Stories

Stories of Indigenous Guardianship

SEEDCAST S3 E1 Eric Terena Photo Credit Tracy Rector 16x9

Feature

DJ Eric Terena: The Collective Sounds for a New Era

On the heels of a political sea change in Brazil toward environmental justice and Indigenous rights, Activist and DJ Eric Terena (of the Terena Peoples) shares how music is being used for the collective good.

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Explore our stories by media type

Article

March 8, 2023

Recognizing the Strength and Wisdom of Indigenous Women on International Women's Day

Nancy Kelsey

On International Women’s Day, March 8, we share reflections from several Indigenous women around the world on what it means to be a culture bearer, a life giver, and a defender of Indigenous rights in their respective communities.

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Portrait Photos in Grid Clockwise Left to Right: Theola Ross (Sâponôwêw Kwatapiwêpinêw Pimohtêw | Pimicikamak Cree Nation), Pastoral Women’s Council (Maasai Peoples | Tanzania) photo by Roshni Lodhia, Shar Tuiasoa (Tongan | Hawai’i), Tabea Casique Coronado (Ashéninka of Ucayali | Peru), Katsitsionni Fox (Haudenosaunee | Bear Clan), Pastoral Women’s Council (Maasai Peoples | Tanzania) photo by Roshni Lodhia
Garden Walkthrough by Jared Lank

Article

March 2, 2023

Reimagining Brilliant Black and Indigenous Futures

Tracy Rector

By coming together in reciprocity and kinship, Black, Black-Indigenous, Afro-Indigenous, and Indigenous communities are fueling a collective movement to reimagine brilliant Black and Indigenous futures.

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Gradient image with person riding horse

Article

February 17, 2023

Indigenous Storytelling and Narrative Sovereignty at Big Sky Documentary Film Festival 2023

Nancy Kelsey

Nia Tero is proud to be a sponsor the 2023 Big Sky Documentary Film Festival - a trusted longtime ally to Indigenous Peoples and advocate for narrative sovereignty. The Festival convenes annually in Missoula, Montana. Learn more and join in!

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A samaúma tree in the Javari Valley Indigenous Territory in Brazil

Article

February 10, 2023

Brazil-U.S. Cooperation is Key for Global Forest Conservation

John Reid and Paulo Moutinho

*This article was originally published on Mongabay.com. Brazilian President Lula and US President Biden are set to discuss topics including the US joining the Amazon Fund, aimed at fighting deforestation in Brazil. Read on for commentary.

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Fora Garimpo 7x5

Article

February 8, 2023

Yanomami Face a Humanitarian Crisis in the Amazon

Daniela Lerda

In recent weeks, one of the most serious humanitarian crises of our time has finally gained public attention in Brazil and around the world. Learn more about the situation and ways you can support the Yanomami.

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Article

December 23, 2022

Q&A with Jennifer (Jing) Tauli Corpuz on COP15 Goals and Outcomes

Nancy Kelsey and Jennifer (Jing) Tauli Corpuz

We reflect on the outcomes of COP15, the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, with Jennifer (Jing) Tauli Corpuz (Kankana-ey Igorot), Nia Tero Managing Director of Policy.

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Jennifer (Jing) Tauli Corpuz. Photo by Matthew Omilianowski.
Photo courtesy of Razelle Benally (Oglala Lakota/Diné) from the film MURDER IN BIG HORN.

Article

January 18, 2023

Narrative Sovereignty is Reaffirming Indigenous Guardianship at Sundance Film Festival

Nancy Kelsey

At the Sundance Film Festival, taking place January 19-29 in Utah, audiences will have a robust selection of a dozen Indigenous made films that tell the stories of the first peoples from lands around the world. Nia Tero is proud to support Sundance.

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Jing portrait arms crossed 16x9

Article

December 8, 2022

We Indigenous Peoples are Rights-Holders, not Stakeholders

By Jennifer Tauli Corpuz and Stanley Kimaren Ole Riamit

At COP15, Jennifer Tauli Corpuz (Kankana-ey Igorot) and Stanley Kimaren Ole Riamit (Maasai) share: “In the UN negotiations, Indigenous Peoples are not just stakeholders. Instead, we are rights holders.

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Seedcast Cop27 Nia Tero Squad Credit Felipe Contreras 1x1

Podcast

November 23, 2022

Hypocrisy and Solidarity at COP27

Hear directly from Indigenous leaders at the forefront of the fight against climate change in this episode of Seedcast, recorded at the COP27 climate talks in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt.

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170421 Robin Wall Kimmerer credit Matt Roth 1x1

Podcast

November 9, 2022

Spotlight: On Being with Krista Tippett: Robin Wall Kimmerer – The Intelligence of Plants

Seedcast

It’s time for a new Seedcast Spotlight episode! This time we’re sharing an episode from the podcast On Being with Krista Tippett featuring mother, scientist, and professor Robin Wall Kimmerer, an enrolled member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation.

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Julian Aguon 3 Credit Eleni Ledesma 1x1

Podcast

October 26, 2022

Fighting Climate Change with Storytelling: Julian Aguon

Julian Aguon speaks about the role of storytelling in activism, the longstanding effects of colonialism, & why it’s essential for Islanders to add their unique voices to the fight against climate change.

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Group of people posing together for imagineNATIVE Drive-In Night.

Podcast

October 12, 2022

How Stories Give Life to Knowledge and Culture: Two Decades of imagineNATIVE

Seedcast

Hear from Indigenous filmmakers who are working to dismantle decades upon decades of negative stereotypes in Hollywood representations of Indigenous Peoples, and learn about the role of imagineNATIVE in uplifting Indigenous narrative sovereignty.

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Final Thriving Peoples Thriving Places Campaign Explainer 1x1

Article

October 9, 2022

Indigenous Peoples' Day - October 10, 2022: Thriving Peoples. Thriving Places.

Join us in uplifting Indigenous women leaders on Indigenous Peoples’ Day and every day.

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Loren Waters (Cherokee/Kiowa) in attendance at 4th World Media Lab Summit 2022

Article

October 14, 2022

Indigenous Storytelling as a Way to Connect to and Protect Land – Reflections from Camden International Film Festival 2022

Loren Waters (Cherokee/Kiowa)

Hear from Loren Waters (Loren Waters (Cherokee/Kiowa) as she reflects on time spent at Camden International Film Festival (CIFF) 2022 with 4th World Media Lab Summit.

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Portrait of Matt Remle. Photo by Felipe Contreras.

Podcast

September 28, 2022

He Who Charges with Thunder: A Conversation with Matt Remle

Seedcast

In this Seedcast episode, we talked with Matt Remle (Hunkpapa Lakota from Standing Rock Sioux Reservation) about how his Lakota teachings, guidance from his elders, and even his name guide his actions and how he shows up in the world.

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Gabbra People and Camels. Courtesy of the Wayfinders Circle.

Podcast

August 31, 2022

Meet the Gabbra People of East Africa Pt 1: How Traditional Knowledge Saw the Gabbra People Through Colonization and Climate Crisis

Seedcast

In this Seedcast episode - the first of two parts – hear songs, stories, and sounds of the lands the nomadic Gabbra people of eastern Africa shepherd, and how they share traditional knowledge from generation to generation.

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Gabbra people loading a camel.

Podcast

September 14, 2022

Meet the Gabbra People of East Africa Pt 2: How Connection to Creator, Moon, Stars, Earth, Sun, and More Guide Gabbra Knowledge

Seedcast

In the second episode in our two-part Gabbra series, hear songs of celebration and how the Gabbra people stay in close and constant dialogue with each other, exchanging ancestral wisdom as they pass on their traditions and revitalize their knowledge.

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Thriving Peoples. Thriving Places.

Article

August 7, 2022

International Day of the World's Indigenous Peoples – August 9, 2022

Sharon Arnold and Tracy Rector (Nia Tero Storytelling Team)

International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples, taking place this year on August 9, 2022, is a day to celebrate, honor, amplify, and uplift the world’s Indigenous Peoples – from ancestors to youth to elders, and support their efforts.

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Solomon Islands by Dan Lin

Article

June 28, 2022

Philanthropic Organizations Commit $1B USD to Help Protect 30 Percent of the Ocean by 2030

Protecting Our Planet Challenge

The Protecting Our Planet Challenge will invest at least $1 billion USD to support the creation, expansion and management of marine protected areas and Indigenous and locally governed marine and coastal areas by 2030.

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Reciprocity Project Filmmakers Cohort2 Introduction v6

Article

June 24, 2022

Introducing the Reciprocity Project Season Two Cohort

Reciprocity Project

On behalf of the entire Reciprocity Project team, we're honored to announce the Reciprocity Project Season Two cohort! Together, these artists form an inspiring and diverse cohort of Indigenous filmmakers and storytellers, spanning across continents.

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Photo from the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the Fourth Meeting of the Open-Ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. Photo by Michael Painter.

Article

June 17, 2022

Nia Tero Heads to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity & WG2020-4 in Nairobi

Nia Tero Policy Team

After five weeks of virtual training sessions with 10 Indigenous Public Policy apprentices delegated by Amazonian organizations, Nia Tero moved forward into the sixth moment held in person in Nairobi in preparation for participation in the WG2020-4.

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Bruno Pereira UNIVAJA

Article

June 15, 2022

Statement from Nia Tero on the Murders of Bruno Pereira and Dom Phillips

We lower our eyes in sadness at the tragic murders of Bruno Pereira and Dom Phillips, two men who committed their lives to the health and security of Indigenous Peoples in the Amazon.

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We Are the Wayfinders Circle

Film

April 28, 2022

We Are the Wayfinders Circle

The Wayfinders Circle was launched as a network dedicated to unleashing the transformative potential of Indigenous lifeways, inspiring all people to reimagine development, land guardianship, and the way they relate to each other and to Mother Earth.

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Solomon Islands Rainbow by Dan Lin

Article

June 1, 2022

Celebrating 2SLGBTQIA+ Pride Month

Nia Tero Storytelling Team

This month as we celebrate and honor the history of Pride, let us raise up Indigenous queer liberation and the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.

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Valerie Courtois

Podcast

May 25, 2022

Valérie Courtois and Sacred Kinship in the Boreal

Seedcast

Valérie Courtois (member of the Innu community of Mashteuiatsh) has spent her life bridging traditional Indigenous knowledge and Western science. She shares stories about life in the Boreal, working with the Indigenous Leadership Initiative and more.

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Indigenous meeting in local village

Article

February 14, 2022

New Brazilian Group Advocates for Isolated Peoples

John Reid

OPI has been a Nia Tero partner since 2021. We talked to OPI’s Executive Secretary, Fábio Ribeiro, about the organization’s early successes and plans to assure that isolated peoples can continue to live in peace in their territories.

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A house in Wampis territory by David Rothschild

Article

January 19, 2022

The Wampis Nation Forges a New Path in Peru

David Rothschild

The Wampis example of self-determination and self-implementation of a territorial government is inspiring other Indigenous Peoples in northern Peru to begin their own processes toward establishing territorial governments.

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Current Trending Topics

Indigenous Guardianship

Garden Walkthrough by Jared Lank

Reimagining Brilliant Black and Indigenous Futures

Read

Leo Cerda, Sonia Guajajara, and Nina Gualinga at COP27 in Egypt. Photo by Tracy Rector

Coming Soon: Seedcast Season 3

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Photo courtesy of Razelle Benally (Oglala Lakota/Diné) from the film MURDER IN BIG HORN.

Narrative Sovereignty is Reaffirming Indigenous Guardianship at Sundance Film Festival

Read

Jennifer (Jing) Tauli Corpuz. Photo by Matthew Omilianowski.

Q&A with Jennifer (Jing) Tauli Corpuz on COP15 Goals and Outcomes

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See all Indigenous Guardianship

Photo from the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the Fourth Meeting of the Open-Ended Working Group on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework. Photo by Michael Painter.

Nia Tero Heads to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity & WG2020-4 in Nairobi

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Image of John Henry Gloyne and Elwood Gloyne Carving

New Film ᎤᏕᏲᏅ (What They’ve Been Taught) to Make World Premiere at 2022 Sundance Film Festival

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A group of masked people that are part of the 4th World Fellowship standing together

4th World filmmakers 'doing the damn thing'

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Close up of women smiling in beaded earrings

Spotlight: What's Up With Docs - Storytelling as Medicine

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See all Fellowships