THE GRAND CANYON TRUST INC

NATIVE AMERICA:GCT'S NATIVE AMERICA PROGRAM FOCUSES ON GIVING NATIVE PEOPLE A VOICE AND ROLE IN THE PROTECTION OF THE COLORADO PLATEAU. WE DO THIS BY FACILITATING DIALOGUE AMONG THE ELEVEN NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBES THAT HAVE RESIDED ACROSS THIS LANDSCAPE FOR THOUSANDS OF YEARS, AND WHO NOW CONTROL THE FUTURE OF SOME 30,000 SQUARE MILES OF THIS REGION. THE HEART OF THIS WORK IS THE INTER-TRIBAL GATHERINGS PROCESS, WHICH BRINGS TOGETHER COLORADO PLATEAU TRIBES TO COLLABORATE ON ADDRESSING ENVIRONMENTAL CHALLENGES AND CULTURAL PRESERVATION. GCT HAS FACILITATED SIXTEEN GATHERINGS OVER THE PAST EIGHT YEARS. IN RECENT YEARS, PARTICIPANTS HAVE IDENTIFIED CLIMATE CHANGE AS ONE OF THE BIGGEST THREATS TO THE NATIVE AMERICAN WAY OF LIFE, AND THE GATHERINGS HAVE INITIATED COLLABORATIVE RESPONSES TO THIS CHALLENGE.THE TRUST'S NATIVE AMERICA PROGRAM HAS BEEN ORGANIZING THE COLORADO PLATEAU INTERTRIBAL CONVERSATION (CPIC) INITIATIVE IN AN EFFORT TO REESTABLISH CONVERSATIONS BETWEEN TRIBAL NATIONS ACROSS THE COLORADO PLATEAU SINCE 2009. TODAY'S CPIC GATHERING GROUP PRIORITIZES TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE-BASED CLIMATE CHANGE SOLUTIONS, BUILDING COMMUNITY, AND CULTIVATING LONG TERM COOPERATIVE NETWORKS AMONGST TRIBES. TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE IS USED TO FORMULATE CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION STRATEGIES. IN YEARS PAST, THIS TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE HAS ALLOWED TRIBES TO OVERCOME PERIODS OF DROUGHT AND EXTREME WEATHER. TODAY IT FORMS THE FOUNDATION FOR TRIBES' ADAPTATION STRATEGIES ON THE COLORADO PLATEAU. CPIC MEMBERS ARE WORKING WITH KERLEY VALLEY COMMUNITY FARMERS TO EMPLOY NAVAJO AND HOPI TRIBAL KNOWLEDGE TO ASSIST FARMERS WITH TRADITIONAL AGRICULTURAL INSTRUCTIONS. FARMERS ARE UTILIZING THESE INSTRUCTIONS AND PLANTING TECHNIQUES TO SHIFT THEIR PLANTING SEASONS, WATERING PATTERNS, AND HARVEST TIMING TO FIT CHANGING CLIMATE CONDITIONS. THESE TECHNIQUES ARE FOUND IN STORIES, SONGS, AND CEREMONIES AND TELL OF NATURAL TIMING SYSTEMS SUCH AS ANIMAL MIGRATION PATTERNS, AND PLANT MORPHOLOGY WHICH SERVE AS INDICATORS TO TRACK WHEN PLANTING, WATERING, AND HARVESTING SHOULD OCCUR. DURING 2022, CPIC MEMBERS GATHERED IN PERSON FOR THE FIRST TIME POST-COVID, AND DISCUSSED RIGHTS OF NATURE STRATEGIES, STRUCTURED ON TRIBAL KNOWLEDGE REGARDING SPIRITUAL RELATIONSHIPS TO THE EARTH, SKY, RIVERS, AND OTHER CREATURES. IN THE LONG RUN, THE RIGHTS OF NATURE PROJECT AIMS TO BEGIN DRAFTING POLICIES, BEST PRACTICES, AND RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TRIBAL COMMUNITIES AND/OR GOVERNMENTS TO REVIEW, BASED ON THE INTRINSIC RIGHTS OF NATURE. CHANGE LABS (FORMERLY THE NATIVE AMERICAN BUSINESS INCUBATOR NETWORK) HAS BEEN FOCUSED ON NURTURING THRIVING NATIVE AMERICAN ENTREPRENEURSHIP SINCE 2014. ALTHOUGH CHANGE LABS BECAME AN INDEPENDENT 501(C)(3) ORGANIZATION IN 2019, THE TRUST CONTINUES TO HELP ENSURE ITS FUTURE SUCCESS BY PROVIDING STAFF RESOURCES AND OTHER SUPPORT WHERE NECESSARY. OUR SHARED GOAL IS TO INCREASE THE NUMBER OF SUCCESSFUL NEW AND LOCAL NATIVE-OWNED BUSINESSES ACROSS THE PLATEAU BY A MINIMUM OF TEN BUSINESSES PER YEAR. IN 2022, CHANGE LABS NEARLY COMPLETED CONSTRUCTION OF A SHARED CO-WORKING SPACE IN TUBA CITY, AZ THAT WILL BE OPERATIONAL SHORTLY. IN 2020, GCT MADE A DECISION TO PRIORITIZE SUPPORTING HOPI AND DINE COMMUNITIES TO DEVELOP REGENERATIVE ECONOMIC PROJECTS. THE TRUST FACILITATED A SERIES OF REMOTE MEETINGS WITH COMMUNITY MEMBERS TO BEGIN PRIORITIZING ECOLOGICALLY SUSTAINABLE ECONOMIC IDEAS FOR THE REGION. THIS IS PARTICULARLY TIMELY IN THE WAKE OF THE CLOSURE OF THE NAVAJO GENERATING STATION AND KAYENTA MINE IN 2019, BOTH MAJOR EMPLOYERS IN THOSE COMMUNITIES. DURING 2022, WE CONTINUED TO WORK WITHIN THESE COMMUNITIES, AND TO ADVOCATE TO THE BIDEN ADMINISTRATION THAT THE TRANSITION AWAY FROM COAL BE NAVIGATED IN A WAY THAT BENEFITS INDIGENOUS COMMUNITIES ON THE PLATEAU. WE ALSO ADVOCATED FOR CAREFUL CONSIDERATION OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF NEWLY PROPOSED HYDRO-POWER PROJECTS IN THE AREA.

ENERGY:GCT'S ENERGY PROGRAM AIMS TO ADDRESS THREE MAJOR ISSUES: ACHIEVING CARBON NEUTRALITY ON THE COLORADO PLATEAU, MITIGATING THE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF METHANE EMISSIONS ON NAVAJO LANDS, AND PREVENTING TOXIC AND RADIOACTIVE URANIUM CONTAMINATION AROUND THE GRAND CANYON AND ON THE COLORADO PLATEAU.IN 2018, THE TRUST DEVELOPED A NEW LONG-TERM GOAL, AIMING TO ACHIEVE CARBON NEUTRALITY ON THE COLORADO PLATEAU BY 2035. WE ARE CONDUCTING A REPLICABLE CARBON BUDGETING PROCESS TO MEASURE EMISSIONS AND OFFSETS ACROSS THE PLATEAU. WE WILL THEN DEVELOP A PROPOSED ACTION PLAN FOR ACHIEVING EMISSIONS REDUCTIONS THAT WILL FORM THE TECHNICAL BASE FOR NECESSARY AND EXTENSIVE COALITION-BUILDING WORK. DURING THE PROCESS OF CONDUCTING THE CARBON ASSESSMENT FOR THE PLATEAU, WE WILL ENGAGE KEY POTENTIAL PARTNERS. PARTNERS WORKING IN AN EXTENSIVE AND WELL-COORDINATED COALITION WILL BE VITAL IF AMBITIOUS CARBON NEUTRALITY GAINS ARE TO BE MADE OVER THE COMING DECADE AND BEYOND. DUE TO THE REDUCTION OF OUR STAFF IN THE ENERGY PROGRAM DURING 2022, WE HAVE NOT YET PRIORITIZED MAIN TARGETS FOR EMISSION REDUCTIONS, BUT WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF A FELLOW WE AIM TO DO SO IN 2023. WE CONTINUE TO CONDUCT ADVOCACY AND LITIGATION WORK IN SUPPORT OF THE TRUST'S OVERALL CLIMATE OBJECTIVES IN THE COAL AND OIL SHALE REALM, AND ARE RE-EVALUATING PRIORITIES AND STRATEGIES FOLLOWING OUR PLATEAU-WIDE ASSESSMENT. ALSO, WE ARE WORKING WITH LOCAL CHAPTERS AND THE ENVIRONMENTAL DEFENSE FUND TO ADVOCATE FOR NEW MEASURES THAT WOULD REGULATE METHANE EMISSIONS ON NAVAJO NATION LANDS, AND IMPORTANT COMPONENT OF OUR CARBON NEUTRALITY STRATEGY AND OUR ENERGY PROGRAM OVERALL.WE DEVOTED SIGNIFICANT RESOURCES TO WORKING WITH AZ SENATOR MARK KELLY, AZ SENATOR KYRSTEN SINEMA, AND AZ CONGRESSMAN GRIJALVA ON THE GRAND CANYON PROTECTION ACT (GCPA) DURING 2022, THE LATEST EFFORT TO MAKE PERMANENT THE URANIUM MINING BAN AROUND THE GRAND CANYON. THE BILL HAD PASSED THE HOUSE ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS, AND IN JUNE OF 2022, THE GCPA RECEIVED A HEARING IN THE SENATE ENERGY AND NATURAL RESOURCES COMMITTEE AND MADE IT THROUGH THAT COMMITTEE WITH A 10-10 VOTE.