“I'm sacred, the next person is sacred, and all life is sacred. That connection we have to each other and to all forms of life is sacred and must be cherished. In the same way, the relationship we have with land and the relationship the land has with us should be honored.” - Agaiotupu Viena (Samoan) Colonization has disrupted the identities of queer Indigenous Peoples, and because of this, they practice deep forms of care, often making chosen families as a built space of refuge. In Samoa, one way to describe a refuge is “paolo,” which means “to give shade” or “protect.” Care and shade are inherently a part of queer and trans Pacific Islander identity.  This summer, Seedcast producer Ha’aheo Auwae Dekker (Kanaka Maoli) was a guest at UTOPIA Washingtonʻs Hoʻolauleʻa, a community event dedicated to celebrating queer and trans Pacific Islanders, or QTPIs. In this episode, they share the sounds and music from the event along with wisdom from fellow QTPIs Ara Sifainu’ululei “Ara-Lei” Mahealani Yandall and Agaiotupu Viena. Both share about their experiences as fa'afafine, a gender identity embedded in the lands of Samoa, as well as the reason UTOPIA was created, and the unique role they play in caring for the wider Pasifika community and each other. Special thanks to Ara-Lei, Agaiotupu, and UTOPIA Washington for welcoming Seedcast into their Hoʻolauleʻa earlier this year and for sharing their time, stories, and energy with us. Thanks also to our Nia Tero colleagues Michael Painter, Nichlas Emmons, and Anne Quidez for their feedback on this episode. Host: Jessica Ramirez. Producer and Audio Mix: Ha’aheo Auwae-Dekker. Story Editor: Jenny Asarnow. Resources: UTOPIA Washington Enjoy the full video recording of the 2023 Hoʻolauleʻa showcased in this episode of SeedcastFollow UTOPIA Washington on Instagram  Learn more about UTOPIA in this South Seattle Emerald piece Seedcast is a production of Nia Tero, a global nonprofit which supports Indigenous land guardianship around the world through policy, partnership, and storytelling initiatives.Enjoy the Seedcast podcast on the Nia Tero website, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and your other favorite podcast platforms. Keep up with Seedcast on Instagram and use the hashtag #Seedcast.

“Our language is a land acknowledgment, you know, when we use that language, it automatically imbues our world with life force. We're not going to cut down that tree. And if we do, we're going to offer something, you know, because it's a being just like us.” ~Jeremy Dutcher, Member of the Wolastoqiyik People of the Neqotkuk  Today we’re listening to music that is an act of language revitalization and a crafted response to the crises we collectively face.   Recently, Nia Tero brought musician and storyteller Jeremy Dutcher together with a group of young Indigenous creators and culture bearers to talk about the intersections of artistic practice and Indigenous sovereignty. During this gathering, Jeremy performed on “Live on KEXP and shared a powerful conversation with musician and long-time KEXP DJ Gabriel Teodros.   Jeremy Dutcher is a member of the Wolastoqiyik People of the Neqotkuk (formerly known as Tobique First Nation) in eastern Canada. Jeremy is a Two-Spirit song carrier, a classically trained musician and composer, an activist, and ethnomusicologist who writes and sings music in their Native language as an act of language preservation and Indigenous sovereignty. In this episode, Jeremy shares songs from their first album, “Sakomawit”, as well as their new album “Motewolonuwok ᒣᑏᐧᐁᓓᓄᐧᐁᒃ”, which came out October 6, 2023. We greatly appreciate this unique collaboration with our long-time friends at KEXP. This episode was hosted and produced by Jessica Ramirez, with story editing and audio mix by Jenny Asarnow. More information: Learn more about Jeremy and find their music here. Keep up with Jeremy’s album release and current tour dates by following them on Instagram. Get to know KEXP! Listen to their live content via their website and catch up with a rich treasure trove of past episodes of Live on KEXP here. Get to know Gabiel Teodros on Instagram, and follow his post-KEXP journey here. Mentioned in this episode: Elder and Language Keeper Maggie Paul Buffy St. Marie Kehkimin Wolastoqey language immersion school  4th World Media Lab Seattle International Film Festival Seedcast is a production of Nia Tero, a global nonprofit which supports Indigenous land guardianship around the world through policy, partnership, and storytelling initiatives.Enjoy the Seedcast podcast on the Nia Tero website, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and your other favorite podcast platforms. Keep up with Seedcast on Instagram and use the hashtag #Seedcast.

Imagine learning a language that is spoken by only a few hundred people—an Indigenous language that belongs to a people and a land that have been in relationship with each other for countless generations. This is the heart of our episode about Gwich’in language revitalization in the Boreal. Princess Daazhraii Johnson (Neets'aii Gwich'in) is an Indigenous TV and film producer on a patient journey of learning, reclaiming, and revitalizing Gwich’in. The language connects her to the land and to the people who came before her. “Our generation is really making the effort to use the language, and express ourselves in the language, and it's really powerful,” she explains.   Princess and her dear friend Alishia Carlson (also Neets'aii Gwich'in) talk with language journalist Kavita Pillay about the struggles of learning Gwich’in, and the joy with which they approach the effort, especially in relation to the language learning of children. Princess is inspiring a whole new generation to be curious about Indigenous languages through her work as a screenwriter on the Peabody award-winning PBS Kids series Molly of Denali. Also in this episode: a celebration of caribou. Content note: The episode touches on the violence of residential schools on Turtle Island and how they contributed to today’s language crisis. Learn more: Dinjii Vadzaih Dhidlit: The Man Who Became a Caribou (bilingual book) "Diiyeghan naii Taii Tr’eedaa (We Will Walk the Trail of our Ancestors)" (short film by Princess and Alishia, part of Reciprocity Project) Seedcast Sonic Journey episode featuring “Diiyeghan naii Taii Tr’eedaa (We Will Walk the Trail of our Ancestors)” Molly of Denali (PBS) Subtitle, a podcast co-hosted by Kavita Pillay and Patrick Cox This episode won a 2022 Indigenous Journalists Association (IJA, formerly Native American Journalists Association) award for Best Radio/Podcast Coverage of Native America, Second Place. Host: Jessica Ramirez. Producer: Kavita Pillay. Story Editor: Jenny Asarnow. Special thanks to Michelle Hurtubise and Patrick Cox. Seedcast is a production of Nia Tero, a global nonprofit which supports Indigenous land guardianship around the world through policy, partnership, and storytelling initiatives.Enjoy the Seedcast podcast on the Nia Tero website, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and your other favorite podcast platforms. Keep up with Seedcast on Instagram and use the hashtag #Seedcast.

A new season of Seedcast is coming March 24!  Join host Jessica Ramirez to hear conversations with Indigenous peoples all over the world. We’re kicking it off with Colleen Echohawk, who is running to be the first Indigenous mayor of Seattle. Share, subscribe, and spread the word! Seedcast is a production of Nia Tero, a global nonprofit which supports Indigenous land guardianship around the world through policy, partnership, and storytelling initiatives.Enjoy the Seedcast podcast on the Nia Tero website, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and your other favorite podcast platforms. Keep up with Seedcast on Instagram and use the hashtag #Seedcast.