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Mission
Restore ecosystems and the sustainability of communities, cultures, and economies.
PANEL 6 of 7
November 16, 2023 | 10:30-11am
A Model for Tribal-Led Collaborative Stewardship
Program Description
This panel will discuss an innovative collaborative model between tribes, tribal communities, agencies, nonprofits, corporate, and philanthropic partners that supports project planning, ecological restoration, cultural revitalization, and tribal workforce capacity development. Panelists will highlight three specific projects in partnership with the Klamath Tribal community, the Kosealekte Band of the Pit River Tribe, and the Fort Bidwell Indian Tribe, which weave together federal agreements and funding with state and philanthropic investments to create resilient ecosystems, fire-adapted communities, and healthy wildlife habitat across thousands of acres of forest and miles of streams.
Moderator: Marko Bey • Lomakatsi Restoration Project Founder & Executive Director
Presentation Recording
Panelists and Presentation Summaries
Marko Bey • Lomakatsi Restoration Project, Founder & Executive Director
Marko Bey shared an example of the development of an inter-tribal workforce that is implementing ecosystem restoration and fire resiliency work across Northern Paiute, Klamath, and Pit River ancestral homelands working across federal, private and tribal trust lands. Through an established innovative collaborative model that leverages co-investment from philanthropic and corporate sources in support of tribal ecosystem resilience and workforce development initiatives, these projects are threaded together through various agreements and mechanisms with tribes and federal and state agencies. Marko highlighted the partnership between the Northern Paiute Gidutikad Band Fort Bidwell Indian Tribe and Lomakatsi, investments by HP and Roundhouse Foundation for work on the Reservation, and an inter-agency response following the Barnes Fire (2022) supporting work on adjacent National Forest System lands, which together forms a holistic approach to tribal engagement from initial consultation to planning and implementation.
“We engage with tribal community members, work with tribal councils, tribal governments, traditional leadership from the tribes, Elders from clans and bands, nonprofit tribal organizations, some organizations that are Congressionally designated…and different tribal organizations in human health, social service, peer support, and ecosystem resilience work, and tribal economic development…and then engaging our federal, state, and nonprofit partners and elected officials. This is that template we have worked on to bring diverse voices to the table.”
About Marko
Marko Bey founded Lomakatsi in 1995 and continues to lead the organization in restoring ecosystems and the sustainability of communities, cultures, and economies. Beginning as a tree planter working on federal lands in 1987, Marko has over thirty years of experience in forestry and ecosystem restoration from the ground up. Working locally and regionally to advance the full spectrum of ecosystem restoration, green job creation, and forest-based community revitalization, Marko served as the Board President of the Northwest Forest Worker Center and is a current Board member of the Southern Oregon Forest Restoration Collaborative and After the Fire. Marko also participates in a variety of regional and national strategic coalitions, committees, and interdisciplinary teams, contributing to developing and advancing community-based ecological restoration.
Belinda Brown • Pit River, Northern Paiute, Isleta Pueblo • Lomakatsi Restoration Project, Tribal Partnerships Director
Belinda Brown talked about best practices for successful partnerships with Tribes. She emphasized building relationships through earned trust and connection, and listening to elders, youth, and other members of Tribal communities because people are central to the work of ecosystem restoration. Belinda highlighted the value of Tribal peoples’ expertise about healing the land as bearers of ITEK and the first, best stewards of the land since time immemorial.
“We need to manage egosystems before we can manage ecosystems. Collaborative partnership starts with a hello and a handshake.”
About Belinda
Belinda provides leadership for Lomakatsi’s Tribal Partnerships Program and Chairs the Inter-Tribal Ecosystem Restoration Partnership. She is an enrolled member of the Kosealekte Band of the Ajumawi-Atsuge Nation (federally recognized as the Pit River Tribe) and has served as an elected official on the Pit River Tribal Council and also as a Traditional Behavioral Health Specialist and Cultural Representative as an appointed delegate at local, state and national levels. Belinda has served Indian Country in intergovernmental affairs coordination, strategic planning and community development for the last twenty years. Her background is in health and human services, emergency preparedness and natural resources. She is a Certified Youth Life Coach and Mentor.
Kevin Lo • HP, Circularity Lead and Sustainability Distinguished Technologist
As a representative of corporate partners in ecosystem restoration, Kevin Lo explained HP’s goals of sustainability and justice focused on social justice, gender equity, workforce empowerment, and education. He talked about the corporation’s three pillars (climate action, human rights, and digital equity), and steps HP has taken to shift away from a petroleum-based economy using science-based targets, including biodiversity and endangered species protection, and supporting inter-tribal partnerships in forest restoration. Kevin discussed the benefits that corporations bring, such as multi-sector and international connections, and encouraged potential Tribal partners to be prepared with projects for when funding becomes available.
“We want to build a community of organizations […] when you have a billion people thinking about the same objectives, it could change the world.”
About Kevin
Mr. Kevin Lo is HP’s corporate Circularity Lead and Sustainability Distinguished Technologist. In this role, he leads HP’s goals on materials and energy: reduce, reuse, renew, and recycle. Kevin has earned over fifty patents in his twenty-five years at HP. He holds a Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering from UT Austin, a Masters in Engineering from Stanford, a Masters in Biotechnology from Johns Hopkins, and is completing a Masters in Sustainability from Harvard.
Erin Borla • Roundhouse Foundation, Executive Director and Trustee
Erin Borla spoke about the Roundhouse Foundation’s experiences building relationships with Indigenous communities, which she described as an ongoing process of showing up with an open heart and an understanding that the community knows best what it needs to thrive. Borla also spoke about funding: how to remove barriers and get the ball rolling with smaller grants, and then how to leverage larger funding from state and federal entities. Nonprofits can serve as facilitators and catalysts for change within systems and help Native communities achieve what they need to support efforts such as youth leadership, language revitalization, arts and culture, education, social service, and environmental stewardship.
“You’ve shouted for years what the needs are in your communities, you have a voice; what you don’t have is ears that are listening […] So if I can be in community and hear what [needs are] in your community and share and give capital and be able to braid that federal funding and state funding and help elevate your project, that’s where we can really make something sing.”
About Erin
Ms. Erin Borla is an Oregonian—born and raised in Central Oregon and the granddaughter of Oregon’s own tough mother, Gert Boyle of Columbia Sportswear. For 20 years, she has worked with and for nonprofit organizations that support rural communities with innovative economic strategies. Ms. Borla holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Agricultural Sciences from Oregon State University, a Master’s of Tourism Administration from The George Washington University, and a certificate in Tribal relations from Portland State University. She has been a Trustee for the Roundhouse Foundation based in Sisters, Oregon since 2014 and is the organization’s first Executive Director.
Liz Hernandez • Northern Paiute • Gidutikad Band Fort Bidwell Indian Community Tribal Council
As the youngest elected member of the Fort Bidwell Indian Community Tribal Council, Liz Hernandez shared that it takes work to learn about the needs and obstacles facing Tribes. Liz spoke about her experience learning from elders and other leaders in her community by asking questions to learn about what behaviors and decisions are impacting the land and, therefore, her people. Liz talked about her leadership on the Tribal Council to support the Tribe’s forest restoration work, including enhancing the capacity to carry out treatments with a tribal workforce. Liz emphasized the value of partnerships, the work experience for inter-tribal youth crews, information-sharing between Tribes for successful collaborative restoration, and how to connect with cross-sector partners to find funding and capacity support.
“If you don’t understand something, reach out to the elders; reach out to the people that have been working with Tribes.”
About Liz
Liz is firstly a mother and wife. She is an enrolled member of the Gidutikad Band of Northern Paiutes, Fort Bidwell CA. Her maternal family is the Burns and Phoenixs’ of CA/NV, and her paternal family is the Zendejas family of Michoacán, Mex. Mrs. Hernandez is an Associate Tribal Technical Assistance Program Manager for the California Coalition for Rural Housing, Tribal Nations Grant Fund Panelist, and currently resides on her reservation in Fort Bidwell. She is one of nine Tribal Council members. She holds a B.S. in Business Administration and has educated herself on ecosystem restoration, ITEK, and forest management while working within nonprofit, health information management, quality assurance, risk management, public service, tribal housing, partnership, wellness and food programs, strategic planning, and grant writing.