TNC News:
SANTA FE — The Nature Conservancy (TNC) has hired its first-ever Indigenous Partnerships Program director.
John Waconda of the Pueblo of Isleta will lead this new program designed to support and partner with Indigenous Peoples to create a shared future of healthy lands, waters and communities in New Mexico.
Waconda is coming out of retirement from the U.S. Forest Service because – as he says, “there’s work to be done”, adding that he sees opportunities to build more bridges with Indigenous partners to create a more sustainable future by protecting the land and water, together.
“As the former US Forest Service, Southwestern regional restoration partnership coordinator, I immersed myself in tribal communications so local community members had a good understanding of restoration partnerships such as the Rio Grande Water Fund and how it would benefit people and nature,” he said. “This work will enable me to employ my knowledge, skills and experiences in a way that helps me and my people.”
New Mexico State Director Terry Sullivan said he sees this as an important hire to build a programmatic need, filling a gap between the state’s past and future.
“Indigenous Peoples have been caring for land in New Mexico since time immemorial,” Sullivan said. “TNC is committed to creating, promoting and perpetuating a narrative and future in which nature and people can thrive and coexist.”
Sullivan said the Rio Grande Water Fund led by TNC is a good example of rebuilding New Mexico’s forests by using techniques such as controlled burns that have long been used by Indigenous Peoples. Another is in replanting forests, including a project with TNC, Pueblo partners and volunteers who are coming together to plant climate-resilient seedlings across 4,000 acres of the Bandelier National Monument and in the Santa Clara Pueblo Watershed.
“With these and other new developments on the way, we can look ahead while learning from our past,” Sullivan said.
TNC is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, TNC creates innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. Learn more online at nature.org/newmexico.