Chumash Trails Day 2026

The conveners of Su’Nan The SPACE, the Montecito Trails Foundation, and the Tribal Trust Foundation invite you to JOIN US in HONORING the LAND & TRAILS of the ORIGINAL PEOPLES of SANTA BARBARA with a day of art, storytelling, and ceremony.

For over 13,000 years, the Original Peoples of the Santa Barbara region, now known as the Chumash, have lived on these lands.

In 2018 , TTF was a founding organizer of the first Indigenous Peoples Day celebration in Santa Barbara, bringing together members of different Chumash bands and the wider community in a shared act of honoring.

In 2021, the Montecito Trails Foundation (MTF) and Tribal Trust collaborated to organize the first Chumash Trails Day. This year, we are again partnering with MTF, and representatives from the various Chumash bands as well as Elena Maria “Mia” Lopez, founder of Su’nan The SPACE for 2026 Trails Day.

For Chumash Trails Day 2026, we are adding in collaborations with local Indigenous artists for an immersive experience of art and storytelling in Nature, on our beloved Montecito trails.

Decolonizing our minds and community isn’t a single moment — it’s a practice. This event is an invitation to practice together using the time together in Nature and the language of art, storytelling, and ceremony.

PARTNER WITH US

Join us and help make this gathering be one in right relationship with our collaborators, communities, and the relatives and spirits of this community that we are all blessed to call home.

INDIGENOUS ARTISTS (especially local Chumash)

Perform & Share Your Tradition

Perform your art form at a designated location along the walk (dance, music, poetry, basket weaving, wood carving, ceramics, painting, or other)
Be compensated with an artist honorarium
Sell your work directly to attendees at the tabling area — all sales go straight to you
And/or join the advisory circle to help co-create this event
Help us identify artists and Elders who should be part of this gathering.

ALLY ORGANIZATIONS & COMPANIES

Amplify & Show Up Together

Table at the community gathering space to share your mission and connect with attendees
Co-promote the event to your networks and communities
Consider a sponsorship contribution toward artist honoraria, water stations, food, and event logistics
Logs and wordmarks will be added to event collateral in respectful consideration of contribution.

OUR COMMITMENT

We are committed to building this together with our community in ways that respect and honor the history of this sacred place and the Chumash as the original peoples of the region, while also acknowledging we are in this, caretaking and growing together on a shared planet.

READY to LEARN MORE or START CO-CREATING? Let’s talk!

We are open to any ideas. If you feel resonance, please do reach out to begin a conversation. We hope to hear from artists, organizations, venues, and anyone interested in supporting and co-creating this idea into something good and healing.

Contact Us today for information on participation as an artist, community sponsor, or guest.

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