This project benefits members of the Oglala Lakota living on the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation. We are growing and storing food in an area declared a "food desert" by the USDA. We will be growing and planting perennial foods as well as preserving and storing both cultivated and wild foods in a traditional cache thus contributing to the preservation and revitalization of traditional Lakota food eating.
Pine Ridge Indian Reservation has been designated as a Food Desert by the USDA. Educating youth about Food Sovereignty and teaching real skills about how to grow and store food offers opportunities for economic development or local business through agriculture using both current and traditional knowledge.
A greenhouse will allow us to create new plants and trees through grafting and dividing plants. The Lakota ancestors were once able to store food for years at a time in hidden caches. Earth Tipi plans to recreate this storage system with the help of students from Oglala Lakota College and elders in the community. Growing and storing food in a traditional way brings food security to people without direct access to healthy foods.
This project is one step towards creating food sovereignty and removing Pine Ridge status as a food desert. Ultimately, this project will affect the entire White Horse Creek and Manderson community which totals approximately 5000 people. Our project will extend further to other communities on the Pine Ridge Reservation as part of being good neighbors and partners with other local organizations who work towards food sovereignty.
