Building regional capacity for Native American Tribal alliances
Our goal is to build the region’s capacity for the exchange of resources (e.g. land, power, knowledge, skills) between local Tribes and Tribal organizations and non-Native organizations.
As a coalition, we are collaborating to support tribal sovereignty, right historical wrongs, and create a just and healthy region. This is one way we address the climate and biodiversity crises, colonization, structural racism, and injustices being perpetuated today.
Redbud Resource Group has been an essential partner in this work since 2021. Learn more about their programs, workshops, and services. And consider supporting their work with a donation.
News
Right Relations: A Year of Impact
Upcoming Events
Contact
Annie Burke, Executive Director
Right Relations
Our flagship program to build capacity for Tribal alliances is Right Relations. The Right Relations program consists of four cohorts:
Right Relations Phase One
Right Relations Phase One is for professionals and practitioners who feel stuck in fostering relationships between Native American Tribes, Tribal communities and non-Native led organizations. This one-of-its-kind program is a once-in-a-lifetime kind of opportunity to learn and grow individually, organizationally, and collectively through meaningful experiences curated and led by local Native American leaders.
We anticipate that a new cohort will run from August 2025–May 2026. The dates and applications will be announced in May 2025.
Right Relations Phase Two
Right Relations Phase Two is for you if you want to continue the learning and connections that you experienced in Phase One. Deepen your understanding of Tribal relations while building a sense of community with peers from around the region. Phase Two focuses on the organizations’ action plans through learning new material not covered in Phase One and with additional resources and support.
We anticipate that a new cohort will run from August 2025–May 2026. The dates will be announced in May 2025.
The Collective Community of Practice
The Collective Community of Practice is a dynamic community of practitioners and professionals who are working for collective action for Tribal sovereignty for healthy lands and communities. By participating in the Collective, participants continue to deepen their understanding of Native American history, culture, and issues; incubate ways to take action collectively, engage in peer to peer learning; and provide support in building Tribal alliances. The Collective is open to people who have completed Phases One and Two of the Right Relations program.
Restoring Right Relations
Restoring Right Relations is a leadership program for California Native community members who want to build leadership skills, grow positive relationships within Indian country, and develop skills for implementing projects in their communities. It is designed and led by Redbud Resource Group, in partnership with diverse tribes and Native community leaders from across the state. Learn more >
Ongoing Opportunities
In addition to the Right Relations program, TOGETHER Bay Area and Redbud Resource Group host opportunities to learn and take action for building Tribal alliances throughout the year.
Going Beyond Land Acknowledgements
Going Beyond Land Acknowledgements is an interactive, online 2.5 hour workshop for individuals seeking to grow their allyship with Native peoples. Participants learn about the strengths and limitations of land acknowledgements and explore concrete, action-oriented strategies for building connections with Native communities and organizations.
TOGETHER Bay Area has reserved 10 spots in workshops throughout the year for people who work for our member organizations. Anyone who works at our member organizations can apply: all departments, at any level. Check the calendar to find an upcoming GBLA and register for space by emailing [email protected] with the date you would like to attend. First come, first served!
Together Conference
Our annual Together Conference features opportunities to build alliances with Native American tribes and communities for healthy lands, people, and communities. Past conferences have included Native speakers, Going Beyond Land Acknowledgements introductory trainings, workshops on building Tribal alliances, field trips featuring Tribal partnerships, film screenings, the Round Valley Feather Dancers, and more. Learn more >
Redbud Resource Group Resources
Redbud Resource Group offers an abundance of educational resources on how to take action beyond land acknowledgements, from videos to blog posts to databases and more. Learn more >
News & Announcements
Right Relations: A Year of Impact
Right Relations 2024 Begins!
Right Relations Expands!
Inspirations and Acknowledgements
The Right Relations program is grounded in needs expressed by TOGETHER Bay Area members. In 2020-2021, a collection of TOGETHER Bay Area members expressed the need to build their capacity to build Tribal sovereignty and transfer resources (financial, staff and consultants, land, power) to Native American tribes and organizations without those resources. Specifically, we heard:
From TOGETHER Bay Area’s Native-led member organizations:
- We can’t afford to live in our ancestral territory.
- We want to own, manage, and/or steward land in our ancestral territory.
- We don’t have the funding or staff capacity to own, manage, or steward lands.
- The criteria and process for getting a collecting / gathering permit for cultural or medicinal plants from public land management agencies are inconsistent, confusing, and insulting.
- Our land trust is growing and we want to learn from other land trusts about how to do this work.
From TOGETHER Bay Area’s non-Native-led organizations members – which include Indigenous, Black, People of Color, and white led organizations:
- We want to return land to the original stewards of these lands.
- I don’t know what Tribe I should talk to because there isn’t a federally recognized Tribe where I am.
- I contacted a Tribe or group but I haven’t heard back.
- Am I doing harm if I work with two different Indigenous groups?
- We are confident that there is a shellmound under a parking lot on public land we manage, we want to remove the parking lot, and return the land to the local Tribe.
- Our staff want to create a land acknowledgement that we use organization-wide, and our Board is resisting it.
To respond to these needs, we designed and convened a pilot program in 2022-2023 in partnership with Redbud Resource Group. The Redbud team drew from their personal and professional experiences, especially their Going Beyond Land Acknowledgement workshops. Learn more about the pilot program here.
Right Relations stands on the shoulders of people who came before us and leaders in the field, including but not limited to:
- First Light Learning Journey
- The UNTraining
- Decolonizing transformations through ‘right relations’ by Irmelin Gram-Hanssen, Nicole Schafenacker & Julia Bentz
- 2012-2014 Capacity Building Cohort, SD Bechtel Jr Foundation
- Margaret Wheatley’s book, Turning To One Another
- Dr. Manuel Pastor’s writing about transformation, transactions, and translations
We thank David and Lucile Packard Foundation and Sobrato Philanthropies for providing financial support for the pilot program.
We thank the David and Lucile Packard Foundation for their continued support of Phase One and Two in 2024 and Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District for their support of the 2024 Right Relations program.