Graphic Art by Erica Pretty Eagle Cozad, Graphic Designer for NDN Collective.

The Spring Equinox moves us closer and closer to the season of renewal, of awakening, and action. As this sacred day approaches, we at NDN Collective hold onto reflections from this past season in preparation for the work ahead. All of us are still carrying the energy and gratitude for the return of Leonard Peltier to his homelands. The offerings and insights he brings will be essential for the work ahead of us.

In this newsletter we share with you the work of our incredible grant recipients, the Smokehouse Collective, who are doing important work reconnecting relatives with salmon and traditional trade practices; we provide insights and reminders of Tribal Nations’ unique and powerful treaty and trust obligations between the federal government in wake of chaotic executive orders; we also invite you to the Black Hills for the 2025 HeSápa Action Training Camp; and share you the impacts of the historic GreenPeace USA trial on our collective ability to gather in protest and direct action for our basic rights.

Graphic Art by Erica Pretty Eagle Cozad, Graphic Designer for NDN Collective.

The Trump Administration’s slew of executive orders and funding freezes have and will continue to have severe impacts throughout Indian Country. However, despite the chaos this has caused, we want to assure our relatives that we will continue our collective work in resource rematriation and supporting our grant recipients and grantee partners. We also remind our relatives of the unique treaty and trust obligations the federal government holds with tribes which is legally enforced over decades of Indian law and policy. 

Graphic Art by JayCee Beyale, Graphic Designer for NDN Collective.

NDN Collective is pleased to announce the newest cohort of NDN Changemakers! These 21 Indigenous leaders are transforming their communities by defending land and waters, preserving traditional lifeways, and developing solutions for sustainable and regenerative futures. 

Learn more about each of these Changemakers in our blog.

This blog, authored by our Tactical Media team, shares about House Bill 1258 – a South Dakota lithium mining bill that would implement stronger protections for human health and the environment for companies conducting lithium exploration. 

Illustration by Erica Pretty Eagle Cozad, Graphic Designer for NDN Collective.

The first column of the year-long partnership was authored by NDN Collective’s Davis Price and Illima-lei Macfarlane with an illustration by Erica Pretty Eagle Cozad 

As a tidal wave of authoritarianism crashes across the U.S., it may seem as if nothing is sacred. But in these moments of uncertainty, it is the sacred to which we must return. 

For the Indigenous peoples of Moananuiākea—across the water from our relatives on Turtle Island and around the globe—our fight for justice is rooted in our ancestral connection and kinship to the land, water, and earth. Our kūpuna (ancestors) have long practiced sustainable stewardship values, including mālāma ʻāina (care for the land) and kuleana (responsibility) to restore both our environment and our communities. Real climate justice work requires honoring Indigenous knowledge and empowering grassroots efforts to protect our sacred relationship with Mother Earth.

The Smokehouse Collective is an Indigenous Food Hub that supports the sovereignty, health and wealth of Alaska Native peoples through empowering food security and climate justice, while revitalizing cultural practices of reciprocal trade. They harvest, process, and distribute salmon from Bristol Bay to climate-impacted communities across Alaska. The Smokehouse Collective also provides space, access and infrastructure for communities to practice fish camp, teach traditional ways, and build collaborations to revitalize traditional trade networks, creating powerful contemporary and regenerative trade networks.

• Visit their Website:  www.smokehousecollective.org 
• Make a Donation: https://secure.everyaction.com/yL9sJ0KPqUmpPpficTES0g2 
• Watch LANDBACK For The People Podcast S2 E6 ft. The Smokehouse Collective: ndnco.cc/lbftps2e6

Interested in building new skills around non-violent direct action? Have you been curious about learning more about tactical media, creative resistance, blockades or climbing as direct action tactics? Apply to join us in the beautiful Black Hills of South Dakota for the 2025 HeSápa Action Training Camp! The participant application will be open until March 21st. Secure your spot today!

Nick Tilsen, NDN Collective Founder & CEO chats with Deenaalee Hodgdon, Co-Executive Director of Smokehouse Collective, Executive Producer of “On the Land” Podcast, and NDN Collective Radical Imagination artist. Photo by Angel White Eyes for NDN Collective.

On this throwback episode of LANDBACK FOR THE PEOPLE, Nick Tilsen invites Deenaalee Hodgdon, Co-Executive Director of Smokehouse Collective, Executive Producer of “On the Land” Podcast, and NDN Collective Radical Imagination artist, to discuss the subsistence lifeways of the Arctic through fishing and tracking salmon to feed and sustain their communities.

Press conference hosted at NDN HQ following former President Biden’s boarding school apology. Pictured seated at the front is Sunny Red Bear, Local Organizer, and Nick Tilsen, Founder and CEO. Photo by Angel White Eyes for NDN Collective.

Liberation Day. February 27, 2025. Photo by Sunny Red Bear for NDN Collective.

On March 19, a jury found Greenpeace USA liable for $660 million in damages to Energy Transfer, the Big Oil company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline. Energy Transfer’s meritless claim was that Greenpeace USA organized the 2016-2017 Standing Rock resistance and are trying to erase Indigenous leadership from this historic protest. 

“This lawsuit is one of the largest Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) cases ever filed. These are meritless lawsuits meant to silence or bankrupt opponents – which is why most U.S. states and several countries have put legal protections in place to protect advocates. But in North Dakota – and 15 other states – no anti-SLAPP statutes exist.” GreenPeace wrote in a statement.

Greenpeace entities will continue fighting back against this case, including by appealing to the North Dakota Supreme Court. 

Graphic Art by NDN Collective.

When you support Indigenous-led organizations, you’re not just donating— you’re investing in Mother Earth’s survival and justice for all. Your contributions are the foundation of our work, driving initiatives that empower Indigenous communities to lead, thrive, and define our futures on our own terms.