Purpose

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We are a group of six Indigenous women enrolled in Professor Nick Reo’s Native Peoples in a Global Changing Environment course at Dartmouth College. The class focus is to view environmental issues and degradation through the lens of Indigenous peoples. In this blog, we aim to inform this class, the Dartmouth community, and beyond about the environmental dangers and issues surrounding Enbridge Line 5. We will be addressing issues through the following themes: environmental degradation, cultural significance, environmental racism, law & policy, and energy alternatives. We hope to establish a deeper understanding and awareness of the impacts of Line 5.


About us

Elizabeth – Aloha mai kākou e nā kanaka honua nei. My name is Elizabeth Coleman. I am a Native American Cherokee, Native Hawaiian 18 year old from O’ahu, Hawai’i. As a first year at Dartmouth College, I have yet to declare a major, but I am highly considering Native American Studies, Studio Art and Psychology. However, through my work in this NAS/ENVS class, I have come to be interested in Environmental Studies, as well. I am interested in technology and digital media and how they have a role in our society as well as a role in the future of Indigenous activism and advocacy. I feel strongly about Indigenous Youth’s responsibility to master technology as a way to protect and perpetuate Indigenous cultures and Indigenous rights.

Sherry – Yá’át’ééh, Shí éí Sherralyn Sneezer yinishyé. Tábąąhá nishłį́. Tódích’íí’nii bashishchiin. Hello, I am Sherralyn Sneezer. My mother’s clan is Water’s Edge and my father’s clan is Bitter Water. I am Navajo and San Carlos Apache from Shonto, Arizona. Currently, I am attending Dartmouth College studying Environmental Studies. I am interested in renewable energy implementation on the Navajo Nation, specifically solar energy. Moreover, I would like to educate Navajo people about environmental science and environmental injustices regarding the Navajo Nation and other Indigenous nations.

Shelby Yá’átééh, Shí éí Shelby Snyder yinishyé. Lók’aa’ Dine’é nishłį. Hashk’aan Hadzohí bashishchiin. Italian dashicheii. Belgian dashinalí.

Hello, my name is Shelby Snyder. I am of the Reed People clan born for the Yucca Fruit Strung Out in a Line clan. My maternal grandfather is Italian. My paternal grandfather is Belgian. I am Navajo, Southern Ute, and adopted Meskwaki. I am from West Jordan, UT and am currently a freshman at Dartmouth College. I am interested in majoring in biology and minoring Native American Studies. My passions include Native American healthcare, Indigenous support networks, and multiracial advocacy.

Shelbi – okii! nistoo amskaapii piikunii akii kii niitaniikowa Shelbi Fitzpatrick. niimot-to-to abustoon omah”kspoom. Hello! I am a Southern Blackfeet woman and my name is Shelbi FItzpatrick. I am from Cut Bank, Montana.

I am currently a junior at Dartmouth College – majoring in Environmental Studies and Native American Studies. My passions include learning more about federal Indian law and policy, food sovereignty, and energy systems. After Dartmouth, I’d like to go to law school and combine my interests so that I may make a change in my community and in Indian country across multiple disciplines. I hope to return home to my community and work with my tribe and other Indigenous communities to enhance food sovereignty, Indigenous education systems, and overall tribal sovereignty. 

Cheron Yá’átééh,Diné nishłį́! I am a proud citizen of the Navajo Nation and grew up on the reservation in northern Arizona. As a junior at Dartmouth College, I am a Geography major and an Arabic minor. After Dartmouth, I hope to contribute to the great cultural healing ongoing in many Native communities with a law degree in Indigenous human rights. Because this healing is achieved through cultural practice, we must continue to pursue tribal sovereignty through access and control over natural resources and ancestral homelands.

In addition to tribal cultural and environmental protection, I’ve become a strong advocate for physical and spiritual well-being.I’m interested in the expansion of tribal food sovereignty, fitness programs, and outdoor recreation. One of my biggest goals is to teach no-cost community kickboxing classes to empower Native women through self-defense and confidence building.

 

 

Polimana – Nu’Polimana Joshevama yan Hopimaatsiwa! My name is Polimana Joshevama and I’m Sun Clan Hopi from Tucson, Arizona. I’m a Junior at Dartmouth College working on a degree in Environmental Studies while pursuing a pre-med track. I served as a medic at Standing Rock where I lived in Ocheti Sakowin for three months in the winter. The roads of environmental and indigenous activism intersect in my heart and mind, and those roads combined with my experiences on the frontlines at Ocheti have lead me to this journey of fighting for the rights of my people and the earth. My downtime consists of planting resilience gardens filled with Gete Okosomin squash and traditional Hopi blue corn.