Indigenous Studies

Motivated by a desire to return a critically endangered Indigenous language to the land of its origin, the researcher, an adult second language learner and Hesquiaht woman delivered a four-day Hesquiaht place-based language learning outdoor course in partnership with extended family and Hooksum Outdoor School.  Hesquiaht is a Nuu-chah-nulth (Nootka, Wakashan) language that has 13 remaining fluent speakers, most of who are physically unable to teach over a prolonged period in the outdoors due to their advanced ages. 
In order to reconnect younger, physically active Indigenous learners to Hesquiaht land, to Hesquiaht language, to Hesquiaht stories, to Hesquiaht kinship and to the responsibilities that come with being a Hesquiaht person, the planning and delivery of this project combined place-based education approaches with research supported language immersion techniques within a Hesquiaht framework.  This project combined traditional and contemporary Hesquiaht ways of learning and teaching on the land guided by the past and present work of Hooksum Outdoor School and by the kinkʷaaštaqumł family participants.  The result was a resolve by this family based group of participants to continue the work of language revitalization on Indigenous land by gathering for more language immersion courses together.  Chapter 3 describes the language course daily activity and Appendix 4 contains the associated language immersion lessons.

Amidst ongoing, contemporary colonialism, this article explores Indigenous pathways to decolonization and resurgence with an emphasis on identifying everyday practices of renewal and responsibility within native communities today.  How are decolonization and resurgence interrelated in struggles for Indigenous freedom?  By drawing on several comparative examples of resurgence from Cherokees in Kituwah, Lekwungen protection of camas, the Nishnaabe-kwewag “Water Walkers” movement, and Kanaka Maoli (Native Hawaiian) revitalization of kalo, this article provides some insights into contemporary decolonization movements. The politics of distraction is operationalized here as a potential threat to Indigenous homelands, cultures and communities, and the harmful aspects of the rights discourse, reconciliation, and resource extraction are identified, discussed, and countered with Indigenous approaches centered on responsibilities, resurgence and relationships. Overall, findings from this research offer theoretical and applied understandings for regenerating Indigenous nationhood and restoring sustainable relationships with Indigenous homelands.

How are land-based and water-based cultural harms addressed and remedied for Indigenous peoples? Under existing international legal norms, states and other non-state entities have a duty to provide redress for the harms of colonialism and occupation, and this obligation extends to the recognition and protection of Indigenous territories as well as regenerating subsistence living through land-based and water-based cultural practices. What role do international treaties and the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples play in terms of promoting comprehensive restorative justice for Indigenous communities? Given that the rights discourse can take Indigenous peoples only so far in this struggle for the reclamation and regeneration of Indigenous traditional lifestyles, what are some strategies that other Indigenous peoples have utilized to promote sustainable self-determination? Overall, findings from this research offer theoretical and applied understandings for regenerating indigenous nationhood and restoring sustainable relationships on indigenous homelands.

More than eighty years since Chief Deskaheh petitioned the League of Nations for Haudenosaunee self-determination, it is becoming clearer that the existing rights discourse can take indigenous peoples only so far. States and global/regional forums have framed self-determination rights that deemphasize the responsibilities and relationships that indigenous peoples have with their families and the natural world (homelands, plant life, animal life, etc.) that are critical for the health and well-being of future generations. What is needed is a more holistic and dynamic approach to regenerating indigenous nations, and I propose the concept of sustainable self-determination as a benchmark for future indigenous political mobilization. Utilizing case studies of indigenous community regeneration such as the Native Federation of Madre de Dios (FENAMAD) in Peru and the White Earth Land Recovery Project (WELRP) on Turtle Island as well as analyzing the existing research on rights, political mobilization, and ecosystems, this article identifies alternatives to the existing rights discourse that can facilitate a meaningful and sustainable self-determination process for indigenous peoples around the world. Overall, findings from this research offer theoretical and applied understandings for regenerating indigenous nationhood and restoring sustainable relationships on indigenous homelands.

Over the past twenty years, American Indian policy has shifted from self-determination to “forced federalism,” as indigenous nations in the United States have encountered new threats from state and local governments over such issues as taxation, gaming, and homeland security. During the forced federalism era (1988–present), public perceptions of indigenous peoples as “rich Indians” have been just as damaging to Native nations as anti-sovereignty legislation. This book examines how state governments have manipulated “rich Indian” images when setting policies targeting indigenous peoples and discusses how indigenous nations have responded politically to these contemporary threats to their nationhood.
Drawing on original survey data collected from Native governments from 1994 to 2000 and on interviews with Chief Chad Smith of the Cherokee Nation as well as other indigenous leaders, Corntassel examines the power dynamics of the indigenous-state compacting system, and show how electoral activism among indigenous peoples has increased their political power while also giving rise to “rich Indian racism” among non-Indians—especially in the wake of the Indian Gaming and Regulatory Act.
The authors warn that current widespread Native participation in non-Native politics is undermining both the political and the cultural foundations of indigenous nationhood, especially as the American culture of money gains influence in Native politics. They also offer specific strategies for regenerating indigenous communities in order to meet future challenges to their nationhood.

Debate within global forums over establishing definitional standards for indigenous peoples versus an unlimited right of indigenous self-identification has exposed something of a dilemma over standard setting in international law. Requiring strict, definitional standards excludes some indigenous groups from the very protections they need, while reifying their identities. Yet failure to establish an accepted deflnition of indigenous peoples leads to host-state concerns over applying international legal instruments to the world's indigenous populations. After surveying indigenous definitions developed by academicians in the fleld of nationalism/international law as well as practitioners from IGOs and NGOs, it is determined that a balance between self-identiflcation and establishing a working definition of indigenous peoples is possible. Utilizing a model of ‘Peoplehood’ refined by Holm, Pearson and Chavis (2003), the article presents a new working deflnition of indigenous peoples that is both flexible and dynamic.

Increasingly, researchers recognize that the same forces that threaten biodiversity also threaten indigenous peoples’ long-standing relationships with their homelands and the
health and well-being of Native nations. However, amidst calls for a “green economy” and carbon trading schemes such as Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest
Degradation (REDD), it is evident that there are competing conceptions of what sustainability entails. This paper will examine how sustainability has been portrayed
by international legal instruments, such as the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), and compare that with how sustainability has been conceptualized and practiced by indigenous nations, leaders and scholars

What are the sources of self-determining authority for Indigenous nations and peoples? How one responds to this question reveals competing narratives and worldviews relating to the self-determination discourse. These are some of the topics addressed in Woons’ edited volume, which also serves as an important primer on the global self-determination
discourse.