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Update from Mila Yatan Pika Pte Oyate Okolakiciye (Knife Chief Buffalo Nation Organization)

May 21, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Greetings from the Knife Chief Buffalo Nation organization in Pahin Sinte (Porcupine), SD! It is beautiful and green in the buffalo pasture and the sight of buffalo keeping a close eye on their new calves brings to mind the teaching to always look out for our young. As a volunteer organization, our goals include preserving and implementing the teachings from the buffalo nation so that our children and future generations will always have a connection to our relatives the buffalo. This is an update on our activities in the past couple of months and a forecast of our future activities.

On April 7, 2012, we co-sponsored an event, Sunkawakan Ta Woonspe (Teachings from the Horse Nation) which was held at the Knife Chief Buffalo Pasture on April 7, 2012. This was a healing event designed to connect and reconnect the community with the healing powers of the horse nation. We began the event with a Wocekiye (opening blessing) by our esteemed Spiritual Leader, Hmuya Mani (Walking with a Roaring – Richard Two Dogs) and a presentation on the sacredness of horses with an emphasis on our relationship with them as relatives. Historically, horses were and still are used for healing based on the belief that that they are a mirror ourselves as the humans or two-legged. Also, Lakota people believe that they can take physical and mental and emotional illness from us as humans.

After the presentation, a naming ceremony was held for one of the horses who carried the spirit of our great Warrior and Spiritual Leader, Tunkasila Tasunke Witko (Grandfather Crazy Horse) during the Crazy Horse Ride that happens every June in Pine Ridge, SD, to honor his leadership, and great feats in the battles and wars to protect his people and fight for their rights. The horse was covered with a beautiful star quilt as part of the naming ceremony.

Natan Hinapa (Comes Charging, Bamm Brewer), who is an organizer for the Crazy Horse Ride recounted how knowing that the spirit of Grandfather Crazy Horse rides with them every year has strengthened the riders and how it has impacted him spiritually. Natan Hinapa presented a beautiful horse mask to Hmuya Mani as a gift, the mask was worn by one of Natan Hinapa’s horses in the Crazy Horse Ride and also in the Sunkawakan Ta Woonspe event (see photo 1).

Oglala Hanska (Percy White Plume), of the Wacinhin Ska Tiospaye (White Plume Family) and Nata Hinapa brought their horses to bless the people. The people gathered in a circle and the horses were led in while the drum group sang songs in their honor. While the horses were led around the inside of the circle of people, everyone raised their hands to receive the blessings from them (see photo). There were about 75 people present and it was a beautiful day in the Knife Chief Buffalo pasture. The event ended with a great meal, buffalo soup that was cooked by one of our great outdoor chefs – Anthony Bush of Porcupine, SD, an Elder and Vietnam Veteran. Many other people donated food and supplies for the meal, great thanks to all of them. Tasunke Wakan Okolakiciye (Medicine Horse Society) assisted with securing donations for the portable out houses, which were a necessity given the remoteness of the Knife Chief Buffalo Pasture (several miles out in the beautiful rolling hills east of Porcupine, SD).

Other News

Mahpiya Maza (Iron Cloud), one of our Buffalo caretakers, secured and hauled posts that will be used for the hay yard and sorting pen for the buffalo. He was assisted by relative and community member, William Locke. This project will continue as we move toward gathering resources to fence the additional acreage leased by Knife Chief Buffalo Nation Organization.

 

Upcoming Events/Activities

We are in the process of preparing two young men for a Wanasa Pi (buffalo hunt) which is the traditional Lakota way to mark the rite of passage into manhood. The young men go through four days of purification in the Inipi (purification lodge); commonly known as the Sweat lodge. As in all important ceremonies, a four day purification process is observed. Offerings are made to the spiritual entities for a successful hunt, to ask forgiveness for taking the buffalo’s life and to make a connection with the spirit of the buffalo so that the people will receive nourishment, both physically and spiritually. During the four day preparation period, the young men are given guidance by the older men and through spiritual guidance, the importance of the Wanasa Pi ceremony is stressed and teachings on the role of the Lakota man are also provided. The ceremony will be held at the Knife Chief Buffalo Pasture on May 18, 2012.

We are also preparing for our two annual Sundance ceremonies, one of which is held at the Knife Chief Buffalo pasture. Two years ago, at sunrise on the first day of the Sundance ceremony, the buffalo came to the top of the hill on the east side as the Sundancers were making their prayers to the east and gave them a blessing. We hope to be blessed by them again at this year’s Sundance ceremony.

Knife Chief Buffalo Nation organization is also co-sponsoring a Wakanyeja Wicoti (children’s camp) that will be held the week of July 16-20, 2012 in Porcupine, SD. This camp will focus on the needs of Lakota children who have experienced grief, loss and trauma. We are in the process of securing additional sponsorship and partnerships to assist with this much needed camp. There are people that have committed to volunteering their time at this camp and we have received word that a most generous person is assisting with securing camp supplies. The people of the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation have a very high death rate from illness and accidents and many families are under severe stress from this as well as from living in poverty and/or living with violence and/or addiction. These stressors can cause children to have needs related to grief, loss and trauma and this camp is one small effort that Knife Chief Buffalo Nation Organization can help with to address some of the needs of our Wakanyeja – a Lakota term for “sacred beings”.

Thank you for your support of the Mila Yatan Pika Pte Oyate Okolakiciye (Knife Chief Buffalo Nation Organization) and we look forward to sharing future updates with you all. For more information about anything in this article, contact Ethleen, eictd@gwtc.net. Lila Pila Unyapi Ye (We thank you very much).


Filed Under: Knife Chief Buffalo Nation, Lakota Lands Recovery Project

Meet the Huaorani from the Amazon rainforest in New York City!

May 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

You are invited to a unique event: meet the Huaorani from the Amazon rainforest in New York City!

When: May 17th, 7 – 9 pm

Where: School of Visual Arts @ 136 West 21 Street

Please come for a fun event where you will meet Huaorani leaders from the Amazon rainforest of Ecuador. This is a unique opportunity to hear about life in the rainforest directly from people who live there.

Penti Baihua and Cahuiya Omaca will talk about their experience in New York and at the UN, life in the rainforest, and their efforts to protect their ancestral lands and their human rights. We will show videos and slideshows from the Yasuni rainforest where Penti and Cahuiya live.

There will be Huaorani handcrafts for sale made by the people in Penti and Cahuiya’s communities.

Please come support the Huaorani and the Amazon! 

On May 17th Luminita Cuna and Maloca are organizing a meet-and-greet event hosted at the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan where everybody is invited to come meet Penti and Cahuiya, Huaorani leaders living in the Yasuni rainforest, hear them talk about their hunter-gatherer life in the rainforest, see images of their homes and families, ask questions and familiarize with a way of life that is very different than anything else we know.

Penti and Cahuiya are ambassadors of their Huaorani culture. During their stay in New York they will strive to reach a large and international audience at the United Nations and outside, to spread awareness about their way of life, about their rainforest, and about the issues they are facing. This way they hope that the Huaorani will form a network of friends and supporters who will help them achieve their goals of securing a good future for their children in a healthy, unpolluted rainforest.

Event location: School of Visual Arts @ 136 West 21 Street

Time: May 17th, 7 – 9 pm

Contact information: Luminita Cuna, contact.maloca@gmail.com

Filed Under: Global Affiliate Network Blog, Maloca, Village Earth News

Participatory Monitoring & Evaluation in Romania & Moldova

May 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Village Earth has just recently completed a successful Participatory Monitoring & Evaluation two-day training event in Bucharest, Romania with IREX-Washington DC, IREX-Moldova, and Romani CRISS, a Romanian human rights NGO.  During the training, participants learned the theory and methods of participatory monitoring & evaluation with a specific focus on the Most Significant Change technique.  Together with these local NGOs, Village Earth traveled to communities in the Romanian countryside to do a mid-term evaluation of the Youth Civic Engagement and Dialogue program on which the local NGOs have been working the past year.  The project has brought to together Roma and non-Roma youth to work on school and community service projects in an effort to reduce tension between ethnic groups within these two countries.  The Most Significant Change technique was used along with participatory video where students in the youth groups filmed each others’ significant change stories.  We were able to elicit very rich data using these methods and analysis was done in the field with local staff.  Village Earth has now traveled onto Moldova to continue the technique with rural Moldovan schools that are engaged in the same project as well.  It has been a great combination to do a training followed by directly using what was learned in the field.  A great learning experience has been had by all.

If you are interested in a similar training / consultation for your organization, please contact Training Director Kristina Pearson kristina@villageearth.org for more information on Village Earth’s training and consultation services.  http://villageearth.org/training-and-consulting

Filed Under: Training and Consulting News, Training News and Updates, Village Earth News

The Huaorani’s First Week at the UN

May 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment

By Luminita Cuna, Maloca Project Director

The first week of the Huaorani in New York is coming to an end. It has been an interesting few days for them – they attended several meetings and events at the UN, met a lot of new people, and also had some time to marvel at the vastness and craziness of New York City.

The Huaorani started their week with an event called “Safeguarding our Lands and Peoples : The Huaorani come to QC” organized for the Huaorani by Judith Kimerling, Professor of Environmental Law and Policy at Queens College (CUNY), with the help of a number of QC student clubs. Professor Kimerling has been working with the Huaorani on legal and human rights issues for years and has helped bring the Huaorani delegation to the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues.

At the daily UN sessions, Penti and Cahuiya met many indigenous people with whom they shared their concerns and issues from back home. They found out that lack of a voice, land issues, stakeholder involvement, marginalization or exclusion from certain processes, encroachment of territory, insecure or nonexistent land titles are issues faced by indigenous people all around the world. It was interesting to exchange experiences and information in dealing with these issues. One of the most important outcomes for the indigenous people at the Forum is coming together and sharing experiences, seeing that they are not alone in the fight for rights, territory and self-determination, and exchanging ideas on how to handle these issues. During a side event organized by the Permanent Mission of Ecuador to the UN, Penti and Cahuiya had the opportunity to listen to the Ecuadorian Minster of Cultural Patrimony talk about the Buen Vivir[1] and Human Rights. Their territory – Yasuni – was mentioned in the speech, and although the Huaorani were not given the opportunity to ask questions during the Q&A session, they were able to talk briefly to the Minister after the meeting and express their concerns about land titles and their representation in matters that involve their territory.

When not at the UN, the Huaorani enjoyed walking in the city, from Midtown to the Village and Soho, and even made it this weekend to Staten Island! They enjoy the city although at times it gets quite noisy and crowded. They marvel at the height of the buildings, and they noticed we have too few trees (and all of them are planted, not “natural”). And just in a few days they figured out a system to orient themselves and find their way quickly through the forest of glass-and-steel skyscrapers.

[1] a translation of the “sumac kawsay” concept taken from indigenous people, which promotes living sustainably, within limits, and in harmony with nature, and which is now promoted as a social goal by Ecuador and Bolivia.

 

Filed Under: Global Affiliate Network Blog, Maloca, Village Earth News

The Huaorani of the Ecuadorian Amazon have arrived in New York City

May 8, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Two Huaorani leaders from the Yasuni rainforest of the Ecuadorian Amazon are in New York attending the 11th Session of the United Nations Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues (May 7-19). Penti Baihua and Cahuiya Omaca travelled long distances from their rainforest homes to attend this annual event where they have an opportunity to meet other indigenous people from around the world, work with other indigenous leaders to have their rights respected and their voice heard. This will be an opportunity for them to meet with representatives of their government and of other international NGOs that, through their programs, have an impact on the Huaorani livelihoods.

The Huaorani are coming to New York to defend their right to live freely in their ancestral territory, in a clean and healthy rainforest, without oil exploitation and illegal logging, without interference from outsiders. They will demand that their will and rights be respected and that they be included in the decision making processes that have impact on their lives and on the fate of their rainforest (many projects are developed without consulting and informing the Huaorani, therefore without their free, prior and informed consent).

Penti and Cahuiya are ambassadors of their Huaorani culture. During their stay in New York they will strive to reach a large and international audience at the UN and outside, to spread awareness about their way of life, about their rainforest, and about the issues they are facing. This way they hope that the Huaorani will form a network of friends and supporters who will help them achieve their goals of securing a good  future for their children in a healthy, unpolluted rainforest.

Filed Under: Global Affiliate Network Blog, Maloca, Village Earth News

Village Earth / CSU Online Courses Move to new RamCT Blackboard Starting Summer 2012

April 25, 2012 By Leave a Comment

New RamCT Blackboard goes live for summer 2012

CSU-Village Earth courses move to the new RamCT Blackboard for all online coursework at the start of the summer term, June 1, 2012.   The current RamCT system will no longer be used for teaching after this date.

We hope that this new platform will be easier for students to access and navigate from all over the world.

Click the links for more information about the Online Community-based Development Certificate Program or to register for upcoming summer courses.

Learn How To Use The New System – It’s Different! 
For previous students in our program that would like to familiarize themselves with changes to the system or for new students looking to get a head start on understanding the course platform check out the Blackboard On Demand Learning Center for Students:  http://ondemand.blackboard.com/students.htm 

Questions?

See the RamCT Help web site

Filed Under: Training and Consulting News, Training News and Updates, Village Earth News Tagged With: , , ,

Earth Tipi to host Affordable Natural Homes Workshop on Pine Ridge

April 25, 2012 By 2 Comments

Earth Tipi has teamed up with the University of Wisconsin ~ Madison and Design Coalition to offer a 5 day Affordable Natural Homes workshop!

Lou Host-Jablonski, renowned architect, has developed an innovative design that incorporates all of the benefits of natural home building (straw and clay) into an integrated plan that can easily fit into any urban/suburban setting. The concept also overcomes building codes and permitting that would certainly be an issue in a typical neighborhood. This concept is completely scalable for large projects and has been already implemented in suburban neighborhoods!

Participants will gain hands-on experience using natural materials including walls made from clay and straw, a clay floor and natural plasters. The course will be taught by renowned Lou Host-Jablonski. Important details about planning, designing and building a home will be included in the course. All who attend will leave with a full set of architectural plans that will allow them to build their own home or start a business!

Cost to attend is $850, there is a $100 discount for registering before June 1, 2012. For more information or to register at designcoalition.org. Our goal is to offer full scholarships to Lakota tribal members. If you can’t join us, please consider donating $25-$100 so that someone in need can attend!

 

 

For more information contact Shannon Freed, shannon@earthtipi.org

Filed Under: Earth Tipi, Lakota Lands Recovery Project

Cottonwood Seedlings Delivered to Pine Ridge Reservation

April 20, 2012 By 2 Comments

Today, 250 cottonwood seedlings were delivered to the Oglala Sioux Tribe Natural Resource Regulatory Agency. The trees will planted by children from the different schools across the reservation in the coming weeks. This project will help to ensure that the sacred trees will be available for future generations of Lakotas for Sundance ceremonies, one of the seven sacred rites for the Lakota people. The practice of the Sundance has been on the rise in recent years and is viewed as a positive sign of Lakota cultural resurgence. This is taking place despite over 100 years of religious suppression by the Federal Government and Christian mission schools that broke apart families and exacted unspeakable physical, sexual and emotional violence upon its students.

Black Elk tells why the Cottonwood is a sacred tree: ”Long ago it was the cottonwood who taught us how to make our tipis, for the leaf of the tree is an exact pattern of the tipi, and this was learned when som of our old men were watching little children making play houses from the leaves. This too is a good example of how much grown men may learn from very little cihldren, for the hearts of the children are pure, and therefore the Great Spirit may show to them many things which older people miss. Another reason why we choose the cottonwood tree to be a the center of our lodge is that the Great Spirit has shown to us that, if you cut an upper limb of this tree crosswise, there you will see in the grain a perfect five pointed star, which, to us, represents the presence of the Great Spirit. Also perhaps you have noticed that even in the very slightest breeze you can hear the voice of the cottonwood tree; this we understand is its prayer to the Great Spirit, for not only men, but all things and all beings pray to Him continually in different ways.”

The project is a collaboration between the Calvin White Butterfly of the Wounded Knee Tiyospaye Project (An affiliate of Village Earth), Dennis Yellow Thunder of the Oglala Sioux Tribe Natural Resources Regulatory Agency and Dr. Kurt Mackes, Colorado State Forester. After learning about the need for the trees, Dr. Mackes applied for a small grant from the Colorado State Forest Service to purchase the trees. Village Earth also provided a small grant to the Wounded Knee Tiyospaye project to assist with the coordination of the project among the various schools on the Reservation.

 

 

Filed Under: Lakota Lands Recovery Project

VE Affiliate, Empowering Youth Cambodia Opens 4th School!

March 23, 2012 By 1 Comment

We are excited to report that Village Earth affiliate, EYC has opened a new school to serve the underprivileged children of Phnom Penh: the Impact School. Located in a very deserving and poor community on the north side of Phnom Penh, the Impact School is located in a wonderful house that has been vacated to allow us to transform it into a school. Full update on the EYC Blog

 

Filed Under: Global Affiliate Network, Village Earth News

Spring Update from Earth Tipi

March 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment

Vermiculture workshop sponsored by Earth Tipi on the Pine Ridge Reservation

By Shannon Freed, Director of Earth Tipi

Spring has sprung and Earth Tipi has been making plans for the coming season all winter! First some exciting updates on current news. In November Earth Tipi hosted a Lakota language immersion experience for children at the Lakota Dakota Nakota Language Summit in Rapid City. Children experienced the Lakota language through story telling, computer interactive games and a video corner that featured the Lakota Bears (Berenstein Bears in the Lakota language). In January I teamed up with Arlo Iron Cloud of KILI Radio in Porcupine to do an early morning radio show about foods that heal. Each week a different food is featured and its medical properties are discussed. Information shared includes meal preparation uses and cooking recipes. Also new to Earth Tipi programming are school presentations. I have been making regular visits to the Lakota Waldorf School where the children learn about different food ingredients, where they come from and then they create something from the ingredients. Playdough and Granola were both big hits with these kindergarteners. This month we featured Vermiculturist John Victor Anderson “The Colorado Worm Man” of Fort Collins. John visited both the Little Wound High School, Lakota Waldorf and did a community presentation in Wounded Knee. At Little Wound, Automotive and Carpentry students learned how to transform an old refrigerator into a worm bin. Two bins were made using non functioning refrigerators that would have otherwise gone to the dump. The following day John presented to 9th and 10th graders in Biology and Physical Science classes. These classes will be responsible for raising the worms using food collected from cafeteria waste. In April, students from the Art class will decorate the bins.

This summer we will turn our existing fruit tree orchard into a food forest. We plan to expand our gardens and are in the process of implementing new permaculture techniques including a “hugelkultur” which will help store water so that we can work to eliminate the need for irrigation in our garden. We will also be repeating our collaboration with the William Penn House of Washington D.C. to take three youth from our reservation to Washington D.C. for one week following a visit from D.C. area high school students. One intern position will be offered to a local youth and it is hoped that funds can be raised to pay a small stipend for this position.

We will be very busy this summer as we work to complete the gazebo project we started last summer as well as construct an outdoor kitchen which will feature a cob oven, solar oven and bengali pit stove. If funds are raised we will also construct a greenhouse, root cellar and a home office for Earth Tipi made from light straw clay. We are currently in the process for raising funds for all of these projects and will need to raise $150,000 by August. If you are interested in supporting Earth Tipi in these endeavors please visit http://earthtipi.org/support to make an online contribution. Pilamaya, Shannon Freed, Director Earth Tipi

 

Filed Under: Earth Tipi, Lakota Lands Recovery Project, Village Earth News Tagged With: , , , ,
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