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The Sogorea Te Land Trust

The Sogorea Te Land Trust

An urban Indigenous women-led land trust that facilitates the return of Indigenous land to Indigenous people

  • About
    • Purpose and Vision
    • Our History
    • Partnerships & Alliances
    • Staff & Board
    • Contact Us
  • Projects
    • Caring for the Land
      • Lisjan
      • Rammay
      • Gill Tract
      • ‘Ookwe
    • Cultural Revitalization
    • Himmetka: In One Place, Together
    • Public Education
    • Indigenous Led Youth Program!
  • Lisjan (Ohlone)
    • Lisjan History & Territory
    • Mak Noono Tiirinikma
  • Media
    • Blog
    • For the Press
  • Engage
    • Donate
    • Get E-mail Updates
    • Request a Speaker
    • The Land
      • Rematriate the Land Fund
      • Return Land / Land Return
      • Land Acknowledgements
    • Resource Library
    • How to Come Correct
    • Other Ways to Engage
  • Pay Shuumi
    • Shuumi Land Tax
    • Institutional Shuumi Land Tax
    • Shuumi Land Tax FAQs
    • Testimonials

How to Come Correct

The work of Sogorea Te’ Land Trust is made possible by the strength, resilience, leadership, and labor of Indigenous women and culture keepers.

We are also supported by many allies and accomplices of different backgrounds, engaging with the vision of Indigenous women led land return and rematriation. 

Collectively we are all still in a world founded on the theft of the lives and land of Indigenous people.  As a society we are just beginning to learn how to navigate what it means to acknowledge the history of the land we are on, to build meaningful relationships and collaborations that honor the past and engage with the knowledge, time, energy and resources of Indigenous people in respectful and reciprocal ways.

As we move towards transforming our relationships the land we are on, here are some tips for how to engage with our work, request a speaker, cultural consultation, land acknowledgement, offer an opportunity, or contact us.


PREPARE

A great way to prepare is to do some research before you even reach out and ask us for something! Check out our website for a ton of great resources and information.

 


STUDY UP

  • Learn the history of the land you are on
  • Learn about the relationship of your own family line to stolen land
  • Find out about the issues impacting Indigenous communities today
  • Start a study group or penpal with your friends or family about whose land you are on, settler colonialism, dismantling white supremacy, unsettling, land return and rematriation 
  • Learn about your local sacred sites, take an action to protect them  
  • Learn about the pressing environmental issues where you are, take an action 
  • Do your part to shift and redistribute resources to communities who have been historically extracted from 
  • Check out our Recommended Readings

ASK FIRST

  • How have you benefited from stolen land?
  • What structural advantages have you had?
  • What is the intention of your request?
  • What is your relationship to our work?
  • What labor are you asking from Indigenous people?
  • Who will benefit from what you want to do? How?
  • How will this be reciprocal? What do you bring?
  • How are you centering Indigenous leadership?
  • How can you leverage your position to shift inequality?
  • How can this be transformative?
  • Are you prepared to do the work?

REQUESTS

We appreciate opportunities to engage with different communities and share our work.

At the same time, many of us experience constant requests for  our time, our energy, for culturally extractive information, and unreciprocated labor. 

Be Respectful. We are not a clearinghouse of free information.  A lot of the work we do is related to healing and historic harm,  presenting the history of colonization and genocide is not easy.  

We are not a checkbox or a cultural display. Don’t consume us. Engage with us. 

Pay real honorariums, especially if you are connected to corporations and institutions. And then get those corporations to pay Shuumi Land Tax.  If you dont have any funding, consider organizing a  fundraising effort and coming back with your request  in a couple months.  

It helps us if you give us a minute to respond. We are navigating many requests and engage specific processes for decision making. Please refrain from contacting us through Sogorea Te’ members personal social media or via their family and friends for organizational requests.   


To request a member of Sogorea Te’ Land Trust for an event,conference, or interview please use our Inquiry Form, including as much information as possible, including  who, what, where why, dates/times/etc, 2-4 weeks in advance. 


CONSULTATIONS

“I would love to pick your brain….”

A consultation is a request for information, advice, a discussion and/or feedback.   

 

This is an important and essential way to engage with Indigenous voices, perspectives and leadership.   If your project includes or represents indigenous people, culture, land etc, ask for Indigenous guidance and participation in its creation.

  Consider, what is your intention with this information or representation?  What will it be contributing to creating? Who will be credited?  Who is getting paid? Who will have access to the project, research, interview, etc? How can you make this a more transformative interaction?  Can you leverage your position. Please spend time with our questions for reflection before reaching out for a consultation. 

To  request a tribal, cultural, art, or other type of consultation please use our Inquiry Form. 


LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Land acknowledgement is a way to recognize the original and ancestral people of the land you are on.

Historically, there are always Indigenous traditions around ways of acknowledging and entering other peoples ancestral territories. 

There are many different contemporary and traditional protocols and practices around land acnowledgmeent. Today, many organizations, institutions, cities and people all different backgrounds are beginning to practice land acknowledgement as a way to recognize a small piece of this history and present day reality. 

Indigenous people are still here.  Acknowledging that is is important. Please do so in a respectful way.   But just “acknowledging” occupation or presence on Indigenous lands with no other relationship or action, actually recreates extraction and erasure. We encourage our allies to go beyond Land Acknowledgements. For more information visit our Land Acknowledgement Page.


REPRESENTATIONS

Any kind of writing, art, research, project, or portrayal  that includes an image of, reference to or  are inspired by Indigenous people, Indigenous history, Indigenous issues, or Indigenous culture, creates a representation.

 

If your request includes the creation of a representation please consider:

Who created or will create this representation? Why? What power dynamics does this representation draw from, interrupt or recreate?

Consider all  the possible politics of representation in your work and efforts.

If your representation includes a request from Indigenous people  for information, time, energy, knowledge, and work, please see Consultations. 


 

 Representations can recreate or interrupt assumptions,  stereotypes, inequality,  and / or power relationships.

Always allow Indigenous people to represent themselves.


FUNDRAISERS

Hosting fundraising through your networks and communities is a great way to  support our work, Many of our projects are funded through small individual contributions, grassroots fundraisers.   If you are going to host a fundraiser please make sure to send us a message at info@rematriatetheland.org and let us know first. 

Please use the fundraising accountability practices:  If you publicly post our name to collect money on our behalf, we request also publicly post your donation receipts.  

Consider how to build deeper reciprocity.  Who really benefits if you use our name and images to generate social media content for  a 10% off sale?   Engage with our work. 

We appreciate fundraising support efforts and also encourage institutional allies, businesses and organizations to move beyond sales based percentage fundraisers to  give  Institutional Shuumi Land Tax, to link their personal or business fundraisers directly to our website, to distribute our outreach materials, to redistribute resources, and come up with creative ways to collaborate. 


SHARING OUR WORK

Please feel free to share our public social media posts, information about Shuumi Land Tax, and links to our website with credit to the artists and Sogorea Te’ Land Trust.

We appreciate tags and credit. please feel free to share public information from our website for small class projects or similar unpaid educational projects.

If you want to include our work in larger projects,  places were presenters are being paid or in print, please reach out to inquire at info@rematriatetheland.org 


PHOTOS AND DOCUMENTATION 

Please ask before taking photographs of us on our land, at our sites, or offices.

Please ask before using images from our website or creating representations of our work beyond educational sharing.   If you are engaged in a project hoping to use or create representations, please use our inquiry form and allow time for us to engage our decision making processes. 

 Please note:  We do not collectively or individually sign release forms that seek to own or privatize images or intellectual property related to our work. We never consent for outside use of our images, land or work in terms of  perpetuity, without our final oversight or for non-Indigenous profit making.


BOUNDARIES

  • Practice Respect. Cultural knowledge is sacred. Refrain from asking Indigenous people questions about closed practices, ceremonies, and traditions.
  • Avoid contacting people through personal social media platforms, family or in person with Sogorea Te’ requests. The fastest way to get a response is our request form or email: info@rematriatetheland.org 
  • Refrain from using/participating in Indigenous medicines and ceremonies that are known closed practices or not from your own lineage. A closed practice is one that is  traditionally passed only within a specific lineage. 
  • Treat us as you would any other expert in their field.
  • Allow Indigenous people to speak on behalf of their own lived experience.

TAKE ACTION

Do Your Part!

  • Take Action! Build! Organize! Engage! 
  • For those settling in the East Bay, pay your Shuumi land tax! 
  • Do you have access to land, opportunities, equipment, skills, funds? See how you can use those resources to aid the efforts of Indigenous people.
  • If you do not have disproportionate resources, maybe you can share something else like a skill or volunteer support or maybe you know someone who can. Talk to them! 
  • Support Indigenous businesses and artists
  • Support Indigenous community workers, activists, and organizers
  • Learn about and protect the sacred sites of the land you are on
  • Organize to take down monuments to racists and colonists 
  • Organize to change racists or colonial names of local school, parks, etc 
  • Plant native plants in your neighborhood and communities
  • Protect your local creeks and watersheds
  • Be a good guest!

Thank you for engaging with us.

We appreciate you.  

–Sogorea Te’ Land Trust 

* Please Note: This is a collectively created living document and may change as we grow and develop our processes

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The Shuumi Land Tax is a voluntary annual contribution that non-Indigenous people living on traditional Lisjan Ohlone territory make to support the critical work of the Sogorea Te’ Land Trust.

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Sogorea Te Land Trust
✨Rematriated ✨

These Abalone shells were returned by a student group who had collected them at a community garden over many years.  When they started learning more about the Indigenous people whose land they are on and the history of the territory they decided to return more than 30 shells to @villages_of_lisjan through Sogorea Te’. 

Abalone used to exist in abundance and were integral to many different Indigenous Lifeways.  Now they are nearly gone.  Returns like these bring them back into relation with their relatives and lift our spirits. ❤️

To rematriate any stolen, plundered, or otherwise misappropriated cultural items,  artifacts, inheritances, trustfunds, houses, or land hit us up. 

#rematriate #reflect #reciprocate #return #abaloneshells #sogoreatelandtrust #urbanindigenous #womenled #landtrust
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✨Rematriated ✨ These Abalone shells were returned by a student group who had collected them at a community garden over many years. When they started learning more about the Indigenous people whose land they are on and the history of the territory they decided to return more than 30 shells to @villages_of_lisjan through Sogorea Te’. Abalone used to exist in abundance and were integral to many different Indigenous Lifeways. Now they are nearly gone. Returns like these bring them back into relation with their relatives and lift our spirits. ❤️ To rematriate any stolen, plundered, or otherwise misappropriated cultural items, artifacts, inheritances, trustfunds, houses, or land hit us up. #rematriate #reflect #reciprocate #return #abaloneshells #sogoreatelandtrust #urbanindigenous #womenled #landtrust
17 hours ago
View on Instagram |
1/9
Tule time 🌾

STLT crew gathering and bundling tule with the “Tule Lady,” traditional knowledge keeper Diana Almendariz, next step - a boat! ✨

#tuletime #traditionalgathering #culturalrevitalization #nativeland #cultivatingtradition #landback #rematriatetheland
Tule time 🌾

STLT crew gathering and bundling tule with the “Tule Lady,” traditional knowledge keeper Diana Almendariz, next step - a boat! ✨

#tuletime #traditionalgathering #culturalrevitalization #nativeland #cultivatingtradition #landback #rematriatetheland
Tule time 🌾

STLT crew gathering and bundling tule with the “Tule Lady,” traditional knowledge keeper Diana Almendariz, next step - a boat! ✨

#tuletime #traditionalgathering #culturalrevitalization #nativeland #cultivatingtradition #landback #rematriatetheland
Tule time 🌾

STLT crew gathering and bundling tule with the “Tule Lady,” traditional knowledge keeper Diana Almendariz, next step - a boat! ✨

#tuletime #traditionalgathering #culturalrevitalization #nativeland #cultivatingtradition #landback #rematriatetheland
Tule time 🌾

STLT crew gathering and bundling tule with the “Tule Lady,” traditional knowledge keeper Diana Almendariz, next step - a boat! ✨

#tuletime #traditionalgathering #culturalrevitalization #nativeland #cultivatingtradition #landback #rematriatetheland
Tule time 🌾

STLT crew gathering and bundling tule with the “Tule Lady,” traditional knowledge keeper Diana Almendariz, next step - a boat! ✨

#tuletime #traditionalgathering #culturalrevitalization #nativeland #cultivatingtradition #landback #rematriatetheland
Tule time 🌾

STLT crew gathering and bundling tule with the “Tule Lady,” traditional knowledge keeper Diana Almendariz, next step - a boat! ✨

#tuletime #traditionalgathering #culturalrevitalization #nativeland #cultivatingtradition #landback #rematriatetheland
Tule time 🌾

STLT crew gathering and bundling tule with the “Tule Lady,” traditional knowledge keeper Diana Almendariz, next step - a boat! ✨

#tuletime #traditionalgathering #culturalrevitalization #nativeland #cultivatingtradition #landback #rematriatetheland
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Tule time 🌾 STLT crew gathering and bundling tule with the “Tule Lady,” traditional knowledge keeper Diana Almendariz, next step - a boat! ✨ #tuletime #traditionalgathering #culturalrevitalization #nativeland #cultivatingtradition #landback #rematriatetheland
2 days ago
View on Instagram |
2/9
Indigenous people are still here. 

Include and center Indigenous voices in curricula.

Learn about your local Sacred Site struggle.

Learn about your local Indigenous led environmental struggle.

Change the names of parks, school, and other monuments to colonial violence and harm. 

Take Action! Support your local Indigenous led land work today!

Hot tips from your favorite Indigenous women led land trust.  Feel free to share!  Check out our Rematriation Resource Guide to learn more. 


#gobeyondacknowledgement #SupportIndigenousLed #sogoreatelandtrust #stillhere #urbanindigenous #womenled #landreturn #landback #rematriation #resources
Indigenous people are still here. 

Include and center Indigenous voices in curricula.

Learn about your local Sacred Site struggle.

Learn about your local Indigenous led environmental struggle.

Change the names of parks, school, and other monuments to colonial violence and harm. 

Take Action! Support your local Indigenous led land work today!

Hot tips from your favorite Indigenous women led land trust.  Feel free to share!  Check out our Rematriation Resource Guide to learn more. 


#gobeyondacknowledgement #SupportIndigenousLed #sogoreatelandtrust #stillhere #urbanindigenous #womenled #landreturn #landback #rematriation #resources
Indigenous people are still here. 

Include and center Indigenous voices in curricula.

Learn about your local Sacred Site struggle.

Learn about your local Indigenous led environmental struggle.

Change the names of parks, school, and other monuments to colonial violence and harm. 

Take Action! Support your local Indigenous led land work today!

Hot tips from your favorite Indigenous women led land trust.  Feel free to share!  Check out our Rematriation Resource Guide to learn more. 


#gobeyondacknowledgement #SupportIndigenousLed #sogoreatelandtrust #stillhere #urbanindigenous #womenled #landreturn #landback #rematriation #resources
Indigenous people are still here. 

Include and center Indigenous voices in curricula.

Learn about your local Sacred Site struggle.

Learn about your local Indigenous led environmental struggle.

Change the names of parks, school, and other monuments to colonial violence and harm. 

Take Action! Support your local Indigenous led land work today!

Hot tips from your favorite Indigenous women led land trust.  Feel free to share!  Check out our Rematriation Resource Guide to learn more. 


#gobeyondacknowledgement #SupportIndigenousLed #sogoreatelandtrust #stillhere #urbanindigenous #womenled #landreturn #landback #rematriation #resources
Indigenous people are still here. 

Include and center Indigenous voices in curricula.

Learn about your local Sacred Site struggle.

Learn about your local Indigenous led environmental struggle.

Change the names of parks, school, and other monuments to colonial violence and harm. 

Take Action! Support your local Indigenous led land work today!

Hot tips from your favorite Indigenous women led land trust.  Feel free to share!  Check out our Rematriation Resource Guide to learn more. 


#gobeyondacknowledgement #SupportIndigenousLed #sogoreatelandtrust #stillhere #urbanindigenous #womenled #landreturn #landback #rematriation #resources
Indigenous people are still here. 

Include and center Indigenous voices in curricula.

Learn about your local Sacred Site struggle.

Learn about your local Indigenous led environmental struggle.

Change the names of parks, school, and other monuments to colonial violence and harm. 

Take Action! Support your local Indigenous led land work today!

Hot tips from your favorite Indigenous women led land trust.  Feel free to share!  Check out our Rematriation Resource Guide to learn more. 


#gobeyondacknowledgement #SupportIndigenousLed #sogoreatelandtrust #stillhere #urbanindigenous #womenled #landreturn #landback #rematriation #resources
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Indigenous people are still here. Include and center Indigenous voices in curricula. Learn about your local Sacred Site struggle. Learn about your local Indigenous led environmental struggle. Change the names of parks, school, and other monuments to colonial violence and harm. Take Action! Support your local Indigenous led land work today! Hot tips from your favorite Indigenous women led land trust. Feel free to share! Check out our Rematriation Resource Guide to learn more. #gobeyondacknowledgement #SupportIndigenousLed #sogoreatelandtrust #stillhere #urbanindigenous #womenled #landreturn #landback #rematriation #resources
7 days ago
View on Instagram |
3/9
“As we raise up our dreams we carry in our hearts the struggles of our Indigenous relatives around the world.“ 

Our co-founder Johnella LaRose collecting flowers for Jakeline Caal, a 7 year old Q’eqchi /Mayan relative whose life was lost in immigration custody while we building the arbor at Lisjan in 2018. 

#jakeline #sayhername #honoringourancestors #lisjan #justiceforindigenouspeople #sogoreatelandtrust #rematriatetheland
sogoreatelandtrust
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“As we raise up our dreams we carry in our hearts the struggles of our Indigenous relatives around the world.“ Our co-founder Johnella LaRose collecting flowers for Jakeline Caal, a 7 year old Q’eqchi /Mayan relative whose life was lost in immigration custody while we building the arbor at Lisjan in 2018. #jakeline #sayhername #honoringourancestors #lisjan #justiceforindigenouspeople #sogoreatelandtrust #rematriatetheland
1 week ago
View on Instagram |
4/9
Amaranth 💜 Huauhtli 

#amaranthus #bushgreen #loveliesbleeding #yinchoi #pigweed #amaranth ##huauhtli #ally #relative
sogoreatelandtrust
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Amaranth 💜 Huauhtli #amaranthus #bushgreen #loveliesbleeding #yinchoi #pigweed #amaranth ##huauhtli #ally #relative
1 week ago
View on Instagram |
5/9
Garden Party 🎉 

The crew looking cute at a recent meeting at Rammay. 

📷 @fulltimebrownkid 

#rammay #urbangarden #urbanindigenous #womenled #landtrust #community # upturned #rematriation
sogoreatelandtrust
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Garden Party 🎉 The crew looking cute at a recent meeting at Rammay. 📷 @fulltimebrownkid #rammay #urbangarden #urbanindigenous #womenled #landtrust #community # upturned #rematriation
2 weeks ago
View on Instagram |
6/9
❤️ Rematriate the Land ❤️
 
In honor of all of our mamas, in appreciation of matriarchs everywhere, and with wild hope for an Indigenous women led future returning us all to greater balance on this earth, we are delighted to reveal our gorgeous new Rematriate the Land art by the one and only Jackie Fawn. 
 
For us Rematriation is about the return of Indigenous land and lifeways and mothers are essential to our work.  We are founded by Indigenous moms. Indigenous moms are on the land and in the lead everyday. We knew we wanted to wanted to work with a Native mom for this collaboration and are so delighted with this beautiful offering.  Thank you @jackiefawn and @fishbearstudios.  And thank you to all our mamas, most especially Mother Earth. 🌎
 
Rematriate the Land!  And do something nice for a mom this weekend!

(These posters will be popping up at upcoming Bay Area Indigenous events,  watch our stories to snag one) 
 
 
 
#happymothersday  #matriarchylives  #Rematriatetheland #nativeland #indigenousland #stolenland  #sogoreatelandtrust #jackiefawn  #nativeart #indigenousart #indigenouswomenled #landtrust #landreturn #returntoland
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❤️ Rematriate the Land ❤️ In honor of all of our mamas, in appreciation of matriarchs everywhere, and with wild hope for an Indigenous women led future returning us all to greater balance on this earth, we are delighted to reveal our gorgeous new Rematriate the Land art by the one and only Jackie Fawn. For us Rematriation is about the return of Indigenous land and lifeways and mothers are essential to our work. We are founded by Indigenous moms. Indigenous moms are on the land and in the lead everyday. We knew we wanted to wanted to work with a Native mom for this collaboration and are so delighted with this beautiful offering. Thank you @jackiefawn and @fishbearstudios. And thank you to all our mamas, most especially Mother Earth. 🌎 Rematriate the Land! And do something nice for a mom this weekend! (These posters will be popping up at upcoming Bay Area Indigenous events, watch our stories to snag one) #happymothersday #matriarchylives #Rematriatetheland #nativeland #indigenousland #stolenland #sogoreatelandtrust #jackiefawn #nativeart #indigenousart #indigenouswomenled #landtrust #landreturn #returntoland
2 weeks ago
View on Instagram |
7/9
The Sogorea Te’s Land Team would like to invite you to come work with us this summer! We are looking for 4 fellows to participate in a knowledge share from June 6th-August 15th, with a commitment to 20hours a week. We would love to share with you and have you share with us! Let’s heal and reindigenize the land together!
#reindiginize #rematriatetheland
The Sogorea Te’s Land Team would like to invite you to come work with us this summer! We are looking for 4 fellows to participate in a knowledge share from June 6th-August 15th, with a commitment to 20hours a week. We would love to share with you and have you share with us! Let’s heal and reindigenize the land together!
#reindiginize #rematriatetheland
The Sogorea Te’s Land Team would like to invite you to come work with us this summer! We are looking for 4 fellows to participate in a knowledge share from June 6th-August 15th, with a commitment to 20hours a week. We would love to share with you and have you share with us! Let’s heal and reindigenize the land together!
#reindiginize #rematriatetheland
sogoreatelandtrust
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The Sogorea Te’s Land Team would like to invite you to come work with us this summer! We are looking for 4 fellows to participate in a knowledge share from June 6th-August 15th, with a commitment to 20hours a week. We would love to share with you and have you share with us! Let’s heal and reindigenize the land together! #reindiginize #rematriatetheland
2 weeks ago
View on Instagram |
8/9
Rematriate Seeds. 

“When I look at the seeds we’ve grown for three generations, I see seeds that come with stories and lineages resting in my hands. We take care of these seeds and plants, like grandparents, and in return these Rematriated seeds connect us together "

Victoria Montano In Conversation With Bernadette Zambrano on seed lineages. 

Ya Nuunukne Spring Newsletter 

Art by @creative_mudafukah 

#rematraiteseeds #rematriateknowledge #rematriatetheland #seedsaving #seedlineages #sogoreatelandtrust #YaNuunukne #theytellastory
sogoreatelandtrust
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Rematriate Seeds. “When I look at the seeds we’ve grown for three generations, I see seeds that come with stories and lineages resting in my hands. We take care of these seeds and plants, like grandparents, and in return these Rematriated seeds connect us together " Victoria Montano In Conversation With Bernadette Zambrano on seed lineages. Ya Nuunukne Spring Newsletter Art by @creative_mudafukah #rematraiteseeds #rematriateknowledge #rematriatetheland #seedsaving #seedlineages #sogoreatelandtrust #YaNuunukne #theytellastory
2 weeks ago
View on Instagram |
9/9

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