Series Details

Dates and Times:

Wednesday, April 26, 2023 (5:00 - 6:15pm)
Wednesday, May 3, 2023 (5:00 - 6:15pm)
Wednesday, May 10, 2023 (5:00 - 6:15pm)
Wednesday, May 17, 2023 (5:00 - 6:15pm)

Location:

Courses will be held live on Zoom. 
The recordings will be made available within one week of the live seminar. 

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Series Modules

• Week 1: Native American History 101 + Outreach, Messaging and Working with Tribes (April 26, 2023)
• Week 2: Native Food Systems Intensive (May 3, 2023)
• Week 3: Northwest Native Foods & Coast Salish Diets (May 10, 2023)
• Week 4: Food Sovereignty and Education Initiatives in Tribal Communities (May 17, 2023)

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Series Overview

The Indigenous Engagement series offers four separate 60 to 75-minute trainings on the following topics:

Workshop 1 – April 26, 2023

Native American History 101 + Outreach, Messaging and Working with Tribes

Learning Objectives:

1. Gain an understanding of the history and context that led to the contemporary Native American existence.
2. Identify the fundamentals of Tribal Sovereignty and important policies that affect Native people and communities today.
3. Identify terminology and communications best practices when engaging with Tribes

Overview:

Understanding the history and context that led to the contemporary Native American experience is essential when working across all sectors of U.S. society. In this course we cover 500 years of history, moments in history that have modern day implications, important policies that affect Native people and communities today and the fundamentals of Tribal Sovereignty.

Topics including invisibility and institutionalized erasure, common myths and misconceptions about Native people, the new emerging narrative, and terminology and communications best practices are also included in this presentation.

Workshop 2 – May 3, 2023

Native Food Systems Intensive

Learning Objectives:

1. Gain an understanding of the First Foods of North America and the ecological concepts used for the cultivation and management of these food systems.
2. Understand how American cultural patterns and perspectives of Native food systems have contributed to the colonization of Tribal people and lands.
3. Examine project briefs on how Tribal communities have sought to restore and revitalize their food systems and traditions.

Overview:

In this training we cover the breadth and depth of the First Foods of North America and the ecological concepts derived from thousands of years of cultivation that are used for management of these food systems. Included in this topic is an overview of language that has been implemented to shape American cultural patterns and perspectives of Native food systems that have contributed to the colonization of Tribal people and lands. The session ends with project briefs led by the grassroots efforts of Tribal communities to restore and revitalize our food systems and traditions.

Workshop 3 – May 10, 2023

Northwest Native Foods and Coast Salish Diets

Learning Objectives:

1. Identify and examine the principles of Native diets and how they can be applied to our contemporary context.
2. Identify principles to support health interventions that are culturally centered and relevant.

Overview:

For generations salmon, elk, roots, wild greens and berries have held their rightful place as the center of Coast Salish food culture. Ancestral diets were nutrient dense and dictated by the ripening and returning of our foods. In return, our Ancestors lived free of common nutrition related diseases like diabetes and heart disease which are now among the top causes of mortality in our communities. While it may seem impossible for these diets to exist in a modern world, principles of Native diets are just as applicable today as they were generations ago. In this training we cover these topics and principles to support health interventions that are culturally centered and relevant. We also discuss the nutrient density of these foods as the remedy for common pervasive maladies.

Workshop 4 – May 17, 2023

Food Sovereignty and Education Initiatives in Tribal Communities

Learning Objectives:

1. Gain an understanding of the meaning and foundations of Tribal Food Sovereignty.
2. Identify and examine initiatives and strategies led by Native people to restore food and health systems in order to apply and replicate these interventions.

Overview

In this training we cover the meaning and foundations of Tribal Food Sovereignty. This includes an overview of initiatives and strategies currently being led by Native people in an effort to restore our food and health systems. Many of these initiatives are being managed through education and youth programs aimed to inspire the next generation. These multidisciplinary food and health units have grown into all corners of education from biology to mental health to natural resource management. In this training we share examples and framework for how these interventions can be both replicable and inspiring.

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Series Completion Requirements (in order to receive a Certificate of Completion)

 

• You must attend all live sessions on Zoom.
• You must complete the course quiz with a 75% or higher to pass.
• You must complete the course evaluation.

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About the Facilitators

Tahoma Peak Solutions, a Native-women owned firm, has over 30 years of combined experience training lawmakers, non-profits, foundations, universities and companies on the nuances of DEI work in Indian Country and the depth of ecological knowledge in Native food and health systems. For more information, please visit their website Tahoma Peak Solutions

Valerie Segrest is an enrolled member of the Muckleshoot Tribe and cofounder of Tahoma Peak Solutions.

For more than a decade, Ms. Segrest has dedicated her work in the field of Nutrition and Human Health Science towards the efforts of the food sovereignty movement and catalyzing food security strategies rooted in education, awareness, and overcoming barriers to accessing traditional foods for Tribal communities throughout North America. Ms. Segrest earned her Bachelors Degree in Human Nutrition and Health Sciences from Bastyr University and her Masters of Arts Degree in Environment and Community from Antioch University. 

Maria Givens is an enrolled member of the Coeur d'Alene Tribe in northern Idaho and cofounder of Tahoma Peak Solutions.

Maria has worked in the US Senate, for the National Congress of American Indians and for the Native American Agriculture Fund. She has a master's degree in sustainable food systems from the University of Colorado Boulder and a bachelor's degree in political science and American Indian studies from the University of Washington. Maria enjoys picking huckleberries with her family in Idaho, fishing, cooking and preparing traditional foods. In her free time, Maria enjoys yoga, basketball, running, hiking and camping.

Nora Frank-Buckner, MPH, is an enrolled member of the Nez Perce Tribe of Idaho and a direct descendant of the Klamath Tribes of Southern Oregon.

For more than a decade, Nora has passionately worked in the field of Public Health and chronic disease prevention. Her primary focus is on collaborative leadership and systems thinking that has contributed toward the efforts of a regional food sovereignty movement. Her expertise is in developing, facilitating, and coordinating networks, coalitions, and tribal programs that address food sovereignty and systems, food security, and access to fresh, nutritious, and traditional foods.

Savannah Romero is an enrolled member of the Eastern Shoshone Tribe and a Communications Strategist at Tahoma Peak Solutions

Savannah worked as a Legislative Correspondent in the U.S. House of Representatives, as a diversity, equity and inclusion, and nonprofit governance consultant in New York City. Most recently, Savannah served as the Movement Building and Organizing Manager at IllumiNative, a racial and social justice organization whose mission is to build power for Native people by amplifying contemporary Native voices, stories, and issues. Savannah holds a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Washington and a Master’s Degree in Public Policy and Administration from New York University.

View cancellation policy here

 

 

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