The Siksikaitisitapi or Blackfoot Confederacy is made up of four nations: Kainai – Blood Tribe, Piikani – North Peigan, Amskapi Piikani – South Peigan Blackfeet, and Siksika. The territory of the Siksikaitsitapi is located in the Northern Great Plains and goes from the North Saskatchewan River (north) to the Yellowstone River (south), from the Rockies (west) to the Great Sand Hills in Saskatchewan. There are approximately 24,000+ Siksaitsitapi members. The Rural Routes to Climate Solutions (RR2CS) Siksikaitsitapi Agriculture Project (SAP) is an opportunity for Siksikaitsitapi members to highlight on-farm and on-ranch climate solutions (e.g. regenerative agriculture, farm energy efficiency, on-farm clean energy) on Blackfoot territory.
Through community gatherings, workshops and field days and a variety of communications tools (podcast, articles, etc.), the Siksikaitsitapi Agriculture Project establishes a platform where Siksikaitsitapi members can collaborate, share experiences, and make collective decisions on two key issues:
Once the on-farm and on-ranch climate solutions that meet the criteria have been identified by project participants, the next step for the project will be to explore, discuss and determine how to accelerate the adoption rates of these solutions in the Siksikaitsitapi. Once again, it will be project participants who will come together to determine the best path forward for increasing adoption.
The first phase of the Siksikaitsitapi Agriculture Project (2021-2022) brought attention to the challenges surrounding on-Nation farming and ranching for Siksikaitsitapi members that we were unaware of prior to the initial launch of the project such as barriers created by the Indian Act or the challenges accessing financial capital to expand or start an agricultural operation.
Phase 1 also taught us the importance of addressing health concerns and food security in addition to exploring culturally appropriate land management practices in agriculture. All of these learnings have been incorporated into the objectives of Phase 2, the Siksikaitsitapi Agriculture Project’s current phase.
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Cyrus and Roy Weasel Fat of Kainai First Nation share their success story of farming and ranching on the Blood Reserve in southern Alberta.
