In recognition of Women’s History Month, we take a moment to acknowledge the women and femmes who protect and uplift our communities. Without the labor and leadership of our mothers, aunties, sisters, and femme relatives, we would not be where we are today.  It is also with great pride this month that we announce our new Vice President, a respected and powerful matriarch, Gaby Strong. Gaby has supported the growth of our organization over the years and we look forward to this new chapter for NDN Collective. 

In our latest newsletter, we proudly uplift six incredible matriarchs who are building Indigenous power, we highlight the ongoing resistance work of our Kanaka relatives in Hawai’i, and we share the latest application round of the Collective Abundance Fund which aims to build Indigenous wealth. And as always, we provide several opportunities for you to take action to support the global movement for justice and equity for all people and Mother Earth.

Thank you for building Indigenous power with us.

Graphic Art by NDN Collective.

For International Women’s Day and Women’s History Month, NDN Collective uplifted six of our grantees, matriarchs who are doing incredible work in their communities.  Across Turtle Island, these women and femmes are doing traditional birthwork, revitalizing language and traditional ecological knowledge, and promoting storytelling among their people. 

Read our blog to learn more about the work of Rowen White, Dora Martinez, Hinaleimoana Wong-Kalu, Margo Robbins, Alvera Sargent, and Moñeka De Oro.

Graphic Art by NDN Collective.

On March 8, NDN Collective welcomed Gaby Strong as our new Vice President! Gaby has been with NDN since 2020 as the Managing Director of the NDN Foundation. She rematriated wealth back into Indigenous communities through the grantmaking arm of the collective. 

Gaby has more than 40 years of tribal, nonprofit, and philanthropic experience. We look forward to her leadership and guidance as we continue the work ahead.

Graphic Art by NDN Collective.

Leonard Peltier wrote a letter to supporters on February 6, 2024 to reflect on 48 years of unjust incarceration. 

“Justice never came for those they killed. I was chosen to be the sacrifice to cover up the crimes committed on that reservation. I am not here because I committed a crime. I am here because I stood in the way of their greed and corruption.” – Leonard Peltier

Ka Wai Ola A Kane Camp participants. Photo by Richard Blue Cloud Castaneda.

On February 14. 1779, Hawaiian warriors successfully defended their islands and people from the crusade of Captain Cook. To celebrate this victory and to remind people of ongoing Kanaka Maoli resistance, our Tactical Media team wrote a blog highlighting the work of our community partner, the Hawaiian Unity & Liberation Institute. In 2022, our Creative Resistance team joined HULI to hold a non-violent direct action camp and training in Hawai’i.

Read our blog about NDN Collective’s ongoing partnership with our Kanaka relatives and the Ka Wai Ola a Kāne action camp.

‘Defend’ Mural by Artist Votan Henriquez located outside of NDN Headquarters in Rapid City, SD. Photo by NDN Collective.

Our Collective Abundance Fund is open for applications! The Collective Abundance Fund is for Indigenous individuals and families in the tri-state region of South Dakota, North Dakota, and Minnesota to support their dreams and aspirations of building Indigenous wealth. 

Registration Deadline: April 17, 2024 at 3pm CST
Application Deadline: April 24, 2024 at 5pm CST

NDN Collective and our community partners will be hosting Navigator Hubs to support those interested in applying with technical assistance and questions. Please visit our website to see the locations and schedules of these Navigator Hubs.

Dene Nahjo is a Dene collective based out of Somba K’e, Denendeh. They work to facilitate connection to land and (re)learning traditional Dene skills, values and knowledge as a foundation for action. They believe that by connecting to land, language, culture and community, we become stronger, more compassionate, and capable of building free Dene and Indigenous futures. Innovation is a Dene tradition, and they frame their work within the context of Indigenous innovation.

Dene Nahjo hosts hide tanning camps, to connect with the land, culture, and others in their community. Hide tanning camps facilitate dialogue and understanding about all kinds of knowledge, issues, and experiences. These spaces  are intended to heal, build, organize and mobilize the community. 

Dene Nahjo also hosts Indigenous Leadership workshops, to support Indigenous Peoples at all stages in their leadership journey to create change through cultural revitalization, social innovation, sustainable community development, and art, holding up local peoples’ ideas and experiences to identify and foster Indigenous leadership values and skills.

Their Womens’ Initiatives facilitate knowledge sharing between Dene elders and young women and girls around traditional values and skills, rites of passage, spirituality and leadership. These gatherings build a strong network of support among Indigenous girls and women from communities across Denendeh and beyond.

In addition to these community gatherings, Dene Nahjo also hosts an annual Winter Art Market, a space to honor the excellence, ingenuity and creativity of Indigenous artists in the North. 

 Thank you Dene Nahjo for applying to our Community Self-Determination Grant. We acknowledge your commitment to defending, developing, and decolonizing your community.

Members of our lending and community development teams attended  the annual Reservation Economic Summit (RES) on Paiute lands in Las Vegas. The team tabled at the trade show and shared information about the NDN Collective ecosystem and our Indigenized lending options through NDN Fund, the lending arm of NDN Collective. 

Robby Burroughs, Managing Director of NDN Holdings, also presented a panel at the conference, titled ‘Community Development in the HeSapa’.  Kim Pate, Managing Director of NDN Fund, and Holly Cook-Macarro, Government Affairs for NDN Collective, joined Robby on the panel.

The NDN Collective team also connected with loan relatives, current and former grantees, and built new relationships while bringing the conversation of sustainable, Indigenized finance to RES.

“We are shifting how society invests in Indigenous economic development by grounding our investment strategy in Indigenous systems thinking, recognizing the interconnectedness of all things and our responsibilities to our homelands and each other,” says NDN Fund. “Our approach ensures a resilient and regenerative framework from start to finish.”

LANDBACK For the People provides an up-close-and-personal experience that is bold, action-oriented, and solution-focused. Graphic Art by NDN Collective.

In Season 2 Episode 1, Nick Tilsen talks with Demetrius Johnson, Kiley Guy, and Jennifer Marley from the Red Nation and Red Media. They discuss Indigenous liberation and continued solidarity with our Palestinian Relatives, the history of The Red Nation, the work they’re engaged in as community organizers, and why they started the Red Media podcast and more.

Lorenzo Serna, Director of NDN Tactical Media Team, operates the camera as another episode of NDN Live commences. Photo by Willi White for NDN Collective.

Early the morning of February 27, relatives gathered at 4 locations – Manderson Post Office (West), Porcupine Post Office (North), Wounded Knee Junction (South), and East Hill at Mouse Creek (East) for the 51st Anniversary of the 1973 Occupation of Wounded Knee and Liberation Day Four Directions March.

The march will converge at the site of the Wounded Knee Massacre and AIM Occupation where we will hear from American Indian Movement elders and organizers.

After the march, there will be food, speakers, and honorings at the Wounded Knee District School in Manderson, SD.

To celebrate the launch of the Collective Abundance Fund and to make our team available to answer questions about the grant, we hosted the Collective Abundance Launch Party on March 1 at NDN Collective Headquarters in Rapid City. Watch our livestream of the party to learn more about the grant and get to know the Collective Abundance Fund team.

Hesapa Action Camp, July 2023. Photo by Richard Blue Cloud Castaneda.

Leonard Peltier has been unjustly incarcerated for 48 years. We are demanding his immediate release from prison and urging tribal leaders to support his release. If you are a current or former tribal leader, please sign this letter of support for the Compassionate Release of Leonard Peltier. If you are not a tribal leader, please call on your leadership to sign this letter to free our elder Leonard.

Our Palestinian Relatives have faced genocidal, colonial violence, and the destruction of their homelands for nearly 100 years – far too long.

NDN Collective recognizes there is no joy, justice, or peace until Palestine is Free. This is a struggle that Indigenous peoples are far too familiar with, existing in a world that consciously proceeds to carry on in celebration while simultaneously averting their eyes from the severe atrocities that their fellow human beings could face.

This is not a time for celebration or complacency; instead, this is a time to demand a permanent ceasefire, lift the siege on Gaza now, release all Palestinian prisoners, end the occupation of israeli settlers, and end western complicity in zionism.

We encourage our Relatives who want a better world for all people and Mother Earth to collectively rise, uplifting these demands beyond a ceasefire so that we can move closer to a liberated Palestine. Across the world, we face mass genocide due to capitalism, colonization, and white supremacy. We must continue to look out and care for one another. This is the only way forward.

Continue to call upon your Tribal leaders and representatives to demand a FULL CEASEFIRE and humanitarian aid be delivered to Gaza.

The Program Officer will support the NDN Foundation Collective Abundance Fund Program specifically for Minnesota.

The Director of Donor Organizing will oversee all facets of NDN Collective’s individual giving program, including the planning, implementation, ongoing management, and evaluation of the program. 

The Media & Public Relations Officer acts as the primary media contact for the NDN Collective ecosystem and the President & CEO, creating and managing communications and messaging that shape public opinion and increase awareness of the NDN brand.

The Data Manager will oversee data-related research and evaluation efforts to help the NDN Collective ecosystem of organizations understand, improve, and communicate how it advances Indigenous self-determination to build a just and equitable world.

The Impact Manager will oversee impact-related research and evaluation efforts to understand, improve, and communicate how the NDN Collective ecosystem of organizations advances Indigenous self-determination to build a just and equitable world.

The Research Manager will oversee research efforts that use existing data to understand, improve, and communicate how the NDN Collective ecosystem of organizations advances Indigenous self-determination to build a just and equitable world.

The Research & Evaluation Coordinator will provide support, coordination, and administrative services for the Research and Evaluation team.

The Legal & Compliance (L&C) Associate will be responsible for helping the L&C team with a variety of tasks related to its legal, compliance, and programmatic work across the ecosystem.

The Senior Advancement Officer position will lead grant and report management/writing for the department.