Reconnect. Revitalize. Rematriate.
Photo by Sarah Kleinhanzl.
OUR MISSION
We promote Indigenous land access, land return, and tribal sovereignty.
We do this through education, relationship building, and resource development in order to support Indigenous peoples in reclaiming and reconnecting to landscapes and First Foods.
Photo courtesy of Wallowa Land Trust.
Justice starts with land.
The Oregon Land Justice Project is a program of the Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts implemented in partnership with First Light Learning Journey, and Tributaries Network. The project organizes land trusts in Oregon to use their individual organizational strengths and assets collectively in service to Indigenous people and communities in Oregon.
Our Vision
The Project
Resources
“So there was this false premise that had existed in my career, that land and people are divided into two categories, when in fact, they are symbiotic."
— Chuck Sams
We believe that conservation must shift what it does and who it serves.
This requires adapting conservation so that Indigenous needs and priorities can be included. Tribes and Indigenous communities have lived on and stewarded this land for thousands of years, rooted here with a sense of place and a responsibility to protect it. Their cultures, lifeways, foodways, and worldviews are innately connected to the land and water.
Land trusts are uniquely suited for advancing land justice.
Land trusts hold valuable resources: land, finances, and networks. Their work generally addresses issues on a state or local level. As nonprofits, land trusts have the ability to purchase land, enter into co-management and co-stewardship agreements, and return land much faster and easier than state or federal governments can. These aspects make land trusts excellent partners for land justice work.
Indigenous Land Relationship Fund
The Indigenous Land Relationship Fund directly assists Indigenous people in reclaiming and reconnecting to traditional landscapes and First Foods.
Photo by Gabe Sheoships.