Connecting Circles

06/20/2026

In a treehouse by the sea, a grandfather shares the story of how he kept his dreams alive with thoughts of his future grandchild—who is his most precious dr...

06/18/2026

06/15/2026

One of the most sacred places in North America just got emergency protection.
Chaco Canyon has been added to the endangered historic places list (Crazy Horse Memorial) — a major victory for the tribal nations who have fought for years to protect this irreplaceable sacred site from oil and gas development.
Chaco Canyon is not just ancient ruins. It is a living sacred place — home to astronomical alignments, ceremonial architecture, and over 1,000 years of Pueblo, Navajo, and ancestral Indigenous spiritual life. Its structures are so precisely aligned with the sun and moon that modern engineers still cannot fully explain how they were built.
And someone wanted to drill for oil next to it.
Tribal nations said no. Advocates said no. 70,000 public comments said no.
Today — the list agrees.

06/15/2026

📣 Funding opportunity alert!

The National Park Service's Tribal Heritage Grants Program is accepting applications to help preserve oral histories, cultural traditions, sacred places and historic sites for future generations.

💵 $600,000 available
✅ No non-federal match required
🗓️ Deadline: July 27, 2026

Apply today and help keep Native culture and heritage thriving. 🪶
👇
https://www.nps.gov/subjects/historicpreservationfund/tribal-heritage-grants.htm

06/05/2026

On this day in 1919, Congress approved the woman’s suffrage amendment and sent it to the states for ratification. Adding the amendment to the Constitution required ratification by three-fourths of the states, which at that time was 36 of 48.

The National Woman’s Party led by Alice Paul began sewing stars on a giant purple, white, and gold flag. Each time a state ratified the 19th Amendment, a new star would be sewn on the flag.

The 19th Amendment became law more than a year after Congress approved the amendment. The 36th state, Tennessee, voted to ratify on August 18, 1920. This image shows Alice Paul unfurling that flag from the suffrage headquarters on that day.

The Library of Congress is home to the NWP records and library collection.

Image: Photo shows a group of women waving their arms in celebration while the ratification banner with its 36 victory stars hangs from the balcony of the National Woman's Party headquarters. 1920. Photo by Harris & Ewing. National Women's Party Records, Library of Congress.

06/02/2026

The Cherokee Nation made history by becoming the first Native American tribe to deposit traditional heirloom seeds into the Svalbard Global Seed Vault in Norway. Among the nine rare varieties they secured were seeds dating back centuries before European settlement—including the sacred Cherokee White Eagle Corn, a crop woven into the fabric of Cherokee identity, history, and food systems.

This move goes far beyond agriculture. It's an act of cultural preservation that links ancestors to future generations, ensuring that the foods and knowledge that have sustained Cherokee people for hundreds of years won't be lost to climate change, agricultural challenges, or global crises.

Food sovereignty has always been central to Native American self-determination. By protecting these ancestral crops in a global repository, the Cherokee Nation is reclaiming their right to grow and nourish themselves with the foods their people have cultivated for millennia. The seeds represent survival, resilience, and a profound connection to the land that no crisis can erase. It's a powerful reminder that cultural preservation and agricultural preservation are inseparable—and that honoring our past is how we build a more rooted future.