Hopi Food & Agriculture Symposium <br>

“The current predominant use of Hopi trust lands for livestock grazing must change and include a shift to multi-purpose land use to ensure that Hopi land and natural resources are managed in accordance with Hopi values about the land and resources,” he said. “The Hopi Integrated Resources Management Plan 2001 (Hopi Tribal Council Resolution H-050-2001) recognizes the value of “Pastutskwa:” Arable Lands and Agricultural Practices and provides the management guidelines, objectives and detailed actions to support Hopi farming.”

For more information from the Hopi Tribe’s Department of Natural Resources and the services that they provide, write to Micah Loma’omvaya at P.O. Box 123, Kykotsmovi, AZ 86039, 928-734-3603, or you can e-mail him at MLomaomvaya@hopi.nsn.us.

Native seeds

There were also presentations on seeds that can be obtained from the Tucson-based Native Seed Search, which has an extensive listing of seeds available to purchase that offer effective diabetes control. The organization offers discounts to Native Americans, including a 20 percent price cut to natives who order these seeds. In addition, limited quantities of free seeds are available to native peoples living in the greater Southwest region and half-price rates to native peoples living outside the Southwest.

The Native Seed Search has Hopi seeds that are hard to find, including seeds for amaranth varieties, beans, corn, melon, chilies, cotton, gourds, greens, herbs for cooking and medicines, peas, sorghum, squash, sunflower, tobacco, tomatillo, tomato, watermelon and wheat.

Write to Native Seed Search at 526 N. 4th Ave., Tucson, AZ 85705 for a full color catalog and order forms. Order on-line at www.nativeseeds.org, or call 520-622-5561 to request more information.

Sustainable environments

Gary Nabhan, director of the Center for Sustainable Environments at NAU was also present.

“There is, perhaps, not a single Indian tribe in the United States that could get so a large percentage of its community members to an event on traditional foods, farming and health as the Hopi community did this last week,” Nabhan said. “It is clear that everyone wants to make the prevention of diabetes among Hopi youth a tribal priority, now and forever.

“While skyrocketing rates of diabetes and unemployment have been devastating to many Native American communities, Hopi community members have said loud and clear that they don’t want these problems to dominate their lives. They want their farming and wild food gathering traditions to become part of the solution, before it is too late.”

Nabhan stressed that locally grown healthy foods is feasible for Hopi villages.

“Over just three years, our center has helped bring in nearly a half million dollars of locally produced food into the Flagstaff economy,” he said. “We’re ready to provide technical assistance for Hopi farmers, community kitchens and cafeterias to bring even more economic and health benefits to Hopi communities.

“Traditional Hopi foods are some of the best in the world for controlling diabetes. Why not invest in their local production for local consumption, so that more expensive dialysis machines will never be needed?”

Nabhan said the Center for Sustainable Environments’ role at the symposium was to stress diabetes prevention in order to stem the disease’s rising toll on native families. He welcomes questions on this and other topics such as starting farmer’s markets on the reservation and marketing surplus farm products. For more information about NAU’s Center for Sustainable Environments and its programs, contact Gary Nabhan at 928-523-0664 or via e-mail at Gary.Nabhan@nau.edu.

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