Indigenous Governance Database
IGD Database Search
Choctaw Tribal Court System
Self-determination is the guiding principle behind all of the government initiatives undertaken by the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians. This nation has created a vibrant economy while investing resources into the preservation of Choctaw language and culture. At the heart of its success is its…
Umatilla Cultural Resources Protection Program
Frustrated by how tribal cultural resources were managed on tribal, federal, state, and private lands, the Tribes developed their own cultural resources protection program. The 15-year-old program is a leader in educating non-Indian agencies about pertinent laws and treaties, strengthening cultural…
Navajo Studies Department
Created in 1966 as the first contract school in the country, Rough Rock is a Navajo-run institution that combines traditional Navajo learning with Western education. Its Navajo Studies curriculum, which addresses such subjects as culture, history, and language, was named by the Tribal Council as…
Hopi Jr./Sr. High: Two Plus Two Plus Two
Developed in 1997, the Two Plus Two Plus Two college transition program is a partnership between Hopi Junior/Senior High School, Northland Pioneer College, and Northern Arizona University. The program recruits junior and senior high school students to enroll in classes (including distance learning…
Hopi Education Endowment Fund
In a pursuit to ensure growth, protect assets, and meet the present and future educational needs of the Hopi Tribe, an ordinance establishing the Hopi Education Endowment Fund was approved. Taking advantage of IRS Code Section 7871 allows for tax deductible contributions made to the Tribe to…
Navajo Nation Sales Tax
Challenges facing sovereign nations include how to support themselves financially, run their governments, and meet the needs of their peoples. In 1974, the Navajo Nation established a Navajo Tax Commission. Following a US Supreme Court decision affirming the Nation’s right to impose taxes, the…
Navajo Nation Archaeology Department Training Programs
The Navajo Nation Archaeology Department was created in 1977 to facilitate historic preservation on Navajo Nation lands as mandated by both US and tribal government legislation. In 1988 and again in 1993, the Department expanded to include training programs, undertaken in partnership with Northern…
Navajo Treatment Center for Children and Their Family
Responding to high rates of child abuse and neglect, the Navajo Child Special Advocacy Project was launched in 1990 to provide Western and Navajo therapy to victims of sexual abuse between the ages of 3 and 17. With five offices on the Reservation, the project administers Navajo diagnosis,…
Menominee Community Center of Chicago
A unique partnership between an urban Indian center and a tribal government, the tribally funded Community Center serves nearly 500 Menominee tribal citizens living in the greater Chicago area. The Center and the tribal government work together to ensure that all of its citizens are actively…
Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation
Viewed as a one-stop shop for lending services, the Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation provides holistic community development through business and employee loans, business development trainings, and financial literacy education. Demonstrating that the connection between…
Kake Circle Peacemaking
Restoring its traditional method of dispute resolution, the Organized Village of Kake adopted Circle Peacemaking as its tribal court in 1999. Circle Peacemaking brings together victims, wrongdoers, families, religious leaders, and social service providers in a forum that restores relationships and…
Migizi Business Camp (Little River Band)
In 1994, after 120 years of struggle, the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians finally re-obtained federal recognition. Ever since, tribal priorities included strengthening self-governance and the tribal economy. Their economic strategy followed two paths: the development of tribal enterprises and…
Minnesota 1837 Ceded Territory Conservation Code (Mille Lacs)
In 1997, the Band successfully developed a conservation code that enables the Tribe to exercise its treaty rights to hunt, fish, and gather. The Code sets out detailed hunting and fishing regulations for Band members that protect the natural resources while allowing for the continuation of…
Flandreau Police Department
The Flandreau Santee Sioux Tribe’s lands are situated within Moody County and the City of Flandreau, South Dakota. This location presents the Nation with a particular challenge: How do you provide adequate and culturally sensitive public safety and law enforcement for your citizens in mixed…
Enhancing Government-to-Government Relationships (Grand Ronde)
The Intergovernmental Affairs Department has achieved positive intergovernmental relationships with federal, state, and local governments by pursuing a five-pronged strategy of communication, education, cooperation, contributions, and presence. Since the Department’s creation, the Tribe has raised…
Akwesasne Freedom School
In 1979, the Akwesasne Freedom School took form out of the Mohawk struggle for self-determination and self-government. It is characterized by a deep commitment to the maintenance of Mohawk identity. Students in this pre-kindergarten through 8th-grade language immersion school begin and end each…
The Chippewa Flowage Joint Agency Management Plan
The Joint Agency Management Plan brings together three governments — the Lac Courte Oreilles Band, the State of Wisconsin, and the US Department of Agriculture Forest Service — to co-manage the Chippewa Flowage, a 15,300-acre reservoir created in 1923 that inundated a tribal village. Taking into…
Navajo Nation's Na'Nizhoozhi Center, Inc.
Responding to the distressing rates of accidents, deaths, and other alcohol-related problems in Gallup, NM, the Navajo Nation partnered with Zuni Pueblo, the City of Gallup, McKinley County, and the State of New Mexico to establish the Na’Nizhoozhi Center in 1992. The Center has been an effective…
Navajo Methamphetamine Task Force
Taking a proactive stance on policy issues, options, and recommendations in the areas of prevention, treatment, and/or enforcement, the Methamphetamine Task Forces actively combat a tidal wave of destruction within their communities. Drawing upon education, community involvement, cultural…
Akimel O'odham/Pee-Posh Youth Council
Recognizing that their youth possess critical insight on a full range of governing issues, tribal leaders chartered the Akimel O’odham/Pee-Posh Youth Council in 1988 to give youth a formal voice within the tribal government. The Council is comprised of 20 youth between the ages of 14-21, who are…