Recommended Reads: The Time of the Black Jaguar by Arkan Lushwala
Welcome to Recommended Reads, Sacred Fire Foundation’s monthly book recommendation series. By Kim Langbecker, Executive Director Once a month, we’ll feature a book that has made a profound impact on our work. Today, I am delighted to share an excerpt from The Time...
“The wisdom of humanity lives in Indigenous people – and it belongs to humanity ” Arkan Lushwala (Andean Ceremonial Leader)
Over the last few years, out of the blue, someone would randomly mention that I “needed” to meet a ceremonial leader from Peru who lived “somewhere near Santa Fe”. Each time, a few more details were revealed but never his name. I’m not certain if those urging me to...
Protecting the Sacred – A Word from Mercedes Caso, SFF Grants Director
How Does Sacred Fire Foundation Protect And Support Indigenous Wisdom? The main purpose of our grantmaking program, Protecting the Sacred, provides modest grants and organizational support for Indigenous wisdom keepers and their communities worldwide. To help them...In Solidarity
IN SOLIDARITY. In one of the hundreds of treasured conversations I’ve been blessed to have with Pauline Tangiora, the subject of us all being “one people” came up. I don’t remember the context or who shared that very common vision, but Pauline, in her gentle...Seeds of Wisdom – Pauline Tangiora (English)
In response to the urgent calling we are all feeling during this challenging and transformative time, and in solidarity with our Sacred Fire Foundation community and the many Elders we have had the privilege to work alongside, we are grateful to be able to share...
What is “Indigenous”?
From recent opinion pieces in The Hill on the importance of listening to the wisdom and worldview of Native and Aboriginal Elders to protect our planet, to stories about the connection between Indigenous knowledge, the protection of biodiversity and the prevention of...
Everything is Sacred
This is a message to everyone who we have had the honor to share space with, in-person at one of our events, digitally through our social media, perhaps even just through e-mail. We are reaching out to you today to remind you, during this very challenging and...
November is Native American Heritage Month
This year’s theme is “Honoring Our Nations: Building Strength Through Understanding. There are hundreds of tribes across the nation, with over 570 federally recognized. They are the Indigenous Peoples of the United States – 5 million strong! This is a time to...
Vital Voices Protecting the Sacred
Words such as “hero”, “warrior” and “defender” are a part of every culture. Some become famous and are part of our collective history. Some go out every day and with very little fanfare, keep us safe, rescue us when tragedy strikes...
Busuréliame, Inner Awakening Through Ceremony
The Sacred Fire Foundation grant provided logistical support, food for the Tarahumara during the planning and conducting of two regional harvest ceremonies which are part of a larger vision and program to strengthen Tarahumara resilience. Busuréliame (Inner Awakening)...2019: the Year of Indigenous Languages
By Mercedes Caso Indigenous languages matter for social, economic and political development, peaceful coexistence and reconciliation in our societies. Yet many of them are in danger of disappearing. It is for this reason that the United Nations declared 2019 the Year...
Voices for the Water
By Alison Wearing For most of us, water is available at the simple turn of a tap. It’s easy to lose our connection to its source, its significance, its spiritual essence. But there are people among us with a deep connection to water and its wisdom, Indigenous Elders...
Creative Steps toward Gender Equality. Sarstoon Temash Institute for Indigenous Management, Belize.
The customs of Q’eqchi Mayan communities in Belize have been under threat from recent evangelical colonization that prohibits the practice of Indigenous cultural traditions. In response, an intergenerational project was created to rekindle an interest among...
Dance as an Act of Love
For more than twenty-five years, Elder Pahan Pte San Win (Lakota, Cree & Metis) has been offering counseling support to residential school survivors, incarcerated men and youth, and women who have experienced abuse. In 2016, she had a vision: We will dance on...17th session of the UN Permanent Forum on Indigenous Issues
Source: UNDESA Indigenous communities play a vital role as custodians of our planet, possessing vital knowledge that will support global efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). But despite progress to protect their rights, many of the world’s 370...
Voces de Sabiduría Ancestral
By Alison Wearing In the foothills of Meztitla, beneath the sacred cliffs of Tepoztlán, the 2018 Voices of Wisdom event, Voces de la Sabiduría, lit its flame. Jacaranda blossoms shimmered in the bone-dry air and dust rose from the roads and footpaths. It was a...
How Indigenous knowledge advances modern science and technology
Indigenous knowledge has aided and enhanced modern science and technology for centuries, Natan Obed, president of Inuit Tapiriit Kanatami, speaks about climate change at the global COP22 conference in Marrakech, Morocco, in November 2016. (AP...
Voices of Wisdom in Olympia, Washington
After an usually dry summer in Olympia, Washington, a welcoming rain greeted Yakama Nation Elder Levina Wilkins, Hereditary Chief of the Lummi Nation Tsi’li’xw (Bill James), and 35 people who came from Oregon, California, and Washington state to gather around a consecrated fire. The group listened as Levina and Bill shared stories of their upbringing, the Elders that cared for and guided them, and the traditions that they pass on to young people today.
