Ancestral Knowledge, Modern Readiness
This program supports the leadership of Tribal Nations in advancing emergency preparedness and climate resilience across the Sierra Nevada. Indigenous communities hold generations of knowledge in fire management, water governance, and climate response. Our role is to ensure they have the tools, platforms, and partnerships needed to implement that wisdom at scale. Through this program, Indigenous Futures Society provides direct support for GIS-based planning, culturally grounded hazard mitigation strategies, and the development of emergency operations infrastructure. With Tribes at the helm, we’re helping to strengthen response systems, restore good fire, and expand regional influence in emergency management.
Climate Challenges Facing Indigenous Communities in the Sierra Nevada
Indigenous communities in the Sierra Nevada face severe wildfire risks with limited resources for mitigation. Despite deep traditional knowledge refined over millennia, colonial policies displaced Tribes and criminalized cultural burning, ceremonial practices, and Native languages. Today, Native Americans are six times more vulnerable to wildfires than white populations and exposed to 1.7 times more wildfire smoke, worsened by rural residences and exclusion from policymaking. Climate change threatens culturally significant sites, plants, and ecosystems essential to Tribal traditions, ceremonies, and subsistence. Many Tribes rely on traditional hunting, fishing, and gathering for food, medicine, and ceremony. These activities are impacted by droughts, species migration, and ecosystem shifts, jeopardizing food security, cultural identity, and Native languages. Addressing these inequities requires centering Tribal voices, recognizing sovereignty, and integrating Indigenous knowledge into climate resilience strategies.
Resourcing Indigenous Knowledge for Climate Resilience and Fire Mitigation
We support Tribal governments in expanding the reach of their existing fire and climate expertise by co-developing tools and pathways for autonomy in emergency planning. This includes:
- Enhanced Tribal Emergency Preparedness: Improved response plans, trained personnel, and stronger coordination with emergency management agencies
- Increased Use of Indigenous Knowledge in Fire Mitigation: Equipping Tribes to implement and advocate for cultural preservation and other eco-cultural practices
- Sustainable Decision-Support System Developed: A GIS-based tool tailored for Tribal emergency preparedness and data sovereignty
- Stronger Inter-Tribal Collaboration: Facilitating knowledge exchange, and scaling of the model to other Indigenous communities in the Sierra bioregion and beyond
- Every action in this program is designed to strengthen what already exists: Indigenous fire knowledge, water systems, and the enduring responsibility to protect the land and the people.
“The devastating wildfires we see aren’t natural disasters—they’re the result of suppressing the knowledge systems that kept these lands in balance. Our communities have always known how to live with fire. The choice is clear: continue watching our homes burn, or invest in Indigenous-led wildfire preparedness. Cultural burning is ceremony. It’s food security. It’s biodiversity. It’s good soil. It’s healing. Supporting Indigenous-led conservation isn’t just the right thing to do—it’s the most effective path we have to restoring balance across California’s fire-adapted landscapes.”
Matthew Moore, Program Executive, Indigenous Futures Society
Projects
GIS‑Based Data Hub
At the heart of our Emergency Preparedness and Climate Adaption Program is a GIS-based data platform supporting Indigenous climate leadership, emergency response, and decision-making sovereignty across the Sierra Nevada. Still in development, our Hub will enable Tribal nations to map evacuation routes, document climate risks, identify infrastructure needs, and protect sacred sites—all while maintaining control over their own data. Developed in partnership first with the First Nations Emergency Services Society, and now OpsReady, this platform integrates Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) with modern emergency infrastructure and geospatial analysis. Our Hub prioritizes data sovereignty protocols, allowing Tribes to manage and share sensitive information on their own terms.