Honoring Our Elders: A New Home for Shipibo-Konibo Teachers

Barbara SavageCollaborations, Education, Newsletter, South AmericaLeave a Comment

One of the many critical values we can learn from Indigenous peoples is the deep respect for, and care of, our Elders our wisdom keepers. They are the carriers of story, the transmitters of tradition, and the guardians of ancestral knowledge. In early 2025, we received a powerful request from our trusted partner, Bari Wesna, an Indigenous-led intercultural nonprofit based … Read More

Continuing to Support Indigenous Education Amid Funding Cuts

Barbara SavageAfrica, Education, Global Impact, NewsletterLeave a Comment

Today, more than ever, we are called to stand in solidarity with Indigenous peoples who are being disproportionately harmed by continued extractive policies and practices of our dominant culture and now, the recent devastating cuts in U.S. government funding. “We have already witnessed unbelievable rollbacks on our civil liberties, human rights, and environmental and climate justice laws and policies that we … Read More

Passing on Ancestral Knowledge with Bari Wesna

Barbara SavageCollaborations, Education, Key Projects, South AmericaLeave a Comment

We are proud to partner with, and be part of, passing on ancestral knowledge with Bari Wesna in Péru. Support their recent Traditional Singing & Medicinal Plants workshops was an honor. Held in the children’s library ‘’Jainoax Axeti Xobo’’ in the Intercultural community Bena Jema, and led by the wise Betty Muñoz, ancestral knowledge was shared with 25 boys and … Read More

Supporting San Youth

Barbara SavageAfrica, Collaborations, Documentation, Education, Filmmaking, Global Impact, Key Projects, Newsletter, TTF Travel Trips, WatchLeave a Comment

  In 2021, the San Bushmen living in Nhoma, a remote village in the Kalahari Desert of Namibia, asked the Tribal Trust to provide a school in their village that ensures an indigenous transfer of knowledge that coincides with teaching western knowledge; not through integration or assimilation of one within another but have these knowledge systems stand side by side … Read More

Shipibo-Konibo, the Indigenous people of the Ucayali River in Peru

Barbara SavageCollaborations, Documentation, Education, Key Projects, South America, UncategorizedLeave a Comment

The Shipibo-Konibo, the Indigenous people of the Ucayali River in Peru, are a shamanic culture that is world renown for healing with plant medicines such as ayahuasca. Medicine songs and designs are incorporated into their textiles, ceramics, and tools. Shipibo-Konibo Elders continue to assume lead roles in protecting their land, culture, and spiritual traditions. They are mentoring the next generation … Read More

Getting to Know the Monpa People of Bhutan

Barbara SavageAsia, Collaborations, Documentation, Education, Filmmaking, Key Projects, WatchLeave a Comment

Within Bhutan, a small Kingdom in the Himalayas, hidden away in the deep forest and high mountains, live the Monpa, the indigenous people considered the country’s first inhabitants. The Monpa asked the Tribal Trust Foundation (TTF) to help them preserve their ancient culture, which is based on living in harmony with nature and each other. In 2014, we were the … Read More

Reviving Traditional Weaving at Laya Central School

Barbara SavageEducationLeave a Comment

Though small in size Bhutan is considered one of the richest nations today in terms of culture. They see their unique cultures as a symbol of unity, and national identity. That’s why Royal Government of Bhutan adopted preservation of cultural heritage as the third pillar of Gross National Happiness. Realizing the importance of preserving cultural heritage, the youth of Laya … Read More