Our Living Lands

Nationwide, tens of thousands of Indigenous households use firewood to help heat their homes. The Mountain West News Bureau’s Kaleb Roedel visited one tribe that’s making sure their elders have the chopped wood they need.

This story originally aired on Dec. 30, 2024

As we approach another summer storm season, coastal archeological sites are in increasing danger. In this encore episode, KUCB's Sofia Stuart-Rasi reports on researchers in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands who are working to preserve Indigenous artifacts from storms and rising sea levels.

For generations, Indigenous people have been fighting colonization and climate change to protect their culture. Our Living Lands Producer Daniel Spaulding spoke to Stella Sammaripa, a Nimíipuu language teacher, about her efforts to bring Dogbane back to Nez Perce lands.

In the Arctic, temperatures are rising four times faster than the rest of the world. For Indigenous people in the Arctic, these shifts can be life- changing. Our Living Lands producer Daniel Spaulding spoke to Priscilla Frankson, an Iñupiaq researcher, about climate change’s impact in the Arctic.

For tribes in the Columbia River Basin, Pacific Lamprey are a key traditional food. But dams and climate change are threatening lamprey populations. Our Living Lands producer Daniel Spaulding spoke to Kanim Moses-Conner, a Lamprey Technician for the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation, about their lamprey conservation efforts.

Last year, four dams on the Klamath River were removed. For Indigenous nations in Oregon and California, it was a victory decades in the making. It was the largest dam removal in US history and tribes are already seeing river health and salmon populations improving. Our Living Lands producer Daniel Spaulding spoke to Grist reporter Anita Hofschneider about her reporting on how the dams came down.

As climate change makes sea ice less reliable, salmon and humpback whales might become more common in the Arctic. The Alaska Desk's Alena Naiden reports on how that change could impact subsistence lifestyles, and what scientists have to say about it.

Buffalo are a key species for the environment and Indigenous communities. Our Living Lands Producer Daniel Spaulding spoke with Dawn Sherman, the executive director of the Tanka Fund and a member of the Lakota, Shawnee, and Delaware tribes, about the importance of returning buffalo to Indigenous land.

A new environmental documentary, "Drowned Land," premiered in select theaters on March 23. KOSU reporter Sarah Liese spoke to the filmmaker Colleen Thurston, a Choctaw citizen,  about the film and the continued fight to safeguard Oklahoma's Kiamichi River.

As the country looks for new energy sources, Indigenous communities aresounding the alarm on the potential risks of nuclear power. Arizona Mirror reporter Shondiin Silversmith traveled a 320 mile uranium haul transport route, speaking to Indigenous communities along the way about their concerns. Our Living Lands Producer Daniel Spaulding spoke to her about the experience.