There’s only one week left until our live, in-person conference in Reno, Nevada! Will you be joining us?

This will be the National Indian Council on Aging’s (NICOA) 23rd conference on aging in Indian Country. “Resilience for Tomorrow…Together” is the theme of this year’s American Indian Elders Conference, which will take place on August 1-6, 2021 in Reno, Nevada, at the Nugget Casino Resort.

Gerontologist Ken Dychtwald, founder and CEO of Age Wave, will be the keynote speaker. NICOA’s conference is the only national aging conference in the country focusing exclusively on the needs of American Indian and Alaska Native elders. It will offer the opportunity to elevate issues in American Indian politics and legislation, and focus on issues such as health, safety, financial management, elder abuse, caregiving, employment, retirement and the Older Americans Act.

Registration for conference attendees is available online and by mail. Pricing is based on your membership type, which is also available for purchase online and by mail. You must apply for or renew your membership before registering for the conference.

If you have any questions, please email Cheryl J. Archibald or Leslie Maly, or leave us a message at (505) 292-2001.

“Resilience for Tomorrow… Together,” the American Indian Elders Conference hosted by the National Indian Council on Aging (NICOA) will unfold in Reno, Nevada, at the Nugget Casino and Resort August 1-6, 2021.

“This theme couldn’t be more fitting given the challenges that Indian Country has faced this past year. Particularly the devastating loss of so many elders,” said Dave Baldridge, International Association for Indigenous Aging’s (IA2) executive director and board member.

“IA2 is excited to announce partnerships with Dr. J. Neil Henderson, the National Resource Center for Native American Aging (NRCNAA), and Dr. Jennifer Carson from the University of Nevada, Reno, to bring multiple training opportunities for elder advocates, community health representatives, and elders to the conference.”

NICOA hopes to bring nearly 1,000 American Indian and Alaska Native elders, caregivers, stakeholders, aging network providers, elected tribal representatives, and various community organizations together at the event. As one of the nation’s first conferences to meet in person since COVID-19, “we heard loud and clear from our members that it is time to pick up and move forward. They told us it is critical for this gathering to take place. Now more than ever, we need to highlight the needs and work to address issues facing Native elders,” said NICOA Executive Director Larry Curley.

IA2 will host multiple trainings and listening sessions with the support of grants from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the CDC Foundation. In addition, IA2 will offer up to 25 travel scholarships to help staff who would otherwise be unable to afford to attend the trainings.

They are offering several trainings and events that require pre-registration. They are sharing information about other events in advance so you can start planning your conference week now!

IA2 sponsored training sessions include:

Pre-registration for the Sunday Native Elder Caregiver Curriculum training is required. There is a limit of 25 participants for this course. Dementia Friends Champion training and Community Information Sessions pre-registration is preferred to ensure enough workbook materials are printed, but not required.

For a description of the IA2 training sessions and more details, click here.

On July 21 NICOA Executive Director Larry Curley took part in the American Society on Aging’s Legacy Interviews. This was one of a 12-week webcast series that features interviews with diverse legendary pathfinders who have spent decades in the field of aging, health and social services.

Each interview is conducted by Ken Dychtwald, to capture the wisdom and character of gerontology’s pioneers to inform, inspire and guide current and future professionals in the fields of aging and related services for years to come.

ASA's Legacy Interviews will continue through September 8.

Membership with NICOA offers many valuable benefits. As a paid member you will receive NICOA’s online bimonthly newsletter, legislative updates on important issues and resolutions affecting elders, voting privileges for qualified members and discounted registration fees for qualified members to attend our biennial conferences.

Be an important part of a national membership network and become a NICOA member by applying online or by mail.

Funding is available for local health departments to be a national leader in advancing public health action on Alzheimer’s disease. Tribal Health Departments are eligible and encouraged to apply! Applications are due on Monday, August 2.

Under the new Healthy Brain Initiative (HBI) Road Map Strategists initiative, up to six (6) local health departments or partnering nonprofit hospitals/health systems will receive direct funding, training, and technical assistance to establish a part-time HBI Road Map Strategist.

Click here to learn more and submit an application. Visit the Healthy Brain Initiative Road Map or the Road Map for Indian Country to learn more. Please contact Meghan Fadel at mlfadel@alz.org or (202) 638-7535 for additional questions or one-on-one support with the application process.

The growth of the U.S. came at a tragic cost: the land of American Indians was seized, and their tribes were annihilated.

Today, American Indians and Alaska Natives have faced repeated attempts to annihilate our history, customs, ceremonies and language. To annihilate us.

Most recently, this threat was COVID-19, which impacted diverse older Americans more than any other demographic. And American Indians, especially elders, felt it keenly.

The National Indian Health Board has maintained a site that has kept data on the prevalence of COVID-19 in tribal communities in the United States. According to their data, as of this spring, more than 5,981 tribal members had succumbed to the virus. This includes tribal elders like Marshall McKay, 68, chairman of the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, and former chairman of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Jesse “Jay” Taken Alive, 65.

Of the nearly 6,000 deaths in tribal communities, it is estimated that 60 percent of those deaths were elders over the age of 65. These individuals are holders of great ancestral knowledge. With their deaths, our community has lost an estimated 233,285 years of tribal history, culture and traditions. Some of this knowledge is lost forever.

A Supreme Court ruling that upheld two provisions of Arizona voting law that restrict how ballots can be cast will make it more difficult for American Indians in the state's tribal communities to vote, Navajo Nation activists say. The provisions upheld by the Supreme Court state that in-person ballots cast at the wrong precinct on Election Day must be completely discarded and that only family caregivers, mail carriers and election officials can deliver another person's ballot to a polling place.

Many fear these provisions will eliminate voting options that many American Indians used in 2020. For example, some reservations and tribal communities are located up to 20 miles from the assigned polling places or drop boxes and everyone doesn't have transportation or residential mail service. Many of those residents rely on organizers who come to their communities to collect and deliver their ballots. American Indians have also taken advantage of being able to cast their ballots at the location most convenient for them.

President Joe Biden became the first Democrat to win the presidential race in Arizona since Bill Clinton in 1996. His 49 percent was the largest vote share for any Democrat in the state since Lyndon Johnson in 1964. The about 4-point difference between the national vote (Biden by about 4 points) and Arizona's vote (Biden by 0.3 points) is the best for a Democrat since 1948, when Harry Truman won.

Navajo Nation was largely credited with helping Biden win the reliably red state. Roughly 75 percent of Arizona's Native residents voted for Biden, according to an analysis by the Arizona Republic. Maricopa County, where many of the state's tribal communities are located, was key to Biden's victory.

The Supreme Court ruled last month that hundreds of millions of dollars in coronavirus relief money tied up in court should benefit Alaska Natives rather than be spread more broadly among American Indian tribes around the U.S.

The justices ruled 6-3 in the case, which involved the massive pandemic relief package passed last year and signed into law by then-President Donald Trump. The $2.2 trillion legislation earmarked $8 billion for “Tribal governments” to cover expenses related to the pandemic.

The question for the court was whether Alaska Native corporations, which are for-profit companies that provide benefits and social services to more than 100,000 Alaska Natives, count as “Indian tribes.” The high court answered yes.

As construction continues on Enbridge Line 3 replacement project so does activity by those who oppose the controversial tar sands oil pipeline in northern Minnesota. Line 3 is a proposed pipeline expansion to bring nearly a million barrels of tar sands per day from Alberta, Canada to Superior, Wisconsin. It was proposed in 2014 by Enbridge, a Canadian pipeline company responsible for the largest inland oil spill in the US. Enbridge seeks to build a new pipeline corridor through untouched wetlands and the treaty territory of Anishinaabe peoples, through the Mississippi River headwaters to the shore of Lake Superior.

Last month several people locked themselves to equipment used by Enbridge to bore through the Straight River in Hubbard County, Minn. Also, on the same day, the Red Lake Treaty Camp was informed that the camp would be evicted by the Pennington County Sheriff’s Office and people would be arrested for trespassing on land Enbridge claims is theirs. A few days later law enforcement arrested three people at a ceremonial prayer lodge protected under treaty law and federal order. The Treaty Camp is an official camp endorsed and supported by the Miskwaagamiiwi-Zaagaiganing—Red Lake Nation.

Protesters have been met with strong tactics by law enforcement. Last week, Pennington County Sheriff’s Office brought attack dogs in an effort to evict the Red Lake Treaty Camp. The use of attack dogs by private security were previously used near the Standing Rock Indian Reservation during the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline and was heavily scrutinized by the public.