About the Coalition
The UNL Tribal Extension Office sponsors the Native American Coalition (NAC) which builds relationships and partnerships between the Nebraska Extension and Native American communities and organizations. The work of NAC is to help Nebraska Extension staff work more effectively with Native American communities, to build bridges between tribal and non-tribal communities, to facilitate community development and leadership in Native communities and to bring Native American traditional worldviews, languages, cultures and histories to the University of Nebraska and non-tribal communities.
LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT STATEMENT
"We would like to begin by acknowledging that the University of Nebraska is a land-grant institution with campuses and programs on the past, present, and future homelands of the Pawnee, Ponca, Oto-Missouria, Omaha, Dakota, Lakota, Arapaho, Cheyenne, and Kaw Peoples, as well as the relocated Ho-Chunk, Iowa, and Sac and Fox Peoples. Please take a moment to consider the legacies of more than 150 years of displacement, violence, settlement, and survival that bring us together here today. At the University of Nebraska, we respect and seek out inclusion of differences, realizing we can learn from each other, and we look forward to building long-lasting relationships with the Indigenous People of Nebraska."
– Chuck Hibberd, Nebraska Extension Emeriti
Recent News
Indigenous Foods Programs
Indigenous Youth Food Sovereignty Program
This program will welcome Indigenous high school students onto UNL’s East Campus to engage with Indigenous elders and UNL Extension faculty to learn how to grow their own food and establish food sovereignty for their families and communities. They will meet on Saturday mornings throughout the year to learn how to prepare, maintain, harvest and preserve the food they will grow in the UNL Indigenous Garden.
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Umóⁿhoⁿ Nation Hydroponics Initiative
This initiative focuses on hydroponics, a non-traditional method for growing food. Hydroponics involves growing plants without soil by using water-based mineral nutrient solutions. This program will provide year-round fresh food for the Umóⁿhoⁿ Nation.
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Nation Nourishment Program
This tribal food sustainability program is designed to create local food producers for the Umonhon Nation. These food producers will grow food for their families, communities and commercial venues to create economic development.
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Online Native Nutrition Course & Video Resources
Learn more about our free online Introduction to Native Nutrition training course and find video resources on nutrition education, food safety and preparation, recipe demonstrations, and food preservation.
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Turtle Island Trade Coalition
The Turtle Island Trade Coalition (TITC) is an Indigenous food trade hub that serves tribal nations and communities throughout the United States. Tribal members of the coalition receive multiple benefits including an online space where you can easily market and sell products, a profile on the National Market Maker business directory, access to grant opportunities, ability to attend business training workshops, and free registration to the annual Turtle Island Trade Coalition Food Sovereignty Conference.
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Indigenous Education Programs
Hoop of Learning Program
The Hoop of Learning Program is a college bridge pathway program in partnership between the UNL Tribal Extension Office and Southeast Community College. This program is open to Indigenous 11th and 12th grade students in the Lincoln Public School District and provides students with the opportunity to receive both high school and college credit by enrolling in courses at Southeast Community College.
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UNL Indigenous Pathway Program
The UNL Indigenous Pathway Program provides an entryway office for Indigenous people who are interested in enrolling at the University of Nebraska. This entryway is located at the UNL Tribal Extension Office in the Heartland Center for Leadership Development, 3110 N. 40th Street, Lincoln, NE 68504. The program provides a culturally welcoming environment that assists Indigenous students and their families with the admissions process that includes financial aid, scholarships, and support services to become a student at the University of Nebraska.
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Intertribal Youth Council of Nebraska
The Intertribal Youth Council of Nebraska aims to empower Indigenous youth through cultural awareness, education support, health promotion, and career development initiatives. The council, made up of Indigenous middle and high schoolers grades 7-12, will serve as a vital resource for Indigenous youth to help them to have a voice in shaping issues that impact their lives and the lives of their families.
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UNL Applied Science Online Degree Program
This online program provides tribal students the opportunity to take classes from the convenience of their homes or at the Nebraska Indian Community College’s computer labs. Applied Science is one of the most flexible majors, allowing you to choose from several areas of emphasis: Food, Animal and Plant Science, Current and Emerging Technologies, Ecosystems Science and Management, or Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Economics.
Cultural Exchange Training
Medicine Wheel Talking Circle Training Model
This training for relationship building is an Indigenous program for everyone to share their knowledge and stories about their families, places, cultures and beliefs in a safe and confidential manner to foster stronger self-identities and create positive personal and community relationships. This workshop is a four day workshop and is led by Nebraska Tribal Extension Educator, Ted Hibbeler (Lakota). Each training is limited to four participants in order to maintain small, intimate groups of for sharing historic and personal stories in a way that creates a bond and builds trust.
Upcoming Training: Every Friday January 10th - January 31st, 2025.
Cultural Exchange Training
Tribal Engagement Training Model
Led by Nebraska Tribal Extension Educator, Ted Hibbeler (Lakota), this training model covers Indigenous world views, colonization and U.S. relations with tribal nations, the Indigenous Assessment Model, and research and Indigenous issues. Faculty who complete this training will have a better understanding on how to engage with tribal communities both in the urban and rural areas.
Upcoming Training: Every Friday February 7th – February 28th, 2025.
Join us for the first annual
Great Plains Indigenous Food Sovereignty Conference
Hosted by the UNL Tribal Extension Office
May 1 - 2, 2025 | 8:00AM - 5:00PM | UNL East Campus Union
Seasonal Event
Indigenous Food Gatherings
The Native American Coalition hosts seasonal Indigenous Food Gatherings that feature many of the coalition programs. Participants will learn how to cook a healthy, traditional Indigenous meal using produce grown from the Indigenous Food Sovereignty Program, as well as meet local Indigenous producers that are a part of the Turtle Island Trade Coalition. Stay tuned for information about the next event!
