With land acknowledgements becoming a norm in funder gatherings (check out native-land.ca if you haven’t yet done so), the Southern California Environmental Funders Group invites you to this upcoming funder convening to explore ways in which philanthropy can go beyond land acknowledgements, including the larger Indigenous land back movement, land stewardship, land taxes, land co-management and land ownership.

At California’s recent Truth and Healing Council meeting, Governor Newsom announced that he has “tasked our administration with seeking out ways to support California Native Peoples in accessing, co-managing and acquiring your ancestral lands. Today, we’re making a down payment on this commitment, allocating $100 million dollars for tribally informed grantmaking to support tribal initiatives in this space.”

Indigenous communities in California have worked towards this goal for many years, with a handful of success stories given the legal, financial, and cultural complexities that come with making this vision a reality. A coordinated and collaborative approach will be needed, and philanthropy can play a crucial supportive role. At this convening, we will explore the opportunities, barriers, and strategies needed to put us all in a better relationship with the land and the environment. We’ll learn from a set of local stakeholders working on these issues, with suggestions for funders who want to support Indigenous leadership.

This convening is part of a series of quarterly conversations hosted by the Southern California Grantmakers Environmental Funders Group and co-hosted by Smart Growth California. The convening will continue lifting up themes from previous SCG Environmental Funder Peer Group convenings, including our Making Justice 40 a Reality on the Ground, Bolstering the Green Workforce Ecosystem, Climate, Health and Equity in SoCal, and Climate Resilience Investments.

Register here. If you are not a member of SoCal Grantmakers, but are active in Smart Growth California and/or a member of The Funders Network, please contact Ron at Smart  Growth California and he can add you to the RSVP list.