Sinkyone Executive Director Search is Live!
The InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council has launched the search for its next Executive Director. This is an exciting opportunity to build on the Council's 37-year legacy of land and water acquisition, protection, and rematriation initiatives within Sinkyone and adjacent Tribal territories.
The Council is seeking an experienced, passionate individual to strengthen and expand the organization's cultural land and ocean protection programs and lead the day-to-day operations of the Council, building out the organizational capacity necessary to carry out the Council's mission and goals. In addition, the Executive Director will be responsible for setting the organization's strategic direction in collaboration with the Board, ensuring continued quality and innovation, and increasing its profile.
The Executive Director will cultivate external relationships and partnerships and provide catalytic leadership to expand the Council's impact. The position will work closely with a variety of partners and allies and will involve building and maintaining a robust portfolio of work.
The ideal candidate has significant experience in and deep commitment to cultural land acquisition, protection, and stewardship endeavors, loves being in nature, and understands the importance of Tribal sovereignty, rights, and cultural responsibilities. Additionally, they will be committed to deeply collaborative work to expand and strengthen the Council's programs.
The full position description is available here. Referrals and inquiries should be directed to the Council's search consultant, Shaina Amaya, at LeaderFit (samaya@leaderfit.org).
Sinkyone in the News—March 2023
On March 31, two international news sources published important articles that highlight the Sinkyone Council’s work to protect Sinkyone lands, waters and native species.
The first appears in Capital Online International. It prominently showcases the collaborative efforts of the InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council and Save the Redwoods League to protect Tc'ih-Léh-Dûñ (Fish Run Place). The story is in the context of global biodiversity and conservation efforts, including the COP15 climate conference in Montreal. It illustrates why the Council's work to protect such places and species is vital to 30x30 and other international conservation efforts:
https://cfi.co/sustainability/2023/03/new-cause-for-celebration-on-biodiversity-and-conservation/
The second, published in The Washington Post, is focused on the Vatican’s repudiation of the "Doctrine of Discovery”. It discusses the Council and League's collaboration in protecting Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ as an important example of Tribal land return efforts that relate to that doctrine. The Vatican’s repudiation of this horrific centuries-old doctrine has important intersection with the return of land to Tribal Nations because religious institutions and governments (including the US) used the doctrine as a legal justification for carrying out genocide, forced removal, and theft of Indigenous Peoples' lands. Highlighting Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ to illustrate the relevance of Tribal land return showcases the Council's work within the context of international environmental and social justice efforts:
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2023/03/31/vatican-rejects-discovery-doctrine-canada/
If you don’t subscribe to The Washington Post, you likely will run into a paywall when clicking onto the link. If you don't mind giving them your email address, you can see the article for free.
Sinkyone Council in July 2022 Issue of National Geographic
A photograph of the Sinkyone Council’s board members appeared in the July 2022 National Geographic Editor’s Letter, entitled “On the importance of protecting land sacred to Native communities.” The July issue features the cover story “We Are Here—Native Nations Are Reclaiming their Lands and Ways of Life”.
See the Editor’s Letter, which includes information on the Sinkyone Council’s work to protect the Tc’ih-Léh-Dûn (Fish Run Place) land in Sinkyone Territory.
Protecting Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ—Restoring Indigenous Guardianship
In December 2021, an important Land Back achievement was reached when a 523-acre area of coast redwood forestland was returned to the InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council through donation by Save the Redwoods League. Designated by Sinkyone Council as Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ (meaning “Fish Run Place” in Sinkyone language), the land contains nearly 200 acres of old-growth redwood and critical habitat for imperiled species including marbled murrelet, coho salmon and steelhead trout. Part of the responsibility we as Indigenous Peoples have is to honor and safeguard these relatives who, like our peoples, have been here for many thousands of years.
The Council and League worked closely for two years to craft lasting protections for Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ, which is situated in Mendocino County between the Council’s 3,844-acre InterTribal Wilderness land and its 164-acre Four Corners land. The land’s title was conveyed to the Council simultaneous with a conservation easement being granted to the League. The returned land increases the Council’s protected holdings from 4,008 acres to 4,531 acres. Through this partnership with the League, the Council will return Indigenous guardianship and relationship to a land from which the Sinkyone people were forcibly removed generations ago.
Despite the many atrocities committed against Indigenous Peoples, our perseverance has kept traditional knowledge and ways alive, enabling our cultures to revitalize and become stronger. In restoring the original place name Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ, the Sinkyone Council exchanges a reciprocal gift of love and respect for Indigenous land and language that are integral to the continuum of our ancestors as well as present and future generations. Our languages are aligned with those of the animals, plants, waters, tides, and all parts of nature. Those ways of speaking contribute to our own Tribal languages, which help us communicate with nature.
Recognizing Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ as a Tribal Protected Area reaffirms the inherited responsibility we have to maintain and revitalize our relationships with the land, air, water, spirits, and all forms of life within our cultural landscapes. Tribal cultural lifeways and ecosystem protection are inextricably linked. Indigenous cultures depend upon the health of the lands and waters; likewise, the wellbeing of these places depends upon the love and care we give to them.
The Sinkyone Council’s goal for Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ and neighboring areas is to expand our protection and guardianship over the matrix of ecologically and culturally linked lands and waters within this region. In doing so, the Council and its member Tribes in collaboration with our partners can achieve greater landscape and regional level protections informed by Tribal traditional values and understandings of these places. Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ demonstrates Indigenous Peoples are at the forefront of critical efforts to address climate, conservation and wildlife crises and bring healing to the planet and our communities. For more information, please see: Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ (Fish Run Place)
Blog Post by Sinkyone Council
To learn more about Tc’ih-Léh-Dûñ, see below short film by Save the Redwoods League
Kelp and Seaweed
On February 16, 2022 the California Fish and Game Commission voted unanimously to adopt a three-year closure of commercial bull kelp harvest in State marine waters adjacent to Mendocino and Sonoma counties. The Commission’s action responds to changing ecological conditions that have caused dramatic declines in bull kelp (Nereocystis), resulting in a 90% reduction of historic kelp coverage with ecosystem-wide impacts. The Commission’s decision also signals a growing responsiveness by the State to Tribes’ concerns about the accelerating threats to the traditional landscapes and seascapes that are critical for the continuation of our cultural lifeways. The Three-Year Closure came into effect on January 1, 2023.
Since 2018, the Sinkyone Council and its member Tribes have asked the State to enact stronger measures to protect kelp and seaweed from the increasing pressures of commercial harvesting, climate change, pollution, and other devastating impacts. We believe the health of the ocean is a reflection of the planet’s health.
While the Council had proposed a 10-year closure for commercial kelp harvesting, it applauds the Commission for enacting the 3-year closure, which holds the possibility for an extension if necessary. In responding to news of the Commission’s vote, Sinkyone Council Chairwoman Priscilla Hunter of Coyote Valley Band of Pomo Indians stated, “As guardians of Mother Earth, the Tribes have the inherent responsibility of protecting nature. The ocean is telling us that it is injured and needs healing, so we need to heed that message and do all we can to help.” Debra Ramirez, Tribal Chairwoman of the Redwood Valley Little River Band of Pomo Indians, who represents her Tribe on the Sinkyone Council’s board of directors, stated “We are pleased the Commissioners made the right decision on this important issue, and that they seriously considered the cultural values and concerns the Sinkyone Council and its member Tribes have brought to the Commission’s and Department’s attention.”
To see Tribal comments read at the California Fish and Game Commission’s August 18, 2021 meeting: Tribal Comments to California Fish & Game Commission Regarding Commercial Harvest Rules for Kelp
To see the full Tribal proposal to California Department of Fish and Wildlife: Tribal Proposal to CDFW for Amending Commercial Harvest Rules for Kelp & Sea Palm
Beginning in 2019, the Sinkyone Council’s member Tribes have participated in meetings with California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) as part of formal Government-to-Government Consultation requested by the Tribes. Sinkyone Council assists by hosting and facilitating this process. The consultation is focused on proposed changes CDFW is developing to amend state regulations for commercial harvest of kelp and seaweed.
The Tribes have serious concerns about these commercial harvest activities, and developed their own set of recommendations for revising the regulations and in order to better protect these species and the health of marine ecosystems. The Tribes also are asking the state to fix outdated and unjust regulations preventing Tribes from exercising their inherent rights to gather and tend kelp and seaweed as vitally essential cultural foods.
To learn more about the Tribes’ environmental and cultural concerns regarding these imperiled species, see: Tribal Statement to CDFW on Protecting Kelp & Seaweed, read by Sinkyone Council member and Sherwood Valley Tribal representative Buffie Schmidt at CDFW’s webinar on June 2, 2020.
Protecting the Redwoods of Richardson Grove
The Sinkyone Council remains unconditionally opposed to the proposed widening of US Highway 101 through Richardson Grove State Park. The Grove comprises an important area of Sinkyone traditional territory, and is a Sinkyone cultural heritage area of immense significance to Tribes and Tribal Peoples of the region. Our position is clear: the proposed highway widening threatens the Grove’s cultural landscape including its ancient Gááhs-tcho (redwoods), and would permanently harm these trees and Tribal cultural heritage.
In a jointly-authored May 7, 2021 letter, the InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council and the Environmental Protection Information Center (EPIC) requested Caltrans to halt plans for the destructive project because of the Grove’s Tribal Cultural Significance
In a May 13 Times-Standard article, Caltrans stated that no old-growth redwoods would be cut during the proposed project. Such statements are part of an ongoing attempt to convince the public that the Grove’s old-growth trees would not be harmed. But if allowed to go forward, the project would seriously damage the old-growth within and adjacent to proposed areas of impact because significant numbers of large roots would have to be cut. In a May 25 article, Sinkyone Council member Crista Ray offered her perspectives as a Sinkyone descendant about why cutting roots of old-growth Gááhs-tcho would be harmful and unacceptable. Read: The Duty to Protect our Redwood Relatives
May 13 Times-Standard article: We are Standing with the Trees: EPIC and Tribes Call on Caltrans to Halt Richardson Grove Project
May 11 press release: InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council Calls For A Halt To Richardson Grove Project
In February 2021, EPIC revealed a situation that occurred 10 years ago when the lawsuit to protect the Grove was filed. Learn more about the cultural history and ongoing fight to protect this community of Gááhs-tcho, part of the last 2% of old-growth redwood still standing at: Correcting the Record on Richardson Grove
We call upon people to stand with the Sinkyone Council, the Tribes, and allies to defend the Grove—an irreplaceable remnant of the old-growth Gááhs-tcho forest that requires our protection. We will continue to provide updates on this critical effort to honor and defend our ancient Gááhs-tcho relatives and Sinkyone cultural heritage.
30x30 Initiative
Sinkyone Council supports 30x30, a commitment by Tribal Nations, state and federal governments, conservation organizations, and others to protect and conserve at least 30% of U.S. lands and oceans by 2030 through locally led initiatives. It is important that people understand these lands and waters all are situated within traditional territories of Tribal Nations. These are cultural landscapes, seascapes and celestial-scapes that Tribal Nations have known, cared for, and communicated with for millennia. They comprise a vast array of places with which Tribal Nations have retained and are revitalizing deep and abiding cultural relationships.
Indigenous cultural lifeways and traditional knowledge systems represent unique ways of relating to ecosystems, based upon Indigenous law and the law of nature—which when carried out help ensure biological diversity and abundance. 30x30 provides potential for new pathways to respectfully and effectively address conservation, climate and wildlife crises while recognizing and honoring the sovereignty of Tribal Nations. Tribal Nations are at the forefront of addressing climate, conservation and wildlife crises through engagement in 30x30 and related efforts.
To learn more about Tribal perspectives regarding the 30x30 initiative, read the December 2020 op-ed in Indian Country Today authored by W. Ron Allen, Chairman of Jamestown S'Klallam Tribe; Leonard Forsman, Chairman of Suquamish Tribe; Reno Keoni Franklin, Chairman Emeritus of Kashia Band of Pomo Indians; and Aaron Payment, Chairman of Sault Ste Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians. More information will be posted as future phases of the initiative unfold.
The Yuki People and the Legacy of Serranus Hastings
Sinkyone Council supports an important Indigenous People’s justice initiative led by Yuki people in collaboration with UC College of the Law, San Francisco (formerly, UC Hastings Law) and Round Valley Indian Tribes to recognize and address acts of genocide against the Yuki perpetrated by the College’s founder Serranus Hastings, who later became California’s first Supreme Court Chief Justice. In the 1850s, Hastings ordered the forced removal of Yuki people from Eden and Round Valleys, which resulted in a massacre of hundreds of Yuki. Hastings then took large areas of Yuki land, by which he greatly enriched himself. In 1878 Hastings founded the state’s first law school, which for nearly 135 years bore his name.
The Yuki are the original people of Round Valley, Eden Valley and adjacent vicinities. The Sinkyone Council supports this Indigenous justice endeavor because it exposes and confronts harsh truths about atrocities experienced by the Yuki people: that the original guardians of these lands and waters were subjected to widespread attacks, massacres, land thefts, and numerous other human rights violations. We also support this effort of recognition and reconciliation because it seeks to honor the lives, the resilience, and the cultural lifeways of the Yuki people who survived these acts of violence.
Sinkyone Council members, including those of Yuki ancestry, have met and collaborated with representatives of UC Law and are honored to have contributed to development of key concepts that are informing a series of initiatives the Yuki people, Round Valley Indian Tribes, and UC Law are collaborating on as they pursue reconciliation and justice.
Read the July 2021 OpEd published in The Sacramento Bee by President James Russ of the Round Valley Indian Tribes and Chancellor-Dean David L. Faigman of UC Law that discusses their path and efforts towards reconciliation: UC Hastings Namesake killed, displaced California tribes. But changing name isn’t enough
In 2022 California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 1936, which revised the California Education Code, striking the name “Hastings” from the school. On January 1, 2023, the school’s new came into effect: UC College of the Law, San Francisco (“UC Law”).
Sinkyone Council thanks the Yuki people, Round Valley Indian Tribes and UC Law for embarking upon this challenging journey of truth and healing. To learn more about this initiative, read our full April 2021 synopsis: The Yuki People and the Legacy of Serranus Hastings
Marine Mammals and Tribal Lifeways
Since 2005, InterTribal Sinkyone Wilderness Council has been a leader in the movement demanding greater protection for marine mammals and the Tribes’ cultural lifeways, which are inextricably linked. In 2012 the Council was lead plaintiff in a federal lawsuit against National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) for permitting the US Navy’s take of marine mammals. In 2013, a federal judge ruled in our favor, requiring the Navy and NMFS to develop measures to better protect sea mammals. Since 2015, we have facilitated a formal Government-to-Government Consultation process between our member Tribes and the Navy. The consultation addresses Tribal opposition and concerns about training and testing the Navy conducts offshore from Northern California, Oregon and Washington.
In late 2020/early 2021, several important protective measures for marine mammals were adopted by the Navy and NMFS as a direct result of the Tribal—Navy Consultation process, and the extensive Tribal comments submitted and ongoing communications with the Navy and NMFS. Learn about the protective measures by reading our April 2021 update: Update Regarding NWTT Mitigations
In 2019-2020, Sinkyone Council and its member Tribes developed and submitted extensive comments to the Navy and NMFS regarding the environmental permits governing the Navy’s training and testing activities in the Northwest Training and Testing Study Area (NWTT), an area 250 nautical miles (NM) wide x 500 NM long: Map of NWTT Study Area
The NWTT encompasses a vast network of complex, interdependent and imperiled marine ecosystems situated within traditional territories of numerous Tribal Nations that have lived in close relationship with their coastal and marine environments for countless generations. Learn more about the Tribes’ concerns:
For a summary of the mitigation areas that have been developed to further avoid or reduce potential impacts to marine mammals, sea turtles, ESA-listed fish, and marbled murrelets, see: Table K-2 of the SEIS: Marine Species Mitigation Areas in the NWTT Offshore Area
During 2021 and beyond, the Tribes and Sinkyone Council will be keeping active watch on how the Navy and NMFS are implementing the new measures. To access the final environmental statements and permits see:
Cahto Land Protection Initiative
Sinkyone Council supports protection and conservation of a vital cultural landscape within Cahto Tribal Territory. This effort would result in permanent protection for the entirety of a critically important redwood—tanoak watershed with many culturally significant attributes and species, including endangered coho salmon. The growing alliance is advocating lasting protection for the watershed, and that the majority of it ultimately be designated a Cahto Tribal Protected Area. We will continue posting updates on this endeavor. Learn more at: Friends of Tc’ibéétookwot
InterTribal Sinkyone Hiking Trails
After years of planning, design and construction we have completed two low-impact hiking trails through our land. In Sinkyone language, the trails are named Kahs-tcho—Sa-chung (Redwood—Tanoak) and To-tcho—Klo-kut (Ocean-Salmon). They tie into the “Lost Coast Trail,” a hiking trail network in the adjacent Sinkyone Wilderness State Park and King Range National Conservation Area. Please stay tuned, as we will be making an announcement here when the trails are open for pubic hiking.
Acknowledging Indigenous Peoples
We developed this Acknowledgement as a way of educating people about the need for respecting Indigenous Peoples, traditional territories and Nature. It focuses on Sinkyone Territory, but also outlines principles applicable to Indigenous Peoples’ territories everywhere. Acknowledgements should be meaningful, and not merely performative gestures. They can be an important step toward establishing alliance with Indigenous Peoples. To learn more, read: Acknowledgement of Indigenous Peoples and Territories
Opposing Local Wood Pellet Plant
Sinkyone Council opposes a local wood pellet plant that poses serious threats to the air quality and health of local Tribal and other communities. To learn more, read: Resolution Opposing Calpella Wood Pellet Plant