Today (Oct. 11) is Indigenous Peoples’ Day, a day recognizing Native people as the first inhabitants of the Americas, including the lands that later became the United States of America.
Along with being the first inhabitants, Indigenous people are the original caretakers of America. Indigenous peoples’ expertise in the preservation of America’s land, wildlife, and other natural resources is unmatched. Did you know that sovereign tribal nations own and manage over 95 million acres of land – 11 million acres more than the U.S. National Park Service? Examples of their caretaking can come in the form of prescribed fires to mitigate the catastrophic wildfires we’ve seen across the U.S., wildlife conservation by bringing free-roaming wild bison back to tribal lands, stopping detrimental projects like the Keystone XL pipeline that would have lead to massive pollution, and so much more. Globally, Indigenous people make up less than five percent of the total human population. However, Indigenous people steward over 25 percent of the world’s land surface, protecting about 80 percent of the global biodiversity.
Despite the crucial role they’ve played in protecting the environment, Indigenous people have historically been displaced from their land, whether by violent force, by policy under the guise of economic development, and more recently as climate refugees.
In fact, Hudson Valley Community College is located on the sacred homelands of the Muhheaconneok or Mohican people, who are the stewards of this land. Today the community resides in Wisconsin and is known as the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Nation. We pay honor and respect to their ancestors past, present, and future, as we commit to building a more inclusive and equitable space for all.
— In recognition of lands once occupied by Indigenous People.
As we reflect on Indigenous Peoples’ Day, let’s think about ways we can personally and collectively become better stewards of the land we all get to call home, like Indigenous people always have.
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In solidarity,
Kayla Miller
Technical Assistant
Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
k.miller1@hvcc.edu
Published: Wed, 13 Oct 2021 11:50:10 +0000 by k.miller1