Indigenous Peoples Acknowledgment

We are fortunate to have rich Indigenous communities who have laid the foundation for living and thriving in the Sonoran Desert landscape. We respectfully acknowledge that our work in the regional watershed takes place on the ancestral lands and territories of Indigenous peoples of the Sonoran Desert. Local lands and waters were stewarded for thousands of years by the Huhugam and Sobaipuri people.  We honor the waters of this region and their significance to the past, present, and future of all communities here.

We value that water in the Sonoran Desert is of great spiritual, physical, and ecological significance, and is to be protected, cherished, and celebrated. We acknowledge that watershed management and stewardship decisions were historically made in a non-inclusive manner and by non-indigenous peoples. Furthermore, Indigenous peoples and their lands and water have been displaced as a result of genocide, colonization, forced relocation, and resource extraction for generations.  

The rich history and connection the Tohono O’odham people have to our community is visible in the land. The saguaro, agave, ocotillo, and creosote bushes used to beautify our urban area are sacred plants to the Tohono O’odham, and their scent and blooms signify the treasured seasons of rain. The management techniques of working with surface water, groundwater, watershed, earth, and vegetation that we call Low Impact Development and Green Stormwater Infrastructure have been practiced for time immemorial in the form of check-dams and other features as can be seen in Pima Canyon, Tumamoc Hill, and many places throughout the region.  We model our work on how Indigenous peoples utilized the desert's local abundance without extracting and importing water resources. The mountains that surround the Tucson metro area are the homes, culture, and identity of Tohono O'odham ancestors. Babad Do’ag (Frog Mountain) also known as the Santa Catalinas and Towa Kuwo (Turkey Neck) also known as the Santa Rita Mountains are part of what forms the local watershed. The sacred connection to the land and water is living and breathing here in Cuk Ṣon (Black Base) also known as Tucson and we use this connection to the land and Indigenous ancestors to guide our work.

Today, the Tucson metro area is home to the Tohono O'odham and Pascua Yaqui (Yoemem) tribal nations whose relationship with the land continues to this day. We commit to including Indigenous voices moving forward and the continuous improvement of our understanding, actively promoting the application of traditional ecological knowledge. This is only a small step in honoring the land, water, and cultures we are surrounded by, and we aim to aid our working group participants in understanding these values.

These words of this acknowledgment were informed by statements by the Tohono O'odham Student Organization of UArizona as well as the UA Water Alliance, Rainwater Harvesting for Drylands & Beyond (Brad Lancaster), the Santa Cruz Watershed Collaborative, and the Santa Cruz Heritage Alliance who each worked through indigenous communities to develop their statements of acknowledgment. The LIDWG welcomes further indigenous connections to improve this acknowledgment. Please contact us if interested.