Photo Credit: Willi White

As we pass the height of summer, both the joy and grief of the land are on full display. For us in the Northern Hemisphere, the long warm days invite quality time on the land for some, but others are facing the devastation of wildfires both north and south of the medicine line. In our prayers, we hold all the communities whose lands and homes are burning, alongside our eternal prayers for Mother Earth.

This past month also brought legal threats to sacred lands, as we saw with the cut of land protections at Bears Ears, which also eliminated the historic inter-Tribal coalition that co-managed the monument. These cuts are an affront to Tribal sovereignty and also demonstrate why LANDBACK is a crucial tool for protecting sacred sites. Administrations and executive orders can change every four years, but when land is returned to Tribes, it fundamentally changes the governance structure of that land and allows for stronger protection and stewardship.

Indigenous Peoples are meeting the moment, continuing to fight for our lands and sacred sites. We see this in the renewed fights to stop the Dewey-Burdock uranium mining project in the Black Hills –  a fight that has lasted nearly 20 years. These historic and current battles remind us that in these moments we must continue to speak truth to power and protect the land for ourselves and the next seven generations.

Photo credit: NDN Collective

The Dewey-Burdock Uranium Project is a proposed uranium mining project covering approximately 10,580 acres across private and federal lands within the Ȟe Sápa. For nearly 20 years, Tribes, community members, and partners have worked to stall and stop this project since it raises serious concerns about groundwater, sacred sites, wildlife, and the long-term health of these lands and waters. The company behind this project, Powertech, has recently gotten a key federal approval but still needs at least 10 federal and state permits for the project to proceed, which means it is a critical time to make our voices heard and stop this project permanently. 

NDN Collective is hosting a virtual webinar Wednesday, August 5, at 6:00 p.m. MT / 7:00 p.m. CT via Zoom to learn about the current status of the project, upcoming opportunities to engage, and ways you can help protect Ȟe Sápa.

This month marks the 10th anniversary of National Bison Month in recognition of the National Mammal. But as Indigenous Peoples, we have always recognized and honored our Bison relatives for their cultural, economic, ecological, and spiritual significance. This is why NDN Store, in partnership with NDN Collectives Bison Homelands Initiative, is proud to launch its Bison Collection T-shirts. For every purchase of a Bison Collection T-shirt, a portion of proceeds will be used to support our Bison restoration project and initiative.

Interested in joining the NDN Collective team? Well, you are in luck because NDN Collective is looking for applicants for this position that will work closely with the LAN Managing Director to establish and develop the newly formed Landback Action Network. Responsibilities include managing the network’s digital platform and building tools to support the daily functions of the new network.
This position is remote within the United States, and the deadline to apply is August 15.

This summer, as our country celebrates the 250-year anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, First America tells the true story of our country’s founding and how our current political moment is 250 years in the making. It was written and reported by award-winning journalist Rebecca Nagle (Cherokee Nation), who is also a 2025-2026 NDN Collective Radical Imagination grantee. This new podcast brings together Indigenous experts and historians to unveil how the founders’ treatment of Indigenous nations is the root of authoritarianism in the United States.

The Indigenous Community of San Isidro in Michoacán, Mexico used its 2025 Community Action Fund grant to establish and equip a volunteer forest-fire brigade to monitor and control fires across 100 hectares of community forest. With grant support, they purchased protective suits, boots, chainsaws, and other tools. This enabled twelve trained community members to patrol strategic points, alert neighbors, and contain fires safely. With support from the grant, the brigade extinguished and prevented fires in San Isidro and neighboring Purépecha communities, engaged more than 3,400 residents in collective clean-up and fire-prevention work, and strengthened local autonomy by demonstrating the community’s capacity for self-governance and environmental stewardship. 

The 2026 NDN Collective Community Action Fund is currently accepting applications.

As of 2024, 0.3% of practicing physicians in the nation were Native American. A proposed Indigenous School of Medicine in Rapid City could help change that. The school would be the first of its kind in the nation, said Donald Warne, a physician, co-director for the Center for Indigenous Health at Johns Hopkins, and member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe… Continue Reading

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has reinstated 24 land access grants totaling $127 million, including awards to two Native-led organizations, following a federal court order. Judge Beryl Howell on June 30 granted a preliminary injunction ordering USDA to restore the grants while litigation continues.… Continue Reading

Petroglyphs at Pipestone National Monument. Photo credit: Jessica Borden/NPS

Pipestone Monument is a sacred site for many Tribes. Often called the blood of our people, it is home to the sacred red stone used to create the canunpa, the sacred pipe. For generations, Tribal people who have been on this land for time immemorial have held this place in deep reverence. “This specific pipestone (catlinite) is found nowhere else in the world. It took over a billion years for this unique geologic formation and sacred landscape to form,” shared Dr. Alexis Archambault, Hydrologist with the Brave Heart Society. This sacred site is now being threatened by the development of a pipeline by the Magellan Pipeline Company.

Help by submitting your comment in opposition to this pipeline at this link. The comment period closes August 21. 

Graphic Art by JayCee Beyale.

The For The People Campaign is designed to provide critical resources directly to Indigenous communities through our existing grantmaking programs and organizing work to strengthen our movement, enhance the resiliency of frontline actions, and continue making transformative change under this authoritarian administration.