In 2021, the local leadership of the the San Ju/’hoansi — Namibia’s First People, recognized as Indigenous to Southern Africa and Namibia — reached out to TTF saying, “Our children currently travel far to attend boarding school; the journey is dangerous and conditions there are difficult. We believe we can do better for our children in our own village, and … Read More
Honoring Our Elders: A New Home for Shipibo-Konibo Teachers
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
Honoring the Mother
In this month of May, where in America we celebrate Mother’s Day, honoring the nurturing presence of mothers in our lives, I want to give thanks for Mother Nature and Mother Earth, and the web of life of which we are a part. At Tribal Trust Foundation, we believe that the wisdom of Indigenous peoples, the regenerative principles of Nature, … Read More
Passing on Ancestral Knowledge with Bari Wesna
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 Bushmen Youth
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
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
The San of Namibia in Santa Barbara
San Bushmen Rain Dance Artwork by Sheila Terry The Tribal Trust Foundation (TTF) has a long relationship with the Ju/’hoansi San of Namibia and Botswana who live in the northwestern Kalahari by responding to their requests to assist with preservation of their traditional culture. Nearly twenty years ago, the TTF provided support to the Kalahari Peoples Fund to bring San human rights activists to the United … Read More
Shipibo-Konibo Youth Learning Traditional Fishing Ways
With thanks to our partners, Bari Wesna, Shipibo-Konibo youth learning traditional fishing ways, is just one of many ways we partner with this Indigenous led organization committed to preserving culture.