Association of Minnesota Public Educational Radio Stations
Native Lights is a weekly, podcast and radio program hosted by Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe members and siblings, Leah Lemm and Cole Premo. Native Lights is a space for people in Native communities around Mni Sota Mkoce — a.k.a. Minnesota — to tell their stories about finding their gifts and sharing them with the community.
Leah and Cole have a conversation with Derek Nicholas (Red Cliff Band of Ojibwe) about food sovereignty and Indigenous cooking. Derek shares his experiences as the Nutrition Program Coordinator at the Division of Indian Work in Minneapolis; his views on culturally, seasonally appropriate foods; and about the growing, multi-faceted Indigenous food community.
Derek Nicholas: Indigenous Fare for Future GenerationsRead More
Heather creates vivid landscapes inspired by her family’s Native American and Mexican heritage and her time exploring the natural world. In addition to painting, Heather is also a professional snow sculptor and recently appeared in Disney’s Best In Snow sculpting competition.
Rita is focused on Indigenous representation in the historical society and encourages people to think differently about the land now known as Minnesota.
Today Leah shares her conversations with Susie Ballot and Lera Hephner from White Earth Nation’s cohort of Indigenous Parent Leadership Initiative (IPLI). As graduates of the initiative, they’ve begun projects to deepen connections between their communities and culture.
Susie Ballot and Lera Hephner’s Work to Preserve Culture Across GenerationsRead More
Native Lights is a weekly, half-hour radio program hosted by Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe members and siblings, Leah Lemm and Cole Premo. Native Lights is a space for people in Native communities around Mni Sota Mkoce — a.k.a. Minnesota — to tell their stories about finding their gifts and sharing them with the community. …
Duane Goodwin: Expressing Culture Through SculptureRead More
Elizabeth talks with Leah and Cole about the importance of voting in Native communities, the upcoming Supreme Court case challenging The Indian Child Welfare Act (ICWA), navigating grant-writing, her work as a filmmaker, and how her love for family and community helps her in her journey. Chi-Miigwech to Elizabeth for sharing with us today!
Elizabeth Day’s Gift for Nurturing Community and StorytellingRead More
Tamee brings her knowledge of Indigenous values and tribal policy to her work and studies. She wants to Indigenize the medical education system and defend treaty obligations while creating better healthcare systems that are centered around Indigenous values.
Tamee Livermont Brings Indigenous Values to Health Care Education and PolicyRead More
Today Leah and Cole chat with Maggie Lorenz, an enrolled member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe and descendant of the Spirit Lake Dakota Nation. She is the Director of the Wakan Tipi Center & Executive Director of the Lower Phalen Creek project, which is a Native-led environmental conservation nonprofit on the East Side of St. Paul.
Maggie Lorenz’s Leadership in Reclamation and Gift for ResiliencyRead More
Her passion for reclaiming Native food sovereignty leads her work and is driven by a care for community health and undoing the effects of historical trauma and colonization.
Dani Pieratos’ Journey to Reclaiming Food Sovereignty.Read More
Today we chat with Corey Medina, a blues-rock artist from Shiprock, NM, and member of the Áshįįhí clan of the Diné Nation. His band, Corey Medina & Brothers, has a reputation as an on-stage powerhouse, bringing its blues-tinged rock and roll to stages across Minnesota.
Corey Medina: Connecting With Community Through MusicRead More
In this week’s show Leah and Cole are live from the Minnesota State Fair with two great guests. We discuss Native representation at the fair and beyond. Our first guest today is Andy Vig! Andy is an enrolled member of the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community, who is the director of SMSC’s community center, called Hoċokata Ti, which opened in 2019. We also catch up with Lt. Governor Peggy Flanagan (White Earth Band of Ojibwe), who appeared on our first State Fair show back in 2019.
Native Representation at the Great Minnesota Get-TogetherRead More
Today we’ll chat with State Representative and Entrepreneur Jamie Becker-Finn (Leech Lake). Recently she celebrated the opening of her coffee shop – Makwa Coffee. We talk with Jamie about the first few weeks of Makwa Coffee, how she got the idea amidst the pandemic and how the community has supported Makwa so far.
Jamie Becker-Finn’s Path to Bringing Community TogetherRead More
