The Tribal Trust Foundation (TTF) was founded in 1998. For twenty-five years we have been identifying sustainable grass roots cultural preservation projects to support Indigenous people around the world. The TTF partners with local organizations and businesses whose experience and existing relationships with specific tribes can sustain joint initiatives over the long-term … Read More
Safeguarding Shipibo-Konibo Wisdom in Peru
How are you? I hope you feel curious and inspired after reading this newsletter. The Tribal Trust Foundation (TTF) was honored to be invited to attend and document a traditional rite of passage of a young Shipibo-Konibo girl on her thirteenth birthday. The Shipibo-Konibo are an Indigenous people who live along the … Read More
Personal Intentions For Healing In The New Year
Aboriginal Artist Anna Tilmouth Pengarte, “Native Fuchsia Dreaming” As we begin 2023, the Tribal Trust is energized and blessed with new board members; Margaret Loncki as our new treasurer. Margaret is the Director of Operations at Certis Capital Management, a multi-family office primarily specializing in non-correlated alternative investments. She oversees all aspects of operations and … Read More
A Year In Review & Gratitude For YOU
We are very grateful to you for your generosity which has enabled the Tribal Trust Foundation (TTF) to carry out its mission to preserve and safeguard Indigenous cultures in an ever-changing world. During the last year, with your support, TTF has made significant progress on important projects and collaborations around the world. Please read about these projects below and take … Read More
Ancient Futures
Triangulum by Beth Moon Ancient Futures. I have been blessed to sit in the San Bushmen healing circle on the soft Kalahari Desert sands many nights over the past years. Listening to the rhythmic clapping and singing of the women puts me in an altered state and at peace. I watch the medicine men go … Read More
Honoring Indigenous People’s Day
HONORING INDIGENOUS PEOPLE’S DAY! For those of you who follow us on social media (@tribaltrust), you may have seen some heartwarming images of Shipibo-Konibo youth in the Peruvian Amazon, where they were participating in a workshop to learn how to use traditional fishing tools, which are on the brink of extinction. The project was developed by our fiscal partner Bari Wesna to promote ancestral practices while strengthening the … Read More
Safeguarding Indigenous Wisdom in Bhutan
What wisdom do we lose when we do not learn from these Indigenous groups who have been living in harmony with nature since creation. A vanishing soul from an Indigenous culture is a lost being, representing loss of knowledge, loss of a heart and mind, a witness living in nature. – Dawn … Read More
A Celebration of Trees: Honoring the Mbuti People
This month we are celebrating trees and the indigenous people who have long been the guardians of the forest. Naturally, we think of the Mbuti Pygmies, who, for thousands of years have lived sustainably as hunter-gatherers in the Ituri Forest–the world’s second largest rainforest located in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. … Read More
Ancestral Wisdom
Above: Star Trails of Namibia by Karen Deakin The pandemic has affected us on a global scale and brought new awareness of the devastating effects of climate change and consequently the loss of biodiversity. As a direct result, we have become more aware of the urgent need to change our modern way of life to living more … Read More
Supporting Monpa Youth: Healers of the Black Forest
The time of storytelling for the sake of “voyeurism” is long past. The new model is initiated by indigenous communities, happens in collaboration with local filmmakers, and initiates audiences into new ways of being. Having built trust with the Monpa people over many years, The Tribal Trust Foundation is able to share a close-up living portrait of one 15-year old … Read More
Best Wishes
Artwork above: Mother & Child by Jackie Traverse (Anishanaabe) Happy Mother’s Day! I frequently sign off my correspondence with the message “best wishes.” Wishing followed by action can fulfill dreams. I learned from an early age to make a wish when I blew out candles on my birthday cake and whenever I saw a seed head of a dandelion. … Read More