Impact Spotlight

Battery backed solar system to provide electricity for Bison program infrastructure

Facilities for a Native-led staff to manage a re-homed bison herd

Support for one of the only tribally-owned microgrids in the United States

About

Indigenized Energy (IE) is a Native-owned capacity-building organization dedicated to promoting a native-led energy future. Through trust-based partnerships and innovative programming, they work directly with tribes to develop long-term energy visions and transformation plans that promote resilient and sustainable energy systems. IE’s education programs, direct mentoring, and renewable energy projects create career opportunities for tribal members, stimulate local economies, and promote tribal energy sovereignty across the US.

The Northern Cheyenne Indian Reservation, located in SE Montana, is home to approximately 6,000 members of the Northern Cheyenne Nation. The reservation lies on the tribe's traditional lands and despite being served by a college and several small businesses, is challenged by high levels of poverty, unemployment, and increasingly frequent extreme weather events and power outages. As part of their economic landscape, the Tribe also maintains a growing buffalo herd.

For the Cheyenne Tribes, the American Bison “ésevone” is a sacred animal. Throughout time, The Cheyenne Tribes and other Native American Communities relied on Bison to provide food, clothing, and shelter. Historically, the Cheyenne were nomadic, and would uproot their communities to follow with the movement of the herd. When the buffalo were purposefully exterminated during colonization, it also destroyed the primary source of the Cheyenne’s economy, making them and other tribes dependent upon government services.

Currently, the Tribe’s buffalo program struggles without a stable base infrastructure and lacks access to the electricity needed to maintain the surrounding buildings.

“Our people have struggled. Renewable energy is a source of hope for a new economy, and a better future for all.”

— Otto Braided Hair (Northern Cheyenne), Chair, Indigenized Energy Board

HF Partnership

In partnership with the Honnold Foundation and others, Indigenized Energy will be better equipped to expand its Bison herd, maintain a high level of animal care, and increase the production of meat for tribal members.