Developing an Organizational Commitment to Land Justice

When we talk about land, land is part of who we are. It’s a mixture of our blood, our past, our current, and our future. We carry our ancestors in us, and they’re around us. As you all do.    

                                                       — Mary Lyons (Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe)

A land acknowledgement statement can be an anchor for a much larger program of reckoning with the history of the land on and with which we work and live. For public-facing organizations, this process can involve educating communities and thinking, internally and collectively, about reparations. In this workshop, we offer a structured approach to developing an organization-wide recognition of the history of land-theft and subsequent exploitation/extraction, while also articulating meaningful actions that your staff and board can take toward land justice and reparations.

Everyone signed up will be given materials to review and think about ahead of the class. A small listserv will discuss materials and ask questions in the week preceding our meeting.

The workshop in Tivoli will then begin with a discussion, led by members of Ultra Advising, of where your organization is in the process, and ways to develop communication so that everyone has a role in articulating a land acknowledgement statement. We will talk about all aspects of the process — from encountering resistance within your team, to where to put a statement on your site and website, to what related actions are viable for your community to take. We will have lots of examples and resources to review together as we lay the groundwork for your individual processes.

Then we will zero in on the specifics of developing your land acknowledgment statement and attaching it to actions that are achievable and meaningful. Indigenous educator Heather Bruegl will offer insight into the history of land loss in the United States that affects Indigenous people. After discussing this history, she will offer ways that your organization can participate in land acknowledgements and related actions. Heather will also offer the opportunity for your organization to work with her one on one to make sure your organization is doing the work to be as inclusive as possible.

Finally, we will have a wrap-up discussion together to outline next steps. The goal is to support one another in thinking about restorative land justice actions we can all take.

Anyone interested can also join the Ultra staff and Ms. Bruegl at a local restaurant for a (pay-for-oneself) dinner after the workshop.

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Heather Bruegl is an Oneida Nation of Wisconsin citizen and first-line descendent Stockbridge Munsee. She is a graduate of Madonna University in Michigan and holds a Bachelor of Arts and  Master of Arts in U.S. History. Her research comprises numerous topics related to American history, legacies of colonization and Indigeneity, the history of American Boarding Schools, and Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women (#MMIW).
Heather is a public historian, activist, and independent consultant who works with institutions and organizations for Indigenous sovereignty and collective liberation. She is a frequent lecturer on topics ranging from inter-generational racism and trauma to the fight for clean water in the Native community. She has been invited to share her research on Indigenous history, including policy and activism, museum equity, and Land Back initiatives for such institutions as the Tate and the Brooklyn Public Library. Heather opened and spoke at the Women’s March Anniversary
in Lansing, Michigan, in January 2018 and at the first-ever Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, DC, in January 2019.

Heather is also a doctoral student at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay, where she studies First Nations Education, focusing on how institutions can support BIPOC museum and cultural workers.

https://www.heatherbruegl.com/

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Ultra Advising is a unique consulting agency run by three women with deep experience running and supporting nonprofit organizations. Ultra deftly balances mission, strategy, and day-to-day challenges to help organizations define and reach its goals and realize its potential.

Ultra is Caroline Crumpacker, Zuhirah Khaldun-Diarra and Rebecca Wolff, three advocates and activists for the nonprofit ecosystem, supporting better working conditions, mutual aid, no-strings giving, and a flourishing and truly public sector.

https://www.ultraadvising.com/