Indigenous Governance Database
mainstream education
Paulette Jordan: Engaging the Nation's Citizens and Effecting Change: The Coeur d'Alene Story
Paulette Jordan, citizen and council member of the Coeur d'Alene Tribe in Idaho, discusses the importance of Native nation leaders being grounded in their culture and consulting the keepers of the culture (their elders) so that they approach the leadership challenges they face with the proper…
Sophie Pierre: Enacting Self-Determination and Self-Governance at Ktunaxa
In this informative interview with NNI's Ian Record, Sophie Pierre, longtime chief of the Ktunaxa Nation, discusses Ktunaxa's ongoing effort to reclaim and redesign their system of governance through British Columbia's treaty process, specifically Ktunaxa's citizen-led process to develop a new…
NNI Indigenous Leadership Fellow: Jamie Fullmer (Part 1)
Jamie Fullmer, former chairman of the Yavapai-Apache Nation, discusses the importance of the development of capable governing institutions to Native nations' exercise of sovereignty, and provides an overview of the steps that he and his leadership colleagues took to develop those institutions…
Jamie Fullmer, Rebecca Miles and Darrin Old Coyote: Our Leadership Experiences, Challenges, and Advice
Jamie Fullmer (former Chairman of the Yavapai-Apache Nation), Rebecca Miles (Executive Director and former Chairwoman of the Nez Perce Tribe) and Darrin Old Coyote (Chairman of the Crow Tribe) share what they wished they knew before they took office, the greatest leadership challenges they have…
Robert McDonald: Engaging the Nation's Citizens and Effecting Change: The Salish and Kootenai Story
Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes (CSKT) Communications Director Robert McDonald discusses the challenges his nation faces when it comes to effectively educating and engaging its citizens -- particularly in the age of social media -- and what the nation is starting to do about it. He also…
Honoring Nations: Joseph Singer: Sovereignty Today
Harvard Professor Joseph Singer makes a compelling case that Native nations' best defense of sovereignty is their effective exercise of it, and stresses the importance of educating the general public -- particularly young people -- about what tribal sovereignty is and means.
Wilma Mankiller: Governance, Leadership and the Cherokee Nation
As part of its ongoing interview series "Leading Native Nations," the Native Nations Institute (NNI) interviewed Wilma Mankiller, the late and former Chief of the Cherokee Nation, in September 2008. In the interview, she discussed her compelling personal story as well as the challenges the Cherokee…
Native Organizations: Working Together for Our Common Benefit
On November 14, 2010, 45 people gathered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at the NCAI's Annual Convention to participate in the pre-session: "Native Organizations; Working Together for Our Common Benefit." This twelve-page report outlines the key findings from this meeting - highlighting communications…