Elevating Tribally Led Restoration
Advancing Restoration With the Land’s Original Stewards
EPIC works to improve state and federal policies, eliminating organizational barriers to accelerate the pace and scale of restoration. We seek to leverage our position as leaders in developing strategic federal policy interventions to elevate Tribally led restoration efforts. Our projects are grounded in the understanding that restoration can be achieved through policies and programs that advance Tribal sovereignty and self determination, and that we are a partner to Tribes, not a guide.
Did You Know?
More than 70 out of over 200 Alaska Native villages currently face significant threats from erosion, flooding, or thawing permafrost.
Nearly 50 percent of Tribal homes on Tribal lands lack access to reliable water sources, compared to 1 percent of U.S. homes overall.
Amidst such significant systematic challenges, Tribal communities continue to break down barriers in conservation, restoration, and biodiverse land stewardship.
Conservation success is fundamentally linked to the quality and level of Indigenous engagement.
A 2024 study by OneEarth found that conservation projects managed autonomously by Tribal groups resulted in 85% positive ecological outcomes and projects collaboratively managed by Tribes and outside agencies in 74%, compared to the 25% positive outcomes for projects in which Tribes were fully excluded.
What Drives Us
In our direct collaborations with Tribal Nations, we develop innovative policy interventions that support transformative Tribal-led conservation efforts, as well as accelerate the advancement of Tribal-identified restoration priorities.
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This means holding the federal government accountable to its Trust Responsibility to Tribes.
This also means ensuring federal and state restoration policies and programs affirm and advance Tribal sovereignty.
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This means coordinating with Tribal leaders and organizations to identify barriers to funding, and supporting Tribes and Tribal partners to address these barriers with policy and regulatory solutions.
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This means ensuring that Tribes and Tribal-led organizations are connected with the funding, programs, and technical assistance to build internal capacity that will enable the most effective implementation of restoration projects in the long-term.
This also means advancing policies and programs that build Tribal capacity.
Our Way Forward
Tribes are inherently sovereign entities with a unique federal trust relationship with the federal government. We understand and approach individual Tribal Nations according to their political status. And we understand that environmental transformation must center and elevate Tribal Nations as the original stewards of this land.
EPIC will never pursue a restoration goal in conflict with a Tribe’s inherent sovereignty and self governance objectives. Rather, we work to develop ecologically sound solutions that prioritize Tribal sovereignty and self-determination.
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Alliance for Indigenous Environmental Stewardship
Free Prior Informed Consent Coalition
Our
Principles
EPIC is committed to ensuring the principle of Free, Prior, and Informed Consent, as defined by the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, is embedded in all Tribal partnerships and initiatives, including respecting data sovereignty.
Advancing and affirming the restoration and protection of Indigenous Knowledges and Indigenous lands is critical to ensuring Tribal Nations are able to continue to be leaders in environmental restoration.
We advocate for Tribal sovereignty and self-determination in federal funding, policies, and programs to ensure Tribes have the capacity and resources they need to achieve their restoration priorities.