Convening circle of log benches in golden sunlight through the oak trees.The Robert Redford Conservancy for Southern California Sustainability collaborates with Tongva community members and other Indigenous Peoples on whose ancestral land the Claremont Colleges stand. To be able to learn from and with Indigenous Peoples who are of this place, and whose ancestral land now hosts us all, is an honor and responsibility we are fortunate to have.
We continue to strive for reciprocal relationships of mutual benefit with Tongva tribal members, and have recently hosted a basket weaving workshop. We will be hosting a film, Saging the World, in honor of Indigenous People’s Day on October 10, 2022.
Indigenous elders helped us actively plan and plant many of the outdoor spaces at Redford Conservancy, which now serve as a gathering site for seasonal celebrations. Below is a history of the first years of collaboration.
The short film below, Cultivating Responsibility, highlights the voices of Tongva tribal members, including Barbara Drake, Craig Torres, and Wallace Cleaves, discussing the role of landscape.
Elementary school students in the Leadership for Environmental Education Program learning about Indigenous relationships to the land from Tongva elder Barbara Drake.
