Lakota Well-Being Project

03/22/2026

“Welcoming back the Thunders”today✌🏽Spring Equinox ⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️

03/21/2026

03/21/2026

Happy National Poetry Day! 🌿

Across Turtle Island, Indigenous poets have always been here, telling the truth, tending to language, and carrying their Peoples’ stories forward with breathtaking skill and power.

Today, we celebrate and honor the incredible wealth of Native American poetry: from the oral traditions that stretch back thousands of years to the vital contemporary voices writing and performing right now.

We encourage you to go beyond the classroom canon. Seek out Native American poetry. Buy a book from an Indigenous poet. Follow their work. Share it.

✨ Who are some of your favorite Native poets? Drop their names in the comments.

If you’re looking for a place to start, here are a few resources:
bit.ly/PoetryFoundationNativePoets
bit.ly/DrunkenBoatNativePoets
bit.ly/BritannicaNativePoets

Pictured, left to right: Layli Long Soldier, Joy Harjo, Tommy Pico, Natalie Diaz, N. Scott Momaday

03/21/2026

Lakota Omniciye Member Spotlight: Demetra White

Demetra is from McLaughlin, South Dakota, and is an enrolled member of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe. She is currently a junior majoring in Biology with a minor in American Indian Studies.

She serves as Co-President of Lakota Omniciye, Co-Vice President of AISES, and is a peer mentor for first-year Native students. Demetra balances many responsibilities and consistently steps up to support Lakota O, the center, and AISES whenever help is needed.

Her favorite thing about the center is the strong sense of community it creates. Everyone is welcoming, there is always laughter, and it truly feels like a home away from home. The center is a place where she can be herself, feel supported, and stay connected to her culture.

Fun fact: Demetra is left-handed, can wiggle her ears, makes some pretty great spaghetti, and enjoys playing pickleball with friends.

Her message to first-year students: Don’t be afraid to step out of your comfort zone. College goes by fast, so get involved, meet new people, and enjoy every moment.

Thank you for all that you do for the community around you, Demetra! We appreciate you!

03/21/2026

We’re proud of our Cheyenne River relatives for making it to the state tournament, carrying the spirit of all Oceti Sakowin Territory.

🏀 When they step onto the court, they don’t stand alone—they carry the strength of the Lakota Nation within them. Every heartbeat echoes our history. Every play honors our people. They are Lakota Strong.

Their relatives walk with them through every challenge and every victory. Win or lose, their strength comes from something deeper than the game.

This is more than basketball—this is who they are, where they come from, and what they stand for.

🔗 Get your Lakota Strong t-shirt today: https://ndnstore.xyz/product/lakota-strong/

03/21/2026

📣 Attention Native Youth: Apply Now for First America Indigenous Futures Workshop Series 📣

First America is organizing and hosting two creative writing workshop series for emerging Indigenous writers ages 16 to 25. Through guided workshops and ongoing revision support, participants will create short works of fiction imagining Indigenous nations 250 years into the future. This forward-looking lens will serve as a counterbalance to the upcoming ‘First America’ podcast – sponsored in part by First Nations – which explores Indigenous history 250 years in the past.

Selected pieces will be published online, and one will be featured on the podcast, and the author will win a $500 cash prize. Workshops will take place at the Tulsa Artist Fellowship building in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and on Zoom, from April 20 to April 28, 2026.

➡️ Learn more and apply by March 31, 2026: https://bit.ly/3NvNSIN

03/20/2026

Good afternoon Oyate 🪶☀️

RE: Chairman Sitting Bear’s Public Safety Initiative (PSI) 🗣️🗣️🗣️

Chairman Sitting Bear will be coming out to the (3) largest districts next week 24-26 March 2026, to hold administrative hearings for public safety. These hearings are open to ALL members not limited to district locations.

Chairman Sitting Bear’s intention for PSI hearing(s) is for tribal government to hear first-hand from the Oyate regarding concerns, issues, and recommendations to address public safety. Leadership will be there to listen.

✅ [Mission] The mission of the SRST Public Safety Initiative is to establish a comprehensive public safety plan that is data-driven and employs a multidisciplinary approach to create a strategic framework to reduce crime, coordinate resources, create safe communities for Standing Rock Nation, and promote homegrown prosperity for all members.

✅ [Vision] To create a safe nation where tribal members of all ages have equal opportunities, are protected, can live in peace and have the ability to thrive economically and culturally to create a nation where every member has both support and responsibility.

“I am under the belief or I know that we can do this work ourselves, we must get out of our own way. We can’t live in the past, we have to start looking toward the future, we must make a better future for our generations to come with the work we do now. I have faith in our people of all generations and I know we can fix the things we are experiencing.” - Chairman Sitting Bear

Get involved in our tribal affairs Oyate! The future our ancestors prayed for and envisioned is up to us to build, together. See you there! 🌱🪶🦬💪🏽

[KLND will also be broadcasting live]

03/20/2026

Randall Kekoa Akee (Harvard Kennedy School) delivered the 2026 Ting BMO Public Lecture on February 25, 2026 at SFU's Vancouver campus. The lecture focused on...

03/19/2026