’s 'quest for a multiculturalism which combines the defense of the
rights of the native peoples with respect for the territorial integrity of states … [which] is
for all of us a source of enrichment and encouragement.'
Guarani spokesman Eliseu Lopes met the Pope during his visit and said: 'He listened to
me, something which the president and those who govern Brazil have never done and refuse to
do, even though they know our situation … I told him that we are living through a war, that we
are dying and that we are being massacred by armed gunmen and by the politicians involved in
agri-business, that a real genocide is happening to us. I asked for a future for our young and old
people.'
The Pope spent a week visiting Ecuador, Bolivia and Paraguay, where indigenous
peoples are battling to protect their lands and natural resources against governments and
corporations intent on imposing large-scale development projects on them."
With the amount of arable land on the Earth shrinking in the face of climate change
and development, wealthy countries and corporations have been increasingly involved in
land grabs in developing nations, often kicking Indigenous and other local people off their
land, and seriously damaging the environment, as is discussed in numerous reports in these
pages. An overview is in Eric Hoffner, “On the Take,” and “Land Grabs the Big Picture,”
WorldArk, Fall 2015, www.heifer.com.
International Organization Developments
Secretariat of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues. "2030 Development Agenda
Key for Reducing Inequality for Indigenous Peoples, says UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous
Issues," Cultural Survival, September 25, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/2030development-agenda-key-reducing-inequality-indigenous-peoples-says-un-permanent-forum,
185
NEW YORK (25 September 2015) – A preeminent expert body of the United Nations on
indigenous peoples, the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues, welcomed the adoption of
the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development by the UN General Assembly today.
The transformative Agenda lays out the global goals for reducing poverty, in all its
dimensions, over the next decade and a half. 'From the least developed countries to the
most developed countries, the inequalities faced by indigenous peoples are staggering', says
Professor
Megan
Davis,
Chairperson
of
the
Permanent
Forum.
There are six specific references to indigenous peoples in the Agenda. 'These
constitute a step up from the Millennium Development Goals, which had no references to
indigenous peoples', points out Permanent Forum member Joan Carling.
Yet 'States and the UN system must be ambitious, and go beyond the points mentioned in
this text to bring indigenous peoples into the achievement of goals and targets – for the 2030
Agenda
to
be
truly
inclusive,'
she
continued.
The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples provides a framework for the rights
and
development
priorities
of
indigenous
peoples.
In particular, ''indigenous peoples’ rights to their traditional lands, territories and
resources have to be secured as the fundamental basis for their economic development and
foundation of their lives, livelihoods and cultures,' states the Chairperson, Professor Davis.
Indigenous peoples have much to teach the world about living sustainably: “Let us learn
from the extensive knowledge systems of indigenous peoples, developed over many centuries, as
we move forward to meet the goals of the 2030 Agenda to combat climate change, to sustainably
manage forests and to halt biodiversity loss”, continues Professor Davis.
It is also important to keep track of progress in meeting the goals and targets for
indigenous peoples through the development of culturally relevant indicators and disaggregation
of data.
The Agenda states that the functional commissions of the Economic and Social Council
and other intergovernmental bodies and forums will support the thematic review of progress on
the
Sustainable
Development
Goals
(paragraph
85).
'In this regard, the Permanent Forum will have an important role to play in achieving the
goals and targets of the Agenda for indigenous peoples', notes Ms. Carling.
'Indigenous peoples look forward to being part of this exciting journey, so it can truly
transform our world and bring peace and prosperity for all. This is a priority task to which the
Permanent Forum remains committed', says Professor Davis, Chairperson of the Forum"
(Secretariat
of
the
Permanent
Forum
on
Indigenous
Issues
www.un.org/indigenous,
[email protected]
UNITED
NATIONS
HEADQUARTERS
S-2954).
Docip, "Human Rights Council Human Rights Council Adopts Two Resolutions Related
To
Indigenous
Peoples,"
Cultural
Survival,
October
23,
2015,
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/human-rights-council-human-rights-council-adopts-tworesolutions-related-indigenous-peoples, reported, "At the end of its thirtieth regular session in
Geneva from September 14 to October 2, 2015 the Human Rights Council has adopted 29
resolutions, two are related to Indigenous Peoples.
186
Resolution I : related to human rights and Indigenous Peoples. Please find here
the Resolution (A/HRC/30/L.8). The novelties of this resolution in comparison with the one of
2014 concern:
The Human Rights Council "(r)equests the Expert Mechanism to prepare a study,
to be finalized by its ninth session, on the right to health and indigenous peoples with a
focus on children and youth, and to present it to the Human Rights Council at its thirtythird session", see the article 5 of the Resolution.
The Human Rights Council « (d)ecides to hold, at its thirty-third session, a half-day
panel discussion on the causes and consequences of violence against indigenous women and
girls, including those with disabilities », see article 9 of the Resolution.
Resolution
II: related
to
human
rights
and
Indigenous
Peoples
The Resolution (A_HRC_30_L.9) concerns the review of the mandate of the Expert
Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. The "Council requested the Office of the
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to convene a two-day expert
workshop open to the participation of States, indigenous peoples and other stakeholders."
For
more
information,
visit
the
Human
Rights
Council
website:http://www.ohchr.org/en/hrbodies/hrc/pages/hrcindex.aspx."
UN Special Rapporteur Victoria Tauli-Corpuz reported, in September 2015, on the
rights of Indigenous women and girls. She found that Indigenous women and girls
frequently find it difficult to voice their concerns and prevent abuse and victimization, as
many communities view the rights of women as a western ideal that puts individual rights
ahead of communal rights (“UN Special Rapporteur releases report to Human Rights Council
on the Rights of Indigenous Women and Girls on the rights of Indigenous women and girls,”
Cultural Survival Quarterly, December 2015).
UNESCO’s World Heritage Committee, in August 2015, recognized the distinct role
of Indigenous peoples and their right to free, informed proper consent on world heritage
matters that affect them. The committee was preparing to consider whether Pinachioin Aki,
on the border of Manitoba and Ontario in Canada, would be added to the list of World
Heritage Sites (“UNESCO Recognizes Indigenous Peoples Distinct Role in World Heritage
Sites,” Cultural Survival Quarterly, December 2015).
"Without A Secured Right to Freedom of Expression, There Is No Democracy In Central
America," Cultural Survival, October 19, 2015. http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/withoutsecured-right-freedom-expression-there-no-democracy-central-america, reported, "On October
23, 2015, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights will hold a Thematic Hearing
on Examining Freedom of Expression in Honduras, El Salvador, and Guatemala during its
156th Session in Washington DC.
Organized by Asociación Mundial de Radios Comunitarias (AMARC-Subregión
Centroamérica), Asociación de Medios Comunitarios de Honduras (AMCH), Asociación de
Radios Comunitarias de Guatemala (ARCG), Asociación Sobrevivencia Cultural, Central
American Institute for the Study of Social Democracy (DEMOS), Comité por la Libre Expresión
(C Libre), Cultural Survival, Fundación de la Comunicación para el Desarrollo
(Comunicándonos), Junta Ciudadana por el Derecho Humano a la Comunicación and Mujb'ab'l
yol: Encuentro de Expresiones, the session seeks to shine a spotlight on the daily rights
187
violations that Indigenous journalists and communities face when exercising the universal
right to freedom of expression and communication.
These basic rights make up the foundation of a well functioning democracy, yet
communities in Central America share a common experience, history and reality that citizens’
freedom of expression and the right to communication are not evenly respected and guaranteed.
Indigenous journalists and community radio operators, despite physical threats, state persecution,
and even risk of death, continue to exercise their rights in order to serve their communities.
El Salvador’s democracy is threatened by media concentration. Five commercial
groups have historically held ownership of the radio frequency spectrum. Ex-president
Elias Antonio Saca owned six radio frequencies when he began as president, and fourteen
by the end of his presidency. The law does not distinguish between public, private or
community radio; all frequencies are auctioned to the highest bidder and no state entity
exists to regulate radio broadcasting.
In Guatemala, the 1996 Peace Accords that ended 36 years of civil war guaranteed the
democratization of the media. However, the current telecommunications law makes no
provision for non-profit community radio. Frequencies are either reserved for government use
or auctioned to the highest bidder. Indigenous communities must compete head-to-head with
commercial radio stations. The Community Radio Movement of Guatemala brought a case to
the Constitutional Court arguing that this discriminates against Indigenous Peoples. On
March 14, 2012, the Court exhorted the Congress to legislate in favor of Indigenous
community radio stations, allowing them access to radio frequencies. Bill 4087, which seeks
to legalize and regulate community radio has been introduced to the Guatemalan Congress,
but the Congress has not complied. The continued concentration of Guatemala’s media has
prevented the exercise of real democracy by barring varied sources of information and opinions
to be broadcast and has contributed to a loss of Indigenous cultures and values. The
concentration of ownership of media is a de facto violation of article 130 of the Guatemalan
Constitution, which prohibits media monopolies. In addition, in recent years, community radio
stations have been the targets of repression through police raids, criminal investigations, and
unlawful imprisonment.
In Honduras, restrictive laws, the criminalization of the right to free expression, and
murder of community journalists are all common occurrences. In less than four years,
there have been seven murders of journalists and broadcasters that work for community
media outlets. Between 2014 and 2015, there were 55 acts of aggression against those who
work for community and alternative radio stations. Journalists regularly face threats to
their lives by local governments.
“If Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador are to make real progress toward meaningful
democracy, it is crucial to address threats to freedom of expression,” said Mark Camp, Deputy
Director of Cultural Survival.
Thematic Hearing Panelists Include:
Oscar Antonio Pérez, Asociación Mundial de Radios Comunitarias (AMARC-Subregión
Centroamérica)
Anselmo Xunic Cabrera, Cultural Survival and Asociación Sobrevivencia Cultural
Anabella Rivera, Central American Institute for the Study of Social Democracy
(DEMOS)
Alma Gloria Temaj Morales, Mujb'ab'l yol: Encuentro de Expresiones
188
Carlos Ramón Enamorado Pérez, Asociación de Medios Comunitarios de Honduras
(AMCH)."
The U.S. Indigenous Caucus, on May 15, 2015, withdrew from the 17 year process of
the Organization of American States (OAS) to draft an American Declaration on the
Rights of Indigenous People, as a result of several member states insisting on changing the
draft document so that it would erode rights enshrined in the UN Declaration of the Rights
of Indigenous Peoples (“US: Indigenous Caucus Withdraws from Negotiations on the Draft
American Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,” Cultural Survival Quarterly,
September 2015).
Rucha Chitnis, “Securing the Bounty of Mother Earth: Indigenous Terra Madre
Spotlights Custodians of Biodiversity and Foodways,” Cultural Survival, December 4, 2015,
https://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/terra-madre
“Over 600 delegates from 58 countries converged in Meghalaya on November 3-7,
2015 to celebrate the ancient food systems, vast traditional knowledge and biocultural
diversity of Indigenous Peoples. International Terra Madre, also called International MeiRamew, meaning Mother Earth in the local Khasi language, is a collaboration of the
Indigenous Partnership for Agrobiodiversity and Food Sovereignty, Slow Food
International and North East Slow Food and Agrobiodiversity Society (NESFAS).
‘We need to trust in our wisdom,’ said Phrang Roy, founder of NESFAS and a visionary
Khasi advocate, who brought ITM to his homeland in the hills of Shillong. ‘What we wanted to
combine is not just the question of taste, but that taste is the reflection of biodiversity. If we don’t
have forests around our villages, our diets and our food won’t be there.’ The five-day event
included a conference, visits to nine Indigenous host villages and concluded with a spirited food
festival that exhibited the flavors of Indigenous food cultures across Northeast India and beyond.
‘Our food is pre-colonial, it is pre-GMO. It is ancient food, and ancient seeds. It is a food
that is part of our soul and our spirit.’ said Winona LaDuke, Anishinaabe activist, at the opening
ceremony. In the face of climate challenges and land grabs, LaDuke talked about the resiliency
of Indigenous food systems and the sacred connection Native Americans have with their
foodways.
Dayamani Barla of the Munda tribe in Jharkhand, India, concurred. Barla has witnessed
how land grabs and displacement of Indigenous peoples in Jharkhand have devastated
their food security, culture and identity. Barla also led a long brave resistance that stopped the
world’s largest steel company Arcellor-Mittal from displacing thousands of Indigenous peoples
and farmers. Loha nahi anaj chahiye! (“We want grains, not iron!”) was the rallying cry of
Indigenous communities protesting the corporation’s project. In 2013, she was awarded the first
Ellen L. Lutz Indigenous Rights Award by Cultural Survival for her courageous resistance in the
face of the ugly power of corporate might.
At the ITM convening, Barla emphasized that the current economic paradigm was
leading the planet to catastrophic climate change and eroding Indigenous rights. ‘If we are
talking about strengthening food systems, we need to stop the displacement of Indigenous
peoples,’ said Barla. ‘Indigenous Peoples can’t imagine a future where nature is violated. We
can’t realize food sovereignty when our lands, forests and waterways are being destroyed. If we
want to sustain life on this planet, all people and social movements need to unite with the
resistance of Indigenous peoples.’”
189
“Slow Food International founder, Carlo Petrini, gave a passionate talk that likened the
industrial global food system to a criminal system. ‘We need to change this paradigm…we risk
losing our history and our food heritage.’ As a stunning counter to the monoculture paradigm,
ITM organized a food festival of prodigious size that exhibited an astonishing array of
Indigenous foods—roots, tubers, greens, corns, millets, paddy, drinks, sweets, pickles and hot
foods. A dazzling performance of dances and songs followed, and the crowd was thrilled to hear
Ko Meiramew, the theme song of ITM that was sung in exquisite harmony by Indigenous
musicians from Meghalaya.”
Regional and Country Developments
Erika Mayer, "Human Rights Committee Reviews Canada’s Record," Cultural Survival,
September 2, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/human-rights-committee-reviewscanadas-record, reported, "In July 2015 Canada’s human rights records was examined based
on its obligations under the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR),
an international human rights treaty Canada ratified in 1976. The Human Rights Committee’s
Concluding Observations on the sixth periodic report of Canada provided a window into how
Canada is upholding human rights both within its borders and abroad, and how its protection of
those rights could be improved. The Concluding Observations address a wide range of concerns,
including Indigenous issues, excessive use of force by police, and women’s rights.
The UN Human Rights Committee oversees the implementation of the International
Covenant of Civil and Political Rights, or ICCPR. The ICCPR is a human rights treaty, and
states that have ratified the treaty, called State parties, are obligated to uphold the treaty’s listed
human rights and liberties. To ensure that the ICCPR has meaningful rather than merely
symbolic effects, State parties submit reports to the Human Rights Committee that detail how the
ICCPR is being implemented. Usually these reports are submitted every four years. After
analyzing the submitted reports, the Committee releases its Concluding Observations, which
include both concerns and recommendations for improvement.
In the Concluding Observations on the sixth periodic report of Canada during
the 114 Session (29 Jun 2015 - 24 Jul 2015), no topic received more attention than the many
issues affecting Indigenous Peoples. Indigenous Peoples in Canada struggle with
discrimination, violence, violations of land rights, and the withholding of federal
recognition. On top of these unique problems, Indigenous Peoples also face the same
challenges that affect non-Indigenous Canadians—but for them, those challenges are
exacerbated. Widespread issues such as violence against women and a flawed criminal
justice system often affect Indigenous Peoples even more severely than they affect Canada’s
general population.
In Canada as in the rest of the world, Indigenous Peoples struggle for the right to
control their lands. The Committee reaffirms the importance of Free, Prior, and Informed
Consent, and raises concerns about the financial burden of legal battles over land rights.
Such land rights disputes should be resolved quickly not only to safeguard Indigenous
treaty rights but also to prevent the costs of litigation from becoming overwhelmingly high.
The dwindling and disappearance of Indigenous languages was also cited in the
Concluding Observations as a major problem facing Indigenous communities. There are over 60
Indigenous languages in Canada that fall into 12 different language families. Many of these
languages, however, have fewer than 1,000 speakers and are at a high risk of disappearing
190
in only a few years. Policies that aim to promote Indigenous languages, the Committee
states, should be reinforced in an effort to save this incredible linguistic diversity and cultural
wealth.
The practice of sending First Nations children to Indian Residential Schools is one of
the darkest chapters of Canada’s history and a source of immeasurable trauma to
thousands of Indigenous children. At these schools, children faced abuse and the
intentional destruction of their culture in what has been called a cultural genocide.
Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission researched this history to create an
accurate record of what occurred and issued 94 recommendations to work towards
reconciliation. The Committee states that the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s
recommendations should be followed and raises concerns that redress has not been
provided to children who attended the Indian Residential Schools [see, Cass Madden,
"Canada's
'Cultural
Genocide,"
Cultural
Surviva,.
June
23,
2015,
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/shedding-light-canadas-cultural-genocide].
Excessive use of force by police is one problem that affects both Indigenous and
non-Indigenous Canadians. In particular, the Committee references excessive force used at
'Indigenous land-related protests, G20 protests in 2010 as well as student protests in
Quebec in 2012.' The Concluding Observations recommend that such violations be
thoroughly and independently investigated, and that police found guilty be held
accountable. In light of these arrests and the repression of mass protests, the State party
'should renew its traditional commitment to the promotion and protection of the exercise of
freedom of assembly, association and expression.' And because issues of freedom of
expression often deeply affect Indigenous Peoples, the Concluding Observations note that
the State party should pursue a dialogue with them.
Excessive use of force and mass arrests against Indigenous protestors is only one facet of
a larger problem in Canada’s justice system, the problem of high rates of incarceration for
Indigenous people. The Committee suggests that alternatives to incarceration should be
considered, and when incarceration is unavoidable, Indigenous people should serve their
sentences in their communities.
All too often, the progress of women lags behind the progress of men, and women
face specific economic, social, and political hardships. Women’s issues and women’s rights are
central to the Committee’s Concluding Observations.
In Canada, one of the most pressing economic issues for women is the pay gap. While
many areas in Canada do already have legislation regarding equal pay, this legislation varies
throughout the country; different provinces and territories have different legislation, and, as the
Committee notes, some provinces lack legislation entirely. The Committee recommends that
these inconsistencies be resolved so that all regions and all sectors address the pay gap in their
legislation. Pay inequity is worse in certain locations, including Alberta and Nova Scotia, but it is
also worse for certain segments of Canada’s population, including minority women and
Indigenous women. Therefore, when working towards a solution to the pay gap, these groups of
women must receive particular attention.
Violence against women is another serious problem affecting women in Canada, and as
with pay inequity, it is a problem that disproportionately affects Indigenous and minority
women. Domestic violence often goes unreported, so making it easier and safer for victims to
report their experiences is of the utmost importance. This often begins with providing a means
for the victim to leave their violent partner by supporting them with shelters and other services.
191
The Committee suggests that the state should provide complaint mechanisms for these victims as
well as protection from possible retaliation. Once complaints are made and the safety of the
victims is ensured, each case must be fully investigated and the perpetrators must be brought to
justice.
Domestic violence is not the only form of violence perpetrated against Indigenous
women and girls. These women also face extremely high rates of homicides and
disappearances, cases where Indigenous women are murdered or go missing without
explanation. The problem is widespread, and the Committee echoes the UN Committee on
the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women in calling for a national inquiry. The
Concluding Observations note that both better legislation and coordinated police responses
could help stop murders and other violent acts from occurring. And finally, the underlying
causes of this violence should be addressed to prevent it before it ever begins.
Gender discrimination against Indigenous women has even influenced who is or is
not officially recognized as Indigenous by Canada’s federal government. In the past, a First
Nations woman who married a non-Indigenous man would be stripped of her Indian
Status, federal recognition that offers services, benefits, and programs. Something as
intrinsic and crucial as a woman’s identity as First Nations was called into question by her
gender and marital status. Although this policy was changed, its effects are still relevant
today. Many children and grandchildren of Indigenous women were left ineligible for
Indian Status because their mothers or grandmothers lost Indian Status under the old
unfair, biased law.
The 2011 Gender Equity in Indian Registration Act attempted to change this. The
act is an amendment to Canada’s Indian Act, an 1876 statute that detailed the relationship
between the federal government and First Nations. The new act allows the grandchildren of
Indigenous women who lost their status by marrying a non-Indigenous man to become
eligible for Indian Status. While the Gender Equity in Indian Registration Act allows around
45,000 individuals to register, the Committee notes that its application has been slow. It
recommends implementing the act more quickly as well as continuing to strive for gender
equity for Indigenous women by addressing discrimination in the Indian Act. For the people
of Canada’s First Nations to be guaranteed their rights, they must first simply be recognized as
members of their First Nation.
In addition to excessive use of force by police, reform of the criminal justice system,
Indigenous land rights, and women’s rights, the Concluding Observations highlight counterterrorism and immigration detention. The observations raise concerns about Canada’s
anti-terrorism legislation and the powers of its security and intelligence agencies. They also
condemn the fact that, in Canada, irregular migrants—migrants who lack proper authorization—
may be detained for an unlimited period of time. The Committee suggests that this detention
should be for a set period of time, and that, when possible, it should be avoided altogether.
The human rights violations committed by Canadian companies around the world are
another important subject in the Concluding Observations. Around 75 percent of the world’s
mining companies are based in Canada. Many of these companies operate abroad, and many face
allegations of human rights violations. Despite the vast influence of these companies, there is
little accountability. The Committee, therefore, calls for the creation of an independent
mechanism to deal with allegations of abuse as well as a legal framework for individuals whose
human rights have been violated by Canadian companies abroad. Although this recommendation
does not directly mention Indigenous Peoples, holding Canadian companies accountable for
192
human rights violations would stand up for the Indigenous Peoples whose lands and livelihoods
are threatened by the extractive industry.
While the Concluding Observations acknowledge the many steps Canada has taken
towards securing human rights, they also demonstrate how much more needs to be done,
particularly for women, minority groups, and Indigenous Peoples. To follow up on its
Concluding Observations, the Committee requests that the State party provide information
about how specific recommendations have been implemented within a year. Looking even
further ahead, Canada’s next periodic report will be due in 2020. This report will allow the
Human Rights Committee to examine whether Canada has made the requested
recommendations after a five-year interval and how effectively it is upholding human
rights.
To
read
the
Concluding
Observations
visit: http://tbinternet.ohchr.org/_layouts/treatybodyexternal/Download.aspx?sy...
Cara McKenna, “10 Indigenous Candidates Elected to Canadian Parliament, a Record,”
ICTMN, October 21, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/10/21/record-10indigenous-candidates-elected-canadian-parliament-162161
10/21/15, reported, “Jody Wilson-Raybould, former regional chief of the Assembly of First
Nations, won handily in her voting district in Vancouver, one of 10 indigenous candidates who
gained office in Canada’s national election on October 19.
“I feel fantastic,” Ms. Wilson-Raybould told The Globe and Mail after getting 44 percent of the
vote. “It was a great night for the Liberal party and it was a great night for Canadians who
decided they wanted to be part of a change in this country and how it is run.”
An unprecedented number of aboriginal Members of Parliament (MPs) will join the
Canadian House of Commons after a historic election that saw the defeat of longtime Prime
Minister Stephen Harper. Justin Trudeau’s Liberals took the majority of seats across the
country on Monday, October 19, while the Conservatives formed the official minority and the
New Democratic Party trailed behind.
“Canadian Premiers Back All 94 Truth and Reconciliation Recommendations,” ICTMN,
July 16, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/07/16/canadian-premiers-backall-94-truth-and-reconciliation-recommendations-161104, reported, “The premiers of all 10
provinces and three territories in Canada have pledged to implement all 94 of the Truth
and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) recommendations stemming from the scathing
report that the panel issued in June, which called the nation’s residential schools program
“cultural genocide.”
Canada’s new Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, also pledged to follow all 94 of the
Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) recommendations, in addition to forming a
new relationship with Canadian First Nations. He announced that he would initiate a panel
to investigate and make recommendations concerning the murders of a large number of
aboriginal women, and to work to improve First Nation Health Care (Ian Austin, “Trudeau
Outlines His Sweeping Agenda in Address,” The New York Times, December 5, 2015).
Rick Kearns, “Indigenous Studies Now Required at Two Canadian Universities,”
ICTMN,
December
8,
2015,
http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/12/08/indigenous-studies-now-required-two-
193
canadian-universities-162629, reported, “Indigenous studies will be required for graduation
from two Canadian universities as of next year with another institution discussing the idea.
In mid-November both the University of Winnipeg (UW) in Manitoba Province and
Lakehead University (LU) in Ontario announced that students will have to pass a threecredit course in indigenous history or culture to graduate starting in September of 2016.
The required courses include some on indigenous history or culture, contemporary
indigenous issues, local indigenous languages, indigenous ways of knowing and research
methodologies.”
The Tsleil-Wauthth Nation of Canada, on May 28, 2015, denied Morgan Trans
Mountain’s proposal for an oil pipeline across its territory in an independent assessment
finding that the pipeline would violate Tsleil-Wauthth law, and that the pipeline had the
potential to make thousands of people ill and contaminate the countryside (“Canada: TsleilWauthth Nation Denied Kinder Morgan Trans Mountain Proposal,” Cultural Survival Quarterly,
September 2016).
As violence in several Central American countries caused people to flee, Julia
Preston, “Number of Migrants Illegally Crossing Rio Grande Rises Sharply,” The New York
Times, November 26, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/27/us/number-of-migrantsillegally-crossing-rio-grande-rises-sharply.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, “The numbers of
migrants crossing the Rio Grande illegally have risen sharply in recent weeks, replaying
scenes from the influx of Central American children and families in South Texas last year. Once again, smugglers are bringing hundreds of women and children each day to the
Mexican banks of the river and sending them across in rafts. In a season when illegal
crossings normally go down, “The numbers have started going the other way,” said Raul L.
Ortiz, acting chief of the Border Patrol for the Rio Grande Valley. Since Oct. 1, official figures
show, Border Patrol apprehensions of migrant families in this region have increased 150
percent over the same period last year, while the number of unaccompanied children
caught by agents has more than doubled.”
Anti-corruption protests with significant middle class support had spread, by June
2015, from Brazil, Argentina and Mexico to Honduras and Guatemala, and it is possible
that a major popular movement is in progress (Elisabeth Malkin, "Wave of Protests Spreads
to Scandal-Weary Honduras and Guatemala, The New York Times, June 12, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/13/world/americas/corruption-scandals-driving-protests-inguatemala-and-honduras.html?ref=todayspaper).
"‘Deadly’ trans-Amazon railway sparks fear among tribes," Survival International, June
16, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10812, reported, "A controversial megaproject to build a transcontinental railway from the Atlantic to the Pacific has caused
outrage among indigenous people and Survival International, the global movement for
tribal peoples’ rights.
The railway, which is backed by the Chinese government, would cross through
many indigenous territories and areas of high biodiversity across the Amazon rainforest in
Peru and Brazil. If realized, it would wreak havoc on indigenous peoples’ lands and lives
194
by opening up the area to industrial exploitation, illegal mining and logging, and encourage
colonization.
Ninawá Kaxinawá, an indigenous leader whose community lives near the proposed
railway line, told Survival, “This railway is evil and it threatens our people. For us Indians and
our uncontacted relatives this project represents a deadly danger which would put an end to our
forest and our lives!”
Uncontacted tribes, the most vulnerable societies on the planet, would face devastation
from invasions into their lands. Whole populations could be wiped out by violence from
outsiders and by diseases like flu and measles to which they have no resistance.
Similar projects set a chilling precedent. In the 1980s, the 900 km Carajás railway line in
Brazil’s north-eastern Amazon opened up the land of many tribes such as the isolated Awá,
Earth’s most threatened tribe, to illegal loggers, cattle ranchers and settlers. Countless families
were massacred and others succumbed to diseases brought in by outsiders, and rampant logging
resulted in over 30% deforestation in the Awá’s central territory.
Decades later, illegal loggers still threaten the lives of uncontacted Awá. In December
2014, a group of three Awá were forced out of their forest home by loggers. Two of them are
now critically ill.
The trans-Amazon railway will run over thousands of kilometers and is likely to
cause even more devastation of the Amazon rainforest and its peoples. While studies show
that tribal peoples are the best conservationists, their lands are facing an onslaught of
development projects.
Survival International is calling on the Brazilian and Peruvian governments to
uphold national and international laws, which require that indigenous peoples must be
properly consulted and give their consent before projects that will affect them can go
ahead. Because consultation with uncontacted tribes is impossible, their land must be
protected to avoid catastrophe.
Stephen Corry, Director of Survival, said, 'Projects like this amount to nothing more than
the theft of tribal lands and – as always – they’re carried out in the name of ‘progress’ and
‘development.’ For centuries, the Indians of the Americas have been sacrificed at the altar of
profit. Many don’t survive the onslaught against their lives and lands. Make no mistake – for
uncontacted tribes this railroad is genocidal.'”
There are some doubts about whether each and any of the proposed major railways
for Latin America will be built. Simon Romero, "China’s Ambitious Rail Projects Crash Into
Harsh Realities in Latin America," The New York Times, October
3, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/04/world/americas/chinas-ambitious-rail-projects-crash-intoharsh-realities-in-latin-america.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0, reported, "The ambitions are
dizzying, some of the grandest in Latin America since thousands of laborers perished building
railways through the forbidding jungles of Brazil more than a century ago.
China has sought to build a “dry canal” in the form of a railway across Colombia,
linking the Caribbean to the Pacific. Chinese investors announced another huge venture in
Honduras, two ports and a 375-mile railroad from sea to sea. Then this June, China
announced yet another megarailway — nearly 10 times as long — across Brazil and Peru,
stretching from one coast of South America to the other.
But across the region, one large Chinese rail venture after another has come
crashing against the hard realities of Latin American politics, resistance from
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environmental groups, and a growing wariness toward China. While China boasts of its
rail initiatives around the world, it has often been stymied here in Latin America, reflecting
how even China’s formidable ambitions have limits.
Now, new worries over China’s economic growth are raising more doubts about the blitz
of what China calls its 'railroad diplomacy,' as parts of Latin America reel from their dependence
on China."
"More than 100 years ago, Americans were among the foreigners who rolled into the
heart of South America with ambitious plans to build railways. The ruins of their grand designs
for the Brazilian Amazon, called the Devil’s Railway because of the thousands of workers who
died building it, are a testament to the dangers of relying too heavily on commodity exports."
"Last November, Mexico abruptly canceled a Chinese-led bid to build a $4.3 billion highspeed rail system after accusations that the Mexican government had favored contractors who
were part of the consortium.
In Honduras, two years have passed since Chinese investors announced the railway
linking the Caribbean Sea to the Pacific. Yet Miguel Servellón, an official with the state agency
promoting the project, said it was “still a long way from happening,” listing obstacles like a
complex environmental approval process.
In another project aimed at finding an alternative to the Panama Canal, the Colombian
president, Juan Manuel Santos, said four years ago that Colombia and China had a plan that was
“quite advanced” to build a railway linking the Pacific to the Caribbean. But the mood has
changed considerably since then."
"In Venezuela, Chinese companies actually broke ground on a 290-mile high-speed
railway, part of a grandiose plan by President Hugo Chávez, to “rebalance” the population away
from the coast.
But while Venezuela’s government boasted that passenger service would start in 2012,
the project has been fraught for years with work stoppages and money shortfalls on the
Venezuelan side. The Chinese authorities say that more than half of the railway has been built,
though Venezuelan news media reported in June that work camps on the route had been
abandoned."
"An even bigger project floated by a Chinese telecommunications tycoon, a 172-mile
canal across Nicaragua, intended as a rival to the Panama Canal, has been met with broad
skepticism about its feasibility as well as protests by farmers living along the proposed route.
Despite the obstacles, China has pressed ahead with the twin-ocean railway across Brazil
and Peru, building on trade between China and Latin America that surged to $285 billion in
2014, from $12 billion in 2000, according to figures from the International Monetary Fund."
Paulina Villegas and Francis Robles, "Deals Flow to Contractor Tied to Mexican
President,"
The
New
York
Times,
July
30,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/07/31/world/americas/mexican-presidents-ties-to-contractorraise-questions.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0, reported, "Armando García has filed lawsuits,
joined protests and gotten arrested trying to stop a highway from slicing through his hilly
backyard in a nature reserve.
But even with a court order on his side, bright green pines have been stripped away
and tree stumps dot the hillside. Parts of protected forest have been slashed, exposing the
path of a 20-mile highway to the new airport in Mexico City that is demolishing swaths of
Mr. García’s indigenous community in its wake.
196
Mr. García and his neighbors fighting it say they never really stood a chance. After all,
they are not battling ordinary construction crews. They are taking on a businessman so
well connected that Mexicans have long called him the president’s “favorite contractor."
Anti-corruption protests with significant middle class support had spread, by June
2015, from Brazil, Argentina and Mexico to Honduras and Guatemala, and it is possible
that a major popular movement is in progress (Elisabeth Malkin, "Wave of Protests Spreads
to Scandal-Weary Honduras and Guatemala, The New York Times, June 12, 2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/13/world/americas/corruption-scandals-driving-protests-inguatemala-and-honduras.html?ref=todayspaper).
Mexico's arresting of top drug cartel leaders, supported by the U.S., is bringing
significant increases in all ready high rates of violence as drug gangs fracture and fight for
control (William Neuman, "As Drug Kingpins Fall in Mexico, Cartels Fracture and Violence
Surges,"
The
New
York
Times,
August
12,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/13/world/americas/as-mexico-arrests-kingpins-cartels-splinterand-violence-spikes.html?ref=todayspaper).
The Mexican Supreme Court’s criminal chamber ruled, in November 2015, that
individuals have the right to grow and distribute marijuana for their personal use. While
the decision does not overturn current drug laws, it sets in motion a movement which might do
so (Elisabeth Malkin and Azam Ahmed, “Ruling in Mexico Sets in Motion Legal Marijuana,”
The New York Times, November 5, 2015).
The reduction of illegal immigrants from central America entering the U.S. from
Mexico is a result of efforts of the Mexican authorities keeping desperate escapees from
deadly and disruptive life from the south from traveling north on trains. Now the refugees;
attempted flight is even more arduous and dangerous (Joseph Sorrentino, "How the U.S.
'Solved' the Central American Migrant Crisis: Fewer are making it to the U.S. border - because
the journey is more horrific, "In These Times, June 2015).
Elizabeth Malkin, "Guatemala President Balks at Calls for Resignation," The New York
Times, August 23, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/24/world/americas/calls-grow-inguatemala-for-president-to-resign.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Guatemala’s president,
Otto Pérez Molina, angrily rejected calls for his resignation on Sunday, denying any
involvement in a far-reaching scheme to defraud the government of customs revenue in
exchange for bribes."
"The defiant statement came as he grew increasingly isolated after much of his cabinet
resigned over the weekend and Guatemala’s most powerful business group demanded that Mr.
Pérez Molina step down immediately." as prosecutors press their case, which has charged a
number of officials.
The Supreme Court ruled, August 25, that the Guatemalan Congress can vote to
remove the President's immunity from prosecution, taking the next step to the legislature
(Azam Ahmed, "Guatemala’s Corruption Investigations Make Swift Strides," The New York
Times, August 25, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/26/world/americas/guatemalascorruption-investigations-make-swift-strides.html?ref=todayspaper).
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"Aspiring Guatemalan Vice-Presidential Candidates Meet With Indigenous
Organizations," October 21, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/aspiring-guatemalanvice-presidential-candidates-meet-indigenous-organizations, reported, On October 13, 2015
leading Indigenous organizations organized a meeting with the two aspiring vice-president
candidates of Guatemala. The meeting had as a goal the discussion of the Indigenous
Political Agenda and the work still to be done to improve the situation of over 40% of the
population. The candidates are Mario Leal Castillo, vice-president candidate for the left-wing
political party UNE and Jafeth Cabrera vice-president candidate for the right-wing political party
FCN. Both candidates were invited to sit down at the discussion table and openly discuss the
major issues affecting Indigenous communities around the country.
Five previous working sessions had been held among all the participating Indigenous
organizations to construct an agenda of petitions. Petitions included: territory rights, sacred site
rights, liberation of political prisoners among others. The agenda was presented by members of
Naleb, a Guatemalan Indigenous rights organization that promotes political participation, they
been leading the discussion. The candidate and his team listened to the agenda as the evening
progressed. Many of the participants were disappointed in the absence of the other candidate
since they were hoping for a debate rather than a political campaign.
No concrete promises were made during the discussion. Jafeth Cabrera promised to
keep in mind the petitions made and mentioned his commitment to improving the lives of
the thousands of Indigenous families. Similar promises have been made by previous
administrations but no concrete actions have ever been seen."
Elisabeth Malkin, "Genocide Retrial Is Set for Guatemalan Former Dictator," The New
York Times, August 25, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/26/world/americas/genocideretrial-is-set-for-guatemalan-former-dictator.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "A Guatemalan
court ruled on Tuesday that the former dictator Gen. Efraín Ríos Montt must face a new
genocide trial in the persecution of the Maya Ixil Indians during his rule, but agreed to hold it
behind closed doors because he has dementia."
The struggle by Indigenous communities and their supporters to have community radio
legalized in, Guatemala, as required by the country’s constitution, continued to face criminal
action by the government, in spring of 2015. On May 15, the UN Committee on the
Elimination of Racial Discrimination denounced the criminalization of community radio
and the recent arrest of community radio activists, as well as those protesting the building
of dams without the consent of the Indigenous populations affected, as required by the UN
Declaration on the rights of Indigenous Peoples, which requires prior consent. The
Committee issued a number of recommendations on these matters to the government of
Guatemala (“UN Denounces the Criminalization of Indigenous Community Radio Stations in
Guatemala,” Cultural Survival Quarterly, September 2015).
"Guatemala: Two Indigenous Prisoners Released after Years in Prison on False Charges,"
Cultural Survival, November 2, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/guatemala-twoindigenous-prisoners-released-after-years-prison-false-charges, reported, "Two Q’anjobal Maya
community leaders who were imprisoned in Guatemala for the past two years, have finally
been declared innocent and released. A regional criminal court Guatemala found the two
men to be absolved of all charges on October 28, 2015.
198
Rogelio Velasquez and Saul Mendez had been unfairly imprisoned as a result of their
activism organizing against a Spanish hydroelectric dam project in their town of Santa
Cruz Barillas, Huehuetenango. The two men have had a long trajectory as community leaders,
participating in the organization and promotion of a community consultation in 2007 and again
in 2011, in which members of the Indigenous Q’anjobal Maya community voted
overwhelmingly to reject any outside companies from conducting resource exploration or
extraction. The Spanish company has ignored these demonstrations; rather than respecting the
autonomy of the community, have pushed violently and aggressively forward with their plans for
a dam on the sacred Qam Balam river. Velasquez’ and Mendez’ villages were the first to rise up
against the dam, as they were the most likely to be affected by the project.
This is the second stint that the men have done in prison. In May 2012, they were
arbitrarily detained in Barillas after protesting outside of military headquarters after the
assassination of their neighbor and fellow community leader Andres Francisco Miguel.
Along with along with seven other men, they were illegally held in prison for 8 months, until
finally being released in January 2013 after no charges were brought against them. In
November 2012, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention emitted a statement 46/2012
confirming that these arrests were arbitrary.
Then, eight months later, two men dressed as police officers- but lacking any police
identification- detained the Velasquez and Mendez and put them back in prison. Later charges
were filed accusing the men of having “participated’’ in a public lynching that occurred three
years earlier in 2010. Mendez and Velasquez have maintained their innocence.
In an interview the day before their trial on the 28th, Prensa Comunitaria reported that after two
years, 2 months and one day in prison, the men remained as lively as ever. “We kept a promise to
the town of Barillas and its people. We are in prison for defending what belongs to the
community and that’s why we know that the people will support us,’’ they said. The men have
lived in constant worry about their wives and children, the harvesting of their corn fields, and
whether their families have had food to put on the table. They were forced to learn how to find
hope even at the darkest of moments; Rogelio Velasquez has dedicated his time to learning to
read and write. Saul Mendez has been weaving, creating sachels and bracelets decorated with the
word “Libertad’’.
Arbitrary detention and the criminalization of human rights defenders has become a rampant
epidemic in Guatemala, especially against Indigenous leaders.
The UN Office of the High Commissioner summary of stakeholder submissions to the Human
Rights Council Working Group, during the Universal Periodic Review of Guatemala in 2012
noted,
'HRDs [Human Rights Defenders] continue to face death threats, physical attacks,
killings and other forms of violence, mostly carried out by clandestine security organizations and
illegal groups… The illegitimate use of criminal proceedings against HRDs prevented them
from carrying out their legitimate activities… The worsening situation of human rights
defenders was directly related to the failure to address land conflicts and the repressive policy
pursued against indigenous communities who object to the use of their natural resources without
prior consultation.'
The threats to the safety of Indigenous human rights defenders are growing, and it is left
to be seen how Guatemala’s new president-elect Jimmy Morales’ administration will affect
change. But for now, at least two more men have been able to return home to their families."
199
The Poqomchi Maya won a 200 year struggle for land rights in Guatemala, in July
2015, when the Madaras Filips Dias/Eco-Tierra logging company finally ceded nearly 800
hectors of land titled under the names of 229 Indigenous families (“Guatemala: Indigenous
Community Celebrates Victory After 200 Years of Struggle,” Cultural Survival Quarterly,
December 2015).
"Tolupanes Put Their Lives on the Line Defending All Hondurans," Cultural Survival,"
July 13, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/tolupanes-put-their-lives-line-defending-allhondurans, reported, "The Tolupanes of Yoro in central Honduras have become major actors
in the massive protests and demonstrations that have been filling the streets of Honduran
cities for weeks. Revelations that Honduran government functionaries and members of the
ruling National Party had drained an estimated 300 million dollars from the national social
security and health budget to help finance election campaigns may have seemed like the
"last straw." Hundreds of the poor have died without access to adequate medical care.
Honduras already has the highest murder rate in the world, massive official corruption and
impunity, a non-functional judicial system, rising narcotics and gang violence and political
repression, and a national development plan that forcibly and often violently evicts peasant
and Indigenous communities for the sake of mining, logging, tourism, and the expansion of
corporate export agriculture. Especially targeted have been many of the country's
Indigenous Peoples.
For the Tolupanes, the struggle is at three levels--two triggered by recent events within a
larger history of ongoing resistance. There is a significant scholarly literature about the history
and culture of the Tolupanes. In colonial times, the Spaniards called them Xicaque or Jicaque, by
which they meant 'savage," "barbarous,' or 'infidel,' and treated them as enemies to be subdued.
But an alternative interpretation—that Xicaque is derived from a Nahuatl word meaning 'strong
or ancient person'—provides an apt description of the Tolupán people. In an effort to bring
Tolupán communities under the sovereignty of the state in the 1860s, the government concluded
treaty agreements that confirmed some traditional Tolupán land rights. By the 1920s, Tolupanes
were working on foreign-owned banana plantations, and were losing their language and some of
their cultural customs. Many Tolupanes were also recruited or forced to work on the coffee
plantations of large landowners in Yoro. Today there are twenty-five Tolupán communities
(tribus) in Yoro.
Tolupán lands contain sizable stands of precious mahogany. In the 1970s, agents of
the National Agrarian Institute (INA) and the national forestry agency (COHDEFOR)
began awarding portions of Tolupán land to non-Indigenous peasants, loggers, and others,
and trying to replace the role of traditional Tolupán community leaders with government
forestry agents. To protect their interests, Tolupán communities formed the Federation of
Xicaque Tribes of Yoro (FETRIXY). What followed was a period in which dozens of
Tolupán leaders and activists were assassinated, including the president of FETRIXY,
Vicente Matute, killed in 1982 shortly after declaring, 'Better to die before surrendering our
rights to the land that is ours.' Since then, as many as one hundred Tolupán leaders and
community members have been killed.
Periodically, Tolupán communities have experienced forcible evictions from their
land. Armed men in the employ of large landowners arrive in a Tolupán community and
threaten to kill the inhabitants if they do not leave by a certain time. The number of these
evictions has increased in the years following the 2009 coup. One of several examples
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recounted by Catholic church workers in Yoro: on August 19, 2013, about 25 heavily armed men
arrived at night in one Tolupán community of 112 adults and children--nineteen households.
According to a community member who sought refuge with local church authorities, the
community was ordered to leave immediately and not to return or they would all be killed.
Demands for justice in these incidents are thwarted by the close relationship between large
landowners and public officials.
The 2009 coup d’etat that deposed President Manuel Zelaya also ended a
moratorium on granting new mining concessions in this mineral rich country. The postcoup government passed a mining law in January, 2013, that resulted in many new mining
concessions to foreign companies and Honduran entrepreneurs. Tolupán communities around
Locomapa in Yoro found themselves facing development and expansion of antimony
mining nearby, and threats to their land and environment. They could not rely on FETRIXY,
since many were convinced that its leadership had been compromised by the government and the
private mine owner to lend at least passive support for the mining.
On Sunday, August 25, 2013, two armed men shot and killed three members of the
Tolupán community at San Francisco Locomapa who had been active in opposing the mining-Ricardo Soto Funes, Armando Funes Medina, and 70-year-old Maria Enriqueta Matute who had
emerged from her house when she heard the shooting. Although community members said they
knew and could identify the killers whom they thought were in the service of the mine owner or
his supporters, police did not attempt to detain the suspects who continued at large to harass the
community and to threaten more killing if international observers dared to visit. In early April,
2015, another Locomapa community member, Luis de Reyes Marcía, was killed, and in June yet
another, despite the fact that in December, 2013, the Inter-American Commission for Human
Rights (IACHR) had mandated the Honduran government to provide protective measures
(medidas cautelares) for thirty-eight Locomapa community members. Despite the government’s
promise to comply, no protection was afforded.
As the street protests and marches against the social security scandal and the
government increased across Honduras, students started a hunger strike on June 22 in
front of the President’s house. They were soon joined by seven Tolupanes, including
relatives of some of those killed in Locomapa.
The Tolupanes on hunger strike issued a public statement demanding swift justice for those
killed at Locomapa, the implementation of the IACHR-mandated protective measures for
the community, consultation and voice in decisions about mining and other large projects
that affect their people and threaten to sell or destroy the land and resources, and an end to
government neglect in providing basic services for the Tolupán communities. They also
affirmed major demands of the large national protests--the resignation of the President, the
intervention of an International Anti-Impunity Commission, and an end to corruption and
violence.
The Minister of Justice reportedly offered to ensure the prompt arrest of the alleged
killers in Locomapa if the seven Tolupanes abandoned their part in the hunger strike. But the
Tolupán communities have suffered a long history of government neglect, broken promises, and
attempts to co-opt their leaders and corrupt their organizations. Even as the Minister made his
proposal, others were raising accusations that the Tolupanes engaged in the hunger strike were
not really Indigenous Tolupanes, a charge easily refuted by the strikers’ ties to the Locomapa
community, including those killed there."
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Tolupán hunger striker Sergio Avila, 65, reported threats to his family in Locomapa since
members of the community joined the strike in the capital. He and his family are among the
Tolupanes who are supposed to be under the protective measures the government has failed to
implement. According to reports posted on July 9 by Defensores en Linea, the Honduran
Accompaniment Project, other human rights sources, and Honduran news media, Avila said
armed men threatened to kill his son and they killed the horse his son was riding. He added, “If
we die in this hunger strike, the Honduran people will say these Tolupanes died to defend us all
and to defend their rights, to defend our territory.” Like other Honduran Indigenous peoples, the
Tolupanes have emerged in the forefront of the national struggle."
John McPhaul, "Costa Rican Indigenous Leaders Call for Passage of Indigenous
Autonomy
Law,"
Cultural
Survival.
October
16,
2015,
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/costa-rican-indigenous-leaders-call-passage-indigenousautonomy-law, reported, "Costa Rica shares with Panama an enormous copper field in the
Talamanca Mountains which link the two countries. The Costa Rican government has
granted dozens of concessions to multinational mining companies in the Talamanca
highlands.
But a problem for the mining companies lies in the fact that the copper reserves are
beneath Indigenous territory and the law requires that the country's Legislative Assembly
to give final approval to the concessions. Also, the Costa Rican government is signatory of
the International Labor Organization Convention 169 which requires the approval of
Indigenous communities to any outside development which takes place inside their land.
'The cosmology of the Bribri,' the most populous Indigenous people on the Costa Rican
side of the Talamancas, 'sees the earth and its ecosystems as a sacred living being called Iriria,
precluding any mining inside Indigenous territory,' said Bribri leader José Dualok Rojas.
To date the governments of Costa Rica have been faithful to the International
Labour Convention 169 and loathe to press for final approval of the concessions. The
government of current President Luis Guillermo Solis said it has no plans to abrogate
Convention 169. "The government is committed with respect to the international conventions
that the country has signed on the subject of the rights of the Indigenous Peoples," said Minister
of Communication Mauricio Herrara.
But Costa Rican Indigenous leaders are mistrustful of the government's ability to
fight off the intentions of the powerful multinationals over the long haul.
'What is certain is that the concessions are adjudicated to the transnational companies and
that makes for a latent risk,' said Rojas. 'Any politician can have a change of heart or can do
something foolish.'
To definitively consecrate the ILO into Costa Rican law, Costa Rica's eight
Indigenous groups are pressing for the passage of Bill 14352, otherwise known as the
Indigenous Autonomy Law, which for the first time would give Indigenous communities in
the country's 24 reserves full governance of their land and remove them from the current
control of central government institutions such as the National Indigenous Affairs
Commission (CONAI) and the National Community Development Directorate
(DINADECO). Indigenous do not trust these institutions, accusing them of defending outside
interests not those of Indigenous population.
The law would also enable Indigenous communities to recover land within the
Indigenous territories where non-Indigenous settlers occupy about 60 percent of the land. Those
who occupied the land prior to 1977 when the reserves were created would be entitled to
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compensation, while those who squatted on the land or illegally bought land with nothing more
than a bill of sale would not. Still the government is worried about the social problems created by
dislocation of thousands of 'white' settlers, should the Indigenous regain their territories.
Indigenous leaders also said the law, which was drafted 19 years ago, would provide the
government with a path toward resolving the case of the Salitre Indigenous Reserve on the
Pacific slope of the Talamancas, where an Indigenous movement to reclaim land from white
landholders has resulted in violence over the last three years.
As the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights last April ordered the Costa
Rican government to take 'precautionary measures,' to protect Indigenous communities
Indigenous leaders are saying the government will look to passage of the Indigenous
Autonomy Law to deal with the Salitre issue.
'It could be that [the Indigenous Autonomy Law] provides the government with a policy
that helps resolve conflicts like Salitre,' said Donald Rojas, a Brunca member of the Mesa
Indigena (Indigenous Table) an ad hoc group which has been pressuring for passage of the bill.
Jose Dualok Rojas, no relation to Donald, agreed, voicing hope that the government will
now be moved to pass the Autonomy Law under pressure by the IACHR precautionary measures
order.
'Now because of all the problems with the Salitre, they are going to present this bill as a
possible solution to the conflict,' said José Dualok Rojas.
Other Indigenous supporters are not as optimistic.
'I very much doubt it,' said University of Costa Rica anthropologist Marcos Guevera, of
passage of the autonomous law. 'As much as I would like to see it happen, there's just too much
opposition to it in the Legislative Assembly.'
The Indigenous Autonomy Law would lay out more clearly the authority of Indigenous
leaders over the Indigenous territories.
Much of the conflict in Salitre can be traced to a dispute over the authority of the Salitre
Integral Indigenous Development Association, whose president, José Dualok Rojas' brother,
Sergio, organized Indigenous starting in early 2012 to take back land claimed by white settlers.
The 'white' population responded with violence, trying to remove the Indigenous with
clubs and machetes, burning the Indigenous hovels and crops.
While the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights ruled in favor of Bribri and
Teribe peoples, Herrera said the issue is much more complicated than a conflict between
Indigenous and non-Indigenous.
'The Bribri are divided into matrilineal clans,' said Herrera, 'meaning that an individual’s
identity within the community is determined by whether or not the individual's mother is Bribri.
An individual whose father is Bribri and mother is Cabecar, a group closely related to the Bribri,
is considered Cabecar, not Bribri.'
The Indigenous movement headed by Sergio Rojas has attempted to reestablish a Bribri
social order in the community and Rojas has been accused of intimidating Indigenous individuals
who are not 'of clan.'
Rojas denies these allegation and has stated that people of mixed heritage are welcome in
the reserve, but, he adds, 'just as long as they accept the decisions of the Development
Association.'
Sary Sosa, a Cabecar farmer told the daily La Nación that she feels threatened by Rojas,
even after multiple community meetings, in a situation which she characterized as a division
203
between the 'Indigenous that go with Sergio Rojas and Indigenous who don't go with Sergio
Rojas.'
'I don't go with anything that he says,' said Sosa. 'I don't respect him as a leader. I don't
accept him, I don't want him, I would even like them to take him out of the territory.'
Last week DINADECO removed Rojas from the presidency of the Development
Association alleging that he was barred from public service by a court order after serving seven
months of preventative detention for alleged irregularities in the management of a government
environmental services fund (FONAFIFO). Rojas said the charges were trumped up because of
his protagonism in the Salitre controversy which has seen multiple cases of violence directed at
Indigenous families.
Rojas told La Nación that the Bribri will defend themselves from violence aimed at them
if necessary. 'Violence brings violence,' said Rojas. 'If the state doesn't guarantee our security our
rights we have to go, as we have done, we have to find a way to guarantee our survival and if
violence occurs it will be the fault of the state.'
Rojas' supporters say that the Bribri leader has been the target of political persecution by
the government which is threatened by the emergence of a strong, independent, Indigenous
leader capable of starting a movement to reclaim Indigenous land at the national level.
"Because of the circumstances, he has taken a very strong position and the violent actions aimed
at [Sergio Rojas group] has caused him to make some mistakes," said Donald Rojas.
The Salitre controversy is not the only source of pressure on the Costa Rican government
to giver more attention to Indigenous issues.
Another source of pressure for passage of the Autonomy Law is a report by Gabriella
Habtom, Secretary of the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
'on the grave and persistent violation of Indigenous people's rights in Costa Rica,' issued on July
15.
'This report addresses the pattern of pervasive, long-standing and inter-connected
violations or denials of the rights of Indigenous peoples in the Republic of Costa Rica, and the
ongoing situation of impunity in which they occur and persist,' wrote Habtom.
Donald Rojas said that all these pressures have created a lively debate within the Solis
government on whether or not to press forward with the Indigenous Autonomy Law within the
Legislative Assembly.
According to Cinia Jimenez, of the Legislative Assembly Office of Citizen Participation,
the Indigenous Autonomy Bill number 14352 is currently 37th on Assembly's docket, meaning
that the bill will likely not come up in the assembly's ordinary session which ends at the end of
November. The Solis Administration would have an opportunity to bring the bill before the
assembly in the extraordinary session which begins in December and lasts until the end of April.
One powerful voice against the Indigenous Autonomy cause is governing Citizen Action Party
founder and congressman Otton Solis. Solis wrote an opinion piece that appeared in the daily La
Nación on October 21, 2014 in which he criticized Sergio Rojas' Salitre movement as collectivist
and in conflict with Costa Rica's Constitution.
Solis didn't respond to a request for comment.
Donald Rojas also said that a dose of racism also lies behind some of the opposition to
the proposed Indigenous Autonomy Bill. "There are those who say that we should be made to
live like white people, that we should modernize ourselves," said Donald Rojas;."
204
John McPhaul, "Costa Rica Struggles With Indigenous Land Rights," Cultural Survival,
October 2, 2015," http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/costa-rica-struggles-indigenous-landrights, reported, "A case of Indigenous land rights is testing the Central American country of
Costa Rica's otherwise stellar reputation for protecting human rights.
In July of 2012, Sergio Rojas, a leader Costa Rica's Bribri Indigenous community, led
Bribri and Teribe Indigenous in an effort to reclaim land within the Salitre Indigenous
reserve in the Talamanca Mountains in southwestern Costa Rica.
Though the 11,700 hectares of land had been guaranteed to the Indigenous by the
1977 Indigenous Law, the failure of the government to compensate landowners or control
the illegal sale of the land to 'white' outsiders resulted in the displacement of the
Indigenous community.
According to Rojas, Salitre's Indigenous lived in numerous families per house in the
reserve or in the slums of the regional hub of Buenos Aires about 20 kilometers down the
mountain from Salitre.
'There's no reason for our people to live like that when we have an ancestral home which
is ours not only by tradition but under the Indigenous Law, so we organized an effort to take it
back,' said Rojas.
Amilcar Castañeda, an anthropologist from the National Distance University, said that
much of the land is claimed by non-Indigenous absentee "owners" from Buenos Aires who pay
caretakers to watch the land.
The response from the non-Indigenous "owners" of the land was Immediate. Since July,
2012, the Bribri and Teribe have been subjected to periodic violent attacks by white
"landowners," who wielding machetes and clubs, have tried to eject the Indigenous, burning
down their hovels and injuring Indigenous leaders.
The Indigenous complain that the public security officials have stood by and done
nothing about the attacks and, on at least one occasion, the police actually participated in the
forced removal of Indigenous from their land.
In August of 2012, Rojas the Buenos Aires Municipal Council declared Rojas personanon-grata. Then on Sept. 17, 2014, Rojas was the object of an apparent assassination attempt in
which his car was shot six times.
In April of this year, the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, at the petition of
the non-governmental Forest People Programme, ordered the Costa Rican government to take
'cautionary measures' to protect the lives and property of the Indigenous.
In issuing its ruling, which noted that the Indigenous have held title to the land since
1956, the IAHRC said that the gravity of the situation exists in view of 'a series of continuous
cycles of threats. harassment and acts of violence against members of the Teribe and Bribri
communities of Salitre,' and that the Indigenous 'find themselves in a grave and urgent situation
since their lives and personal integrity are threatened and are at risk.'
According to the IACHR ruling, in the Salitre area around 60 percent of the Bribri land
have been taken over by outsiders rising to between 80 to 88 percent of land belonging to the
Teribe.
Late September a group Bribri and Teribe leaders complained that the government failed
to consult them before putting into place the 'cautionary measures,' which included the tripling of
the public security presence to 60 policeman.
205
The measures also includes the carrying out of a study to sort out who has a claim to the
pre-1977 status quo, and so are entitled to compensation and who illegally obtained the land
without title after 1977 and is not entitled to compensation.
Government spokesman Mauricio Herrera said the Indigenous community is divided into
many different factions complicating a negotiated solution and that the government did consult
one of the factions, but that one of the factions is stubbornly demanding a quick solution of
removing the 'whites' from the land.
'It is hard to come to a solution, when one of the sides is intransigent,' said Herrera.
The Bribri faction that complained about not being consulted has refused to negotiate
anything besides their own proposed solution: the removal of all non-Indigenous inhabitants
from the land to which they hold an ancient claim.
But the situation is more complex than merely a Indigenous vs. non-Indigenous conflict,
said Herrera.
'You have situations where Bribris are married to 'white' people,' said Herrera. 'And you
have other situations where a Bribri is married to a Cabecar (an Indigenous group closely related
to the Bribri).
But Rojas said the Bribri welcome the mixed families into the community and that the
government proposal is nothing more than a dilatory move.
'What we want is for them to apply the legislation that protects our rights,' he said.
The problem, says Minor Mora, a member of the municipal council of Buenos Aires, lies
in the fact that the government failed to compensate landowners in 1977 and since then the
population has grown to about 3,200 'whites.'
'Removing so many people from the land would create a new set of social and
humanitarian problems,' said Mora.
Mora also said certain interests he did not name were concerned about cashing in on the
government program which compensates landowners for not cutting down forest as part of Costa
Rica's carbon-neutral effort.
Rojas, the president of the Salitre Development Integral Association which manages
the funds, was jailed for seven months in 'cautionary detention,' beginning in November of
2014 while the investigation into the malfeasance of 554 million colones ($1.1 million) going
to the carbon-neutral fund.
Castañeda said the detention was politically motivated because of Rojas' role in the
Salitre land dispute.
'He was a political prisoner,' said Castañeda. 'It's a case where there was disorder in the
management of the Association's funds. It's something that's very common everywhere in the
country and no one else has ever been accused of anything.'
'In two years and eight months since the process began in which the 11 directors of the
Integral Development Association have been investigated, they haven't been able to demonstrate
that the supposed charges they are accused of occurred nor any connection with them,' Rojas'
attorney Ruben Chacon told the press.
Costa Rica's Indigenous peoples, estimated at around 60,000, remain the poorest and
most marginalized sector of Costa Rican society.
Living in remote areas of the country, often far from vital services, the Indigenous
communities consistently rank at the bottom of the country's human development indices.
Indigenous groups like the Teribe has seen their culture decimated and have little left of their
language.
206
The Bribri and the closely related Cabecar groups have been able to retain more of their
culture and language, thanks in large part to the remoteness of their villages in the rugged,
virtually inaccessible zones of the Talamanca Mountains which traverse Costa Rica's border with
Panama in the south.
With the exception of the Chorotega Indigenous group, who are related to the Mayan
civilizations in northern Central America, Costa Rica's Indigenous are related to the Chibcha
Indigenous group centered in northern South America."
On April 25, 2015, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights issued a
report calling upon Costa Rica to better enforce its Indigenous law to protect the 25 Native
territories in the country, all of whom face occupation by non-Indigenous people (“Costa
Rica: Preliminary Measures Issued Protecting Bribri and Teribe People Issued,” Cultural
Survival Quarterly, September 2015).
Richard Arghiris. "Barro Blanco Protesters Injured and Arrested During Crackdown in
Panama," Cultural Survival, July 30, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/barro-blancoprotesters-injured-and-arrested-during-crackdown-panama, reported, "Protests against the
Barro Blanco hydro dam in western Panama turned violent last Saturday, July 25, when riot
police, claiming to act in self-defense, unleashed pepper spray and batons on some 50
Ngäbe activists, women and children among them. At least three protesters were badly
injured in the clash.
The crackdown occurred during a visit to the area by the Panamanian Vice
President Isabel Saint Malo, who, under the pretext of dialogue, convened three Ngäbe
leaders behind closed doors at the Centro Misionero (Mission Centre) in the town of Tolé.
Despite a reasonable request to be included in the meeting, leaders from local community
groups were excluded. Activists responded to Saint Malo’s move by blockading the
Carretera Interamericana, the country’s principle highway.
According to the Ngäbe, at around 10:15 am, in scenes reminiscent of the Martinelli
years, the police reacted violently to disperse the 50-strong protesters, destroying their
equipment, trashing their camps, and burning their banners.
The police deny improper use of force.
Many fled the scene before 20 people were arrested (including several minors) and
dispatched to the city of Santiago for processing.
While in the private meeting with Saint Malo, the Cacique of Muná, Chito Gallardo,
and the Mayor of Muná, Rolando Carpintero, learned of the arrests and quickly
intervened to have them returned. The injured were soon taken to the Casa Misionero for
treatment and for the Vice President to bear witness.
According to one person at the scene, the vice president appeared coolly uninterested.
For several weeks, hundreds of police units have been stationed in and around Tolé,
including numerous SENAFRONT troops, an elite militarized squad funded in part by the
United States. SENAFRONT is normally charged with defending the jungle frontier with
Colombia, making their presence of considerable significance.
Under the US Leahy Law on Human Rights, the US Department of State is
prohibited from providing military assistance to foreign units who violate human rights
with impunity.
207
The clashes on the Interamericana foreshadow greater unrest as Barro Blanco’s
owner, Generadora del Istmo (GENISA) – a corporation owned by the controversial Kafie
family, now mired in a high-level corruption scandal in Honduras – scrambles to complete
the final 5-10% of the hydro dam’s construction.
The company has never sought the free, informed, and prior consent of the
indigenous communities living on the banks of the Tabasará river, while the project’s
funders, the Dutch and German investment banks FMO and DFE, admit to failing their
own due diligence tests. Unfortunately, all funds have now been dispensed to GENISA and the
banks themselves made a point of threatening the government when it suspended the project
earlier this year.
The negative impacts of Barro Blanco have been identified by scores of technical
teams, independent experts, international observers, and the United Nations. Those same
impacts are nowhere to be found in GENISA’s Environmental Impact Assessment. Among
them, the dam will displace several indigenous and campesino communities, including the
community of Kiad, where a unique school and cultural centre is developing the written
script of the Ngäbere language.
Additional impacts include the loss of farm plots and fish stocks -- vital sources of
sustenance for indigenous and campesino communities in the region – as well as the loss of
several ancient petroglyphs, part of Panama’s national patrimony and a special
significance to the Mama Tata religion, a Ngäbe revivalist movement that syncretises
indigenous animism and Catholicism.
Among the most devout followers of Mama Tata are the M22 resistance movement,
who successfully blockaded the entrance to the dam for 38 consecutive days – until just ten
days ago. International news footage of the groups praying and dancing on the highway
may have influenced the government’s decision to enforce a ‘soft’ take-over of the site
entrance. In contrast to the force deployed outside Tolé, Ngäbe women lying in the path of
machinery were carefully removed.
Construction of the dam has now resumed and M22 are continuing to pray day and
night by the highway. They complain of psychological intimidation with the police shining high
intensity lamps on their camp during the night and aggressively entering the temple they have
built near the river banks.
For his part, Panamanian President Varela, who continues to talk condescendingly about
giving the Ngäbe ‘the keys to the dam’ upon its completion, appears to have acquiesced to
pressures from his own business community, tacitly enabling foreign corporations who respect
neither the environment nor international law nor indigenous or human rights.
The Supreme Court has cheered him on by annulling a moratorium on hydro
projects passed by the environment agency, ANAM, who were concerned with the stress
being placed on Panama’s delicate but biologically rich watersheds. With the crackdown
last week, the Panamanian government appears officially back to business as usual."
"Colombian Indians protest against “illegal” imprisonment of leader," Survival
International, October 20, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10942, Reported, "A
prominent Colombian indigenous leader has been jailed for sixteen years, in a move that
has been criticized as “a severe blow to Colombia’s democracy”.
Feliciano Valencia, a Nasa Indian from Colombia’s conflict-ridden Cauca region, is
accused of kidnapping a soldier during an indigenous-led protest in 2008.
208
The soldier was detained by the Nasa Indians’ legally recognized “Indigenous
Guard” after he infiltrated a protest undercover. He was sentenced under the Nasa’s own
justice system and released a week later.
The Nasa say they informed the soldier’s family and superiors of his arrest, and the
sentence was carried out in accordance with Colombia’s constitutional law, which upholds
indigenous peoples’ right to their own customary legal system.
Valencia has been at the forefront of the indigenous rights movement in Colombia.
His homeland in the western Cauca province is one of the most violent regions of the country,
and has been overrun with guerrillas, paramilitaries and the armed forces.
A lack of evidence supporting the case against Valencia, and his unusually long jail
term, have been widely condemned as evidence that his sentence is politically motivated.
National Indigenous Organization ONIC has called Valencia’s arrest: '(part of) the
systematic criminalization and persecution of our social movements (and) an attack on peace and
social justice.'
Survival International, the global movement for tribal peoples’ rights, is urging the
Colombian government to release Feliciano Valencia, and uphold indigenous peoples’ rights in
accordance with Colombian and international law."
"Speaks Out in Support of Maya Peoples," Cultural Survival, July 7, 2015,
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/belize-unsr-victoria-tauli-corpuz-speaks-out-supportmaya-peoples, reported, "The United Nations Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous
peoples, Victoria Tauli-Corpuz, today urged the Government of Belize to ensure respect for
the rights of the country’s Maya people to non-discrimination and traditional property.
'Under international human rights standards, indigenous peoples have the right to use,
develop and also to control the lands, territories and resources that they possess by reason of
traditional ownership,' Ms. Tauli-Corpuz emphasized.
The independent expert’s call comes after the arrest of 12 Maya people and local
leaders charged with unlawful imprisonment for their actions to remove a non-Maya
individual, Rupert Myles, from their village lands. Mr. Myles was allegedly building a
housing structure on ancient Maya ruins in the village of Santa Cruz, in violation of Maya
customary law and apparently despite repeated requests for the removal of the structure.
'It appears as though the repeated requests to local police by Santa Cruz village
leaders for assistance in removing the individual from the archaeological site within their
village lands, went ignored,' the Special Rapporteur noted. “I am concerned by the inaction of
the Government of Belize to assist Maya villagers to protect their property rights in the
face of threats to those rights.'
Santa Cruz is one of some 39 Maya villages within the Toledo District of Belize, whose
rights to traditional lands have been affirmed by the legal system in Belize, including most
recently in April 2015 by the Caribbean Court of Justice, the highest court of appeals in the
Belize legal system.
.The Maya village of Santa Cruz holds customary rights to its village lands which the
government must respect and protect, as affirmed by a 2007 decision of the Supreme Court of
Belize,” Ms. Tauli-Corpuz noted.
The Special Rapporteur urged the Government to establish a dialogue with Maya
leadership and discuss outstanding issues of concern regarding this case, as well as the
209
broader land tenure situation of the Maya people, in a spirit of partnership and mutual
respect. 'The current situation of conflict and mistrust cannot be allowed to persist,' she added.
The Santa Cruz incident - Background:
According to reports, Mr. Myles, a non-Maya individual, has been constructing a house
on the archaeological site of Uxbenka –an ancient Maya temple in the village of Santa Cruz–
including the alleged bulldozing of a portion of the site to create a driveway. Mr. Myles has
reported that he had followed procedures to live in the village.
On Saturday, 20 June, Santa Cruz villagers detained Mr. Myles when he interrupted
a fajina (traditional meeting). Villagers allege that he stated that he had a firearm in his car
and that he proceeded to approach his vehicle. He was released by the villagers later that
day.
Among the Maya people arrested and charged with Mr. Myles’s unlawful
imprisonment were the Alcalde (major) of Santa Cruz, Manuel Pop, and Cristina Coc,
spokesperson for the Maya Leaders Alliance, an association which represents the Toledo
Alcaldes Association (TAA) composed of the elected Alcaldes from the 39 Maya villages
within the Toledo District of Belize were also arrested and charged with unlawful
imprisonment.
The Special Rapporteur on the rights of indigenous peoples, Ms. Victoria TauliCorpuz (Philippines), is a human rights activist working on indigenous peoples’ rights. Her work
for more than three decades has been focused on movement building among indigenous peoples
and also among women, and she has worked as an educator-trainer on human rights,
development and indigenous peoples in various contexts. She is a member of the Kankana-ey,
Igorot indigenous peoples in the Cordillera Region in the Philippines. As Special Rapporteur, she
is independent from any government or organization and serves in his individual capacity. Learn
more,
log
on
to: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/IPeoples/SRIndigenousPeoples/Pages/SRIPeoplesIndex.aspx
The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of the
Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent experts in the UN
Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council’s independent fact-finding and
monitoring mechanisms that address either specific country situations or thematic issues in all
parts of the world. Special Procedures’ experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff
and do not receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or
organization and serve in their individual capacity.
Check
the
UN
Declaration
on
the
Rights
of
Indigenous
Peoples: http://www.ohchr.org/EN/Issues/IPeoples/Pages/Declaration.aspx."
William Neuman, “Venezuelan Opposition Claims a Rare Victory: A Legislative
Majority,”
The
New
York
Times,
December
6,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/07/world/americas/venezuelaelections.html?ref=todayspaper&_r=0, reported, “Government opponents surged to a rare
victory here on Sunday in key congressional elections framed by the country’s deep
economic crisis, claiming a legislative majority for the first time in years and handing a
significant setback to the heirs of former President Hugo Chávez and his socialist-inspired
movement.
210
The victory significantly alters the political balance in this deeply divided country
and augurs a power struggle between the long-marginalized opposition and the
government of President Nicolás Maduro, the successor and disciple of Mr. Chávez.”
Rick Kearns, “Jurist Becomes First Indigenous President Of Bolivia’s Highest Court,”
!CTMN, November 25, 2015, http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2015/11/25/juristbecomes-first-indigenous-president-bolivias-highest-court-162556, reported, “The newest
president judge of Bolivia’s highest court is an Indigenous magistrate, making him the first
Indigenous person in that post.
On November 4, officials announced that Pastor Mamani was elected to be President of
the Supreme Tribunal of Justice, where five jurists, including the previous President, voted for
him and four against.”
“Mamani announced that he would establish a direct line of communication with the
indigenous justice system in the country which, according to his colleague Romulo Calle, had
become an “orphan” of the state.”
"Peru: Land at last for families of murdered Ashéninka Indians," 1 September1, 2015,
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10888, reported, "Ashéninka Indians in Peru have
obtained title of their ancestral land on the anniversary of the murders of four of their most
prominent leaders.
Edwin Chota, Jorge Ríos Pérez, Leoncio Quinticima Melendez and Francisco Pinedo
were murdered by illegal loggers near their home in the eastern Peruvian Amazon on 1
September 2014.
Three men have been charged for the murders of the indigenous leaders, but a
further three suspects have not yet been arrested.
The Ashéninka have been fighting for their right to their ancestral land for more
than ten years. Community members have received numerous death threats from loggers who
have invaded their land.
The widows of the deceased have been hailed for their determination in bringing the
killers to justice, and securing the land for their community.
Diana Rios, a spokesperson for the Ashéninka, told press, “They thought they could treat
us badly forever. But we are human beings. We don’t want more bloodshed… We ask the State
to support us and to support other communities too. It’s not just Saweto (the Ashéninka
community) – there are other communities that don’t have title.”
Although Peru has ratified the international law that guarantees indigenous peoples’ land
ownership rights, more than 1500 indigenous communities in Peru still do not have legal title to
their land."
"Peru Concludes Consultation on Lot 192 Before Agreement Reached with Indigenous
Federations," Cultural Survival, September 30, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/peruconcludes-consultation-lot-192-agreement-reached-indigenous-federations,
reported,
"On
September 1st, 2015, the government of Peru announced that the process of prior consultation
over oil concessions in the Peruvian Amazon had ended, despite agreements failing to be
reached. A series of formal dialogues regarding Lot 192 between the Ministry of Energy
and Mines and the Indigenous Peoples organizations ended unsuccessfully at the end of
August, 2015.
211
Block 192 is the most important petroleum license in Peru, accounting for roughly
17 percent of Peru’s oil production. The concession, held by Argentinian company
Pluspetrol, expired at the end of August, and a process of consultation is required by
Peruvian law and backed by international laws before a new concession is approved.
Yet no agreement has been reached during the process of consultation. The
announcement of its conclusion has been called arbitrary by Indigenous leaders. 'There are
16 points in the process of prior consultation that have not been made clear, like the land titling,
payment for the use of our lands, compensation for the environmental degradation, and
remediation. This is why we have not signed onto the act with the government. We want the
state to guarantee our rights,' explained Carlos Sandi, President of FECONACO.
The dialogues, which have been taking place on and off since 2011, ended with no
agreement between the government and Indigenous representative organizations, including
Federacion Indigena Quechua del Pastaza (FEDIQUEP), Federación de Comunidades Nativas
del Corrientes (FECONACO), ACODECOSPAT and AIDESEP, as to what actions will be taken
to further consult and honor the wishes of the Indigenous communities who have been living
with contamination on their lands for over 40 years of oil extraction.
The government was aiming to ratify an agreement stating that the Indigenous
groups would receive 0.75% of the production gains from the oil wells, which are located
on Indigenous territories along four river watersheds in the department of Loreto, the Pastaza,
Corrientes, Tigre, and Marañon rivers. Known as Lot 192, the land has been used for oil
extraction since the 1970s leaving devastating environmental and health emergencies.
In a letter to President Ollanta Humala, Indigenous leaders stated the following:
'In the single-track agenda focused on 'benefits', our demands for the fundamental aspects
of the recognition of our rights and the future of our communities and territories, including
the rights to land, a healthy territory without contamination, and the right to participation,
were made invisible and were suspended.' Monetary gain is not the primary interest to the
communities. Rather, what they are seeking is remediation of existing environmental
contamination before considering new exploitation.
The
letter
continued:
'We want to communicate that the process of consultation for Lot 192, moving into its
6th stage, ‘Intercultural Dialogue’ has set a negative and difficult stage for the strenuous
process of building trust between the federations and the state, and references the historic
process of dialogue that our Indigenous Peoples have sustained with the Peruvian state.
Our dialogues have tried to address the complex problems resulting from 45 years of
petroleum exploitation, and guarantee collective and territorial rights to communities that
are highly vulnerable in front of the possible impacts of 30 more years of hydrocarbon
extraction.'
'We believe that the dialogue process of the consultation has not fulfilled the
fundamental principles like good faith, reasonable timeframe, and interculturality, which
are requirements of the Law of Prior Consultation,' which was passed in Peru in 2011.
The vision and proposals of the Achuar and Quechua Peoples of the Pastaza and
Corrientes as they face the next 30 years of petroleum activity in Lot 192 have been documented
and delivered to the state of Peru and the companies, but have not been adequately addressed.
This video shows traditional leaders of the Indigenous Federations of the Amazon River basins
expressing their requests of the State:
212
'We emphasize that as of now, we have not signed any agreement with the state regarding
the prior consultation for the concession of Lot 192. We reiterate our disposal to continue
dialoguing, and our firm commitment and respect for the principles of the right to prior
consultation.'
Indigenous communities have revealed the government's dismissive and disrespectful
behavior throughout the dialogues, although press releases from the Ministry do not
acknowledge this fact. “We are furious at the incapacity and poor management demonstrated by
the State in the dialogue process of Prior Consultation of Lot 192.'
Meanwhile, frustration over failed consultation for another oil concession led to Indigenous
organizations occupying an airfield in Trompeteros which controls access on what is known as
Lot 8. Loreto governor Fernando Melendez Celis noted, “These types of things will
continue to happen because there hasn’t been transparency in the [concessioning] process, which
is something the government of Loreto has demanded from the central government,’’ noting that
often times officials in Lima have no understanding of how people live in the rural regions of the
country."
In northern Peru, the Supreme Court of Loreto ruled, in May 2015, in favor of
Acodecospat, an association of Kukarna communities in the lower Mara on River Valley,
ordering a halt in the construction of the Hydrovia waterway project to improve
infrastructure connecting counties in the region, pending consultations with the Indigenous
populations in the area (“Peru: Dredging of Amazonian Tributaries Halted Pending
Consultation,” Cultural Survival Quarterly, September 2015).
In Peru, the relatively new, Interculturality’s Directorate of Indigenous Languages,
many of who’s staff members are Indigenous, and many whom speak the country’s
Indigenous languages, is involved in a positive shift in at least part of the government’s
approach to Indigenous people in Peru. The agency is working to support preserving
Indigenous languages, including coordinating related action by agencies throughout the
government. A major development was the passage, in 2011, of Law 29735, the Law of
Indigenous Languagescoinciding with the Law of Consulta Previa (Prior Consultation).
For the first time, due to the policies of the the government of President Ollanta Humala,
language is now included as a key component within Peru’s national policy on social
inclusion.
Linguistic policies in Peru include five lines of action: language development and
revitalization; engaging in research and producing language resources; opening new spaces
for the use of Indigenous languages; promoting the implementation of language rights by
the State; and supporting the Prior Consultation process (“The Voice(s) of a Nation,”
Cultural
Survival
Quarterly,
December
2015,
https://www.culturalsurvival.org/publications/cultural-survival-quarterly/voices-nation).
"Yanomami tribe raises alarm as uncontacted Indians disappear',” Survival
"Yanomami Indians in the Brazilian Amazon have warned that their uncontacted relatives
are in grave danger as illegal miners have taken over their territory.
Recent overflights to monitor one uncontacted group have returned with news that
their communal house is empty, indicating that they could have fled or been attacked.
213
Hutukara Yanomami Association announced in a statement, 'The Yanomami indigenous
territory is overrun with illegal gold miners. There are more of them each day, and they are
ruining the forest, polluting the rivers… and causing irreparable damage to our health and
culture.'
Shaman Davi Kopenawa Yanomami, President of Hutukara, said, 'The place where the
uncontacted Indians live, fish, hunt and plant must be protected. The whole world must know
that they are there in their forest and that the authorities must respect their right to live there.'
Earlier this year, the government’s Indian Affairs Department, FUNAI, abandoned its
base camp and airstrip from which it aimed to protect the uncontacted Yanomami, known as the
Moxi Hatëtëa. The government’s absence has left the Indians even more vulnerable to attacks
and diseases which could prove fatal."
“Brazil:
Brazil: logging gang arrested close to uncontacted tribe,”
tribe,” Survival International,
November 9, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10989,
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10989, reported, “A
“A band of
loggers has been arrested close to the territory of an uncontacted tribe in the Amazon basin. They
were found by a Brazilian government task force, which also confiscated forty truckloads of
illegallyillegally-felled timber.
The loggers were apprehended in the Guariba Reserve, a buffer zone for the territory of
the highly threatened Kawahiva tribe. The Kawahiva have no contact with the outside world, but
the activities of loggers on their land risks disaster.
Uncontacted tribal peoples are the most vulnerable societies on the planet. We know very
little
little about them. Whole populations are being wiped out by violence from outsiders who steal
their land and resources, and by diseases like flu and measles to which they have no resistance.
AwardAward-winning actor Mark Rylance launched Survival’s ’Last of the Kawahiv’ film
earlier this year to draw attention to the tribe’s plight.
Yanomami leader Davi Kopenawa,
Kopenawa, known as the “Dalai Lama of the Rainforest”,
said:’“The place where the uncontacted Indians live, fish, hunt and plant must be protected. The
whole world must know that they are there in their forest and that the authorities must respect
their right to live there’”
The Kawahiva face genocide. They have shown their desire to remain uncontacted.
Contact with the outside world could prove fatal for them, as it has been for their relatives and
countless other peoples in the past. However, their situation is far from hopeless. If their right to
remain on their land undisturbed is respected, they will be able not only to survive, but to
flourish.
Since 2013, a decree to make the Kawahiva’s land a designated Indigenous Territory has b een
sitting on the desk of the Brazilian Minister of Justice. Survival International, the global
movement for tribal peoples’ rights, is urging him to act to save the Kawahiva from extinction.
extinction.
Survival Director Stephen Corry issued the following statement: ‘The Kawahiva face
catastrophe unless their land is protected: If the forest disappears, so too will the Kawahiva.
Brazil needs to do far more to prevent the extinction of yet another innocent
innocent tribe”
tribe”.’
”Brazil: Authorities stand by as fires started by loggers threaten tribe ,” Survvial
International, December 7, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/11048,
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/11048, reported,
“Fires – almost certainly started by logging gangs – are raging across large areas of
Maranhão state in Brazil. Despite global calls for action to protect the prepre-Amazon forest
and local uncontacted
uncontacted Awá tribespeople from being wiped out, so far the authorities have
214
done very little to contain the blaze.
The fires were started approximately two weeks ago. Local Awá Indians have made
repeated efforts to extinguish them, only to find more fires starting nearby. This pattern
indicates conscious human efforts to set the forest alight, rather than natural dry season
wildfires. Elsewhere in Brazil,
Brazil, loggers have been known to start fires to try and force
indigenous people from the land.
This fire follows on from a similar incident in Arariboia last month, which was also
extinguished long after it had started. It is believed that that fire was also started by loggers
on the territory of a group of uncontacted Awá.
Awá.
One Awá man said: ’“What will we do with no food and no forest? The fire is destroying
our animals, and we are very worried. The loggers are setting our forest on fire – we’ve seen
seen
armed loggers! We try to put out the fires in one place and they spring up in another’”
The Maranhão state government has sent only minimal support to the region to save
the forest and the local Awá. This is consistent with their past attitudes towards tribes,
tribes, and
may be the result of close ties between some local and regional government officials and the
powerful logging mafia.
mafia.
In a speech to ranchers earlier this year, Maranhão state deputy Fernando Furtado said
that Amazonian Indians are: “a bunch of l ittle gays” and that they should die of hunger. Racist
attitudes of this sort are not uncommon even amongst politicians in Brazil.
Survival International, the global movement for tribal peoples, is calling on the Brazilian
authorities to do more to save the Awá from the fires and to assist them in their efforts to
preserve the rainforests. Tribal people are the best conservationists and guardians of the natural
world, but when they are abandoned
abandoned or ignored by those in power, they stand little chance of
saving either themselves or their natural environment from destruction.
Survival director Stephen Corry sai: ‘The handling of this fire is business as usual from
the logging mafia that runs rampant
rampant in Maranhão. As long as there are powerful vested interests
determined to drive tribal peoples from their ancestral lands and ignore their rights in order to
exploit the Amazon, catastrophes like this will continue to happen. Survival is doing all that it
can to bring the plight of the Awá to wider attention and pressing for more action to put out these
fire’.”
"Brazilian Indians kidnapped by ranchers," Survival International, September 18, 2015,
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10913, reported, "Members of one of Brazil’s most
persecuted tribes have been kidnapped by the ranchers who occupy their land, who have
also attacked their community and forced women and children to flee.
The Guarani Indians of Pyelito Kuê community reoccupied a fraction of their ancestral
land two days ago, and have been under attack ever since. One Guarani woman was
reportedly raped and beaten up, and is now in hospital.
Earlier today gunmen employed by the ranchers attacked the Indians again. Reports
indicate several were injured, with many fleeing in panic into a small patch of forest. Around 30
Indians were forced into the back of a truck and driven away. They were eventually dumped by a
roadside.
Communications equipment from Survival’s Tribal Voice project, which the Indians had
been using to speak to the outside world, was destroyed by the gunmen.
The Indians have endured years of living in overcrowded reserves, on a tiny plot of
land trapped between a river and a sea of soya, and in the middle of a eucalyptus
215
plantation. All their lands have been taken over by ranchers, whose gunmen regularly
attack the Indians.
Community leader, Marcio, told Survival International, the global movement for tribal
peoples’ rights, today: 'It’s terrible here. The gunmen attacked us in the middle of the night. They
burned all our belongings. They shot at us. Some of my relatives were injured and many people
fled. I don’t know where or how they are now. We’ll do everything it takes to get our land back.
We will not give up.'
This is the latest in a series of violent attacks by ranchers against Brazil’s Guarani
tribe. According to Brazil’s constitution, all the tribe’s land should have been returned to it
by 1993, but 22 years on, many remain landless and destitute."
Earlier, "Wave of attacks hits Brazil’s Guarani tribe," Survival International, September
10, 2015," http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10904, reported, "Gunmen have launched
a wave of attacks against Guarani Indians in central Brazil.
On 29 August Guarani leader Semião Vilhalva was shot dead one week after his
community reoccupied part of their ancestral land. A one-year-old baby was struck in the
head by a rubber bullet, and many others were injured.
Less than a week later, on 3 September, 30 vehicles full of ranchers and gunmen
arrived at the community of Guyra Kambi’y.
They fired repeatedly at the community, forcing the Indians, including about 50
children, to flee and hide in small pockets of forest nearby. They then set fire to the
Indians’ homes, destroying everything.
The Guarani had requested protection from the authorities but the police left the
Guarani at the mercy of the gunmen.
Gunmen have surrounded several other Guarani communities in the region and are
firing daily, encircling and threatening the Indians.
Guarani spokeswoman Inaye Gomes Lopes said, “We’ll remain firm. The ranchers think
that killing Indians will solve things. No. If they kill one, 20 or 30 will rise up.”
NGOs in Brazil are calling for local parliamentarians to be investigated for their alleged
involvement in the attacks.
This heightened conflict follows decades of devastation of the Guarani’s ancestral lands,
now occupied by cattle ranches and sugar cane, soya and corn plantations.
Brazil’s constitution required the government to map out all indigenous territory and
return it for their exclusive use by 1993, but this process has come to a stand-still and left the
Guarani living in appalling conditions.
The latest attack came one day after the Minister of Justice visited the area to discuss
solutions to the land conflict, which has become Brazil’s worst humanitarian crisis.
The Guarani association, Aty Guasu, said, 'The ranchers and all those responsible for
these barbaric crimes must be punished!' The Guarani are also demanding police protection and
the mapping out of their lands.
Survival has launched an urgent campaign calling on Brazil’s government to bring to
justice those responsible for the attacks, to protect the communities from further violence and to
map out the Guarani’s land to prevent further bloodshed."
Earlier, "Brazil: Gunmen set fire to Indian community," Survival International, June
26, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10832, reported, "Gunmen have attacked
and set ablaze a Guarani Indian community in south west Brazil.
216
Initial reports indicated that a one year old baby had burned to death when the gunmen
torched the Indians’ houses on June 24, but this has not subsequently been confirmed.
The Guarani fled the area, and two girls and one boy are reported to be missing.
The Indians of Kurusu Mba community peacefully re-occupied part of their
ancestral land on June 22, having waited many years for it to be returned to them.
They were soon surrounded by gunmen who, according to one Guarani man, “fired shots
above our heads.” The ranchers and farmers who now occupy almost all Guarani land frequently
employ armed men to terrorize the Indians.
A Guarani spokesman said they occupied their land because “We can no longer bear
living with pesticides, hunger and waiting for the government [to act].”
Many Guarani are being subjected to brutal and intolerable attacks as they wait in vain
for the authorities to recognize their land rights.
Kurusu Mba has suffered many violent attacks in the past. Kurete Lopes, a 70 year
old religious leader, was murdered by gunmen in 2007, as was another leader, Ortiz Lopes.
Another man, Osvaldo Lopes, was murdered in 2009.
The community is hemmed in by soya plantations. Intensive pesticide spraying
pollutes the streams the Indians use for drinking water."
"State of emergency’ for Paraguay’s tribal peoples," Survival International, October
13, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10937, reported, "Indigenous peoples in
Paraguay are in a state of emergency according to the United Nations’ Special Rapporteur
for indigenous peoples.
A new U.N. report found “persistent racism,” “discrimination” and a total failure
by the Paraguayan state to uphold indigenous peoples’ land rights.
The report highlights “massive deforestation” of land belonging to uncontacted
Ayoreo Indians and warns that the government’s failure to return the land to its rightful
owners places the Ayoreo’s lives in great danger.
Rampant destruction by cattle firms Yaguareté Porã SA and Spanish-owned
“Carlos Casado SA”: has already destroyed much of the Ayoreo’s forest, which has the
highest deforestation rate in the world.
Uncontacted tribes are the most vulnerable peoples on the planet. For the last remaining
uncontacted Ayoreo, the forest is their only hope for survival.
The U.N. has called on the companies to halt all work on the Ayoreo’s land until the
tribe’s 20-year land claim has been resolved.
The Paraguayan State has expressed its 'firm duty to find a quick and sustainable solution'
to the indigenous land crisis. However, a preliminary forecast for Paraguay’s Indian Affairs
Department shows budget cuts of up to 40%.
Survival International, the global movement for tribal peoples’ rights, said today, 'The
uncontacted Ayoreo are staring extinction in the face. This won’t change until Paraguay upholds
its own laws and returns the land to its rightful indigenous owners. Of course, it’s not just the
Ayoreo’s survival at stake – destroying the Chaco forest affects the whole of humanity. With
human diversity comes biological diversity, and Paraguay is annihilating both.'"
To read the United Nations’ report visit: http://www.uncontactedtribes.org.
Palm oil companies have been taken advantage of West Africa's Ebola crisis to take
over land in those countries, forcing local, including Indigenous, farmers off their land,
217
taking it out of food production, as well as cutting down forests, for palm oil production.
This included accusations of doing this in Liberia by Golden Veroleum Liberia (Clair Mac
Dougal, "Palm Oil Company Is Accused of Exploiting Liberia’s Ebola Crisis," The New York
Times, August 1, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/02/world/africa/palm-oil-company-isaccused-of-exploiting-liberias-ebola-crisis.html?ref=todayspaper).
"Poaching-terrorism link that contributed to tribes’ persecution ‘largely wrong’
23 September 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10919, reported, "A new report
has debunked the argument that the illegal wildlife trade in East Africa significantly funds
terrorism – an exaggeration used to justify the militarization of anti-poaching squads and
the persecution of tribal subsistence hunters.
The report titled 'An Illusion of Complicity: Terrorism and the Illegal Ivory Trade
in East Africa' was launched by former U.K. Foreign Secretary William Hague on Tuesday
and concluded that, in the case of terrorist group Al Shabaab, evidence for its participation
is 'extremely limited and controversial', adding that any involvement is 'dwarfed by
organized criminal networks and corrupt officials across East Africa …'
The findings expose the flaws in a narrative that has held sway in conservation and
political circles over several years and has led to the persecution of tribal hunters across
Africa.
In U.S. journal Truthout, Stephen Corry, Director of Survival International, the global
movement for tribal peoples’ rights, questioned the argument that ivory significantly funds Al
Shabaab – which was based on a single article published by the Elephant Action League. The
article was co-authored by Nir Kalron, chief executive of the Tel Aviv-based Maisha Consulting,
which provides paramilitaries and weapons training to conservation initiatives.
Tribal peoples like the Bushmen in Botswana, Bayaka in the Republic of Congo, and
Baka Pygmies and their neighbors in Cameroon are criminalized as poachers for hunting to feed
their families, while trophy hunters and corrupt officials involved in poaching – including some
charged with protecting the environment – are not targeted.
In 2015, Botswana’s President Ian Khama said, “Wildlife trafficking is no longer simply
about trade in wildlife and their parts and derivatives. Proceeds of trafficking are used to fund
other crimes such as terrorism, arms and drugs trafficking.” Botswana has issued a ban on
hunting in Botswana, which particularly targets subsistence hunters like the Bushmen.
A Bayaka woman in Congo said, 'The ecoguards [anti-poaching squads] make us sit here
starving. They have ruined our world. If we try to hunt in the forest they beat us so badly. They
even kill us if they see us in the forest.'
Stephen Corry said, 'Conservation has to clean up its act and stop peddling inventions.
There is undoubtedly an organized poaching trade in some countries, but it must stop being used
as an excuse for abusing tribal peoples whose lands are still being stolen by the conservation
industry. Conservationists hunt for sport, tribal people aren’t allowed to hunt for food. Its time
this ended. Conservationists would achieve more if they focused on stopping officials – often
their own partners – profiting from the illegal wildlife trade, but it’s easier of course to point the
finger elsewhere'."
“Last
Last Days of Ivory: Kathryn Bigelow spurns call to withdraw film,” Survival
International, November 4, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10982,
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10982, reported,
“The Hollywood teambehind the controversial film“Last Days of Ivory” have ignored calls
to withdraw it, despite overwhelming evidence that it’s misleading the public.
public. The film
218
advocates a more militaristic approach to conservation that has already proved disastrous
for tribes across Africa and elsewhere.
elsewhere.
The film, directed by Kathryn Bigelow, claims that the Somali Islamist group AlAl-Shabaab
is funded by ivory poaching,
poaching, but two recent investigations, by the respected think tank the Royal
United Services Institute,
Institute, and the UN and Interpol
Interpol,, have found that this is “largely wrong” and
“highly unreliable”.
The film is being used to bolster the move towarda
towarda more violent conservation that
criminalizes tribal peoples for subsistence
stence
hunting.
subsi
Across Africa, tribal peoples are being evicted from their land and suffer violence at the
hands of heavily armed antianti-poaching squads. They’re accused of “poaching” because they hunt
their food. And they face arrest and beatings, torture and
and death, while feefee-paying big game
hunters are encouraged. Their lives and lands are being destroyed by the conservation industry,
tourism and big business.
Tribal peoples are the best conservationist
conservationistss. They know their environment better than
any outside observer, and can act as the eyes and ears of global efforts to reduce illegal hunting
and the destruction of the natural environment in which they live.
The false association between poachin g and terrorism that Last Days of Ivory propagates has
contributed to an ever more militaristic approach to tackling wildlife crime – which in turn leads
to the brutal persecution of many tribal subsistence hunters.
Survival International,
International, the global movement for tribal peoples’ rights, has asked for the film to
be withdrawn. Survival
Survival Director Stephen Corry said:’The
said:’The militarization of conservation is
gaining momentum, and it is increasingly fuelling the brutal
brutal persecution of hunterhunter-gathering
tribes. Tribespeople who hunt to feed their families face arrest and beatings, torture and death at
the hands of heavily armed park guards.
‘It seems that the link Bigelow’s film claims between the Westgate terrorist attack
attack and
ivory poaching doesn’t exist in real life. For certain conservationists to manipulate public
opinion like this in favor of policies which exacerbate the destruction of tribal peoples, the best
guardians of the natural world, is simply unacceptable.’
unacceptable.’
The film is due to be screened at a conference for lawmakers in New York City this
Wednesday (November 4th).”
"Maasai Communities Face Human Rights Violations in Laikipia County, Kenya.'
Cultural Survival, August 24, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/maasai-communitiesface-human-rights-violations-laikipia-county-kenya, reported, "An ongoing dispute over 2,300
acres of land in Segera, Laikipia County, Kenya has the Maasai people facing violent abuse
and other human rights violations. The Maasai community were told that the land had
been purchased by North Tetu Cooperative Society and that they had to evacuate. When
the Maasai protested, the police and employees of the land reacted violently. One man, Joel
Partalala Ole Ntayia, was beaten and drowned by police and employees while his ten year old
son watched nearby. Another man, Karisa Lesakut, was beaten and arrested by police while at
home and had to pay both his bail and medical expenses.
In addition, there have been reports of police abusing women and children and looting
the Maasai’s property. In a personal account, one Maasai describes the situation: 'We are called
squatters in our own land. We are beaten up and robbed and there is nothing that we can do about
it… I have never seen a government behaving this way. It made promises to solve the matter but
instead sent us the police.' Another woman, Ntisi Kaparo, says that, 'every woman worries every
219
day [about] the arrests and beatings. We worry that our children, young men and husbands will
not come home by the end of the day. We are hungry because men no longer come home in fear
of being arrested.' It is clear that the Maasai live in fear of assault from police and that
action must be taken to protect the community.
A report by Eng’ape E Maa Association provided several recommendations, which
include :
Bringing Joel Partalala Ole Ntaiyia’s murderer to justice.
Securing Maasai freedom to gather and discuss their issues freely.
Investigating the human rights abuses and the damages to property committed by the
police and employees.
Stopping the harassment of the Maasai people.
Providing clear information on the ownership of the land and how it has changed hands
over time.
Identifying other possible problematic areas where communities do not have proper land
titles to the land they live on to avoid future conflicts. To read the report visit:
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/sites/default/files/media/laikipia_report_final-1.pdf.
The Supreme Court of Israel, on June 8, 2015, denied the petition of a Bedouin
family in the Negev for recognition of ownership of a large plot of land, including the
unrecognized village of al Arakib, which would allow the government to expel the residents
of the village who have long been resisting their removal. The government claims that the
relocation would promote the development of the people concerned, but the Arakib
residents, seeking development, reject the government approach, including the removal.
The Israeli removal effort has long been a contentious international issue (“Israel: Supreme
Court Denies Land Rights to Bedouin People,” Cultural Survival Quarterly, September 2015).
Repression of the Uigar minority in Chiin's Xinjiang province continues to spur
violence. Andrew Jacobs, "In a Region Disturbed by Ethnic Tensions, China Keeps Tight Lid on
a
Massacre,"
The
New
York
Times,
October
18,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/19/world/asia/in-a-region-disturbed-by-ethnic-tensions-chinakeeps-tight-lid-on-a-massacre.html?ref=todayspaper, reported, "Armed with only knives, the
assailants struck at the coal mine in the dead of night, first killing the security guards and then
setting upon the miners as they slept in their dormitory beds. Before the Sept. 18 rampage was
over, more than 50 people were dead, at least five of them police officers, and dozens more
had been wounded, according to victims’ relatives and residents.
Most of the victims were Han Chinese who had been lured to this desolate corner of
the far west Xinjiang region by the prospect of steady work and decent pay.
The wanted posters displayed later in Baicheng suggest the attackers were ethnic
Uighurs, all of whom apparently escaped into the craggy foothills of the Tianshan
Mountains, not far from China’s border with Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan.
Even as Baicheng County remains in a state of siege, with an enormous manhunt
underway, the Chinese news media has yet to report on the massacre, and local officials,
when asked about it, have denied that it even took place.
As Myanmar continues to act against the Rohingya ethnioc group, claiming they are
not citizens, one long term Rohingya law maker was barres from standing for reelection, in
August, on ghe claim the Rohingya are not citizens, while hundreds of Rohingya have been
220
struck from the election roles (Thomas Fuller, "Myanmar Striking Rohingya From Voter Rolls,
Activists
Say,"
The
New
York
Times,
August
23,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/24/world/asia/myanmar-lawmaker-u-shwe-maung-barredfrom-re-election-on-citizenship-grounds.html?ref=todayspaper).
In the continuing clash between the Chinese government and Uigars in Xinjiang, the
government claimed it had killed 17 people, including women and children, in a November
raid aimed at apprehending attackers at the mine in September (Javier C. Hernandez, “Police
in China Kill 17 Linked to Mine Attack, Report Says,” The New York Times, November 18,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/19/world/asia/police-in-china-kill-17-linked-to-mineattack-report-says.html?ref=todayspaper).
"Undercover TV report exposes mass evictions from India’s tiger reserves," Survival
International July 22, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10852, reported, "A
special undercover investigation by French TV channel Canal Plus has exposed the illegal
eviction of thousands of tribal people from Kanha Tiger Reserve in the name of
conservation, while more than a hundred thousand tourists are welcomed in every year.
A TV reporter visited families of the Baiga tribe who were evicted from Kanha – home of
the “Jungle Book” – in 2014, and found that their lives were devastated after being forced from
their homes against their will. The tribespeople have been struggling to survive after being
scattered in surrounding villages.
Sukhdev, a Baiga man, was killed after his village was evicted from Kanha in 2014. His
body was found after he attempted to buy land for his family.
Interviewed by Survival International, the global movement for tribal peoples’ rights, in
2012, Sukhdev had said: “We won’t find another place like this. How will we set up home there?
How will we raise our children? We need our fields and homes … Won’t we die?”
Sukhdev’s brother told Canal Plus: “We were one of the last families to resist. But the
people from the reserve forced us to leave. They told us they’d take care of us for three years, but
they didn’t do a thing. Even when my brother was killed, no one came to help us.” Studies
have found that tigers thrive in areas inhabited by people. And while the Baiga have lived
alongside the tiger for generations and regard the animal as their “little brother,” Kanha’s mass
tourism has been called “incompatible and detrimental” to conserving the species by a top
conservation official.
The TV crew gained access to a confidential official report which lists the systematic
resettlement of 22,000 people from tiger reserves across the region. Under Indian law, tribal
peoples’ consent is required before such evictions, but they are often harassed into leaving.
The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) has been supplying infrastructural
support, training and equipment for frontline staff in Kanha. In an interview with Canal
Plus, a WWF India director refused to condemn the evictions.
Survival’s Director Stephen Corry said, 'So-called ‘conservation’ continues to
destroy tribal peoples as it has for generations. They’ve never threatened the tigers, who
would do better if the tribes remained and the tourists stopped. Tribal peoples are
generally better conservationists anyway than industrial-sized NGOs like WWF which
stand by in silence while the parks forcibly evict people like Sukhdev and his family. It’s
time these evictions are stopped and this scandal exposed.'”
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“Dongria
Dongria Kondh’s sacred hills under threat again,” Survival International
International,, November
19, 2015, http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10999,
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10999, reported, “The
“The Dongria Kondh
tribe face resuming their fight against plans to mine their sacred
sacred hills, as the Odisha state
authorities are once again actively promoting a major bauxite mining operation in the
Niyamgiri Hills.
Hills. This is in spite of the project – which would lead to huge environmental
damage and destroy tribal communities in the region – having been shelved two years ago
following a Supreme Court decision.
decision.
Extensive consultations were held with the Dongria who unanimously voted against the
mine in a referendum ordered
ordered by the Supreme Court. The referendum, which led to the
cancellation of the project, followed a local and international outcry.
outcry. But Odisha state is now
moving to revive its plans to mine the hills
hills in order to supply BritishBritish-owned Vedanta
Resources’s nearby aluminum refinery. Such operations have proven disastrous to tribal
communities elsewhere in India.
The Dongria Kondh, a tribal people from eastern India, not only depend on the Niyamgiri
Hills
Hills for their livelihood, but also consider them to be their sacred ancestral homeland,
fundamental to their identity and way of life.
Once again the Dongria are speaking out against this threat. Mukuna Sikaka said: “We
are not going to allow mining over Niyamgiri
Niyamgiri at any cost – not for all the developmental efforts
of the government.”
Survival International led the international campaign against the mining operation and is
now calling for the Indian
Indian authorities to keep their promise and respect the wishes of the Dongria
Kondh, the people who will be most directly affected by mining on their territory.
Survival’s Director Stephen Corry said today: “The Supreme Court ruling upheld the
Dongria Kondh’s right to decide whether mining should go ahead
ahead on their land. The Dongria
gave a resounding no. Why then is Odisha state proposing to reopen discussions on the future of
the mine? It’s time India obeyed the Supreme Court and respected the Dongria’s decision.’”
decision.’”
"Attacks on Jummas continue despite government promises 24 October 24. 2015,
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/10957, reported, "Killings, sexual violence, torture,
arbitrary arrests and land grabbing continue in the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh,
eighteen years after the historic peace agreement between the government and the Jumma
tribal people.
In 1997 the Bangladesh government promised to end the militarization of the region;
withdraw temporary military camps and return the land that had been stolen by the army and
settlers to the Jumma people, but these promises have not been kept.
The military camps remain in what is still a highly militarized region, but the army is not
protecting the indigenous Jumma population. Instead soldiers stand by while Jummas are raped,
murdered and have their houses burned down by settlers. Land grabbing by both settlers and the
army continues.
Speaking of the growing violence against women and young girls in the area, Jumma
activist Subir Chakma said, ‘Our girls and women are not safe. They cannot go to schools, they
cannot go to the rivers to fetch water or to take baths, they cannot go to the market places, they
cannot go to the nearby jungles and now they cannot even stay home, they are raped
everywhere.’
The hill tracts are home to 11 tribes, collectively known as Jummas after their
sophisticated and sustainable farming method, known locally as ‘Jhum’. Hundreds of thousands
222
of settlers have been moved into the hills over the last sixty years, displacing the Jumma people
and subjecting them to brutal repression.
Jumma people, supported by organisations including Survival International, have
launched a petition to draw attention to the worsening situation in the Chittagong Hill Tracts.The
petition calls on the Bangladesh government to end the human rights violations against the
Jumma people and to implement the 1997 peace accord fully."
"UK Report Urges GCM Resources to Respect Human Rights Standards in Bangladesh,"
September 30, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/uk-report-urges-gcm-resourcesrespect-human-rights-standards-bangladesh, reported, "The UK government has published a
statement in September highlighting continued opposition and turmoil in Bangladesh over
British company GCM Resources’ plans to build a massive open pit coal mine in Phulbari,
located in the north west of Bangladesh. The mine would displace up to 50,000 Indigenous
Peoples from 23 farming communities, and up to 220,000 people from the wider areas. The
project would also ship coal on tankers through the Sundarbans – one of the world’s
largest remaining mangrove forests and a UNESCO World Heritage site.
A statement by the UK National Contact Point on the Phulbari Coal Mine in Bangladesh
expresses “regret” that the company has failed to update its human rights impact assessment for
the project, as recommended in the findings of an investigation which took place in 2014.
The UK government’s investigation followed a complaint submitted to the Organization for
Economic
Cooperation
and
Development
(OECD)
by
NGOs Global
Justice
Now and International Accountability Project in 2012. The investigation acknowledged that
'GCM has aroused considerable opposition in Bangladesh, leading to violent protests, and
an even more violent response by the authorities there.'
The new report urges GCM to comply with international standards for managing social
and environmental impacts, and to do so before any plans for the project move forward. “GCM
will need to complete its updating of its plans, including making and publishing the [Human
Rights Impact Assessment] it has committed to, before it begins work to acquire land for and
develop the mine. International standards (including the OECD Guidelines) oblige companies to
consider and manage environmental and social aspects of a project throughout its life cycle. The
UK NCP therefore said – and confirms again here - that GCM has an obligation to continue
addressing these aspects and engaging with community stakeholders,” confirms the report.
The Phulbari coal mine plans have provoked repeated protests by local people and communities
for nearly a decade. Three people were killed and more than 200 were injured when paramilitary
officers opened fire on a demonstration against the project in 2006. Even so, powerful protests
byresilient communities in 2013 and 2014 forced the company’s notorious CEO, Gary Lye,
toabandon visits to the area. Campaigners in Bangladesh have been clear that any moves by the
company to enter Phulbari would provoke further protests. They are demanding the company’s
complete withdrawal from the project.
Christine Haigh, campaigner at the Global Justice Now, responded to the report: 'Today’s
statement is further evidence that the Phulbari coal mine cannot go ahead. If it does, it will be a
human rights disaster. Local people have repeatedly made it clear that they don’t want it and any
moves by GCM to move this project forward will be met by further resistance.'
Rumana Hashem, the founder of Phulbari Solidarity Group and an eye witness to the 2006
shooting in Phulbari, stated: It is good that the UK government has eventually recognised that
GCM has failed to develop appropriate communication with the communities in Phulbari. It was
223
a mistake for the NCP to take this long to understand the power of people. They have previously
undermined the powerful opposition that exists and that has made possible a halt to the
detrimental project of the British company. She added: 'I have seen how resilient the movement
is in Phulbari. Bangladesh government has expressed solidarity with the community’s view and
said ‘no to GCM’. GCM must forget this project. It is reassuring that UK government has
recognised that local people will not give in. They will fight for their land until last breath.'
The UK government states that GCM must take into account the UN Declaration on
the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which stipulates that no developments can take place on
Indigenous Peoples’ land without their ‘free, prior and informed consent’. Seven UN
human rights expertshave called for an immediate halt to the project, citing threats to
fundamental human rights, including the rights to water, food, adequate housing, freedom
from extreme poverty and the rights of Indigenous Peoples."
"Alarming Trend of Violence Against Indigenous Women and Girls Continues in
Bangladesh, An Analysis by Kapaeeng Foundation of the Human Rights Situation of Indigenous
Women
and
Girls
(January-July
2015)
Cultural Survival, August 7, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/alarming-trendviolence-against-indigenous-women-and-girls-continues-bangladesh,
reported,"
The human rights violation on indigenous women and girls in Bangladesh has turned into a
matter of grave concern over the years. As a part of its sustained work, Kapaeeng
Foundation monitored and documented the cases of human rights violations on indigenous
womenand girls for the period January-July 2015. The findings of Kapaeeng Foundation
project an alarming trend of violence against indigenous women and girls (VAIWG) in the
country. During this period, Kapaeeng Foundation documented 42 cases of VAIWG. In
these 42 cases, 56 indigenous women and girls were fallen victims of violence, 29 of them
are from the plains and 27 women from the Chittagong Hill Tracts (CHT).
A close look into the cases during first half of the year reveals that 8 women and girls fell
victims of gang rape, 11 fell victims of rape, 10 fell victims of attempted rape, 16 fell victims of
physical assault, 6 fell victims of sexual harassment, 2 fell victims of abduction and 3 fell victims
of killing. What is most disturbing is the victims who fallen prey to violence are mostly minor
and adolescent girls, belonging to the age group of 2 to 19. It appears that this age group was the
easiest target of the perpetrators during the period of observation. And most of the perpetrators of
these incidents allegedly belong to Bengali settler community and were influential members of
mainstream population.
The observation of Kapaeeng Foundation over the first seven months of the year 2015
demonstrates that the causes of VAIWG remained similar to previous years. A good number
of cases of VAIWG occurred during January-July 2015 were centered around the lands of
indigenous peoples. For example, on 19 June 2015, at least 10 indigenous women were
physically assaulted and one woman was raped in Mirsarai, Chittagong in connection to an
attempted forced expropriation of their ancestral land. It is observed that in a good number of
cases, the perpetrators including members of Bengali settlers in the CHTand influential locals in
the plains used rape or other forms of sexual violence as weapons to uproot indigenous peoples
from their lands. And in other cases, the perpetrators used violence as a way to express their
hegemonic masculine attitude towards indigenous women using them as sexual objects.
Although the first seven months of the year demonstrates an alarming trend of VAIWG,
the legal justice system has apparently failed to ensure protection and justice of the victims.
224
It is observed that although cases were filed after most of the incidents of VAIWG were
occurred, the alleged perpetrators were not arrested and brought to justice except for very few
cases. Furthermore, the unfriendly legal justice system in the country often coupled with the
financial incapacity of the victims, lack of follow-up of the cases, lack of awareness of the victim
and their families, existing social taboos, patriarchal mindset in different corners of the society
and lack of legal aid services in the country have contributed to the impunity of the perpetrators.
It is also alleged that the perpetrators often use money and forceto manipulate the justice system
and go scot-free. Taking the advantage of the financial incapacity of the victims and their
vulnerable social positions, most of the perpetrators tend to settle the matters locally through
threat, intimidation and offering a certain amount of money as compensation."
Wai Moe and Thomas Fuller, "Myanmar and 8 Ethnic Groups Sign Cease-Fire, but
Doubts
Remain,"
The
New
York
Times,
October
15,
2015,
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/16/world/asia/myanmar-ceasefire-armed-ethnicgroups.html?ref=todayspaper,"Myanmar’s government signed a cease-fire agreement with
eight armed ethnic groups on Thursday, in what the country’s leaders described as a major
step toward peace in the vast borderland regions that have been restive since the earliest
days of the country’s independence.
But the deal, signed in the capital, Naypyidaw, leaves many questions unanswered,
including how the balance of power between the central government and the ethnic regions
will be determined. It does not require the ethnic groups to disarm.
Perhaps most significant, the deal principally covers ethnic groups along the border with
Thailand, but not the long stretch of territory bordering China. The ethnic groups with the
two largest militias and tens of thousands of soldiers — the Kachin and the Wa — did not
sign the agreement. Fighting in the Kachin region occurred as recently as Wednesday, an
officer with the Kachin armed forces said."
Asia Indigenous Peoples Pact (AIPP), "AIPP, Cultural Survival and NIPT Make Joint
Submission on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples for Thailand’s UPR," Cultural Survival,
September 24, 2015, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/un-special-rapporteur-releases-reporthuman-rights-council-rights-indigenous-women-and-girls, reprted, "23 September 2015 - AIPP,
Cultural Survival and the Network of Indigenous Peoples in Thailand (NIPT) on Monday
(21 September) made a joint submission on the human rights situation of indigenous
peoples for the 2nd Universal Periodic Review of Thailand scheduled for April 2016.
The joint submission was prepared in light of the UN Declaration on the Rights of
Indigenous Peoples, which Thailand voted in favor of in 2007. The submission reports that
although the indigenous peoples in Thailand comprise approximately 1% of the Thai
population, these communities are facing serious issues that are threatening and essentially,
prohibiting the rights guaranteed by the Declaration.
Indigenous peoples regularly face discrimination and have limited access to basic
services that come with the Thai citizenship that have been denied to them by the Thai
Constitution. There have been minimal efforts to curb human trafficking that affect the
indigenous women and girls in large numbers. The submission sets out numerous cases of
land confiscations and forced evictions of indigenous communities and criminalization of
their traditional livelihoods as well disappearances and arrests of indigenous activists and
persons. Several instances where indigenous rights to free, prior and informed consent
225
have been violated, for example, with the current proposal of a World Heritage site in the
Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex, where many Indigenous Karen communities have lived
are also reported.
There is ample evidence that the Thai government needs to institute new laws and
policies that will allow Indigenous Peoples to obtain rightful citizenship, and access quality
services. It is imperative that the Government constitutionally recognizes the Indigenous
Peoples and their rights as specified in the Declaration through their full and effective
participation in the ongoing constitutional reforms.
This submission has been transmitted to the UN Human Rights Council through
OHCHR."
“Success
Success for Sarawak tribes as dam shelved,” Survival International,
International, December 5, 2015,
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/11030, reported, “The
“The Baram dam, which would
would have flooded 20,000 tribal people from their homes in the Malaysian state
state of
Sarawak, has been shelved following years of protest.
protest.
Sarawak’s Chief Minister Tan Sri Adenan Satem announced recently that the decision to
put the dam on hold was out of respect for the views of the affected communities adding: ‘If you
don’t want the dam, fine. We will respect your decision.’
The tribespeople whose homes and forests were to be flooded by the dam had been
protesting and blockading the dam site for two years.
years. They welcomed the news
news but insisted that
the dam should not just be put “on hold until further notice,” but that assurances must be given
that the dam will never be built.
They are also calling for the return of the land that was acquired for the dam site and for
logging permits
permits in the area to be revoked.
Many observers are skeptical at the governments sudden apparent wish to respect the wishes of
tribal communities. Their rights to their land and to say no to logging, palm oil plantations and
megamega-dams have not been so readily recognized in the past. There may be more economic
reasons why the dam is no longer considered viable – Sarawak’s existing dams can already
provide more power than the state needs.
needs.
The tribal people affected by the dam, from the Kenyah, Kayan and Penan communities,
have fiercely opposed it from the start. They are acutely aware of the difficulties facing those
who were evicted to make way for other dams. They are struggling to hunt and gather, or to grow
enough food on the small plots of land provided for them.
During the blockade against the Baram dam Lenjau Tusau, the elderly headman from
Long Makaba village, reflected
reflected the courage and dignity of the protesters saying: “We will not
leave. Our life is here, our culture. The land, rivers, and rocks belong to us.”
The Baram dam was part of a series of twelve hydroelectric dams to be built by the Sarawak
government. In 2008, a document was leaked on the internet revealing plans by the state
government to build these dams, despite having no market for the electricity they will produce.
Many local, national and international organisations, including Survival, have been
campaigning against the plan to build dams in Sarawak for years. Hundreds of Survival
supporters have written to the Sarawak state government protesting against the dams, logging
and plantations. Survival is calling on the Sarawak government not to allow any developments
on the lands of its tribal peoples without their consent”
“Prominent
Prominent Papuan prisoner released,”
released,” Survival International, November 24, 2015,
2015,
226
http://www.survivalinternational.org/news/11019, reported, “Prominent Papuan political
prisoner Filep Karma has been released after spending more than a decade in jail
jail for
raising the banned West Papuan flag.
Karma, 56, was arrested in 2004 after leading a peaceful demonstration in West
Papua, calling for independence from Indonesia and raising the Morning Star flag.
He was sentenced to 15 years in prison for treason, but was named by Amnesty
International as a prisoner of conscience. His detention was condemned as “arbitrary” by the
United Nations.
Filep Karma could have been released in August this year when
when he was offered a pardon in
exchange for admission of guilt. However, he refused, saying, “If president Widodo wants to free
me unconditionally, then yes thank you.” The government eventually reduced his sentence for
‘good behaviour’ so that he could be released.
However, raising the Morning Star flag remains an imprisonable offence in West Papua
and responding to the news of Karma’s release, Indonesia’s chief of National Police, Gen.
Badrodin Hait said, “If you say he’s a political prisoner, I say [Filep was] a criminal.”
The move came as Indonesian President Joko Widodo once again pledged to
improve livelihoods in the region. But there is little evidence that the security force’s brutal
repression of Papuans is over. At the end of September there were at least 45 Papuan
political prisoners behind bars and political assassinations, fatal shootings, arbitrary
arrests and torture, at the hands of the
the security services,remain rfie.”
rfie.”
Cass Madden, "Forced Closures of Aboriginal Communities in Australia Continue,"
Cultural Survival, July 1, 201,5, http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/forced-closuresaboriginal-communities-australia-continue, reported, "In December of 2014, new funding laws
in Australia began to threaten the existence of 150 remote aboriginal Australian
communities throughout the country, with the largest concentration in Western Australia.
The federal government claimed that it could no longer support the communities and as of
June 30, 2015, no federal funding would be available for the maintenance of rural outback
communities. State governments were offered one time funding deals from the federal
government, giving them money to fund communities for one to two years. $90 million was
offered to Western Australia, enough money to keep communities open through 2017; South
Australia rejected a payment of $10 million on the basis that it was insufficient for the
obligation being created. In March, Prime Minister Tony Abbott inflamed tensions
surrounding the closures when he claimed that aboriginal peoples living in rural
communities were making a 'lifestyle choice' and that taxpayers had no obligation to
support their 'choice.' The uncertainty of funding and the harsh rhetoric of government officials
has left everyone, from state officials to aboriginal communities to taxpayers, uncertain about the
future of the 150 communities. In an interview with Al Jazeera, Kristie Parker, the co-chair of
the National Congress of Australia's First Peoples, explained, "This is about our people's right to
stay on our land... People are very frightened that the days are numbered and their communities
will be closed."
"Community closures have been justified by the Australian government in the past as a
way to curb the severe social problems which many Aboriginal populations face: suicide,
domestic violence, child abuse, sexual abuse, and alcoholism affect Aboriginal communities at a
greater rate than the rest of Australia. However, a 2011 community closure, which failed to
address any of these social issues, presents a harrowing example of the perils of the
227
legislation which will almost certainly force the closure of 150 communities. Oombulgurri
was a very remote community of about 200 people living in the far north of Western Australia
which experienced five tragic deaths in 2005 and 2006, four of which were suicides. The
government, claiming that they were unable to continue to support the community, especially in
the midst of concerns about its social climate, began a gradual process of forced closure. First,
welfare payments were stopped. Then the local store was closed. Next, schools and healthcare
services were shut down, forcing families with children and older people requiring medical care
to relocate to cities. The municipal services were shut down and shortly after the water and
power were shut off. 10 residents remained until the 2014 bulldozing of the community and
though the government claims that all 200 residents left voluntarily, abandoned cars which had
been left to rust, the paintings of school children still hanging on the walls, and belongings never
retrieved from homes told a story of forced relocation in which residents had little choice but to
move to the fringes of cities to seek the services which had been taken away from their
community. According to David Ryder, one of the 10 residents who remained in the community
until the end, the relocation made the social problems facing the community more severe, with
more people than ever turning to alcohol. Indeed, the relocation left a majority of residents with
no place to go, homeless on the fringes of the city, and the government was ultimately forced to
spend $1.6 million at the time to provide temporary housing. The problem with this style of
relocation, according to Tammy Solonec, the indigenous peoples rights manager of Amnesty
International Australia, is that "this scenario doesn't address the problems in our communities
everyone know are there, it doesn't deal with the people." Closing down communities merely on
the basis that they are dysfunctional does not solve problems, it merely pushes them onto
different communities. Solonec has called for creative solutions which address the social issues
facing these communities without forcing people to leave their lands.
A series of global protests have been held since the announcement of the new
funding structure in December, with the largest taking place over the weekend, with the most
protestors involved on Friday, June 26. Up to 10,00 people marched in Melbourne and protests
were held around Australia and around the world in cities as far reaching as London, Berlin, and
San Francisco. According to the group Stop the Forced Closure of Aboriginal Communities in
Australia, which has been responsible for much of the protest organizing, more than 12 million
people worldwide have been involved in actions calling for a halt to community closures. The
protests over the weekend disrupted traffic patterns, creating delays for commuters as the
marches closed bridges and streets in the cities. Though the protests have resulted in officials
toning down their rhetoric surrounding the issue, the plan for closures remains the same,
according to a statement from the Stop the Forced Closure of Aboriginal Communities in
Australia."
The Western Australian Lower House, in August 2015, passed a bill in the state
constitution, introduced by Aboriginal legislators, Recognition of Aboriginal People, which
would recognize Aboriginal People as the first people and traditional caretaker of the land
(“Australia: Legislative Assembly Passes Historic Indigenous Peoples Bill,” Cultural Survival
Quarterly, December 2015).
International Cultural Developments
"First Ever World Indigenous Games To Be Held in Brazil," October 22, 2015,
http://www.culturalsurvival.org/news/first-ever-world-indigenous-games-be-held-brazil, reported,
228
"For the first time in history, from October 23 to November 1, 2015 Indigenous people from
all over the world will gather in the city of Palmas in the Amazon jungle state of Tocantins,
Brazil, to compete in the first World Indigenous Games. Over 2,000 athletes representing
nearly 50 different ethnic groups (including 22 groups from Brazil alone) will participate in a
variety of events, from a few Western-style games to many Indigenous traditional games.
Some events will be competitive, such as canoeing, archery, the spear toss, and the 100m
rustic race, while others will be demonstrative events, such as the football-like game of
xikunahity, in which players control the ball only with their heads. So far, 40 men’s teams
and 40 women’s teams have been confirmed.”
ñññññ++++++=======<<<<<<<<[[[[[[[[[*]]]]]]]]]>>>>>>>>=======++++++ñññññ
DIALOGUING
ISLAMIC STATEMENT ON GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE
Statement of the International Islamic Climate Change Symposium, a meeting of 60 Islamic
climate
exerts
from
numerous
nations,
late
August,
2015,
http://islamicclimatedeclaration.org/islamic-declaration-on-global-climate-change/.
In the name of Allah, Most Merciful, Most Compassionate
PREAMBLE
God – Whom we know as Allah – has created the universe in all its diversity, richness and
vitality: the stars, the sun and moon, the earth and all its communities of living beings.
All these reflect and manifest the boundless glory and mercy of their Creator. All created
beings by nature serve and glorify their Maker, all bow to their Lord’s will. We human
beings are created to serve the Lord of all beings, to work the greatest good we can for all
the species, individuals, and generations of God’s creatures.
• Our planet has existed for billions of years and climate change in itself is not new. The earth’s
climate has gone through phases wet and dry, cold and warm, in response to many natural
factors. Most of these changes have been gradual, so that the forms and communities of
life have adjusted accordingly. There have been catastrophic climate changes that brought
about mass extinctions, but over time, life adjusted even to these impacts, flowering anew
in the emergence of balanced ecosystems such as those we treasure today. Climate
change in the past was also instrumental in laying down immense stores of fossil fuels
from which we derive benefits today. Ironically, our unwise and short-sighted use of
these resources is now resulting in the destruction of the very conditions that have made
our life on earth possible.
•
The pace of Global climate change today is of a different order of magnitude from the gradual
changes that previously occurred throughout the most recent era, the Cenozoic.
229
Moreover, it is human-induced: we have now become a force dominating nature. The
epoch in which we live has increasingly been described in geological terms as the
Anthropocene, or “Age of Humans”. Our species, though selected to be a caretaker or
steward (khalifah) on the earth, has been the cause of such corruption and devastation on
it that we are in danger ending life as we know it on our planet. This current rate of
climate change cannot be sustained, and the earth’s fine equilibrium (mīzān) may soon be
lost. As we humans are woven into the fabric of the natural world, its gifts are for us to
savour. But the same fossil fuels that helped us achieve most of the prosperity we see
today are the main cause of climate change. Excessive pollution from fossil fuels
threatens to destroy the gifts bestowed on us by God, whom we know as Allah – gifts
such as a functioning climate, healthy air to breathe, regular seasons, and living oceans.
But our attitude to these gifts has been short-sighted, and we have abused them. What
will future generations say of us, who leave them a degraded planet as our legacy? How
will we face our Lord and Creator?
We note that the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (UNEP, 2005) and backed by over 1300
scientists from 95 countries, found that “overall, people have made greater changes to
ecosystems in the last half of the 20th century than at any time in human history… these
changes have enhanced human well-being, but have been accompanied by ever
increasing degradation (of our environment).
“Human activity is putting such a strain on the natural functions of the earth that the ability of the
planet’s ecosystems to sustain future generations can no longer be taken for granted.”
Nearly ten years later, and in spite of the numerous conferences that have taken place to try to
agree on a successor to the Kyoto Protocol, the overall state of the Earth has steadily
deteriorated. A study by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)
comprising representatives from over 100 nations published in March 2014 gave five
reasons for concern. In summary, they are:
Ecosystems and human cultures are already at risk from climate change;
Risks resulting from climate change caused by extreme events such as heat waves, extreme
precipitation and coastal flooding are on the rise;
These risks are unevenly distributed, and are generally greater for the poor and disadvantaged
communities of every country, at all levels of development;
Foreseeable impacts will affect adversely Earth’s biodiversity, the goods and services provided
by our ecosystems, and our overall global economy;
The Earth’s core physical systems themselves are at risk of abrupt and irreversible changes.
We are driven to conclude from these warnings that there are serious flaws in the way we have
used natural resources – the sources of life on Earth. An urgent and radical reappraisal is called
for. Humankind cannot afford the slow progress we have seen in all the COP (Conference of
Parties – climate change negotiations) processes since the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
was published in 2005, or the present deadlock.
230
In the brief period since the Industrial Revolution, humans have consumed much of the nonrenewable resources which have taken the earth 250 million years to produce – all in the
name of economic development and human progress. We note with alarm the combined
impacts of rising per capita consumption combined with the rising human population. We
also note with alarm the multi-national scramble now taking place for more fossil fuel
deposits under the dissolving ice caps in the arctic regions. We are accelerating our own
destruction through these processes.
Leading climate scientists now believe that a rise of two degrees centigrade in global
temperature, which is considered to be the “tipping point”, is now very unlikely to be
avoided if we continue with business-as-usual; other leading climate scientists consider
1.5 degrees centigrade to be a more likely “tipping point”. This is the point considered to
be the threshold for catastrophic climate change, which will expose yet more millions of
people and countless other creatures to drought, hunger and flooding. The brunt of this
will continue to be borne by the poor, as the Earth experiences a drastic increase in levels
of carbon in the atmosphere brought on in the period since the onset of the industrial
revolution.
1.8 It is alarming that in spite of all the warnings and predictions, the successor to the Kyoto
Protocol which should have been in place by 2012, has been delayed. It is essential that all
countries, especially the more developed nations, increase their efforts and adopt the pro-active
approach needed to halt and hopefully eventually reverse the damage being wrought.
WE AFFIRM
We affirm that Allah is the Lord and Sustainer (Rabb) of all beings
ْ ‫ﻪ ْاﻟﺤ‬
ّ ‫ﻤﯿﻦَ َر‬
‫َﻤ ُﺪ‬
ِ ‫بِ ﻟِﻠﱠـ‬
ِ َ‫ْاﻟ َﻌﺎﻟ‬
Praise be to Allah, Lord and Sustainer of all beings
Qur’an 1: 1
He is the One Creator – He is al-Khāliq
ْ
ُ 8‫ا‬
ُ ِ‫ﺨﺎﻟ‬
ُ ‫َﺎر‬
ُ ‫ْاﻟ‬
َ ‫ئ ْاﻟ‬
ُ‫ﻖ ﱠ‬
‫ھ َﻮ‬
ِ ‫ﻤﺼ َِﻮّ ُر اﻟﺒ‬
He is Allah – the Creator, the Maker, the Giver of Form
Qur’an 59: 24
231
‫ﻲ ٍء ُﻛ ﱠ‬
ْ َ‫ﻞ أ‬
َ
َ ‫ﺣ‬
َ ‫ﺧﻠَ َﻘ ُﻪ‬
‫ﺴﻦَ اﻟﱠ ِﺬي‬
ْ ‫ﺷ‬
He Who has perfected every thing He has created
Qur’an 32: 7
Nothing that He creates is without value: each thing is created bi ’l-haqq, in truth and for right.
ْ
ْ ‫ﻋ ِﺒﯿﻦَ ﺑَ ْﯿﻨ َُﮫﻤَﺎ َوﻣَﺎ و‬
‫ﱠ‬
ُ ‫ﺧﻠَ ْﻘﻨ‬
َ ِ‫اﻟﺴﻤَﺎوَات‬
َ ‫َﻖ إِ ﱠﻻ‬
َ‫َاﻷَرْض‬
‫ﺧﻠَ ْﻘﻨَﺎ َوﻣَﺎ‬
ِ ‫َﺎھﻤَﺎ ﻣَﺎ َﻻ‬
ِ ّ ‫ﺑِﺎﻟﺤ‬
And We did not create the heavens and earth and that between them in play. We have not created
them but in truth
Qur’an 44: 38
We affirm that He encompasses all of His creation – He is al-Muhīt
َ َ ‫ و ََﻛ‬8‫ا‬
‫ﱠ‬
ّ ِ ‫ﻲ ٍء ﺑِ ُﻜ‬
ِ ‫اﻟﺴﻤَﺎوَاتِ ﻓِﻲ ﻣَﺎ و ِ ﱠ‬
ُ‫ﻞ ﱠ‬
َ ‫ﺤﯿﻄًﺎ‬
8َ
‫ْض ﻓِﻲ َوﻣَﺎ‬
ِ ‫ﱡﻣ‬
ْ ‫ﺷ‬
ِ ‫ﺎن اﻷر‬
All that is in the heavens and the earth belongs to Allah.
Allah encompasses all things
Qur’an 4: 125
We affirm that –
God created the Earth in perfect equilibrium (mīzān);
By His immense mercy we have been given fertile land, fresh air, clean water and all the good
things on Earth that makes our lives here viable and delightful;
The Earth functions in natural seasonal rhythms and cycles: a climate in which living beings –
including humans – thrive;
The present climate change catastrophe is a result of the human disruption of this balance –
‫ﻊ ر ََﻓ َﻌﮫَﺎ و ﱠ‬
َ ‫ﻤ ﯿﺰ‬
َ ‫ﺿ‬
َ ‫َان َو َو‬
‫َاﻟﺴﻤَﺎء‬
ِ ‫ْاﻟ‬
‫ﻄ َﻐ ْﻮا أَﻻ ﱠ‬
ْ َ‫ن ﻓِﻲ ﺗ‬
ِ ‫ﻤﯿﺰَا‬
ِ ‫ْاﻟ‬
232
ْ ِ‫ﺴ ُﺮوا وَﻻ ﺑ‬
َ ‫ﻂ ْاﻟ َﻮ ْز‬
ْ ‫َان ُﺗ‬
َ ‫ﻤ ﯿﺰ‬
ُ ‫ن وَأَﻗِﯿ‬
ْ ‫ﺎﻟ ِﻘ‬
‫ﻤﻮا‬
ِ ‫ﺴ‬
ِ ‫ﺨ‬
ِ ‫ْاﻟ‬
َ ‫ﻟِ ْﻸَﻧَﺎ ِم َو‬
َ‫ﺿ َﻌﮫَﺎ وَاﻷَرْض‬
He raised the heaven and established the balance
So that you would not transgress the balance.
Give just weight – do not skimp in the balance.
He laid out the earth for all living creatures.
Qur’an 55: 7-10
We affirm the natural state (fitrah) of God’s creation –
ْ ِ‫ ﻓ‬8‫ا‬
ْ ِ‫ﻚ َﻓﺄَﻗ‬
ْ ‫ﻳﻦ و‬
ِّ ‫ﺣﻨِﯿ ًﻔﺎ ﻟِﻠ‬
ِ ‫َﻋﻠَ ْﯿﮫَﺎ اﻟ ﱠﻨﺎسَ َﻓﻄَ َﺮ اﻟﱠﺘِﻲ ﱠ‬
َ ‫َﺟ َﮫ‬
َ ‫ﻄ َﺮ َة‬
‫ﻢ‬
ِ ‫ﺪ‬
‫ﻮن ﻻ اﻟ ﱠﻨﺎسِ أَ ْﻛ َﺜ َﺮ وَﻟَﻜِ ﱠ‬
َ ‫ﻤ‬
ُ ‫ﺪ‬
ُ ّ ِ‫ﻦ ﯿ‬
ُ َ‫ﻳ َْﻌﻠ‬
ِّ ‫ﻢ ْاﻟ َﻘ اﻟ‬
َ ِ‫ ﻟ‬8‫ا‬
ِ‫ﻚ ﱠ‬
َ ‫ﺨ ْﻠﻖِ ﺗَ ْﺒ ِﺪﻳ‬
َ ِ‫ﻳﻦ َذﻟ‬
‫ﻞ ﻻ‬
So set your face firmly towards the (natural) Way
As a pure, natural believer
Allah’s natural pattern on which He made mankind
There is no changing Allah’s creation.
That is the true (natural) Way
But most people do not know it.
Quran 30: 30
2.5 We recognize the corruption (fasād) that humans have caused on the Earth due to our
233
relentless pursuit of economic growth and consumption. Its consequences have been –
Global climate change, which is our present concern, in addition to:
Contamination and befoulment of the atmosphere, land, inland water systems, and seas;
Soil erosion, deforestation and desertification;
Damage to human health, including a host of modern-day diseases.
ْ ‫ﺴﺒ‬
َ ‫ﺟ ُﻌ‬
ْ ‫َﺖ ﺑِﻤَﺎ ْاﻟﺒ‬
ْ ‫ﻮن ﻟَ َﻌﻠﱠ ُﮫ‬
َ ‫َﺤ ِﺮ َو ْاﻟﺒ َِﺮّ ﻓِﻲ ْاﻟ َﻔ‬
َ ‫ﺎس أَ ْﻳ ِﺪي َﻛ‬
‫ﺴﺎ ُد ظَ َﮫ َﺮ‬
‫ﻤ ُﻠﻮا اﻟﱠ ِﺬي ﺑ َْﻌﺾَ ﻟِ ُﯿ ِﺬﻳ َﻘ ُﮫﻢ اﻟ ﱠﻨ‬
ِ ‫ﻢ َﻋ‬
ِ ‫ﻳَ ْﺮ‬
ِ
Corruption has appeared on land and sea
Because of what people’s own hands have wrought,
So that they may taste something of what they have done;
So that hopefully they will turn back.
Qur’an 30: 41
We recognize that we are but a miniscule part of the divine order, yet within that order, we are
exceptionally powerful beings, and have the responsibility to establish good and avert
evil in every way we can. We also recognize that –
We are but one of the multitude of living beings with whom we share the Earth;
We have no right to oppress the rest of creation or cause it harm;
Intelligence and conscience behoove us, as our faith commands, to treat all things with care
and awe (taqwa) of their Creator, compassion (rahmah) and utmost good (ihsan).
َ
ُ ‫أَ ْﻣ َﺜ‬
ٌ ‫ﺎﻟ ُﻜﻢ ُأ َﻣ‬
َ ‫ﺠﻨَﺎ‬
َ ِ‫ﻢ إِﻻ ﱠ ﺑ‬
‫ﺔ ِﻣﻦ َوﻣَﺎ‬
ِ َ‫ﻪ ﻳ‬
ِ ‫ﺣ ْﯿ‬
ٍ ‫ْض ﻓِﻲ دَآﺑﱠ‬
ِ ‫ﻄﯿ ُﺮ طَﺎﺋِ ٍﺮ َوﻻ َ اﻷر‬
There is no animal on the earth, or any bird that wings its flight, but is a community like you.
Qur’an 6: 38
َ ْ ‫ﺧ ْﻠﻖ ِﻣ‬
َ
‫ﱠ‬
‫ﺎس أَ ْﻛ َﺜ َﺮ وَﻟَﻜِ ﱠ‬
ُ ‫ﺨ ْﻠ‬
َ ‫ﻤ‬
ُ َ‫ﻳ َْﻌﻠ‬
َ َ‫اﻟﺴﻤَﺎوَاتِ ﻟ‬
‫ﻖ‬
‫ْض‬
‫ﻦ اﻟ ﱠﻨ‬
‫ﻮن ﻻ اﻟ ﱠﻨ‬
ِ ‫ﻦ أ ْﻛﺒَ ُﺮ وَاﻷر‬
ِ َ ‫ﺎس‬
ِ
ِ
234
The creation of the heavens and the earth
Is far greater than the creation of mankind,
But most of mankind do not know it
Qur’an 40: 57
We recognize that we are accountable for all our actions –
ْ ‫ل ﻳ َْﻌﻤ‬
َ ‫ﻳَ َﺮ ُه‬
َ ‫ﺧ ْﯿﺮًا َذ ﱠر ٍة ِﻣ ْﺜ َﻘﺎ‬
‫َﻞ َﻓﻤَﻦ‬
ْ ‫ل ﻳ َْﻌﻤ‬
َ ‫ﺷ •ﺮا َذ ﱠر ٍة ِﻣ ْﺜ َﻘﺎ‬
َ ‫ﻳَ َﺮ ُه‬
‫َﻞ َوﻣَﻦ‬
Then he who has done an atom’s weight of good, shall see it;
and he who has done an atom’s weight of evil, shall see it.
Qur’an 99:6-8
2.8 In view of these considerations we affirm that our responsibility as Muslims is to act
according to the example of the Prophet Muhammad (God’s peace and blessings be upon him)
who –
Declared and protected the rights of all living beings, outlawed the custom of burying infant
girls alive, prohibited killing living beings for sport, guided his companions to conserve
water even in washing for prayer, forbade the felling of trees in the desert, ordered a man
who had taken some nestlings from their nest to return them to their mother, and when he
came upon a man who had lit a fire on an anthill, commanded, “Put it out, put it out!”;
Established inviolable zones (harams) around Makkah and Al-Madinah, within which native
plants may not be felled or cut and wild animals may not be hunted or disturbed;
Established protected areas (himas) for the conservation and sustainable use of rangelands,
plant cover and wildlife.
Lived a frugal life, free of excess, waste, and ostentation;
Renewed and recycled his meagre possessions by repairing or giving them away;
Ate simple, healthy food, which only occasionally included meat;
Took delight in the created world; and
Was, in the words of the Qur’an, “a mercy to all beings.”
235
WE CALL
3.1 We call upon the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the United Nations Framework
Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Meeting of the Parties (MOP) to the Kyoto
Protocol taking place in Paris this December, 2015 to bring their discussions to an equitable and
binding conclusion, bearing in mind –
The scientific consensus on climate change, which is to stabilize greenhouse gas concentration
in the atmosphere at a level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic interference
with the climate systems;
The need to set clear targets and monitoring systems;
The dire consequences to planet earth if we do not do so;
The enormous responsibility the COP shoulders on behalf of the rest of humanity, including
leading the rest of us to a new way of relating to God’s Earth.
3.2 We particularly call on the well-off nations and oil-producing states to –
Lead the way in phasing out their greenhouse gas emissions as early as possible and no later
than the middle of the century;
Provide generous financial and technical support to the less well-off to achieve a phase-out of
greenhouse gases as early as possible;
Recognize the moral obligation to reduce consumption so that the poor may benefit from what
is left of the earth’s non-renewable resources;
Stay within the ‘2 degree’ limit, or, preferably, within the ‘1.5 degree’ limit, bearing in mind
that two-thirds of the earth’s proven fossil fuel reserves remain in the ground;
Re-focus their concerns from unethical profit from the environment, to that of preserving it
and elevating the condition of the world’s poor.
Invest in the creation of a green economy.
3.3 We call on the people of all nations and their leaders to –
Aim to phase out greenhouse gas emissions as soon as possible in order to stabilize greenhouse
gas concentrations in the atmosphere;
Commit themselves to 100 % renewable energy and/or a zero emissions strategy as early as
possible, to mitigate the environmental impact of their activities;
Invest in decentralized renewable energy, which is the best way to reduce poverty and achieve
sustainable development;
Realize that to chase after unlimited economic growth in a planet that is finite and already
overloaded is not viable. Growth must be pursued wisely and in moderation; placing a
priority on increasing the resilience of all, and especially the most vulnerable, to the
climate change impacts already underway and expected to continue for many years to
come.
Set in motion a fresh model of wellbeing, based on an alternative to the current financial
model which depletes resources, degrades the environment, and deepens inequality.
236
Prioritise adaptation efforts with appropriate support to the vulnerable countries with the least
capacity to adapt. And to vulnerable groups, including indigenous peoples, women and
children.
3.4 We call upon corporations, finance, and the business sector to –
Shoulder the consequences of their profit-making activities, and take a visibly more active role
in reducing their carbon footprint and other forms of impact upon the natural
environment;
In order to mitigate the environmental impact of their activities, commit themselves to 100 %
renewable energy and/or a zero emissions strategy as early as possible and shift
investments into renewable energy;
Change from the current business model which is based on an unsustainable escalating
economy, and to adopt a circular economy that is wholly sustainable;
Pay more heed to social and ecological responsibilities, particularly to the extent that they
extract and utilize scarce resources;
Assist in the divestment from the fossil fuel driven economy and the scaling up of renewable
energy and other ecological alternatives.
3.5 We call on all groups to join us in collaboration, co-operation and friendly competition in this
endeavour and we welcome the significant contributions taken by other faiths, as we can all be
winners in this race
ُ َ‫ﺎﺳ َﺘﺒِ ُﻘﻮا آﺗ‬
ْ ‫ﺎﻛﻢ ﻣَﺎ ﻓِﻲ ﻟِّﯿَﺒ ُْﻠﻮ َُﻛ‬
ْ ‫ﺨ ْﯿﺮَاتِ َﻓ‬
َ ‫ْاﻟ‬
‫ﻢ وَﻟَﻜِﻦ‬
He (God) wanted to test you regarding what has
come to you. So compete with each other
in doing good deeds.
Qur’an 5: 48
If we each offer the best of our respective traditions, we may yet see a way through our
difficulties
3.6 Finally, we call on all Muslims wherever they may be –
Heads of state
Political leaders
237
Business community
UNFCCC delegates
Religious leaders and scholars
Mosque congregations
Islamic endowments (awqaf)
Educators and educational institutions
Community leaders
Civil society activists
Non-governmental organisations
Communications and media
َ
ُ
َ ‫ﺨ ِﺮ‬
َ ‫ﺶ َوﻻ‬
ْ َ‫ﻎ وَﻟَﻦ اﻷَرْضَ ﺗ‬
َ ‫ل ﺗَﺒ ُْﻠ‬
ْ َ‫ْض ﻓِﻲ ﺗ‬
ً ‫ﻚ َﻣ َﺮ‬
َ ‫ق ﻟَﻦ إِﻧﱠ‬
َ ‫طﻮﻻ ً ْاﻟﺠِﺒَﺎ‬
ِ ‫ﻤ‬
ِ ‫ﺣﺎ اﻷر‬
Do not strut arrogantly on the earth.
You will never split the earth apart
nor will you ever rival the mountains’ stature.
Qur’an 17: 37
We bear in mind the words of our Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him):
The world is sweet and verdant, and verily Allah has made you stewards in it, and He sees how
you acquit yourselves.
Hadīth related by Muslim from Abu Sa‘īd Al-Khudrī)
+-<::::=::::-+
238
THE PARIS CLIMATE TALKS: PLAYING CRAPS WITH OUR PLANET'S FUTURE
John Atcheson
Republished
from
Common
Dreams,
September
1,
2015,
http://www.commondreams.org/views/2015/09/01/paris-climate-conference-playing-craps-ourplanets-future, under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 .License.
The climate change talks to be held in Paris this December (COP 21 in UN lingo) are all
about how much risk to the livability of our planet we’re willing to accept.
And the dirty little secret is, we’re accepting a hell of a lot right now, and we’re imposing even
more on our children and future generations.
Here’s why:
The agreed upon target, 2 degrees C, is dangerously high and the pre-agreements going
into Paris assure we won’t even meet that;
The best case assumptions built into the IPCC’s carbon budgets designed to stay below
2C assume a 34% probability of failure;
Most of the IPCC carbon budgets require our progeny to invent and build a massively
expensive technology to clean up the carbon we’re releasing. The effort would dominate the
economic activity of their entire society, choking off other economic activity; and
Even if we manage to hold temperatures to 2 C, the carbon budgets will assure that we’ll
acidify our oceans and usher in irreversible sea-level rise.
Let’s look at the facts.
2 degrees C is too high, and COP 21 isn’t on target to meet it in any case: The press
accounts are referring to the 2 C limit as the “maximum safe level.” Scientists are more careful,
referring to it as a “speed limit” or “guardrail,” and even this phrasing implies a level of
protection that the 2C limit simply doesn’t afford.
Doubt that? So far, human actions have increased the temperature by .85 degrees C over
pre-industrial levels, and look what that’s done. We’re experiencing record-setting droughts;
widespread desertification, an explosion in the number and frequency of forest fires; increases in
extreme weather events; mass extinctions; irreversible melting of the polar ice caps, Greenland
and large parts of Antarctica, and the centuries of rising seas and costal inundation this will
inevitably cause; and we’re seeing the bow wave of a massive migration of environmental
refugees. Finally, we’re acidifying the oceans, turning them into giant jellyfish incubators in
which edible seafood can’t survive.
239
If that’s what .85 C has done, imagine what 2C would do. Or, better yet, don’t imagine,
look to the geologic record. As James Hansen and 16 co-authors note in their paper, "Ice melt,
sea level rise and superstorms: evidence from paleoclimate data, climate modeling and modern
observations that 2C global warming is highly dangerous."
Worse, the agreements countries have announced in preparation for the Conference
(called “intended nationally determined contributions” or INDCs) clearly show that the Paris
COP will fall far short of what’s needed to prevent us from exceeding even a 2 C temperature
increase.
The IPCC’s Carbon Budgets --Playing Craps with the Planet: Settling on 2C as an
acceptable limit is bad enough, but the way we are using carbon budgets borders on criminal
negligence.
Carbon budgets are established to determine the amount of GHG we can emit, and for
how long. The greater the probability of staying below 2C, the lower the carbon budget and the
sooner we have to get off it. Similarly, if we wanted to limit warming to 1.5 C – something most
scientists agree poses less danger to people, the planet and the oceans – then we’d have a lower
carbon budget and we’d have to get off carbon sooner.
So, higher odds of success require lower carbon budgets, lower odds of success allow
more carbon to be released.
The IPCC uses three scenarios based on the probability of staying below 2C. That’s
appropriate, given the uncertainties inherent in forecasting a system as complex as the climate.
But the probabilities it is using are a 66% chance of succeeding, a 50% chance and a 30%
chance.
So, for example, if we wanted to have a 66% probability of staying below 1.5C, our total
carbon budget would be 2250 tonnes of carbon dioxide[1]. By the end of 2015, and the
conclusion of the Paris talks, we will have burned through all but 200 billion tonnes of that
budget. Since we are emitting about 40 billion tonnes per year (about 44 US tons), we will blow
through the budget by 2020, the year in which the Paris agreements are to start being
implemented. In other words, that ship will have sailed before any action is taken.
Contrast this with the carbon budget based on a 66% probability of staying below 2C, or
2900 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide (GtCO2e). By the end of 2015, we would have nearly 850
GtCO2 left, or twenty years worth.
Obviously, a better margin of safety would make sense; playing craps with the planet we live on
is – to say the least -- irresponsible.
But the option to be prudent no longer exists.Here’s the sad truth: we’ve already blown
past the carbon budgets required to have a 90% probability of staying below 2 C – let alone
1.5C.
240
Negative Emissions – or après moi, le deluge: There’s one other way of expanding
carbon budgets: Pass the problem on to our children and their children, so we can burn more
fossil fuels now and still appear to stay within our carbon budget. And that’s precisely what the
IPCC carbon budgets do. They only work if we require our offspring to create extraordinarily
expensive new technologies that will take massive quantities of carbon dioxide out of the air and
safely sequester it.
No one knows how to do this, and the scale of this activity is so large it will leave little
room for more productive economic activity.
To get an idea of just how crazy our current approach is, imagine you are about to board
an airplane, when the engineer responsible for designing it tells you it has a 34% probability of
malfunctioning. Would you proceed? Of course not.
A core precept of risk analysis and risk management is that dangers which are irreversible and
consequential demand very high safety margins. People intuitively understand this, and that’s
why the airplane example is so obvious. We’re genetically hard-wired to recognize risks that are
proximate in time and place. We understand that when the alarms start sounding at 35,000 feet,
we can’t simply exit the plane and grab another that’s flying by.
Yet, the same is true of our planet. If we screw it up, we can’t hop off and wait for
another. But the scale of this danger is so large, and the time-frame sufficiently long (exceeding
a single life-span) that we don’t experience this threat in the same way. Responding to this
danger will require us to exercise wisdom, not simply rely on the genes we’ve been given by
natural selection.
But when it comes to climate change, wisdom is obviously in short supply.
It's the physics, stupid: If we want a reasonable margin of safety for the world, we have
to get off fossil fuels as soon as possible, preferably within the next five or six years.
Impractical? No more impractical than pretending it makes sense to adopt a carbon
budget that risks global catastrophe simply because we failed take the action we needed to take
in the past.
The amount of GHG we can emit without ushering in Armageddon is determined by
physics, not politics. And as I said back in July, the approach we’re adopting in COP 21, poses
an existential threat to humanity and the global ecosystem because "... in a clash between physics
and politics, physics always wins."
The thing is, we have everything we need to get off fossil fuels within the next five to six
years, except the wisdom and the political will.
____________________________
[1] I have used figures for tons of carbon dioxide, whereas many of the IPCC’s numbers are
expressed in tons of carbon. The IPCC also includes GHGs other than carbon, but other don't so
you might see a variety of carbon budget numbers being used. The key is to always compare
241
apples to apples. For those who wish, the conversion factor is: 1 ton of carbon is equivalent to
3.67 tons of carbon dioxide.
!!!!
INDIGENOUS PEOPLES TAKE LEAD AT D12 DAY OF ACTION IN PARIS
OFFICIAL RESPONSE TO COP21 AGREEMENT
Posted on Indigenous Rising: An Indigenous Environmental Network, December 12, 2015,
http://indigenousrising.org/indigenous-peoples-take-lead-at-d12-day-of-action-in-paris-officialresponse-to-cop21-agreement/. Press Contacts: Dallas Goldtooth, [email protected], (708)5156158.
“The Paris accord is a trade agreement, nothing more. It promises to privatize,
commodify and sell forested lands as carbon offsets in fraudulent schemes such as REDD+
projects. These offset schemes provide a financial laundering mechanism for developed countries
to launder their carbon pollution on the backs of the global south. Case-in-point, the United
States’ climate change plan includes 250 million megatons to be absorbed by oceans and forest
offset markets. Essentially, those responsible for the climate crisis not only get to buy their way
out of compliance but they also get to profit from it as well.” – Alberto Saldamando, Human
Rights Expert & Attorney. [1]
Paris, France – At 8am, Indigenous Peoples block took to the streets of Paris for an
Indigenous Rights action to start the closing day of COP 21, hours before the final agreement
was to be presented and a huge mobilization of civil society for a D12 march was to begin.
“We, Indigenous Peoples, are the redline. We have drawn that line with our bodies
against the privatisation of nature, to dirty fossil fuels and to climate change. We are the
defenders of the world’s most biologically and culturally diverse regions. We will protect our
sacred lands. Our knowledge has much of the solutions to climate change that humanity seeks.
It’s only when they listen to our message that ecosystems of the world will be renewed” – Tom
Goldtooth Executive Director of Indigenous Environmental Network
The morning prayer circle was moved down the street to the infamous Pont des Arts, also
known across the world as the ‘Love Lock Bridge’ where Indigenous Peoples staged a direct
action. Their collective message was clear – “People discuss ‘red lines’, we are the red line. We
are the keepers of the land, protectors of animals, the seas, the air. We are the solution.”
“Our planet is hotter. The seas are rising. Our communities are facing reality that we
may have to move, we have winter wildfires happening in the Arctic. We are out of time. Any
solutions that do not talk about cutting emissions at the source, or keeping fossil fuels in the
ground, are false solutions. We don’t have time to talk about carbon markets, carbon trading,
REDD+ projects. We must act now [3]. ” – Dallas Goldtooth, Dakota/Dine, Campaigner with
Indigenous Environmental Network.
“The seas are rising, our communities have nowhere else to go” – Sina Brown-Davis,
Maori activist
242
At noon, Indigenous peoples joined in solidarity with the global D12 REDLINE action at Arc de
Triomphe. At the front of action, Indigenous Peoples held a conference condemning the failed
leadership of nation states for their exclusion of Indigenous rights and human rights in the
operational text of the Paris agreement.
“Here at the COP21 they are proposing false solutions to the climate crisis, they are
proposing a commodification of the sacred, they want to put a price on the air we breathe. They
want to go into other countries, displace our Indigenous brothers and sisters, so that they in the
US can continue killing our people. We are the frontlines, we are the red lines” – Kandi Mossett
(Mandan, Hidatsa, Arikara, North Dakota) speaking at the march.
________________
[1] US, European and other states push for exclusion of binding Indigenous rights from
agreement
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/true-north/2015/dec/07/indigenousactivists-take-to-seine-river-to-protest-axing-of-rights-from-paris-climate-pact.
[2] Lack of acknowledgement of Indigenous Peoples Rights in draft treaty of Paris Climate
Accord
could
negatively
impact
both
them
and
the
climate
http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2015/12/10/indigenous-rights-knowledge-left-out-incop21.html?utm_content=bylines&utm_campaign=ajam&utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=So
cialFlow.
[3] UN Paris Accord could end up being a Crime against Humanity and Mother Earth
http://no-redd.com/indigenous-peoples-un-paris-accord-could-end-up-being-a-crime-againsthumanity-and-mother-earth/.
∆Ò∆
WE STAND WITH SAN CARLOS
From Mark Trahant, "Press Release: Tribes pitch Congress on coastal issues, riders,"
Reports, November 4, 2015, http://trahantreports.com/.
Trahant
WASHINGTON D.C. (11/4/15)–The congressional action transferring National Forest
Service lands to Resolution Copper, a giant foreign mining company at Oak Flat in the Tonto
National Forest of Arizona was “beneath contempt, a violation of Constitutionally-protected
treaty law and an infringement on American Indian civil rights,” according to Fawn Sharp,
President of the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians.
Testifying at a special forum held by U.S. House Natural Resources Democrats this
morning, Sharp said tribes across the continent strongly support the San Carlos Apache, the
Yavapai and other tribes in the Oak Flat region which consider the area sacred and oppose the
congressional action which would devastate it. Oak Flat is a vast area of rugged natural beauty,
punctuated by towering cliffs, stream beds and archaeological and historical artifacts, just 70
miles east of Phoenix, Arizona.
243
“These tribes have cherished this land for thousands of years. They have valued it beyond
any amount of money and beyond any level most non-Indians can easily comprehend. Now the
federal government is saying that that this foreign company can come in and dig a mile-wide
hole in the ground right in the middle of this precious area, in a search of copper. It is a tragedy
that must be stopped,” said Sharp.
Legislative efforts to enable this land exchange repeatedly failed for years, until a rider to
the FY 2015 National Defense Authorization Act was enacted into law in December of 2014.
President Obama signed that bill, but the Administration has since reneged on the rider, realizing
the error.
In her testimony to this morning’s forum, ATNI President Sharp, who is also President of
the Quinault Indian Nation in Washington as well as Area Vice President of the National
Congress of American Indians, emphasized that the rider was, in fact, a closed door deal. Former
San Carlos Chairman Wendsler Nosie, Sr., has called it “the greatest sin in the world.”
The ore being targeted by Resolution Copper is located 7,000 feet below ground level in
the sacred area, where the Apache people have gathered acorns and medicinal herbs and held
coming-of-age ceremonies since prehistoric times.
“Our homelands continue to be taken away,” said Nosie, decrying what he termed the
dirty way in which a land-swap rider had been attached to a must-pass bill that sailed through
Congress and was signed into law by President Barack Obama. The amended legislation, with
the support of Arizona Senator John McCain, was “an action that constitutes a holy war, where
tribes must stand in unity and fight to the very end,” according to Nosie.
Tribes have held protests against the deal in Tucson and outside Senator John McCain’s
Phoenix office. They have held a two-day, 44-mile march from the San Carlos tribal
headquarters, “A Spiritual Journey to a Sacred Unity” at Oak Flat.
At its 2015 Mid-Year Convention at the Warm Springs Reservation in Oregon in May,
ATNI passed Resolution 15-25, “Support for Repeal of Section 3003 of the FY15 National
Defense Authorization Act, the Southeast Arizona Land Exchange.”
That resolution emphasized that the United States government has legal and moral
obligations to provide access to Native Americans and to protect traditional cultural territories in
a manner that respects the cultural, historical, spiritual and religious importance to Indian tribes.
It read, “Oak Flat is a place filled with power – a place where Native people go today for prayer,
to conduct ceremonies such as Holy Ground and the Apache Puberty Rite Ceremony which some
refer to as the Sunrise Dance, which celebrates a young woman’s coming of age, to gather
medicines and ceremonial items, and to seek and obtain peace and personal cleansing.”
The resolution emphasized the deep spiritual significance of the Oak Flat location as well
as its historical and environmental importance and said the last-minute tactics used to pass the
rider represents the antithesis of democracy and everything that is wrong with Congress, as well
as a dangerous precedent. It called for Congress to enact legislation to repeal the land exchange
244
and called for full transparency and information sharing with the general public the outcomes of
environmental assessment and impacts on tribal religion and culture in the future.
“I can’t emphasize it enough. We stand with San Carlos, just as we stand with any tribe
when its sovereignty, its culture and the rights of its people are trod upon by anyone, any time,
any place,” said Sharp.
For more information contact Steve Robinson (360) 951-2494 [email protected].
<<<<(((+)))>>>>
#NATIVE VOTE 16 ELECTION PROGRESS ONE RACE AT A TIME
Mark Trahant*
Republished with author's permission, from Mark Trahant's Blog, Trahant Reports, November 4,
2015, http://trahantreports.com/2015/11/04/election-progress-one-race-at-a-time/.
What will it take for Native Americans to have full representation in the United States, in
state governments, and in city halls? The only answer is running for office and winning
elections.
One
race
at
a
time.
Tuesday night was a pick up of two. An asterisk-sized move forward toward the goal of parity.
But remember: the demographics of the country are changing fast.
Debora Juarez is the likely winner of a city council seat in Seattle. (Ballots are still being
counted but she is leading her opponent by a margin of more than 25 points.) Juarez, a member
of the Blackfeet Tribe, has rich experience working in Indian Country. She’s served two
governors working on Native American issues as well as an attorney and a financial consultant to
tribal clients.
Seattle is ahead of the demographic curve. As The Seattle Times put it in a headline:
“Seattle City Council to be younger, more female, diverse.” In addition to Juarez, Seattle voters
appeared to have elected the first Latina, Lorena Gonzales.
Across the country, Peggy Flanagan was elected to the Minnesota House of
Representatives with the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. Flanagan is a member of the White
Earth Band of Ojibwe. Minnesota Public Radio said she “will become one of only a handful of
legislators of color” and one of seven Native Americans to serve in the Legislature since
statehood. “Many more people of color will need to win elections to the Legislature for it to look
like the state at large. Right now, the state House and Senate don’t come close to matching the
racial and ethnic diversity of the state’s population.”
The narrative about diversity and demographics will be repeated in the presidential
election ahead. As a report from American Progress said earlier this year, “As people of color
became an even larger share of states’ electorates, the political implications for both parties
comes into sharper focus.”
245
Progress in representational diversity is slow, a one-at-a-time proposition. But in Canada
today there will be a major shift. Justin Trudeau is set to take office as prime minister today and
unveil his cabinet. According to The Globe and Mail the new government will “reflect Canada’s
ethnic diversity, all the while featuring gender parity and including representatives from all
provinces and a member from the North.”
One of those cabinet members may be Jody Wilson-Raybould, a former Assembly of
First Nations regional chief and an attorney. Which office? That’s the question. We will know
later today.
Tuesday’s election also sets the stage for another fight about health care reform. Matt
Bevin, a Tea Party Republican, was elected governor of Kentucky. Bevin has been critical of
KyNect, the state’s Medicaid program, that he’s dismissed as Obamacare. But here is the
problem: If Bevins gets rid of the program he will take health care away from existing clients.
That program serves some 285,000 Kentuckians. This could be an interesting debate with a twist:
Presidential candidate Rand Paul is running for re-election to the Senate.
Tuesday’s election also means we are now less than three months from the first votes in
the 2016 presidential election and a year away from the national vote. An election that will once
again test America’s growing diversity.
*Mark Trahant is the Charles R. Johnson Endowed Professor of Journalism at the University of
North Dakota. He is an independent journalist and a member of The Shoshone-Bannock
Tribes.On Twitter @TrahantReports.
~:><:~
RESERVATIONS A STEP CLOSER TO SATELLITE VOTING
Marci McLean*
Republished with permission from the blog from Mark Trahant's Blog, Trahant Reports, October
11,
2015,
http://trahantreports.com/2015/10/21/press-release-expanding-voting-access-inmontana/.
A group working to strengthen Native American communities praised a directive by
Montana’s secretary of state to set up satellite voting offices on Indian reservations.
In an announcement released yesterday, Secretary of State Linda McCulloch directed
counties with American Indian reservations to work with tribal governments to establish satellite
election offices to increase access to voting and registration if required under the Federal Voting
Rights Act, and upon the request of the tribal government.
“We welcome and commend Linda McCulloch’s decision,” said Carol Juneau, Chair of
Western Native Voice (WNV), based in Billings. “The directive is a good step towards opening
up registration and voting in Indian Country. It fits with our goal to get these offices up and
running on all reservations and isolated rural communities for the 2016 election including visible
246
and accessible office locations, trained and paid staff, infrastructure for equipment and internet
and proper oversight and accountability.”
Since 2014, WNV has worked with the secretary of state and county and tribal
governments for equitable services for all rural Native voters. Juneau is a former state
representative and senator who introduced satellite voting center legislation in 2005.
“We will continue our work on the ground to educate and encourage people to utilize the
satellite offices in the 2016 elections,” Juneau said.
In 2014 WNV staff and volunteers deployed a robust voter education and Get-Out-theVote campaign to complement the satellite voting stations in Glacier and Big Horn counties.
“WNV is also urging strong outreach programs in the communities to notify residents of
voting opportunities and availability,” Juneau said. “The tribal governments will play a critical
role in assessment and implementation.”
Marci McLean is Executive Director Western Native Voice.
*--!--*
INDIGENOUS VOICES ARE NEEDED TO MAKE U.S. A STRONGER DEMOCRACY
Mark Trahant*
From
Mark
Trahant's
Blog,
Trahant
Speaks,
August
2,
2015,
http://trahantreports.com/2015/08/02/indigenous-voices-are-needed-to-make-u-s-a-strongerdemocracy/.
Congress could appoint Delegates to represent tribal nations.
It’s long past time for Indian Country to have a say in how the government of the United
States runs. Why? Because this country cannot be the democracy it purports to be as long as
indigenous people do not have a real voice in the political conversation.
So what would be fair? How many American Indians and Alaska Native representatives
should be in Congress?
A couple of years ago, Malia Villegas, director of the National Congress of American
Indians Policy Research Center, said population parity would mean at least two U.S. senators
and seven members of the House of Representatives. But that’s not going to happen in a winnertake-all election system because the small number of Native votes are spread across districts
nationwide. (For what it’s worth: The U.S. is one of the last democracies in the world to continue
electing people this way.)
247
Remember the entire premise of the U.S. political system is that tribes are governments.
Tribes are political entities enshrined in the Constitution. Yet, and this is huge, tribes are the only
such political entity that does not include even minimal, structural representation in Congress.
Even before the Constitution, the Continental Congress made it possible for residents of
the territory of Ohio to have a voice. On November 11, 1794, one James White was seated in the
Third Congress as a Delegate. Congress hadn’t even set the rules yet for what that meant so the
first debate was, according to the Congressional Research Service, “a wide-ranging discussion on
the House floor about the Delegate’s proper role” including whether or not such delegates should
serve in the House or the Senate. White did end up in the House where his role was described as
“no more than an Envoy to Congress” because he could not vote.
Since White at least one Delegate has served in every Congress except for the two years
between1797 and 1799. Today there are six Delegates in Congress, representing Puerto Rico,
Washington, D.C., Guam, U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the
Northern Mariana Islands.
This is where Indian Country gets short-changed. The Navajo Nation, a geographic,
political entity, is far larger and has more people than the Virgin Islands, Guam, American
Samoa or the Northern Mariana Islands. (Only 53,000 people live in the Northern Mariana
Islands.) But Navajo is spread over three state lines and its population is not quite enough for a
House seat electorally.
Members of Congress often talk about the importance of the treaty relationship with
tribes and the government-to-government relationship. Yet they have ignored their own power to
appoint delegates by legislation. This is an old problem.
More than a century ago, some tribes argued for congressional representation. The
Choctaw Treaty of Dancing Rabbit Creek of 1830 explicitly included a “Delegate to Congress.”
(One of the Choctaw chiefs, Mushulatubbee, had already run for Congress.)
The thing is Congress makes up its own rules for Delegates. It is not a Constitutional act.
For example: The Delegate for the District of Columbia was originally created in 1871, forgotten
a few years later, and then restored in 1971.
“Since the first Delegate was sent to Congress, the House has struggled with the role
Delegates should play,” the Congressional Research Service noted. “Some Members, noting that
the Constitution, in Article I, Section 2, requires that the House be made up of representatives
‘chosen every second Year by the People of the several States,’ have expressed concerns that
allowing Delegates to have the same rights and responsibilities as Members would be
unconstitutional. Because Delegates, by definition, do not represent states, Members have on
several occasions debated what rights such delegates should exercise in the House.”
But full authority or not, at least Delegates are there. Seated. At the table. Their very
presence would be a reminder about the unique political status of tribal governments.
248
How could this work? Easy. Tribal nations with large populations should have a
Delegate. And perhaps smaller tribes could band together by region or language and have a
regional commissioner who would act as a Delegate. If population is the criteria, and perhaps it
should be, the total ought to be seven.
It’s true that American Indians and Alaska Natives can and should also run and win in
general district elections. I write about that a lot and in my next post I will look at those districts
where Native candidates have the best shot.
But there is a fundamental difference.
In a general election, our best politicians are coalition builders, witness a Lt. Gov. Byron
Mallott in Alaska, or a Sen. John McCoy in Washington, or Supt. Denise Juneau in Montana.
These leaders do good things and positively impact public policy by serving a broad
constituency. They are elected by all the people.
But if Indian Country sent Delegates to Congress, we would have representatives whose
only job would be to represent Indian Country. That’s no different than what James White did in
1830. He was a Delegate charged with advocating for the territory of Ohio. That’s exactly the
type of representation that treaty tribes and their citizens deserve.
*Mark Trahant is an independent journalist and a member of The Shoshone-Bannock
Tribes. For up-to-the-minute posts, download the free Trahant Reports app for your smart phone
or tablet.
>~~<>~~<
SOUTHWEST TRIBAL NATIONS FOOD SOVEREIGNTY CONFERENCE
RESOLUTION
Diné College, Shiprock, NM, Diné Nation, Diné bikeya, August 8–9, 2015,
http://www.iitc.org/southwest-tribal-nations-food-sovereignty-conference-resolution-august-8-92015-dine-college-shiprock-new-mexico-dine-nation-dine-bikeya/
We, traditional Indigenous food producers, knowledge holders, spiritual leaders,
Indigenous Peoples, tribal nations and organization leaders, human rights and food sovereignty
activists, community members, youth and elders from the Diné, Acoma, Laguna and Tesuque
Pueblos, Hopi, Yaqui, Opata, Comanche, Cheyenne and O’odham Nations attending the
Southwest Tribal Nations Food Sovereignty Conference from August 8 – 9, 2015 in Shiprock
New Mexico, Diné Nation, resolve by consensus the following:
1. We thank the Shiprock chapter of the Diné Nation, Diné College and the
International Indian Treaty Council for coordinating and hosting this gathering which was of
great importance in building our unity and sharing information to defend our food sovereignty,
human rights, land and water, seeds, sacred places and traditional ways of life.
249
2. We affirm, endorse and adopt the Okmulgee Declaration from the 2nd International
Indigenous Corn Conference in Muscogee Creek Nation, September 8th, 2014, and the
“Declaration of a GMO- and Pesticide-Free Zone, Diné Nation Territory, from the Indigenous
Peoples “Corn is Life” Gathering September 19 – 21, 2013.
3. We express our outrage and profound concern for the impacts, including many human
rights violations, of the toxic gold mining tailings spill and its effects on the rights to water,
health and food sovereignty of the Diné and other Indigenous Nations that will be affected, as
well as the plants, fish, animals and ecosystems of the area in the San Juan River basin system.
This contamination of waste from the King Gold Mine near Silverton, Colorado spilled into the
upper tributaries of the Animas River on August 5, 2015 and is continuing to contaminate the
entire watershed in the four corners area of the United States of America where the communities
of at least seven federally recognized Indigenous Nations are now suffering the effects of the
spill. The effects of this contamination are multi-generational and will have drastic effects on the
reproductive health and the health of future generations of these Nations. We commit to support
the Diné Nation Shiprock Chapter and other impacted Indigenous Peoples in their efforts to
prevent any future spills, address the damages and other efforts needed to address this critical
issue.
4. We commit to continue meeting, communicating and coming together to share
information and mutual support through the formation of a Southwest Indigenous Food
Sovereignty Network, which we have initiated at this gathering.
5. We call upon our Tribal governments, the United States, other countries and the
United Nations to implement strong and effective solutions and responses to climate change
through strong actions that respect the rights of Indigenous Peoples, protect our food sovereignty
and reduce greenhouse gasses by moving away from fossil fuel extraction, production and use
towards a just transition towards sustainable practices and forms of development. We also
commit ourselves to protect, use and apply our traditional knowledge and practices, our seeds,
medicines and animals, our ceremonies and the teachings of our spiritual leaders and knowledge
holders, to implement solutions and ways to adapt to climate change within our own Nations and
communities in keeping with our sacred responsibilities for the survival of our Peoples, ways of
life and future generations.
Resolved by consensus August 9th, 2015, International Day of the Worlds Indigenous
Peoples, Shiprock New Mexico, Diné Nation, Diné bikeya.
See Document PDF Here: Southwest Tribal Nations Food Sovereignty Conference Resolution,
August 8-9, 2015, Diné College, Shiprock, New Mexico, Diné Nation, Diné bikeya,
http://cdn7.iitc.org/wp-content/uploads/Final-Southwest-Tribal-Nations-resolution-ShiprockNM-August-8-9-2015_web.pdf.
.___^^^^^^^___.
250
ARTICLES
As IPJ is a refereed journal, articles may be posted on a different schedule from the rest of
the journal. We will send out an e-mail announcement when the next set of articles are posted
when they are not posted with a regular new journal, and they can be downloaded as a pdf file.
Current articles are available with list on line at: http://www.indigenouspolicy.org.
>>>>:--------+--------:<<<<
RESEARCH NOTES
A CHANGING ARCTIC PRESENTSINCREDIBLE CHALLENGES
AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
Mark Trahant*
Republished with author's permission from Mark Tranahan's Blog, Trahant Reports, October 26,
2015,
http://trahantreports.com/2015/10/26/a-changing-arctic-presents-incredible-challengesand-opportunities-for-indigenous-peoples/.
A changing Arctic? It’s a region that presents incredible challenges and opportunities for
Indigenous People.
One of those unique opportunities involves governance. The Arctic Council is eight
nations who work together on complex issues ranging from climate change to a sustainable
future. The Arctic Council met last week as the U.S. began a two-year chairmanship of the body.
What makes this international body unique is that it includes indigenous representation as
“permanent participants.”
The six permanent participants are:
Aleut International Association (AIA)
Arctic Athabaskan Council (AAC)
Gwich’in Council International (GCI)
Inuit Circumpolar Council (ICC)
Russian Association of Indigenous Peoples of the North (RAIPON)
Saami Council (SC)
US Ambassador David Balton explains: “I am not aware of another international forum
that has representatives of Indigenous groups engaged the way the Arctic Council does. They are
at the table as, essentially, equal partners.”
251
Balton said these Indigenous populations “span multiple countries,” except for the
Russian organization.
“Officially they don’t participate in decision-making as such,” Balton said, “but the
reality is, at least in my experience, the governments will not take decisions opposed by the
permanent participants.
Suicide in Indigenous communities was also considered at the Anchorage meetings.
“Political, scientific, and community leaders from across the Arctic have described
mental health – especially suicide – as one of the region’s most pressing public health problems,”
the Arctic Council reported. “Despite the best efforts and considerable expenditures of our
respective governments, the problem of suicide continues to be a barrier to health and
development in the North.”
The council has one initiative, The Rising Sun, Reducing the Incidence of Suicide in
Indigenous Groups — Strengths United through Networks, explores cross-boundary suicide
prevention efforts. The goal is a “toolkit of common measures … applicable across the Arctic,
which could expand Arctic states’ capacity to evaluate the implementation of evidence-based
interventions to combat suicide.”
One of the issues that’s of particular interest to me involves climate change and
“adaptation.” Most of the debate about climate change involves “mitigation.” That idea is
humans are the primary cause of climate change so if we reduce our carbon emissions we can
limit the impacts. But the second topic in climate change is “adaptation.” That means doing
what’s required to build higher sea walls, protect pipelines from permafrost damage, and, all too
often, move villages inland because of eroding shorelines. But it also means figuring out how
animals and fish will react to the loss of habitat, when sea ice, and plant life disappear. And, of
course, less wildlife and fish too often means less food for Native people.
The Arctic Council includes and incorporates “Indigenous knowledge” into its research.
As one recent document states: “Indigenous Peoples’ traditional knowledge and its potential to
advise adaptation mechanisms across the Arctic is a common theme. Moreover, scientific,
traditional and experience-based knowledge in combination are recognized as key factors for a
sustainable Arctic future. Generating grassroots support is the most important condition for
sustainability.”
How do we build a sustainable future in the Arctic? That’s the key question as we try and
figure out how we and our children will live in this changing environment. An idea that should
be important to people who live far beyond the Arctic Circle.
O=X=O
252
REVERSING DIABETES IN INDIAN COUNTRY
Mark Trahant*
Reprinted with author's permission from Mark Trahant's Blog, Trahant Reports, May 18, 2015,
http://trahantreports.com/2015/05/18/reversing-diabetes-in-indian-country/comment-page1/#comment-254.
Indian Country has long faced the epidemic of diabetes with rates 2.3 times greater than
the general population. The toll from this deadly disease was so great that a federal Special
Diabetes Program for Indians was launched some thirteen years ago.
Across America diabetes rates are exploding. A recent piece in The Washington Post put
it this way: “Diabetes has reached epidemic proportions in the U.S., due to sugary diets and the
lack of exercise. If current disease rates continue, one in three Americans will have diabetes by
2050. Over time, the condition can lead to kidney failure, limb amputations and blindness,
among other complications.”
The post linked to a blogger, The Data Dude, and a chart that shows diabetes rates
increasing in all but a few counties across the nation, a total of 2,992 of counties. Only five
counties had rates that stayed the same and only ten counties showed an actual decrease.
Here is the thing. Two of the ten counties showing a decrease in diabetes rates are found
on Indian reservations, Fort Peck, Montana, and Rosebud, South Dakota. According to the
United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the rate of growth for diabetes in
Roosevelt County, Montana, dropped from 13.2 percent to 12.9 percent, a three-tenths decline
from 2004 to 2012. And a similar decline occurred in Mellette County, South Dakota, where the
rates declined from 13 percent to 12.7 percent.
If these two reservation communities are showing a decline, what do the numbers look
like across Indian Country?
Unfortunately the CDC and the Indian Health Service use different data because, of
course, the county map is not ideal. The Indian Health Service reported that its data would not be
comparable with the county data cited.
However — and this is important — IHS data do indicate a slowing in the rate of rise of
the prevalence of diabetes in American Indian and Alaska Native people nationally. From 20012005, there was a relative increase in age-adjusted diabetes prevalence in American Indian and
Alaska Native adults of 2.2% per year on average. Contrast that with the period between 2006
and 2013 where diabetes prevalence among the same population increased at a rate of 0.8% per
year on average.
Another measurement of that trend comes from the United States Renal Data System.
The data show that the incidence of end-stage renal disease due to diabetes in American Indian
253
and Alaska Native people decreased by 43 percent between 2000 to 2011. Looking at the
numbers another way, between 1995 and 2006, the incident rate of End Stage Renal Disease in
American Indians and Alaska Natives with diabetes fell by 27.7 percent—a greater decline than
for any other racial or ethnic group.
The IHS says: “This translates into far fewer American Indian and Alaska Native patients
with diabetes starting dialysis. Also, obesity rates and diabetes prevalence in American Indian
and Alaska Native youth have not increased since 2006.”
What’s working?
In Poplar, Montana, Tessie LeMere, diabetes coordinator for the Fort Peck Tribal Health
Department, says a lot of the work is community focused. One important activity encouraging
people to drink water instead of sugary soda. “We offer our water system. If you have your own
jug, you can bring it in here and we’ll give you clean water. We do home visits. We do
community screenings. The community screenings are a big thing because it’s not just for our
patients, that’s for everybody just to get the awareness and prevention out there. We have
wellness centers. We pay to those so our patients have access. We also have a dialysis program
over at tribal health. That I think has brought the awareness more into reality.”
Perhaps that’s it. The success in Indian Country of the diabetes program is about doing
everything, reaching out to both patients and those who are at risk for the disease. Again the
numbers tell a story. A generation ago, before the Special Diabetes Program for Indians, only
about a third of all Indian Health patients had access to diabetes clinics; today that number
exceeds two-thirds. And 94 percent of patients have access to diabetes clinical teams, three times
more than in 1997. And nearly 100 percent — 99 percent according to IHS — of people in the
IHS system have access to diabetes education (up from 36 percent in 1997).
We hear all the time about how bad things are in Indian Country. The story of improving
diabetes rates counters that narrative. It shows a lot of things: First, tribally designed programs
work, government funding is important and lessons from Indian Country can help the larger
nation treat its diabetes epidemic
*Mark Trahant is an independent journalist and a member of The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes. For
up-to-the-minute posts, download the free Trahant Reports app for your smart phone or tablet.
+-<::::>-+
COURT AFFIRMS AFFORDABLE CARE ACT AGAIN;
GOOD TIME TO STEP UP INDIAN COUNTRY’S PARTICIPATION
Mark Trahant*
Republished with author's permission from Mark Trahant's Blog, Trahant Reports, June 26,
2015, http://trahantreports.com/2015/06/26/court-affirms-affordable-care-act-again-good-timeto-step-up-indian-countrys-participation/.
254
MAKING THE LAW WORK BEYOND MEDICAID EXPANSION
The Supreme Court once again affirmed the legality of the Affordable Care Act. This
time the court’s answer is unambiguous. As Chief Justice John Roberts wrote: “Congress passed
the Affordable Care Act to improve health insurance markets, not to destroy them.”
The 6-3 ruling means that people who buy insurance using tax credits as subsidies —
some 6.4 million people — will continue to do so regardless of where they live. Thirty-four
states have not set up health insurance exchanges and so consumers must purchase plans through
a federal exchange.
At the White House, President Barack Obama said “the Affordable Care Act is here to
stay.”
But Congress has other ideas. The House has voted to repeal the Affordable Care Act
some fifty times and this is certain to again be an election year issue in 2016. This ruling will
also increase the political pressure for conservatives to try and derail the law using the budget,
making it much more difficult for the Congress and the Obama administration to reach a deal
over federal spending next year.
There is an interesting twist on this case for American Indian and Alaska Native
consumers. Early on both supporters in Congress and in the Obama administration decided to
play up the portion of the law that exempted Native Americans from the mandatory insurance
requirements. The idea was that delivery of health care is seen as a treaty right, so it was
impossible to force Native Americans to buy insurance. But the problem is the Indian health
system does not have adequate funding — and the best course for improving that revenue stream
is to sign up more Native Americans for some kind of insurance through a job, Medicaid,
Medicare, Children’s’ Health Insurance Program, or these health insurance exchanges.
According to a report by the Kaiser Family Foundation, nearly one in three American
Indians and Alaska Natives is uninsured and most have far less access to employer-based
insurance than other Americans. ”Less than four in ten American Indians and Alaska Natives
have private coverage, compared to 62% of the overall non elderly population,” Kaiser reported.
“Medicaid helps fill this gap, covering one in three non-elderly American Indians and Alaska
Natives. Medicaid also provides key financing for IHS providers and has special financing rules
and protections for American Indians and Alaska Natives. However, nearly one in three
nonelderly American Indians and Alaska Natives remains uninsured.”
One way to improve that insurance rate is to encourage more American Indians and
Alaska Natives to take advantage of subsidized plans purchased through exchanges. There are,
for example, plans for a family of four earning up $70,650 (or $88,300 in Alaska) that have no
cost, including deductibles and co-pays. If a family earns more than that amount, an insurance
plan purchased through the exchange could still be eligible for no out-of-pocket costs when using
the Indian health system. Native Americans can also sign up for the insurance plans every
month, instead of during limited open enrollment periods.
255
Jim Roberts, a policy analyst for the Northwest Portland Area Indian Health Board, said
it’s difficult to get data from the federal and state exchanges. However one report, that Roberts
said is “suspect,” does have some data showing that approximately 22,000 American Indians and
Alaska Natives in the federal exchange Native Americans have received cost-sharing benefits.
“What’s interesting about this report is that 41,626 person were determined eligible for costsharing reductions, however only 22K were covered by a selected plan. A very low take up rate
despite high eligibility. Indian participation is a real problem,” Roberts said, both in the state and
federal exchanges.
Perhaps that should be the outcome of the court’s ruling Thursday: A new emphasis on
making certain that American Indians and Alaska Natives take advantage of every dollar eligible
under the law. This would be one way of boosting funding for Indian health clinics and hospitals.
And this money does not require appropriations from Congress or approval from a state (as is the
case with Medicaid).
As he celebrated the court’s ruling Thursday, President Obama said: “On March 23,
2010, I sat down at a table in the East Room of the White House and signed my name on a law
that said, once and for all, that health care would no longer be a privilege for a few. It would be a
right for everyone.”
But that right also requires action. Action from the administration informing American
Indians and Alaska Natives about the benefits; as well as action from every clinic and patient to
make sure we all have the insurance we’re entitled to receive under the law. Call it, the pre-paid,
Treaty Insurance plan.
<<<+<>+>>>
ALASKA SAYS YES,
BOOSTS INDIAN HEALTH SYSTEM BY EXPANDING MEDICAID
Mark Trahant*
Republished from Mark Trahant's Blog, Trahant Reports, July 20,
http://trahantreports.com/2015/07/20/alaska-says-yes-boosts-indian-health-system-byexpanding-medicaid/.
2015,
One more state adds “new money” to the Indian health system via Medicaid
These days “new” money is hard to find. That’s the kind of money that’s added to a
budget, money that allows programs to expand, try out new ideas, and look for ways to make life
better. Most government budgets are doing the opposite: Shrinking. Calling on program
managers and clients alike to do more with less.
256
That’s why the news from Alaska last week is so exciting: Alaska’s new governor
announced the expansion of Medicaid and this will significantly boost money for the Alaska
Native medical system. Indeed, the significance of this announcement to the Indian health
system was clear when Alaska’s Gov. Bill Walker and Department of Health and Social Services
Commissioner Valerie Davidson made the announcement at the Alaska Native Medical Center
on July 16. The governor took this action using executive authority because the Alaska
legislature had failed to even vote on legislation to accept Medicaid.
The governor says Medicaid expansion would reduce state spending by $6.6 million in
the first year, and save over $100 million in state general funds in the first six years. “Every day
that we fail to act, Alaska loses out on $400,000,” the governor said. “With a nearly $3 billion
budget deficit, it would be foolish for us to pass up that kind of boost to Alaska’s economy.”
“We know Gov. Walker has worked tirelessly to expand Medicaid since he came into
office on December first,” Davidson said at the news conference. It was one of the campaign
promises made by the independent governor. “He included it in the budget. He introduced a bill
both in the House and in the Senate side. It was a subject of both special sessions. And, it’s the
right thing do do for Alaska.”
The expansion of Medicaid is one of key components of the Affordable Care Act. It’s
critical a tool for the Indian health system because it opens up a revenue channel for clinics and
hospitals to bill Medicaid, a third-party insurance, for services and that boosts budgets at the
local level. (In a climate where Congress is unlike to spend more money on Indian health.) How
big a number? More than a million American Indians and Alaska Natives are now insured by
Medicaid. The Kaiser Family Foundation estimated in 2013 that Indian health facilities collected
$943 million in third-party payments. “By far the largest third-party payer is Medicaid, which
accounts for $683 million or 70% of total third party revenues, and 13% of total IHS program
funding for FY2013,” Kaiser reported. Nearly 150,000 Alaska Natives and American Indians
receive health services across the state from tribal and non-profit health organizations funded by
the Indian Health Service. By law the IHS-funded clinics must seek third party billing from
patients, such as Medicaid, the Veterans Administration or private, employer-based health
insurance.
Medicaid is an odd program for Indian Country. Most of us understand the Indian Health
Service to be the government’s fulfillment of its treaty obligations. However the IHS has never
been fully funded. Medicaid, however, is an unlimited check. If a person is eligible, then the
money is there. Yet states, not tribes nor the federal government, determine the rules for
Medicaid. And many Republican states have been determined to fight the Affordable Care Act,
or Obamacare, at every turn, and that means refusing to accept Medicaid expansion (the Supreme
Court ruled in 2012 that states could turn it down).
Alaska’s decision means that the number of states rejecting Medicaid is continuing to
shrink. Most recently Montana agreed to expand Medicaid in April. The states with large
American
Indian and Alaska Native populations that have not expanded Medicaid include
Oklahoma, South Dakota, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Maine, Wyoming, and Idaho. Utah is the
next state considering an expansion.
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The Affordable Care Act continues to evolve — and improve. But more important, steps
that states are taking to expand Medicaid are adding real dollars to the Indian health system.
\\\\V////
#NATIVEVOTE16
INDIAN COUNTRY WINS WITH MORE REPRESENTATION IN THE STATES
Mark Trahant,* “NativeVote16-Insdian Country with More Representation ion the States”
Republished with author’s permission from Mark Trahant’s blog, Trahant Reports, November
22, 2015, http://trahantreports.com/2015/11/22/nativevote16-indian-country-wins-with-morerepresentation-in-the-states/.
WHERE NATIVE AMERICANS HOLD STATE OFFICE: Some seventy-plus elected to
state legislatures in 17 states. This map and an interactive spreadsheet will be updated often. Let
me know who’s missing. Information was compiled from the National Conference of State
Legislatures, State caucus reports, news sources, and candidate profiles.
Who will be Indian Country’s Barack Obama? She’s probably already elected to a
state office
At least 73 American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native Hawaiians serve in 17 state
legislatures. This is important for a couple of reasons. First, if you look at the body of work of
these state senators and representatives, you’ll find them advocating for better services, more
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funding and improving relationships between tribal nations and state governments. Second, state
offices are a source of talent for higher elective posts, ranging from Congress to the White
House. Remember it was in only 1996 when Barack Obama was elected to the Illinois state
Senate.
Montana best demonstrates the growing influence of Native American voters.
Denise Juneau, the state’s superintendent of public instruction, is currently running for
the U.S. House of Representatives. She’s a member of the Mandan and Hidatsa Tribes and grew
up in Browning, Montana, in the Blackfeet Nation. Juneau has a political track record. She’s
already won two state-wide contests so she knows what it takes to win a House seat. This is how
U.S. politics often works: A candidate wins at the state level, does a good a job, and then she
moves on to Congress (or is appointed to a federal post, such as Secretary of Education).
The Montana story is richer than Juneau alone. Some twenty years ago, Montana was
much like any other state with a significant Native American population with only one or two
Native Americans serving in the legislature. Then Native American candidate won in 1997. And
again in 2003. And by 2007 Native Americans in Montana reached ten seats in the legislature;
representing 6.6 percent of that body. Montana’s population is 7.4 percent Native American.
Today there are 3 Native Americans in the Senate and 5 in the House, some 5.3 percent
of the state legislature.
To put the Montana percentage in national terms: If Congress were 5.3 percent Native
American, there would be 5 U.S. Senators and 21 members of the House. Even if you adjust for
population, the number of Native American members of Congress would have to more than
double to equal the representation in Montana. It’s telling that when Brookings Institution
researched the historical demographics for members of Congress it did not even bother to
measure Native Americans. There are two tribal members currently serving in Congress and, so
far, this election season, there are at least seven Native American candidates for Congress.
259
The Montana model
Why is Montana the model? Hard work. Good candidates. And, litigation to enforce the
Voting Rights Act.
Montana had a long history of disenfranchising Native American voters. According to a
voting history from the American Civil Liberties Union, a Montana 1932 law said only
“taxpayers” could vote, wiping out potential voters on reservations. Another law banned polling
places on reservations. The ACLU said: “The suit Windy Boy v. County of Big Horn, challenged
at-large elections for the three member County Commission of Big Horn County, Montana, and
two smaller school districts in the county which shared a common board of education, as diluting
American Indian voting strength. … At the time the complaint was filed in 1983, no Indian,
despite the fact that Indians were 41 percent of the voting age population, had ever been elected
to the county commission or the school board.”
Even though Montana represents many of the best practices in Native American participation,
260
there remain challenges such as opening more satellite voting stations on reservations. This is
important in Montana because the distance between a reservation community and a county seat
could be more than a hundred miles roundtrip.
There are two other reasons why the Native American electoral experience in Montana is
different.
First, the 2004 election of Brian Schweitzer as governor was a game changer. “Never in
Montana’s history has an entire Administration reached out to Indians to ensure they were
acknowledged, respected, and most importantly, included,” Schweitzer wrote in a 2012 report to
the tribes, “Promises Made, Promises Kept.” During those eight years more than 250 “First
Montanans” were appointed to boards, councils, commissions and state offices, including many
firsts, such as appointments to the Fish and Wildlife commission, athletic commission, building
code council and health-related boards. These offices made it clear to the citizens of Montana
that the state’s Native American communities were a part of the body politic instead of being
relegated to a “special interest.”
A second reason, and a success story, is the community organizing work of Western
Native Voice. Leading up to the 2012 election, Western Native Voice set a goal of registering
3,000 Native Americans for the primary and 5,000 for the general elections. Western Native
Voice exceeded that goal by some 1,300 additional voters.
The track record of Montana Native American legislators is pretty good. According to the
Montana Budget and Policy Center, this past session produced a number of innovative laws,
including Medicaid expansion (a financial boost to the Indian health system) as well as laws that
will improve funding for tribal colleges, support tribal languages, and streamline Indian business
ventures. The record of Native American legislators was not 100 percent, but it’s likely that
during the next session many of the ideas that failed to pass will be back on the agenda.
Next door to Montana, in Wyoming, there is an example of what happens when Native
American voters are not organized to turn out and vote.
W. Patrick Goggles, an Arapaho, served in the legislature for a decade representing
Ethete on the Wind River Reservation. “I have been able to work with the legislature for the new
construction of schools,” Goggles told Wyoming Public Radio, as well as “work with the health
programs and human services to insure that contracts with the tribes were in place” and
negotiate tax agreements that impact the reservation community.
However in 2014 Goggles chose not to run again. In the election that followed, he was
replaced by Jim Allen, a Republican non-Indian rancher. Andrea Clifford, Goggles’ niece, lost
the election by 130 votes — and in a district where 65 percent of the voters are Native American.
This is the classic example of a low turn-out election because Allen received fewer votes
in 2014 than he did winning in 2012.
The state with the largest number of Native American legislators is Oklahoma with 14.
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It’s also the only state with a balance between Democrats and Republicans (8 Democrats and 6
Republicans). To put that number in perspective: Nationally of the 70 elected Native Americans
in state legislatures, 58 are Democrats and 12 are Republicans.
It’s also worth noting that tribes in Maine have three automatic delegates to the
legislature. The offices are similar to delegates to Congress from the District of Columbia and
other U.S. Territories. The practice began in 1823. The Maine tribal delegates can serve on
committees but cannot vote. According to a Maine legislative history: There was an attempt in
1939 to change delegate system and two years later the legislature “ousted the Indians entirely
from the Hall of the House, their status being reduced to little better than state paid lobbyists.
Since 1965, a gradual change for the better has occurred. Salaries and allowances have increased,
and seating and speaking privileges were restored in 1975 , after a lapse of thirty-four years.”
Across the country it’s clear that Native American representation before state
governments significantly trails the population of American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native
Hawaiians. There are 40 members serving in Alaska House and 20 in that state Senate. Yet only
five Alaska Natives represent in the House — or 12.5 percent — and two in the Senate. Yet
Alaska has the highest voting age population of Native Americans in the country, some 17
percent.
The growth of Native American voters — and elected officials — is only the beginning
of a trend. We know our population is growing faster than the general population. And in many
states there is already the number of voters required to build a winning election coalition that
includes the Native community.
Most of the action in the decade ahead will be at the state level. If you look at the list of
some seventy elected state officials it’s clear that there is a wealth of talent such as Alaska’s Sam
Kito III or South Dakota’s Kevin Killer. Look across the country and you will see why the
Native Americans who are serving now in state legislatures are the next generation of leaders in
the Congress — and even the White House.
So if you want to know who will be Indian Country’s Barack Obama, look to the states.
Her name will be Paulette Jordan, Peggy Flanagan or Denise Juneau.
North Dakota. He is an independent journalist and a member of The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes.
On Twitter @TrahantReports.
o0O0o
IMPLEMENTING THE UN'S SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS
Dr. Yossef Ben-Meir, "Implementing the U.N.’s Sustainable Development Goals"
After fifteen years of nations pursuing the Millennium Development Goals established by
the United Nations, representatives of the member states, along with experts and private citizens,
have defined Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to help set the course for the next fifteen
262
years.
All told seventeen goals have been developed which together aim to end poverty and
hunger; ensure access to health and education for all; achieve gender equality as well as greater
equality between individuals and nations; and protect the environment, combat climate change
and promote sustainable growth.
One critical SDG involves the strengthening of the means by which nations can
implement the overall vision. Is there proven methodology that member states can consider and
adopt in this regard, even as the challenges and opportunities they face are as diverse as
humanity itself? We suggest four specific factors that are applicable in this case.
First, we know from decades of global project development evaluations that people’s
participation from design to evaluation is the primary factor in determining whether
sustainability will be achieved. In order to promote effective community participation, an
administrative system that is decentralized will empower local populations to make decisions and
assume responsibility for implementing the social change they seek. Since sustainable
development is a reflection of the extent to which people own their particular development
process, it follows that institutionalizing local open spaces so that people can come together and
build partnerships and shared action plans is of paramount importance in achieving the SDGs.
A fortuitous occurrence is that in global terms decentralization is on the rise, albeit for
different reasons in different countries. In a number of Arab Spring nations, for example, the
promotion of human development and popular empowerment is - rightfully - part of a calculated
attempt to avoid political instability.
A second necessary measure at the national level is capacity building among stakeholders
to advance projects that achieve the SDGs. Specifically, there is a critical role to be performed
by facilitators of local community meetings and dialogue in order to promote participation.
Trained facilitators help to ensure that all voices are represented and heard. Further, they are
aware of pre-existing power relationships and how to engage with these so as to guide a
development process in a manner that is broadly based and just.
Third, it would be helpful if measures for sustainable implementation were described in
culturally relative terms. In many societies the enduring precepts of people’s participation in
communal life leading to sustainable societies are informed fundamentally by Islam. Integrated
Islamic and developmental concepts include shura, itself the practice of participation and
consultation; ummah is the global integration of individuals and groups with rights to solidarities
and part of humanity as a whole (decentralization); baya in Islamic tradition holds leaders
accountable; and tawhidi society is one that recognizes the indivisibility of mankind. Ensuring
that participation and decentralization are explained in Islamic, rather than Western, terms would
allow Muslim people to see their own outlook and values fully present and incorporated in the
steps needed to implement the SDGs.
Developmental concepts are also present in the Biblical story of creation. “And God
said, “Let us make Man in our image, after our likeness…”. What is meant by us? Jewish Sages
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recording a tradition dating back at least two thousand years explain that God included the angels
in the decision to create humanity in order avoid conflict between the angels and humankind (by
being part of the decision, angels accepted the outcome). God in effect created the blueprint for
consulting with others before embarking upon initiatives. Only then did God create humankind
who – by virtue of being formed in the Divine image – are enjoined to follow the Divine
example.
Finally, policy development embarked upon by nations in order to achieve the SDGs,
occurs sustainably and most suitably as local participatory processes unfold and light is shed
naturally upon policy opportunities that promote sustainable development. People’s
participation in a sense tests the social system. In this way for example, restrictions to the
growth of civil society are clarified and the necessary roles that could be played by public
agencies, in order to bring to fruition projects determined by local communities, may be defined
in greater detail. In sum, the most effective policy development emerges from lessons gained
from the experience of community participation in development.
In the same way as laws and policies to advance the human condition, the SDGs find
their efficacy only in their processes of implementation. Indeed, in development and social
processes generally, the means are the ends (or at least they determine them to a large extent).
While there are no absolute preconditions to sustainable human development there are
undoubtedly conditions conducive to such development. Enabling local communities to plan and
implement their future in an empowering decentralized environment is a recipe for success on an
historic scale in this respect.
*Dr.
Yossef
Ben-Meir
is
[email protected].
president
of
the
High
Atlas
Foundation,
{>+<}
#NATIVE VOTE 16
CANADA’S NEW GOVERNMENT AND THE MUSIC OF ELECTIONS
Mark Trahant*
From Mark Trahant's Blog, Trahant Reports, with author's permission, November 5, 2015
Events in Canada this week show why elections matter. Yes there will be better policies
put in place: Perhaps a return to government-to-government relations with First Nations; more
federal investment in Indigenous education; and, a serious, nationwide probe of Missing and
Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls. All those things show a government moving in the right
direction.
But there is something else: tone. The music of elections.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivered the message that Aboriginal Canadians are
significant intellectual contributors to Canada’s political discourse. Trudeau’s appointments, his
first day of images, really set a high bar for what hope elections can stir in communities,
including those representing First Nations, Inuit and Metis.
264
Most of us are surrounded by a narrative that says real shared power takes a long time.
We have to move slow, methodically, bringing people along.
But that’s not what happened in Canada. Trudeau’s appointments were like a lightening
bolt. In one instant the cabinet of Canada is representative of gender, of region, and, of
Aboriginal people. When he was asked, “why?” about gender, the prime minister replied,
“because it’s 2015.”
Assembly of First Nations Chief Perry Bellegarde told the CBC that Trudeau’s
appointments begin a “new era of reconciliation.”
“I was very impressed with the opening ceremony, but even more impressed that out of
eight aboriginal members of Parliament that were elected, two have made it into cabinet,” said
Bellegarde. “It sends a powerful statement about inclusion and it sends a powerful statement
about the reconciliation that is going to be required in rebuilding a new relationship between
Canada and Indigenous Peoples.”
The new minister of Justice and Attorney General Jody Wilson-Raybould shows how a
government can match diversity with extraordinary talent and experience. Much has been said
about the attorney general’s role as a regional tribal chief and as an advocate for reconciliation
with Aboriginal people. But she’s also been British Columbia crown prosecutor. The fact is she’s
extraordinarily well qualified for this post. Wilson-Raybould is a member of the We Wai Kai
Nation and a descendant of the Musgamagw Tsawataineuk and Laich-Kwil-Tach peoples, which
are part of the Kwakwaa’wakw and also known as the Kwak’wala speaking peoples. When she
was a child, her father said it was her goal to be Prime Minister.
That same richness of experience is true for the new minister of Fisheries and Oceans
Canada, Hunter Tootoo. Yes, he is Inuit and has a track record on issues such as economic
development or housing. But he also was Speaker of the Nunavut Legislative Assembly.
The Tyee in Vancouver quoted Aaron Hill of the Watershed Watch Salmon Society
saying Tootoo’s appointment could mean a “seismic shift” in Canada’s approach to First Nations
fisheries.
Imagine what these kinds of appointments would be like in the United States: A leader of
a fishing tribe named to head the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Or a tribal
judge or attorney as the next United States Attorney General. Lightening bolt.
Canada, of course, is a different political system. Cabinet members must also be elected
Members of Parliament. Here it would mean getting elected to Congress before you could be
Interior Secretary. (In fact that opens an interesting debate about Canada’s Minister of
Indigenous and Northern Affairs. In the U.S. system, it would be unthinkable for the Interior
Department’s Assistant Secretary Indian Affairs to not be a tribal member. And in Canada there
has never been a native leader in that post.) Yet even with the political differences in Canada
265
there is a shared sense of optimism after an election. Every government starts off with hope and
the excitement of possibility of making people’s lives better.
And there is one more thing. Native Americans, like Aboriginal Canadians, are poised to
have better representation in an imperfect democracy. To have a voice in the affairs of a country,
the whole country. That voice started when fifty-four Aboriginal Canadians ran for federal
office. That voice was confirmed when ten of those candidates won. That voice will only get
stronger and clearer in the years to come.
North Dakota. He is an independent journalist and a member of The Shoshone-Bannock Tribes.
On Twitter @TrahantReports.
<><<<<<>>>>><>
FIVE LESSONS FOR INDIAN COUNTRY FROM THE CANADIAN ELECTIONS
Mark Trahant*
Republished with author's permaission from Mark Thahant's Blog, Trahant Reports, October 20,
2015, http://trahantreports.com/2015/10/20/five-lessons-for-indian-country-from-the-canadianelections/.
Canada’s election was one for the history books: A third-place Liberal party won enough
seats to form a government; Aboriginal voters cast so many ballots that in some areas they ran
out; and across the country people demanded a reversal of a decade of Conservative policies.
Not that elections fix everything. In Canada, like the U.S., there is no ideal representation
for Native voters. One phrase I heard on Aboriginal People’s Television Network last night
summed it up well: A lesser of three evils. (Canada has five major parties, three of them with a
chance of forming a government.) And, like the U.S., Canada’s elections are not exactly
democratic. More about that shortly.
Aboriginal voters appeared to have turned out in record numbers, electing ten Native
people to Parliament (up from seven). But if that sounds like a lot, consider this sentence from
the Canadian Broadcasting Service: “While there were a record 54 indigenous candidates
running in this election, Indigenous people will end up occupying just three per cent of the 338
seats in the House of Commons.” Of course that compares to the United States where the two
American Indians in Congress make up 0.37 percent of that body. At least in Canada there are
enough Aboriginal voices to form a caucus; there’s the potential to raise voices for and against
significant pieces of legislation and budgets.
That brings me to Lesson One from Canada: You gotta run to win.
As the Indigenous Politics blog pointed out there were 54 First Nation, Metis and Inuit
candidates running nationwide. The New Democratic Party had the most, 22 candidates, and
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only two of those candidates won seats, Georgina Jolibois, Dene, in Saskatchewan, and Romeo
Saganash, Cree, in Quebec.
So apply this lesson to the United States. What if we had candidates running in every
state where there is a significant population of American Indians and Alaska Natives? Start with
Alaska’s only congressional district, the seat held by Don Young. I know it’s been done before.
But there should be a Native face of opposition running for that seat every election. Same for
Arizona’s first congressional district and on and on. Oklahoma. Montana. New Mexico. South
Dakota. North Dakota. Washington. Oregon. California. You can’t win without a candidate.
Indian Country needs more candidates for key races as well as for some of the unlikely districts.
Just from a tactical point of view the Liberals did this brilliantly. Five years ago the party
was all but dead. As a piece from CTV News said in 2011: “Canada’s Liberals were arguably the
most successful political party in Western democracy in the 20th century. They are starting the
21st century on the cusp of irrelevance at best, and facing extinction at worst.”
You gotta run to win.
Second lesson from Canada. Yes, mainstream politics do matter. I know, and respect, the
argument that Native people should stay out of general politics. That’s there is no difference
between any of the parties. Factually that is not true. The Conservative Party under Stephen
Harper is a textbook case showing the problem with that premise. First Nations were only
“consulted” when there was already an agreement for more resource extraction. If the answer
was no, well, that was ignored. And, when there was a widespread demand for a government
inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls the answer was a hostile no.
The new government will not be perfect but it will be good. And the new government will at
least investigate and try to do something about the epidemic of violence against Native women.
One powerful story that Canada has is that of Elijah Harper. More than anyone else the
late member of the Manitoba provincial legislature showed what one vote could do, ending a
constitutional process that would not have served First Nations.
Third lesson from Canada. Turnout is key. Again, as pointed out often, if Aboriginal
voters had voted in previous elections there would not have been a Conservative government.
Not voting is a powerful statement. It’s the same in the United States. American Indian and
Alaska Natives are pretty good voters during presidential election years; then we disappear.
That’s backwards. We’d have far more pull in a low turnout, off-cycle national election. Of
course if we have fifty-something candidates running for Congress, that could change for the
better.
The fourth lesson from Canada. Elections are not the end of the process, but they do offer
a new beginning. The Liberal Party has many strengths but it’s probably not going to be the
leader on climate change, stopping the Keystone XL pipeline, or even rethinking energy in a big
way. Like U.S. Democrats there is a lot of corporate influence and money that’s directed their
way. (I think market forces will kill Keystone anyway.) But all that means is you keep pushing.
Elections are only one step.
267
You gotta keep running to win.
And the final lesson? Canada like the United States needs a better democracy. This
election is considered a huge win for Liberals. But they only won 39.5 percent of the vote. The
Conservatives had 31.9 percent and the New Democrats earned 19.7 percent. The Green Party
captured 3.5 percent — and yet only ended up with one seat. (That’s not as bad as the U.S. where
Republicans won 52 percent of the votes for the House, controlling 57 percent of the seats.) The
reason for this in both countries is the district system or first past the post. It’s a system that most
of the world has rejected in favor of elections that are more representative of all the citizens in a
country.
If Canada’s elections, for example had been held in a system with proportional
representation, today the Liberals and the New Democrats would be working together to try and
form a government. Then that would be a government that would actually represent most
Canadians. We can’t have that. It would scare the hell out of Washington.
-+<::::::<>::::::>+REVIEWS
REVIEW: THE INCONVENIENT INDIAN: A CURIOUSACCOUNT
OF NATIVE PEOPLE OF NORTH AMERICA, BY THOMAS KING
The Inconvenient Indian: A Curious Account of Native People in North America
by Thomas King. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota Press, 2013, pp. 288 (Originally
published in 2012 by Doubleday, Canada)
Reviewed by María José Belmonte Sánchez, University of Helsinki
The Inconvenient Indian by Thomas King presents a unique historical, legal and social
analysis of the Native peoples of North America. The book considers the relations between
Natives and non-Natives from the early nineteenth century until present day with a special focus
on events in the United States and Canada.
King uses a unique narrative discourse and storytelling technique which does not follow a
standard chronological structure. The book is written in a readable and unpretentious style that
engages the reader and brings historical events alive. King does not look for a remedy to all the
injustices suffered by Natives, but instead remains in a quasi-neutral narrative position while
taking the reader by hand through history. One interesting feature of the book is the inclusion of
King’s wife Helen as a character and commentator. Helen’s role is to provide additional
observations on certain events mentioned in the text.
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There are a few weaknesses in the book. King sometimes provides copious amounts of
dates and events in list format. This technique can be distracting and stops the narrative
momentum of the text. More importantly, I would have preferred more critical commentary in
the volume.
However, these are minor criticisms. The Inconvenient Indian stands as an informative
and relevant book that provides a solid overview of Native peoples’ history as well as a great
read. King’s writing style brings the book alive, with its simplicity and humor. Overall, The
Inconvenient Indian is a joy to read and is recommended for all.
>HIHIH<
A REVIEW:
WILL TAEGEL, THE MOTHER TONGUE: INTIMACY IN THE ECO-FIELD
AND
GLENN APARICIO PARRY, ORIGINAL THINKING: A RADICAL RETHINKING
OF TIME, HUMANITY AND NATURE
Stephen M. Sachs*
Over a little more than the past 100 years, western culture, and especially western
science, have moved closer to Indigenous ways of seeing.1 This is extremely positive, for while
western culture and science have made great contributions to humanity through an approach that
takes an aggressive narrow focus, the reductionism involved has too often missed the larger
picture seen by Indigenous cultures, and the more passive Native science.2 This has had
disastrous results, the most obvious of which is the current world climate and broader
environmental crisis.3 Moreover, Western science and culture have often missed the importance
of the particular of place, and caused great problems, and have experienced large failures, by
failing to sufficiently adapt valid general principles to particular circumstances.4 In addition, one
area in which the west has suffered from its reductionism, and has been in need of a more
holistic understanding, has been in giving primacy to intellect, or logic, with too little respect and
consideration for the other ways of perceiving and processing information, most notably
intuition.5 Fortunately, an integration has been in progress between western and Indigenous
ways of seeing, that is badly needed.
Two important volumes in furthering this integration are Will Taegel. The Mother
Tongue: Intimacy in the Eco-field (Wimberley, TX: 2nd Tier Publishing, 2012), and Glenn
Aparicio Parry, Original Thinking: A Radical Rethinking of Time, Humanity and Nature
(Berkely, CA: North Atlantic Books, 2015).
Taegel, who has American Indian heritage, had considerable experience with the
Muscogee Elder Marcellus Bear Heart Williams, which helped expand his perspective. In the
Mother Tongue, Taegel continues an examination, begun in earlier works, of, “our interior
domains as we seek to navigate the turbulent waters of the 21st Century.” Early on he conveys an
experience of one on a vision quest in the woods on a ranch in Texas, receiving a message from
the trees that a forest fire was coming, which propelled her to rush back to home base and initiate
the action which saved the ranch from the fire.
269
Later Taegel relates supporting research by contemporary mainstream cutting edge
biologist, Almo Farina and his research group of the Istituto di Biomatematica at the University
of Urbino, in Italy. Farina’s group studied eco-fields relating to local habitats. They found that
local landscapes had underlying fields, linked together non-locally in overlapping exchanges, in
which messages were being exchanged between species, and also with relevant inanimate
objects. Thus it appeared that the birds and the trees were talking to each other, as were the grass,
the soil and rocks. Farina’s group did not include human beings in their study, but the
implication is that if people are open to listening to their intuition, and develop that capacity,
they would become part of the dialogue with everything in their environment. This is consistent
with with traditional Native healers saying that certain plants told them that some part of the
plant had specific healing properties. Thus, the movement in the west to return to understanding
that human beings are part of nature gains an added dimension. This is part of Taegel’s
communicating that,
Our human estrangement from Nature leads us to a profound estrangement
from human nature. Without Nature I cannot know my true nature.
It seems to be the case that our Universe is making itself known as an
evolving, coherent whole, operating with intelligence and information exchange at the
very beginning point and continuing to our current moment.
… to rejoin the intimate circle of our planet’s council we must speak the root
language, the lost dialect at the base of all language. Only then can we be intimate in
the fullest sense. All current human languages are second languages to the more than
human language of the eco fields.
Glenn Parry wrote Original Thinking following 12 years of facilitating dialogues among
western scientists and traditional American Indian elders. Parry relates that when the dialoguing
group took up the question, “Is it possible to come up with an original thought,” the western
scientists considered if it was possible to say something that never been said before. Meanwhile,
the Native elders discussed going back to origins, to the original instructions which human
beings had been given. Parry, while acknowledging that western culture and its science have
made many significant contributions to humanity, believes that the west has gone astray and
needs to renew its thinking. “The origin of thinking is thinking is thinking. Original thinking is a
remembering or a putting back together something that has always existed, but has been torn
apart. Original thinking embraces the wholeness of time: it is both old and new.”
The volume goes into depth on a number of questions in the course of revisioning where
western culture night move: “Is it possible to come up with an original thought?” “What does it
mean to be human?” “How has our thinking created the world today, and what is now
emerging?” and “Can education promote the renewal of original thinking?” This reviewer found
the discussion most helpful in integrating an Indigenous perspective into the process of how
western societies, and, indeed, the world, might move out of the current set of escalating crises.
In the course of considering such a vast set of critical topics, I saw some, minor issues
differently, and thought a few points might have been stated in other terms, but, as one who
270
agrees that there is much of the ancient perspective that needs to be restored in conjunction with
what has been the best of the west, I found the thrust of the book most helpful, and the whole of
the work quite thought provoking.
_________________
1. For example, for the general shift, see LaDonna Harris, Editor and Mentor, Stephen M. Sachs
and Barbara Morris, General Authors, Recreating the Circle: The Renewal of American Indian
Self Determination, Ch. 1, Section 2; and on science in particular, Stephen M. Sachs, “The
Cutting Edge of Physics: Western Science Is Finally Catching Up with American Indian
Tradition,” Proceedings of 2007 Western Social Science Association Meeting American Indian
Studies Section, Indigenous Policy, Vol. XVIII, No. 2, summer 2007.
2. Gregory Cajete, Native Science: Natural Laws of Interdependence (Santa Fe: Clear Light
Publishers, 2000),
3. For example, see, Climate Change, Environmental Decay and Indigenous People: Indigenizing
the Greening of the World,” Proceedings of 2008 Western Social Science Association Meeting
American Indian Studies Section, Indigenous Policy, Vol. XIX, No. 2, summer 2008, reprinted in
the Review of Environmental Peace 2011, and the Journal of Environmental Peace, forthcoming
2011.
4. Ibid.
5. Carl Jung, Psychological Types (New York: Harcourt Brace, 1923). Application of Jung’s
understanding in Western culture can be seen in Isabel Meyers, Gifts Differing (Palo Alto, CA:
Consulting Psychologists Press, 1980); and David Keirsey and Marilyn Bates, Please
Understand Me: Character and Temperament Types (Delmar, CA: Permethius Nemesis Book
Co., 1984). Eduardo Duran and Bonnie Duran, Native American Postcolonial Psychology
(Albany, NY: State of New York University Press, 1995) holds that while Jung’s perspective is
essentially correct, his model needs to be adjusted for different cultures, and a Native American
model is posited by the authors, particularly on pp. 65-83.
*Stephen Sachs is Professor Emeritus of Political Science at IUPUI, Senior Editor of IPJ, and
coauthor of Recreating he Circle: The Renewal of American Indian Self-Determination. He can
be reached at [email protected].
>>>>))))+((((<<<<
MEDIA NOTES
University of Arizona Press listings include: Lori Davisson with Edgar Perry and the Original
Staff of the White Mountain Apache Cultural Center Edited by John R. Welch, Dispatches from
the Fort Apache Scout: White Mountain and Cibecue Apache History Through 1881 (224 pp.
for $19.95 paper); Mike Harrison and John Williams, Edited by Sigrid Khera and Carolina
Castillo Butler, Oral History of the Yavapai (400 pp. for $19.95 paper, $29.95 cloth); Compiled
by Thomas E. Sheridan, Empire of Sand: The Seri Indians and the Struggle for Spanish
Sonora, 1645–1803 (564 pp. for $498.95 paper); Theodore Catton, American Indians and
National Forests (376 pp. for $39.95 cloth); Qwo-Li Driskill, Asegi Stories: Cherokee Queer
271
and Two-Spirit Memory (224 pp. for $29.94 paper); Theresa McCarthy, In Divided Unity:
Haudenosaunee Reclamation at Grand River (416 pp. for $55 cloth); María L. O. Muñoz,
Stand Up and Fight: Participatory Indigenismo, Populism, and Mobilization in Mexico, 1970–
1984 (272 pp. fo $55 cloth); Laura Rival, Huaorani Transformations in Twenty-First-Century
Ecuador: Treks into the Future of Time (344 pp. for $65 cloth); Edited by Galen Brokaw and
Jongsoo Lee, Fernando de Alva Ixtlilxochitl and His Legacy (312 pp. for $60 cloth); Philip E.
Coyle, Náyari History, Politics, and Violence From Flowers to Ash (266 pp. for $29.95 paper);
Edited by Kenichiro Tsukamoto and Takeshi Inomata, Mesoamerican Plazas Arenas of
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Indigenous-Colonial Interactions in Southwestern Alaska, 1740–1950 (208 pp. for $55 cloth);
M. Kyle Woodson, The Social Organization of Hohokam Irrigation in the Middle Gila River
Valley, Arizona (288 pp., for $29.895 paper); Wesley Bernardini, Hopi Oral Tradition and the
Archaeology of Identity (240 pp. for $29.95 paper); Edited by Catherine M. Cameron, Paul
Kelton, and Alan C. Swedlund, Beyond Germs: Native Depopulation in North America (296
pp. for $60 cloth); Edited by Thomas E. Sheridan, Stewart B. Koyiyumptewa, Anton daughters,
dale S. Brenneman, T. J. Ferguson, Leigh Kuwanwisiwma, and LeeWayne Lomayestewa,
Moquis and Kastiilam: Hopis, Spaniards, and the Trauma of History, Volume I, 1540–1679
(384 p for %65 cloth); Edited by Fernando Santos-Granero, Images of Public Wealth or the
Anatomy of Well-Being: in Indigenous Amazonia (216 pp. for $60 cloth); Edited by Eleanor M.
King, The Ancient Maya Marketplace: The Archaeology of Transient Space (352 pp. for $65
cloth); Edited by Laura L. Scheiber and Mark D. Mitchell, Across a Great Divide: Continuity
and Change in Native North American Societies, 1400–1900 (352 pp. for $35 paper), all from
the University of Arizona Press, 355 S. Euclid Ave., Suite 103, Tucson, AZ 85701, phone/fax
(800) 426-3797, http://www.uapress.arizona.edu/.
Offerings from the University of Hawaii Press include: Abundance and Resilience: Farming
and Foraging in Ancient Kaua`i, http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/p-9483-9780824839895.aspx;
Kuleana and Commitment: Working toward a Collaborative Hawaiian Archaeology,
http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/p-9474-9780824846800.aspx; At Home and in the Field:
Ethnographic Encounters in Asia and the Pacific Islands, http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/p9335-9780824847593.aspx; Taming the Wild: Aborigines and Racial Knowledge in Colonial
Malaya, http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/p-9458-9780824852559.aspx; Diaspora and Nation in
the Indian Ocean: Transnational Histories of Race and Urban Space in Tanzania;
http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/p-9491-9780824851552.aspx and Domination and Resistance:
The United States and the Marshall Islands during the Cold War,
http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu/p-9534-9780824847623.aspx), All, plus $5 first item, $1 each
additional, shipping, from University of Hawai’i Press, 1840 Kolawalu St., Honolulu, HI 96822
(808)956-8255, [email protected], http://www.uhpress.hawaii.edu.
Recent offerings from the University of New Mexico Press include: Alexander Ewen
and Jeffrey Wollock, Encyclopedia of the American Indian in the Twentieth Century (552 pp.
for $95 cloth); the Zuni people; translated by alvina Quam. The Zunis: Self-Portrayals (272 pp.
for $24.95 paper), all plus $5 for the first item and $1 for each additional, shipping, from the
University of New Mexico Press, MSC04 2820, 1 University of New Mexico, Albuquerque NM
87131-0001 (505)272-7777 or (800)249-7737, http://www.unmpress.com/.
272
University of Nebraska Press offerings include: Richard King, Redskins: Insult and Brand (256
pp. for $24.95 cloth); Grant Arnot, Ho-Chunk Powwows: The Politics of Tradition (375 pp. for
#$69 cloth); Collected by Francis Joseph Attocknie, Thomas W. Kavanagh, ed., The Life of Ten
Bears: Comanche Historical Narratives (284 pp. for $65 cloth); Pauline R. Hillaire, Gregory P.
Fields, Rights Remembered: A Salish Grandmother Speaks on American Indian History and
the Future (488 pp. for $39.95); Elena Mihas, Upper Perene Arawak Narratives of History,
Landscape and Ritual (488 pp. for$35 paper); Christopher D. Haveman, Rivers of Sand: Creek
Indian Emigration, Forced Relocation, and Ethnic Cleansing of South (422 pp. for $65 cloth):
Andrew Woolford, This Benevolent Experiment Indigenous Boarding Schools, Genocide, and
Redress in Canada and the United States (448 pp. for $90 cloth); Bradley R. Clampitt, ed., The
Civil War and Reconstruction in Indian Territory (200 [p/ for $25 paper); Jay Miller, Ancestral
Mounds: Vitality and Volatility of Native America (212 pp/ for $55 cloth); Akim D. Reinholt,
ed., Welcome to the Oglala Nation: A Documentary Reader in Oglala Lakota Political History
(396 pp. for $60 cloth); James O. Cum;, The Dust Rose Like Smoke: The Subjugation of the
Zulu and the Sioux, Second Edition (148 pp. for $25 paper); David J. Costa, New Voices for
Old Words: Algonquian Oral Literatures (568 pp. for $90 cloth); and Andrew Denson,
Demanding the Cherokee Nation: Indian Autonomy and American Culture, 1830-1900 (344
pp. for $30 paper), all, plus $5 for the first item, $1 for each additional, from University of
Nebraska Press, 1111 Lincoln Mall, Lincoln, NE 68588 (800)755-1105, [email protected],
www.nebraskapress.unl.edu.
Offerings from the University of Oklahoma Press include: Jerome A. Greene, Foreword By:
Thomas Powers, American Carnage: Wounded Knee, 1890 (648 pp.. For $34.95 cloth); Allen
V. Pinkham, Steven Ross Evans, Foreword By: Frederick E. Hoxie Lewis and Clark Among the
Nez Perce: Strangers in the Land of the Nimiipuu (332 pp. $19.95 paper); James Bailey
Blackshear, Fort Bascom: Soldiers, Comancheros, and Indians in the Canadian River Valley
(272 pp. for $24,95 cloth); John M. Rhea, A Field of Their Own: Women and American
Indian History, 1830–1941 (212pp, for $34.95 cloth); David J. Carlson, Imagining
Sovereignty: Self-Determination in American Indian Law and Literature (242 pp. for $29.95
paper); Julie L. Reed, Serving the Nation: Cherokee Sovereignty and Social Welfare, 1800–
1907 (376 pp. for $34,95 cloth); Greg Olson, Ioway Life: Reservation and Reform, 1837–1860
(275 pp. for $29.95 cloth); John P. Bowes, Land Too Good for Indians: Northern Indian
Removal (328 pp, for $29.95 cloth); Tadeusz Lewandowski. Ef., Red Bird, Red Power: The
Lifeand Legacy of Zitkala-Ša (288 pp. fpr $29.95 cloth); Ana Kondic, South Eastern Huastec
Narratives: A Trilingual Edition (232 pp. for $45 cloth); C. Daniel Crews, Richard W.
Starbuck, eds., Records of the Moravians Among the Cherokees: Volume Six: March to
Removal, Part 1, Safe in the Ancestral Homeland, 1821–1824 (568 pp. for $50 cloth);
Charlotte Hinger, Nicodemus: Post-Reconstruction Politics and Racial Justice in Western
Kansas (232 pp. for $29.95 cloth), all, plus $5 for first item, $1.50 for each additional, shipping,
from the University of Oklahoma Press: http://www.oupress.com/.
Volumes from the University of Alaska Press encompass: Amy Steffian, Marnie Leist and Sven
Haakanson, Jt., Kal’unek From Karluk: Kodiak Alutiq History and Archeology of the Karluk
One Village Site (300 pp. for $60 cloth), all plus $6 first item, $1 each additional, from
University of Alaska Press: www.alaska.edu/uapress.
273
Books from University of Pennsylvania Press include: Susan Juster, Sacred Violence in Early
America (296 pages for $55 cloth or Ebook); and Jean R. Soderlund, Lenape Country:
Delaware Valley Society Before William Penn (264 pages for $39.95 cloth, $24.paper or
Ebook), all, p;lus $5 for first item and $1 for each additional, from the University of
Pennsylvania Press, www.pennpress.org.
Offerings from the University of Kansas Press include: William D. Street, Edited by Warren R. Street
With an introduction by Richard W. Etulain, Twenty-Five Years among the Indians and Buffalo: A
Frontier Memoir (584 pp. for $29.95 cloth or Ebook), all, plus $5 for first item, $1 for each
additional, shipping, from: WWW.kansaspress.ku.edu.
The American Journal of Indigenous Studies is a new quarterly journal by the American
Scholarly Research Association (ASRA). ASRA is an open access publisher dedicated to
supporting scholarly research endeavors and public enrichment through open access academic
journals. ASRA publishes the following types of manuscripts: original research articles,
communications, perspectives, review articles, and letters to the editor. Perspectives, review
articles, and letters to the editor are FREE. There is a small publication fee for original research
articles and communications. AJIS is at: American Scholarly Research Association, P.O. Box
260182, Madison, WI 53726, www.ASRAresearch.or.
~~~
Ph.D. Dissertations from Universities Around the World on Topics Relating to Indians in
the Americas, Compiled from Dissertation Abstracts
Jonathon Erlen, Ph.D., History of Medicine Librarian, Health Sciences Library System
University of Pittsburgh, [email protected]
and
Jay Toth, M.A., Professor of Anthropology, SUNY Freedonia, [email protected]
IPJ hosts a regularly updated data base of American Indian related Ph.D. from 2006 – the
present. The dissertation coverage includes all languages and is international in scope as far as
Dissertation Abstracts covers. This includes most European universities, South African
universities, and a few in the Far East. They do not cover all the universities in the world, but do
a pretty good job covering first world universities. There is no coverage of Latin American
universities' dissertations. The data base is updated in each Winter and Summer issue of IPJ, and
sometimes between issues. Since ProQuest, the provider of the lists of dissertations from which
Jonathan and Jay find Indigenous dissertations, no longer goes by months/years there will be
titles from various years added in the updates.
Dissertation
abstracts
Data
http://indigenouspolicy.org/index.php/ipj/thesis
274
Base
2006
–
the
present:
<><><>
Useful Web Sites
CELANEN: A Journal of Indigenous Governance is produced by the Indigenous Governance
Program at the University of Victoria, at: http://web.uvic.ca/igov/research/journal/index.htm.
CELANEN (pronounced CHEL-LANG-GEN) is a Saanich word for "our birthright, our ancestry,
sovereignty" and sets the tone for this annual publication containing articles, poetry, and
commentary.
Native Research Network is now at: www.nativeresearchnetwork.org. Its vision statement is:
"A leadership community of American Indian, Alaska Native, Kanaka Maoli, and Canadian
Aboriginal persons promoting integrity and excellence in research". Its mission is "To provide a
pro-active network of American Indian, Alaska Native, Kanaka Maoli, and Canadian Aboriginal
persons to promote and advocate for high quality research that is collaborative, supportive and
builds capacity, and to promote an environment for research that operates on the principles of
integrity, respect, trust, ethics, cooperation and open communication in multidisciplinary fields".
The Native Research Network (NRN) provides networking and mentoring opportunities, a forum
to share research expertise, sponsorship of research events, assistance to communities and tribes,
and enhanced research communication. The NRN places a special emphasis on ensuring that
research with Indigenous people is conducted in a culturally sensitive and respectful manner. Its
Member List serve: [email protected].
The American Journal of Indigenous Studies is a quarterly journal by the American Scholarly
Research Association (ASRA), at: www.ASRAresearch.or.
The Enduring Legacies Native Cases Initiative began in 2006 as a partnership between The
Evergreen State College, Northwest Indian College, Salish Kootenai College, and Grays Harbor
College. Our goal is to develop and widely disseminate culturally relevant curriculum and
teaching resources in the form of case studies on key issues in Indian Country:
http://nativecases.evergreen.edu/about.html.
The National Indian Housing
http://www.naihc.indian.com/.
Council
offers
a
number
The
American
Indian
Studies
Consortium
http://www.cic.uiuc.edu/programs/AmericanIndianStudiesConsortium/.
of
reports
at:
is
at:
Some news sources that have been useful in putting the issues of Indigenous Policy together are:
For reports of U.S. government legislation, agency action, and court decisions: Hobbs, Straus,
Dean and Walker, LLP, 2120 L Street NW, Suite 700, Washington, DC 20037,
http://www.hobbsstraus.com.
Indian Country Today: http://www.indiancountry.com/index.cfm?key=15.
News from Indian Country: http://www.indiancountrynews.com/.
275
The Navajo Times: http://www.navajotimes.com/.
IndianZ.com: http://www.indianz.com.
Pechanga Net: http://www.pechanga.net/NativeNews.html
Survival International: http://www.survival-international.org/.
Cultural Survival: http://209.200.101.189/publications/win/, or http://www.cs.org/.
Censored (in Indian Country): http://bsnorrell.blogspot.com/.
ArizonaNativeNet is a virtual university outreach and distance learning telecommunications
center devoted to the higher educational needs of Native Nations in Arizona, the United States
and the world through the utilization of the worldwide web and the knowledge-based and
technical resources and expertise of the University of Arizona, providing resources for Native
Nations nation-building, at: www.arizonanativenet.com
The Forum for 'friends of Peoples close to Nature' is a movement of groups and individuals,
concerned with the survival of Tribal peoples and their culture, in particular hunter-gatherers:
http://ipwp.org/how.html.
Tebtebba (Indigenous Peoples' International Centre for Policy Research and Education),
with lists of projects and publications, and reports of numerous Indigenous meetings:
http://www.tebtebba.org/.
Andre Cramblit ([email protected]) has begun a new Native news blog continuing his
former Native list serve to provide information pertinent to the American Indian
community. The blog contains news of interest to Native Americans, Hawaiian Natives and
Alaskan Natives. It is a briefing of items that he comes across that are of broad interest to
American Indians. News and action requests are posted as are the occasional humorous entry. The
newsletter is designed to inform you, make you think and keep a pipeline of information that is
outside the mainstream media. “I try and post to it as often as my schedule permits I scan a wide
range of sources on the net to get a different perspective on Native issues and try not to post stuff
that is already posted on multiple sources such as websites or other lists”. To subscribe to go to:
http://andrekaruk.posterous.com/.
Sacred Places Convention For Indigenous Peoples provides resources for protecting sacred
places world wide. Including, news, journals, books and publishing online Weekly News and
providing an E-mail list serve, as well as holding conferences. For information go to:
http://www.indigenouspeoplesissues.com.
Mark
Trahant
Blog,
Trahant
Reports,
is
at:
http://www.marktrahant.org/marktrahant.org/Mark_Trahant.html
UANativeNet, formerly Arizona NativeNet, is a resource of topics relevant to tribal nations
and Indigenous Peoples, particularly on matters of law and governance.
The Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development offers a number of reports
and its “Honoring Indian Nations” at: http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/hpaied/res_main.htm.
The Seventh generation Fund online Media Center: www.7genfund.org
Native Earthworks Preservation, an organization committed to preserving American Indian
sacred sites, is at: http://nativeearthworkspreservation.org/.
Indianz.Com has posted Version 2.0 of the Federal Recognition Database, an online version
276
of the Acknowledgment Decision Compilation (ADC), a record of documents that the Bureau of
Indian Affairs has on file for dozens of groups that have made it through the federal recognition
process. The ADC contains over 750 MB of documents -- up from over 600MB in version 1.2 -that were scanned in and cataloged by the agency's Office of Federal Acknowledgment. The new
version includes has additional documents and is easier to use. It is available at:
http://www.indianz.com/adc20/adc20.html.
Tribal Link has an online blog at: http://triballinknewsonline.blogspot.com.
The National Indian Education Association: http://www.niea.org/.
Climate Frontlines is a global forum for indigenous peoples, small islands and vulnerable
communities,
running
discussions,
conferences
and
field
projects:
http://www.climatefrontlines.org/.
Cry of the Native Refugee web site, http://cryofthenativerefugee.com, is dedicated to “The True
Native American History.”
The RaceProject has a Facebook Page that is a forum for the dissemination and discussion of
contemporary Race and Politics issues. It includes a continuing archive of news stories, editorial
opinion, audio, video and pointed exchanges between academics, graduate students and members
of the lay-public. Those interested can visit and sign up to the page at:
http://www.facebook.com/RaceProject.
Rainmakers Oceania studies possibilities for restoring the natural environment and humanity's
rightful place in it, at: http://rainmakers-ozeania.com/0annexanchorc/about-rainmakers.html.
Oxfam America’s interactive website: http://adapt.oxfamamerica.org shows how social
vulnerability and climate variability impact each county in the U.S. Southwest region. The
methodology exposes how social vulnerability, not science, determines the human risk to climate
change.
The International Institute
http://tinyurl.com/yaykznz.
for
Indigenous
Resource
Management
is
at:
The Newberry Library received a grant in August, 2007, from the National Endowment for the
Humanities to fund “Indians of the Midwest and Contemporary Issues.” The McNickle
Center will construct this multimedia website designed to marry the Library’s rich
collections on Native American history with state-of-the art interactive web capabilities to
reveal the cultural and historical roots of controversial issues involving Native Americans
today. These include conflicts over gaming and casinos, fishing and hunting rights, the
disposition of Indian artifacts and archeological sites, and the use of Indian images in the media.
In addition to historical collections, the site will also feature interviews with contemporary
Native Americans, interactive maps, links to tribal and other websites, and social networking.
For more information contact Céline Swicegood, [email protected].
277
The site www.pressdisplay.com has scanned and searchable versions of thousands of
newspapers daily from around the world. These are not truncated "online versions". You can
view the actually pages of the paper published for that day. There are also 100's of US papers
included daily. The service also allows you to set search terms or search particular papers daily.
The service will also translate papers into English.
Native Voice Network (NVN: www.NativeVoiceNetwork.org), is a national alliance of
Organizations interested in collaborative advocacy on issues impacting Native people locally and
nationally.
The Northern California Indian Development Council has a web-based archive of
traditional images and
sounds at: http://www.ncidc.org/.
Resource sites in the Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA): National Indian Child Welfare
Association: http://www.nicwa.org, offers include publications, a library, information packets,
policy
information
and
research.
NICWA's
Publication
Catalog
is
at:
Http://www.nicwa.org/resources/catalog/index.asp’
Information
Packets
are
at:
http://www.nicwa.org/resources/infopackets/index.asp. Online ICWA Courses are at:
http://www.nicwa.org/services/icwa/index.asp. The Indian Child Welfare Act: An Examination
of
State
Compliance,
from
the
Casey
Foundation
is
at:
http://www.casey.org/Resources/Publications/NICWAComplianceInArizona.htm. Tribal Court
Clearinghouse ICWA Pages, with a brief review of ICWA and links to many valuable resources
including
Federal
agencies
and
Native
organizations.
http://www.tribalinstitute.org/lists/icwa.htm. Other resource sources are: the Indian Law Resource
Center: www.indianlaw.org, the National Indian Justice Center: www.nijc.indian.com. Other
sites can be found through internet search engines such as Google.
Some research web sites for ICWA include: http://www.calindian.org/legalcenter_icwa.htm,
http://www.narf.org/nill/resources/indianchildwelfare.htm,
http://www.tribalinstitute.org/lists/icwa.htm,
http://www.nicwa.org/library/library.htm,
http://www.nationalcasa.org/JudgesPage/Newsletter-4-04.htm,
http://www.dlncoalition.org/dln_issues/2003_icwaresolution.htm,
http://www.helpstartshere.org/Default.aspx?PageID=401,
http://cbexpress.acf.hhs.gov/articles.cfm?section_id=2&issue_id=2001-0,
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?i104:I04296:i104HUGHES.html,
http://nccrest.edreform.net/resource/13704,
http://www.naicja.org,
http://www.tribal-institute.org/.
Tribal College Journal (TCJ) provides to news related to American Indian higher education:
tribalcollegejournal.org.
American Indian Graduate Center: http://www.aigcs.org.
The Minneapolis American Indian Center's Native Path To Wellness Project of the Golden Eagle
Program has developed a publication, Intergenerational Activities from a Native American
278
Perspective that has been accepted by Penn State for their Intergenerational Web site:
http://intergenerational.cas.psu.edu/Global.html.
The Indigenous Nations and Peoples Law, Legal Scholarship Journal has recently been
created on line by the Social Science Research Network, with sponsorship by the
Center for Indigenous Law, Governance & Citizenship at Syracuse University College of Law.
Subscription to the journal is free, by clicking on: http://hq.ssrn.com/.
The National Council Of Urban Indian Health is at: http://www.ncuih.org/.
A web site dedicated to tribal finance, www.tribalfinance.org.
Lessons In Tribal Sovereignty, at: http://sorrel.humboldt.edu/~go1/kellogg/intro.html, features
Welcome to American Indian Issues: An Introductory and Curricular Guide for Educators. The
contents were made possible by the American Indian Civics Project (AICP), a project initially
funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation's Native American Higher Education Initiative, The
primary goal of the AICP is to provide educators with the tools to educate secondary students Indian and non-Native alike - about the historical and contemporary political, economic, and
social characteristics of sovereign tribal nations throughout the United States.
The Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission (CRITFC) has a blog as part of its Celilo
Legacy project, serving as a clearinghouse for public discourse, information, events, activities,
and memorials. The blog is accessible by going to www.critfc.org and clicking on the "Celilo
Legacy blog" image, or by simply entering: www.critfc.org/celilo.
The Coeur d’Alene Tribe of Idaho has Rezkast, a Web site of Native affairs and culture at:
www.rezkast.com.
A listing of the different Alaska Native groups' values and other traditional information is on the
Alaska Native Knowledge website at: www.ankn.uaf.edu.
Red Nation Web Television: www.rednation.com.
A list of Indigenous Language Conferences is kept at the Teaching Indigenous Languages
web site at Northern Arizona University: http://www2.nau.edu/jar/Conf.html.
UNESCO Interactive Atlas of the World's Languages in Danger is at
http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?pg=00206. For a detailed cautionary note about the
usefulness of the UNESCO Atlas, see Peter K. Austin's comments. He is the Marit Rausing chair
in field linguistics and director of linguistics at SOAS in the UK:
http://blogs.usyd.edu.au/elac/2009/02/unescos_atlas_of_the_worlds_la_1.ht
The Council of Elders, the governing authority of the Government Katalla-Chilkat Tlingit
(provisional government): Kaliakh Nation (Region XVII) has initiated a web site in order to
expose crimes against humanity committed upon the original inhabitants of Alaska, at:
http://www.katalla-chilkat-tlingit.com/.
279
An interactive website, www.cherokee.org/allotment, focuses on the Allotment Era in
Cherokee History during the period from 1887 to 1934, when Congress divided American
Indian reservation lands into privately owned parcels that could be (and widely were) sold to non
Indians, threatening tribal existence.
The Blue Lake Rancheria of California launched a web site, Fall 2007, featuring the nation’s
history, philosophy, economic enterprise, community involvement, and other topics, with manylinks. One purpose of the site is to make tribal operations transparent. It is at:
www.bluelakerancheria-nsn.gov.
UN Secretariat of the Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues: www.un.org/indigenous, The
newsletter Message Stick highlighting the activities of the United Nations Permanent Forum
on Indigenous Issues (UNPFII) and its Secretariat 05 is available at:
http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/unpfii/news/quarterlynewsle_home1.htm.
Indigenous Rights Quarterly can be accessed at: http://www.aitpn.org/irq.htm.
NGO Society for Threatened Peoples International, in consultative status to the United
Nations ECOSOC, and in participatory status with the Council of Europe, Indigenous Peoples
Department, USA: http://www.gfbv.de.
The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO): http://www.unpo.org/.
The Native Studies Research Network, UK, University of East Anglia, Norwich is at:
.http://www.nsrn-uk.org/.
The World Indigenous Higher Education Consortium (WINHEC) and its Journal are online
at: http://www.win-hec.org/. (See the Ongoing Activities Section for more on WINHEC). The
WINHEC site includes links to other Indigenous organizations and institutions.
A link on Latin American Indigenous Peoples:
http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/LACEXT/0,,contentMDK:20505
834~menuPK:258559~pagePK:146736~piPK:226340~theSitePK:258554,00.html
The Asian Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Network produces occasional papers and reports at:
http://www.aitpn.org/Issues/II-08-07.htm.
>>>-------((((+))))-------<<<
ANNOUNCEMENTS
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR OF NATIVE AMERICAN AND INDIGENOUS STUDIES
As part of Northwestern University’s Indigenous Studies Research Initiative, the
Institute for Policy Research invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor
position in Native American and Indigenous Studies. We seek a scholar who studies social
280
disparities as they pertain to indigenous people, particularly, but not limited to, the native
peoples of North America. This person will be jointly appointed between the Institute for Policy
Research and an appropriate social science-related unit, and will work closely with Northwestern
undergraduates and graduate students. Scholars with backgrounds in anthropology,
communications, economics, education, law, political science, psychology, public health,
sociology, statistics, and other related fields are encouraged to apply. Candidates must have
completed all degree requirements for a PhD before September 1, 2016. We welcome
applications from both newly-minted PhDs and senior assistant professor candidates.
For more information about the Institute for Policy Research and to apply,
visit http://www.ipr.northwestern.edu/about/job-opportunities/
Applications will be accepted online only. Application materials include a cover letter,
CV, a writing sample of approximately 25 pages, evidence of teaching effectiveness, and
between three and five letters of reference. The search committee will begin reviewing
applications immediately and the search will remain open until an offer is accepted. Only
complete applications, including letters of reference, will be considered. Inquiries about the
search may be sent to [email protected].
Northwestern University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer of all
protected classes including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Women and minorities are
encouraged to apply. Hiring is contingent upon eligibility to work in the United States.
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