**Nation Building**

# Jackie Old Coyote

Director of Education and Outreach

White House Initiative on TCU's

November 28, 2007

THE HARVARD PROJECT ON AMERICAN INDIAN ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT

**The Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development**

A revolution is underway among the Indigenous nations of the world. It
is a quiet revolution, largely unnoticed in society at large. But it is
profoundly important. Native peoples are reclaiming their rights to
govern themselves. Challenging more than a century of colonial controls,
they are creating new governance structures, building sustainable
economies, developing new relationships with non-Native governments, and
reinvigorating Indigenous cultures. They are shaping their futures in
their own ways.

• **Sovereignty Matters.** When Native nations make their own decisions
about what development approaches to take, they consistently out-perform
external decision

• **Institutions Matter.** For development to take hold, assertions of
sovereignty must be backed by capable institutions of governance

• **Culture Matters.** Successful nations stand on the shoulders of
legitimate, culturally grounded institutions of self-government

• **Leadership Matters.** Nation building requires leaders who introduce
new knowledge and experiences, challenge assumptions, and propose change

**Images and Realities**

The Images

Mired in Poverty or Rolling in Dough?

Dependent Ethnic Enclaves or Little Economic Powerhouses?

Stressed and Vanishing Cultures or Isolated Islands of Tradition?

The Realities

**Dimensions of Intertribal Diversity**

Size ----Geography and Population

Location ----Urban v. Rural

History

Social & Economic Conditions

Gaming v. Non-Gaming

Agriculture, Tourism, Manufacturing, Subsistence

Culture ----Historic and Contemporary

Language

Religion and Ceremony

Arts

Social Relations

Governmental Form

**The Basics of Native America Today**

4.1 million AI/AN; 2.5 million AI/AN (single race)

400,000 Native Hawaiians; 120,000 Alaska Natives

560+ federally recognized tribes; \~300 reservations

56 million acres in trust; 44 million acres held by Alaska Native
corporations

Tribes are sovereigns

Diversity of governments, cultures & conditions

**Economic Development**

Long history of policy failures

1970s: Self-Determination

So...is it working?

**Economic Conditions**

[The Bad News]{.underline}

Low starting points & high poverty rates

Small \# tribes with lucrative casinos

[The Good News]{.underline}

Per capita income growth

Growth for gaming *and* non-gaming tribes

**Poverty Rates by Race/Ethnicity**

American Indian and Alaska Native, On-Reservation -- 39%

American Indian and Alaska Native -- 26%

Black -- 25%

Hispanic/Latino (of any race) -- 23%

Native Hawaiian and Other Pacific Islander -- 18%

Asian -- 13%

White -- 9%

**Income Change on Reservations**

**Real Per Capita Income: 1979-2000**

  -------------- -------------- -------------- -------------- --------------
                 1970           1980           1990           2000

  Indians        \$4,347        \$6,510        \$5,959        \$7,942
  Residing on                                                 
  Reservations                                                

  Total U.S. --  \$13,188       \$16,430       \$19,374       \$21,587
  All Races                                                   
  -------------- -------------- -------------- -------------- --------------

**Income Growth in Native America: 1990-2000**

**[Percent Change in Real Median Household Income]{.underline}**

Non-Gaming -- 33%

Gaming -- 24%

Total U.S. - All Races -- 4%

**Two Important Trends**

Exercises of sovereignty

Diversification

**Education**

[The Bad News]{.underline}

Sad history

Lasting legacy

[The Good News]{.underline}

College enrollment

Tribal colleges

Tribal control

**Higher Education Enrollment**

Percentage of 18 to 24-Year Olds

Total -- just under 40%

White, Non-Hispanic -- just over 40%

Black, Non-Hispanic -- between 30 and 40%

Hispanic -- just over 20%

Asian/Pacific Islander - - 60%

American Indian/Alaska Native -- just under 20%

**Realities of Indian Country**

An Overall Economic Boom

The Haves and Have-Nots

The Drive for Economic, Political, and Social Self-Determination

The Struggle for Political Self-Rule

**Common Challenges**

Political Self-Determination

Defending and Expanding Sovereignty

Exercising Powers of Self-Rule

Social and Cultural Self-Determination

Continuity of Shared Identity

Collective Commitment to the Nation

Economic Well-Being

Reversing the Centuries of Deficits

"A Place Where People Can and Want to Live"

The Challenge is *Nation Building*

**The Two Approaches**

The Standard Approach

The Nation Building Approach

**The Standard Approach**

Short-term, non-strategic

Economic development is an economic problem

Looks for "home runs"

Development agenda is driven by others

Indigenous culture is perceived as an obstacle

**Typical Standard Approach Results**

Failed enterprises

Brain drain

Outside perceptions of incompetence that undermine the defense of
sovereignty

Inside perceptions of incompetence

Continuing poverty

**The Nation Building Approach**

Sovereignty in Practice

Capable Governing Institutions

Cultural Match

Strategic Orientation

Leadership

**Honoring Nations**

Examples of Excellence in Tribal Governance

**Honoring Nations Innovations**

Little River Band's Migizi Business Camp

**Honoring Nations Innovations**

Cherokee Language Revitalization Program

**Honoring Nations Innovations**

Akwesasne Freedom School

**Honoring Nations Innovations**

Hopi Child Care Program and Hopi Education Endowment Fund

For more information, please visit the Harvard Project's website:

www.ksg.harvard.edu/hpaied

**Thank You**