“If we can’t feed ourselves, are we truly sovereign?” 

The Oneida Nation and the Menominee Indian Tribe of Wisconsin are demonstrating what becomes possible when Tribal Nations lead their own food systems. Through the FDPIR Self-Determination Demonstration Project, the first step in extending Tribal Self-Governance into the U.S. Department of Agriculture, these Tribes are bringing locally grown apples, ground bison, fresh beef, wild rice, and Indigenous foods directly into their communities. 

This story visits Oneida’s 40-acre apple orchard, the home site for 600 head of black angus, and the Menominee wild rice restoration project at Keshena Falls, where, the elders say, the spawning fish were once called up the river by the sound of water on the rocks. The Demonstration Project is an important first step, and continued advocacy is needed for Tribes to fully realize the promise of food sovereignty.

When California passed the Marine Life Protection Act in 2009 without recognizing Tribal rights, coastal Tribes raised their voices. When the state established Marine Protected Areas without enforcement, Tribes took stewardship into their own hands. Today, the Yurok Tolowa Dee-ni’ Indigenous Marine Stewardship Area covers nearly 700 square miles of ocean and coastal waters, the first of its kind in the nation. 

This story explores how a network of California coastal Tribes is monitoring sea stars, surf smelt, mussels, and seaweed; testing for biotoxins to keep traditional foods safe; and showing what conservation looks like when the people who have always cared for the coast lead the work.